Suleika Jaouad+

Suleika Jaouad recommends this novel because she believes it is the most complex, daring, and best work Jonathan Miles has produced to date.

“an instant classic”

Suleika Jaouad values this work because the epilogue, written by Dr. Lucy Kalanithi, offers a profound and clarifying perspective on grief and love.

“I remember weeping over those final pages—undone by her grief, the clarity with which she held it, and by the refusal of her prose to look away.”

Suleika Jaouad cites this collection to demonstrate how a master poet uses list-like attributes to imbue ordinary objects with significant power.

“Surely no laundry list, grocery-story list, honey-do list, checklist. But a list, just the same—one full of power.”

Suleika Jaouad values this work because it provided the foundation for understanding silence as a form of direct, simple attention to reality.

“In the “prayer of the heart” we seek first of all the deepest ground of our identity in God. We do not reason about dogma of faith, or “the mysteries.”… We learn recollection, which consists in listening for God’s will, in direct and simple attention to reality.”

Suleika Jaouad values this work for continuing the inquiry into the economic realities of a creative life.

Suleika Jaouad values this book as a companion piece to help find ways to sustain creative work without personal breakdown.

Suleika Jaouad values this work because it provides a roadmap for shifting from a life of perfectionism to one shaped by joy and curiosity.

Suleika Jaouad highlights this work as an effective tool for group members to visualize their aspirations through guided journaling.

Suleika Jaouad lists this as a key resource for group prompts to help participants engage in honest self-expression.

Suleika Jaouad includes this work as a favored prompt for its ability to encourage emotional vulnerability within journaling groups.

Suleika Jaouad recommends this piece because it serves as an insightful prompt for group participants to reflect on their experiences with loss.

Suleika Jaouad values this work as an effective prompt that helps participants explore their inner lives during journaling club sessions.

Suleika Jaouad values this work because it provides critical insights into coral reef ecology and historical environmental loss.

Suleika Jaouad values this work as the source for the featured guest essay that provides recurring comfort.

Suleika Jaouad recommends this work as a transformative text that allowed her to project her need for freedom onto a life of exploration.

“the land of triumphant light, abundant sunshine, its shifting dunes, endless spaces, captivating mirages, and ominous silence”

Suleika Jaouad values this biography because it chronicles the life of the person who first ignited her sense of possibility and desire for independence.

Suleika Jaouad identifies this as possibly the greatest romantic comedy and appreciates its emotional resonance.

“Rewatching Something’s Gotta Give. Diane Keaton sobbing in white as she writes a play. Jack Nicholson smirking. “You’re a woman to love.””

Suleika Jaouad values this work for how it explores the creative process and invites Hrishikesh Hirway to contribute to her community.

“a decade of interviewing artists about their creative process on Song Exploder.”