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Cara Meredith
World on fire, nose in book

World on fire, nose in book

(Perhaps we call this sage advice and include a few book recs too)

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Cara Meredith
Apr 15, 2025
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Cara Meredith
World on fire, nose in book
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It’s happened again: I can’t keep up with everything happening in our world.

The Dear Colleague letter threatens university dollars1—but then, the nation’s wealthiest university refuses to comply. Of the remaining 900 USAID programs that survived the initial slash in February, another 42 contracts were canceled this last weekend. The New York Post reports highly qualified scientists being forced to clean bathrooms in Yosemite, while a recent Executive Order opens more than 50 percent of protected forest land up to logging. Meanwhile, even if some tariffs are now on pause, numerous financial analysts predict the U.S. is heading toward a bear market.

The list goes on, for I’ve not even skimmed the surface when it comes to immigration issues or anything that reeks2 of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Sometimes it feels like there’s not a whole lot to hold onto right now, at least not when it comes to that glossy, glittery hunk of a thing called hope.

Instead, it feels like the world is on fire, and I’m not sure whether to throw a bucket onto the flames, look for a water spigot, or call for help. Where do you start when it’s all extremely loud and incredibly close,3 when nothing you can do ever feels like enough?

Because sometimes, when it feels like the world is on fire, the only thing you can do is stick your nose in a book.4

If you’re going to survive—if we’re going to survive—then we have to care for ourselves before we can care for others. Yes, we care for our families and for our neighbors, in many ways now more than ever before, but we also care for ourselves so that the flames do not consume. And for some of us, that means we read a book.

As it goes, here are ten books that I’ve loved diving into over the last couple of months, mostly as a way of caring for myself. Perhaps one of them will speak to you too.

Image by Michal Jarmoluk from Pixabay

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