What We’re Made Of: 6 Books About People, Beliefs, and Possibilities
{Books I Recommend November 2026}
“Once you have read a book you care about, some part of it is always with you.”
— Louis L’Amour
What are we humans made of? We’re each shaped by our beliefs, our experiences, our blind spots, our values, our strengths, our weaknesses, and so much more.
These six books I just finished reading each touch on different possibilities of what it means to live here as a human being—in years past, today, and in years to come.
[See previously recommended books here]
NONFICTION
1. Live Laugh Love
The Secret History of White Christian Women and the World They Made
by Kristin Kobes Du Mez
Du Mez is a historian so she did deep research on a lot of well-known Christian women in the U.S. Some of the things she found didn’t surprise me, and some did. For better and for worse. Overall, the book shares the the role that white Christian women played in shaping American culture and religion (again, for better and for worse).
Sometimes Du Mez gets too involved in a story for my taste and I lose the overall theme, but she always comes back up for air eventually and catches the thread again. Overall, this is a very interesting book.
2. The Art of Resilience
100 Paths to Wisdom and Strength in an Uncertain World
by Carol Orsborn
Who wants more resilience? Yes, please.
One of my book clubs spent several months working through the short 100 reflections in this book on how we humans can more masterfully navigate uncertainty and challenges in life, both together and apart. It prompted many good Tuesday morning discussions. As usual, I gained more from the book by having conversations with other people about it versus simply reading it on my own.
3. Don’t Even Think About It
Why Our Brains Are Wired to Ignore Climate Change
by George Marshall
Why are humans so reluctant to accept that climate change is really happening when we have scientific proof and agreement about it right in front of us? And why can’t we convince each other to do more about it?
Marshall attempts to explain it. He explores several reasons why humans sometimes ignore obvious things we’re not ready to face. In many ways, I find this book terrifying. But I also find it hopeful—if we’ll take action sooner rather than later.
4. Damned If She Does
Why Women Quit Church and What It Means for the Future of Religion
by Sarah Stankorb
I met this author two months ago in a small group setting, and she was very kind to me. So I admit my bias was set before I began the book.
But I think I would have appreciated the book even if I hadn’t met Stankorb. She did some amazing journalistic research to uncover why many women have been leaving organized religion. This book is somewhat similar to Live Laugh Love (see above), but Stankorb’s writing style was easier for me to follow.
FICTION
5. The Midnight Train
by Matt Haig
What if your older self could go back in time to meet your younger self? What advice would you give? What would you be tempted to change?
Haig sets up an interesting plot line where 81-year-old Wilbur gets on board a magical train that takes him back in time. A very intriguing premise and very well written by Haig. It made me ask myself, What would I change in my past, if given the chance? And what could I do differently now, given what I know now?
6. The Great Rift
by Brian D. McLaren
This is book two of McLaren’s The Last Voyage science fiction trilogy. It’s set in the future when humans have to escape the chaos of Earth to start a colony on Mars. What inherent problems do they take with them and which ones can they leave behind?
McLaren has a beautiful way of blending action to keep the plot moving forward while also allowing breathing space for his characters to talk about the big philosophical questions about what it means to live a good life as a human. I enjoyed this second novel even more than the first one. I’ll look forward to book three coming out in late spring of 2027, hopefully.
WHAT I’M READING NOW
- Culpability
by Bruce Holsinger - Inside: Voices from Death Row
by Michael J. Braxton - Man in the Mirror
Hope, Struggle, and Belonging in an American City
by Anand Giridharadas - Braiding Sweetgrass
Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants
by Robin Wall Kimmerer - Bridge to Terabithia
by Katherine Paterson
Whether we’re looking back at our history or imaging ahead to our future, books help us wrestle with important questions about who we are and who we want to be. They help us think more deeply and live more intentionally than we might without them.
I hope we’ll always be a people who read, learn, and grow together.
What’s a good book you’ve read lately? I’d love to hear your thoughts.
I’m sharing at some of these linkups
Interesting selection of books here!
Thanks for these reviews, Lisa!