Recommendations based on The Dalai Lama's Catby David Michie

* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans

  1. The Perfect Son

    by Barbara Claypole White
    A mother struggles to understand and help her son with OCD while dealing with her own past.

    From a distance, Felix Fitzwilliam, the son of an old English family, is a good husband and father. But, obsessed with order and routine, he’s a prisoner to perfection. Disengaged from the emotional ... (Barnes & Noble)

  2. Jonathan Livingston Seagull

    by Richard Bach
    An exploration of self-expression and personal growth as a seagull learns to defy the boundaries of his flock.

    The book tells the story of Jonathan Livingston Seagull, a seagull who is bored with daily squabbles over food. Seized by a passion for flight, he pushes himself and learns everything he can about ... (Wikipedia)

  3. The Signature of All Things

    by Elizabeth Gilbert
    A woman's quest for knowledge and self-fulfillment, spanning through the 19th century.

    A glorious, sweeping novel of desire, ambition, and the thirst for knowledge, from the # 1 New York Times bestselling author of Eat, Pray, Love and Committed. In The Signature of All Things, ... (Goodreads)

  4. The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy

    by Rachel Joyce
    A story of friendship, love and courage told through the last letter of a dying woman.

    When Queenie Hennessy discovers that Harold Fry is walking the length of England to save her, and all she has to do is wait, she is shocked. Her note had explained she was dying. How can she wait? A ... (Goodreads)

  5. Telling Tales

    by Ann Cleeves
    A collection of short stories featuring complex characters and intricate plots, set in the rugged landscapes of Northern England.

    It has been ten years since Jeanie Long was charged with the murder of fifteen-year-old Abigail Mantel. Now residents of the East Yorkshire village of Elvet are disturbed to hear of new evidence ... (Goodreads)

  6. The Story of a New Name

    by Elena Ferrante
    Two young women's search for identity and independence in a patriarchal society.

    In 2012, Elena Ferrante's My Brilliant Friend introduced readers to the unforgettable Elena and Lila, whose lifelong friendship provides the backbone for the Neapolitan Novels. The Story of a New ... (Goodreads)

  7. Shantaram

    by Gregory David Roberts
    An Australian convict escapes to India and embarks on a journey of self-discovery.

    In 1978, Roberts was sentenced to a 19-year imprisonment in Australia after being convicted of a series of armed robberies of building society branches, credit unions , and shops. In July 1980, he ... (Wikipedia)

  8. Orphan Train

    by Christina Baker Kline
    A story of two women's intertwined lives, spanning generations and crossing continents.

    The #1 New York Times Bestseller “A lovely novel about the search for family that also happens to illuminate a fascinating and forgotten chapter of America’s history. Beautiful.”—Ann Packer Moving ... (Barnes & Noble)

  9. The Bridge Across Forever: A True Love Story

    by Richard Bach
    Couple's journey to find true love, exploring the power of shared destiny.

    More than one year on the New York Times bestseller list! Richard Bach's timeless and uplifting classic of hope and love "We're the bridge across forever, arching above the sea, adventuring for our ... (Barnes & Noble)

  10. The Palace of Illusions

    by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
    A narrative of a brave woman's journey through Indian mythology, coming to terms with her fate.

    A reimagining of the world-famous Indian epic, the Mahabharat—told from the point of view of an amazing woman. Relevant to today’s war-torn world, The Palace of Illusions takes us back to a time that ... (Goodreads)

  11. The Forty Rules of Love

    by Elif Shafak
    A story of romance and spiritual enlightenment, exploring the teachings of a Sufi master.

    Ella Rubenstein is forty years old and unhappily married when she takes a job as a reader for a literary agent. Her first assignment is to read and report on Sweet Blasphemy , a novel written by a ... (Goodreads)

  12. The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy: A Trilogy in Five Parts

    by Douglas Adams
    Intergalactic adventure full of comedic twists, exploring the nature of the universe.

    * The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy * The Restaurant at the End of the Universe * Life, the Universe and Everything * So Long, and Thanks for all the Fish * Mostly Harmless Suppose a good friend ... (Goodreads)

  13. The Architect's Apprentice

    by Elif Shafak
    A young boy becomes the apprentice of the chief architect of the Ottoman Empire, and navigates through love, war, and the construction of Istanbul's most iconic buildings.

    From the acclaimed author of, The Bastard of Istanbul, a colorful, magical tale set during the height of the Ottoman Empire In her latest novel, Elif Shafak spins an epic tale spanning nearly a ... (Goodreads)

  14. The Devotion of Suspect X

    by Keigo Higashino
    A genius physicist helps his neighbor cover up a murder, while a relentless detective investigates the crime.

    Yasuko lives a quiet life, working in a Tokyo bento shop, a good mother to her only child. But when her ex-husband appears at her door without warning one day, her comfortable world is shattered. ... (Goodreads)

  15. Stones from the River

    by Ursula Hegi
    A dwarf girl navigates life in a small German town during WWII, facing discrimination and secrets.

    Alternate cover edition of ISBN 9780684844770 From the highly acclaimed, award-winning author of Floating in My Mother's Palm comes a stunning novel about ordinary people living in extraordinary ... (Goodreads)

  16. Sweet Tooth

    by Ian McEwan
    Story of a young woman's journey of self-discovery and the moral dilemmas she faces.

    The plot is set in early-1970s England. Serena Frome ("rhymes with plume"), the daughter of an Anglican bishop, shows a talent for mathematics and is admitted to the University of Cambridge . But she ... (Wikipedia)

  17. The Beautiful Mystery

    by Louise Penny
    A priest and a nun join forces to solve a murder shrouded in secrets within a cloistered Quebec monastery.

    No outsiders are ever admitted to the monastery of Saint-Gilbert-Entre-les-Loups, hidden deep in the wilderness of Québec, where two dozen cloistered monks live in peace and prayer. Ironically, for a ... (Goodreads)

  18. Convenience Store Woman

    by Sayaka Murata
    A darkly comic story of a woman's search for acceptance and belonging in a society that doesn't fit her.

    Keiko Furukura is a 36-year old woman who has been working part-time at a convenience store , or konbini , for the last 18 years. She has known since childhood that she is "different" and that ... (Wikipedia)

  19. Dissolution

    by C.J. Sansom
    A lawyer in Tudor England investigates a suspicious death, uncovering a vast conspiracy.

    Henry VIII has ordered the dissolution of the monasteries and England is full of informers. At the monastery of Scarnsea, events have spiralled out of control with the murder of Commissioner Robin ... (Goodreads)

  20. Year of Wonders

    by Geraldine Brooks
    A small English village grapples with the effects of the bubonic plague.

    When an infected bolt of cloth carries plague from London to an isolated village, a housemaid named Anna Frith emerges as an unlikely heroine and healer. Through Anna's eyes we follow the story of ... (Goodreads)

  21. The Complete Stories

    by Franz Kafka
    A collection of Kafka's surreal and haunting short stories, exploring the human condition and the absurdity of existence.

    The Complete Stories brings together all of Kafka’s stories, from the classic tales such as “The Metamorphosis,” “In the Penal Colony,” and “A Hunger Artist” to shorter pieces and fragments that Max ... (Goodreads)

  22. The Elephant Tree

    by R.D. Ronald
    A young boy's disappearance leads to a dark and twisted tale of family secrets, betrayal, and revenge.

    Mark Fallon is an overworked detective investigating a spate of attacks at a string of high profile city centre nightclubs. Scott is a dejected 24 year old struggling to make ends meet working for ... (Barnes & Noble)

  23. The Story of the Lost Child

    by Elena Ferrante
    An exploration of the complexities of motherhood and female friendship, spanning four decades.

    "Nothing quite like this has ever been published before," proclaimed The Guardian about the Neapolitan novels in 2014. Against the backdrop of a Naples that is as seductive as it is perilous and a ... (Goodreads)

  24. East of Eden

    by John Steinbeck
    Exploration of the timeless struggle between good and evil, set against a backdrop of a family saga.

    In his journal, Nobel Prize winner John Steinbeck called East of Eden “the first book,” and indeed it has the primordial power and simplicity of myth. Set in the rich farmland of California’s Salinas ... (Goodreads)

  25. Vanity Fair

    by William Makepeace Thackeray
    A story of social climbing and ambition, set against the backdrop of 19th century England.

    A novel that chronicles the lives of two women who could not be more different: Becky Sharp, an orphan whose only resources are her vast ambitions, her native wit, and her loose morals; and her ... (Goodreads)

  26. Spy Glass

    by Maria V. Snyder
    The third book in the Glass series follows Opal as she navigates political intrigue, betrayal, and her own magical abilities.

    An undercover mission,leads to danger, adventure,and an impossible choice., After siphoning her own blood magic in the showdown at Hubal, student glass magician Opal Cowan lost her powers. Immune to ... (Goodreads)

  27. Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay

    by Elena Ferrante
    Two friends navigate the changing relationships of their youth and adulthood, and the consequences of their choices.

    In this third Neapolitan novel, Elena and Lila, the two girls whom readers first met in My Brilliant Friend, have become women. Lila married at sixteen and has a young son; she has left her abusive ... (Goodreads)

  28. Little Bee

    by Chris Cleave
    A Nigerian refugee's quest for survival and a British woman's search for redemption.

    Using alternating first-person perspectives , the novel tells the stories of Little Bee, a Nigerian refugee, and Sarah O'Rourke (née Summers), a magazine editor from Surrey . After spending two years ... (Wikipedia)

  29. Woman Last Seen in Her Thirties

    by Camille Pagán
    A woman in her late thirties navigates through a divorce, career change, and unexpected romance, discovering her true self in the process.

    From bestselling author Camille Pagán comes a hilarious and hopeful story about a woman on the verge of a nervous breakthrough., At fifty-three, Maggie Harris has a good marriage and two mostly happy ... (Barnes & Noble)

  30. The Girl They Left Behind

    by Roxanne Veletzos
    Abandoned by her parents during WWII, a young girl is taken in by a wealthy family. Years later, she discovers the truth about her past.

    A sweeping historical romance that is “gripping, tragic, yet filled with passion and hope” (Kate Quinn,, New York Times, bestselling author), offering a vivid and unique portrayal of life in war-torn ... (Barnes & Noble)