Mock Turtle

Some useful reading (for me at least), and in no particular order of merit (but with some recommendations) - many read a long time ago by the way:

General:

Life 3.0 (2017) by Max Tegmark - an exploration into how AI might develop and the likely problems associated with such
Factfulness (2018) by Hans Rosling - why one should get the facts to inform one's opinion, which is often just not the case (must read)
Future Shock (1970) by Alvin Toffler - arguing effects of rapid change and the possible societal consequences of such
Maladies & Medicine: Exploring Health & Healing, 1540-1740 (2017) by Jennifer Evans & Sara Read - an exploration of health and healing in England during this period
10 Billion (2013) by Stephen Emmott - pessimistic appraisal of population growth and what the implications are (must read)

Religions and such:

The End of Faith (2005) by Sam Harris - exploring the negative effects of religious beliefs
Breaking the Spell (2007) by Daniel Dennett - an explanation as to why religion might be seen as a purely natural phenomena
The God Argument (2013) by A C Grayling - the case for Humanism as opposed to what religions offer
The God Delusion (2006) by Richard Dawkins - one atheist's view as to why religious beliefs are delusions

Human behaviour and history:

Behave (2017) by Robert Sapolsky - attempting to explain why we behave as we do, involving so many aspects of being human (must read)
Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind (2015) by Yuval Noah Harari - from insignificant and more primitive ape to being the one exceptionally advanced ape (must read)
Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow (2016) by Yuval Noah Harari - following on from the previous book, where we might be headed (must read)
A Million Years in a Day (2015) by Greg Jenner - the origins of so many things we take for granted
A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived (2017) by Adam Rutherford - what our genes, and the history of such, reveal about us (must read)
The Bonobo and the Atheist (2014) by Frans de Waal - exploring any biological basis for morality (must read)
Guns, Germs, and Steel (1997) by Jared Diamond - proposing how geographical and environmental factors have shaped the modern world (must read)
The Blind Watchmaker (1986) by Richard Dawkins - an argument for why the Theory of Evolution is a better one than any design being involved
The Selfish Gene (1976) by Richard Dawkins - the unique role of genes in human life
Sociobiology: The New Synthesis (1975) by E O Wilson - attempts to explain much of human behaviour from our biological past (must read)
The Moral Animal: Why We Are The Way We Are (1994) by Robert Wright - an approach to such via evolutionary psychology. Much to learn about Darwin here too (as a person and his struggles), as his work is used as context to explain and discuss much human behaviour. (must read)
The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity (2021) by David Graeber and David Wengrow - New perspectives as to such from an anthropologist and an archaeologist, and seemingly throwing out many of the old ones - particularly has a go at Fukuyama, Diamond, and Pinker as to their versions of history. Gave up about half-way because it became too boring, and as to having to remember all the tedious detail.

The Mind:

Logically Fallacious (2015) by Bo Bennett - as stated, crash course in logical fallacies
The Art of Failure (2010) by Dr Neel Burton - designated as the anti self-help guide and what actually is seen as success
Shrinks: The Untold Story of Psychiatry (2015) by Jeffrey A Lieberman, MD - an account of the painful history of psychiatry and associated treatments
Against Empathy (2016) by Paul Bloom - how empathy is too often local and/or based upon what appeals, and why this might not be so beneficial overall
The Remembered Present (1990) by Gerald Edelman - developing a theory concerning consciousness
Bright Air, Brilliant Fire: On the Matter of the Mind (1992) by Gerald Edelman - theory that the mind has arisen through evolutionary morphology
Consciousness Explained (1991) by Daniel Dennett - argues how consciousness arises from interaction of physical and cognitive processes
Women, Fire, and Dangerous Things: What Categories Reveal About the Mind (1987) by George Lakoff - argues for a model of cognition on the basis of semantics
The Origins of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind (1982) by Julian Jaynes - argues for a bicameral mind being in existence until recent times (must read)
The Myth of Irrationality (1993) by John McCrone - some thoughts as per title concerning the workings of the human mind
The Society of Mind (1986) by Marvin Minsky - a theory concerning how the mind is constructed through simpler processes
How the Mind Works (1997) by Steven Pinker - how the mind works from an evolutionary psychology perspective
The Language Instinct (1994) by Steven Pinker - argues that humans are born with an innate capacity for language
The Blank Slate (2002) by Steven Pinker - arguing for human behaviour being shaped by evolutionary psychological adaptations rather than any 'blank slate'
The Origins of Virtue (1996) by Matt Ridley - explores the issues surrounding the development of human morality
The Red Queen (1993) by Matt Ridley - explores the evolutionary psychology perspective of sexual selection
Survival of the Prettiest: The Science of Beauty (1999) by Nancy Etcoff - argues that our concept of beauty is in our biology rather than being a construct
The Beauty Myth (1990) by Naomi Wolf - proposing that societal pressures have much to do with our concept of beauty
From Bacteria to Bach And Back: The Evolution of Minds (2017) by Daniel Dennett - a possible explanation for the evolution of consciousness

Books not read yet or only partially read:

The Christian Delusion: Why Faith Fails (2010) Ed by John W. Loftus - a collection of essays by various authors, as per title
Religion Explained: The Evolutionary Origins of Religious Thought (2001) by Pascal Boyer - approaches the subject via evolutionary biology and cognitive psychology
The Authoritarian Dynamic (2005) by Karen Stenner - an exploration into why we tend to align ourselves with certain political perspectives and as to why we might display certain attitudes, like intolerance for example
The World Until Yesterday: What Can We Learn From Traditional Societies? (2012) by Jared Diamond - Advancing the view that there is still much to learn from earlier societies that might have been ignored in the rush for progress