Ryan Holiday, author of The Daily Stoic and owner of The Painted Porch bookstore, shares his curated list of 26 books that can be read in a single sitting. As someone who has sent out monthly reading recommendations for 15 years, Holiday draws from philosophy, literature, sports writing, and creativity guides.

The collection spans from 21-page essays like James Stockdale's Courage Under Fire to 190-page works like Anthony de Mello's The Way of Love. Holiday emphasizes that while these books can be consumed quickly, many deserve multiple readings and lifelong contemplation.

The recommendations include Stoic classics like Meditations and On the Shortness of Life, wartime reflections like War Is a Racket and Address Unknown, creativity guides from Austin Kleon, and literary gems like Claire Keegan's Small Things Like These.

Essential Philosophy for Creative Resistance

The War of Art by Steven Pressfield is Holiday's go-to book before starting any creative project, designed to be read repeatedly to combat creative resistance and procrastination.

On the Shortness of Life by Seneca presents the counterintuitive argument that 'it's not that life is short, it's that we waste a lot of it,' making it one of the greatest philosophical essays ever written.

Zen and the Art of Archery offers Eastern philosophical wisdom through the practice of archery, representing 'amazing philosophy from the other side of the world.'

War, Politics, and Human Nature Under Pressure

War Is a Racket by decorated Marine General Smedley Butler defines war as 'something that is not what it seems to the majority of people' and is 'conducted for the benefit of the very few at the expense of the very many.'

Address Unknown by Kathrine Kressmann Taylor uses letters between a Jewish art dealer in San Francisco and his friend in 1932 Germany to show 'how people accommodate themselves to things, rationalize things, deny what's obviously happening, and lose their humanity.'

On Tyranny by Timothy Snyder clocks in at 126 pages and is described as 'very apropos of this moment' - if people could read these pages, 'we would be in better faith.'

Courage Under Fire presents James Stockdale testing Epictetus's Stoic doctrines while imprisoned in the Hanoi Hilton as a Vietnam War prisoner, condensed into just 21 pages.

Literary Gems and Personal Correspondence

84 Charing Cross Road chronicles letters between a US screenwriter and UK antique bookseller after World War II - Holiday loved it so much he bought 1,000 copies for his bookstore.

Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan spans 114 pages but delivers an incredible emotional impact: 'The ending, it's gonna fuck you up, but it's very good.'

Letter to His Father captures Kafka's 120-page outpouring to his 'overbearing, imperious, judgmental father' - a letter his mother never delivered but serves as both a parenting guide and resource for those with difficult parents.

Stefan Zweig's biography Montaigne examines a philosopher 'writing and thinking when his world is falling apart,' written by Zweig 'as the world is falling apart' - another 1,000-copy purchase for Holiday's bookstore.

Creativity, Sports, and Timeless Wisdom

Austin Kleon's trilogy - Steal Like an Artist, Show Your Work!, and Keep Going - can all be read on a single plane ride and are essential for anyone wanting to 'be more creative, inspired, do better work, and build an audience.'

Levels of the Game by John McPhee covers the tennis match between Arthur Ashe and Clark Graebner in exactly 150 pages, creating such a vivid experience that Holiday 'would have guessed it's 250 or 300 pages.'

The Book of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi, composed in 1643, offers 'insightful texts on the subtle arts of confrontation and victory' and serves as an Eastern equivalent to The Art of War.

Meditations by Marcus Aurelius technically runs 170 pages and 'you can read it in one sitting, you're not supposed to' - instead, it should be revisited 'over and over again over the course of your life.'