Author: W

Wissam, Wesley, or simply W, is an educator, writer, entrepreneur, engineer, activist, ex-Imam, humanist, liberal thinker with interest and mediocre attempt at many takes of life. A modern confused Renaissance man, who uses doubt as a path for emancipation and science as a road towards enlightenment.

My 2025 Reading List (aka: Books That Rewired My Brain)

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2025 was a “multiple tabs open” kind of year. This reading stack is the stuff that kept me grounded, suspicious of hustle-culture, allergic to propaganda, and still soft enough to believe humans can be better than the systems we’re trapped in.

The image says it all: me in a bookstore-library maze, sitting at a piano, surrounded by stories and ideas like they’re sheet music. That’s basically my whole philosophy in one frame. Reading is how I tune my mind back to the right key—especially when the world is loud, cruel, and trying to sell you distraction as destiny.

Below is my 2025 list based on the covers in the collage—what each book gave me, and why it mattered.

1) The Anxious Generation — Jonathan Haidt

This book is a huge cultural Rorschach test. Haidt argues we’ve shifted from a “play-based childhood” to a “phone-based childhood,” and that it’s tied to rising youth anxiety and depression. Wikipedia+1

What I took from it wasn’t “phones bad, throw them in the river like a cursed ring.” It was the bigger point: design matters. If an environment is engineered to hijack attention, then pretending it’s just “personal responsibility” is lazy. That said, the science and causality claims are actively debated—Candice Odgers’ review in Nature argues the book overstates what the evidence can support, and The Guardian summarized similar critiques. Nature+2Psychological Effects of the Internet+2

My 2025 vibe: take the parts about childhood freedom, sleep, and community seriously—without turning it into a moral panic that ignores poverty, racism, trauma, and all the other very real drivers of mental distress.

2) Rework — Jason Fried & David Heinemeier Hansson

This is the anti-hustle manifesto for people who are tired of business bros talking like they invented breathing. The core idea: you don’t need endless meetings, performative scaling, or stress as a personality to build something real. Google Books+1

For me, Rework lands because it treats calm as competence. That’s radical in a culture that mistakes exhaustion for virtue.

3) It Doesn’t Have to Be Crazy at Work — Fried & Hansson

Same authors, more focused punch: stop worshipping “crazy” and start building workplaces that don’t chew people up for productivity optics. Even the publisher description basically says: celebrate calm, not chaos. Amazon+1

If you’re organizing, building projects, running campaigns, or just trying to survive capitalism with your soul intact—this one is a needed reset.

4) Utopia for Realists — Rutger Bregman

UBI (universal basic income), shorter workweeks, open borders—the book is basically Bregman saying: “your imagination has been privatized; let’s steal it back.” Wikipedia+1

What I respect is the insistence that “realism” doesn’t mean accepting cruelty as policy. It means asking what’s possible if we stop treating human suffering as a budget line item.

5) Humankind: A Hopeful History — Rutger Bregman

This one pairs perfectly with Utopia for Realists. Bregman argues that humans are more cooperative—and more shaped by context—than the cynical “people are trash” narrative suggests. Hachette Book Group+1

And look, I’m not naïve. The world provides receipts every day. But cynicism is also a scam: it makes people easier to govern and harder to mobilize. This book is an antidote to that.

6) Freedom: The Case for Open Borders — Joss Sheldon

Open borders is one of those ideas that gets dismissed as “too extreme” mostly because we’ve normalized the extreme violence of borders. This book makes a full-spectrum argument—historical, economic, cultural, philosophical—for freer movement. It was published in 2024, so it’s a newer addition to this conversation. Amazon+1

For Dearborn—and for anyone living diaspora life—this hits differently. When your community’s story includes migration, exile, and paperwork as fate, “freedom of movement” stops being abstract. It becomes personal.

7) Anti-Intellectualism in American Life — Richard Hofstadter

Published in 1963 and winner of the 1964 Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction, this book traces America’s long tradition of distrusting expertise, thought, and learning—especially when it challenges power. Wikipedia+1

Reading this in 2025 felt like watching an origin story for the current era: conspiracies, anti-science culture wars, loud confidence with zero homework. Hofstadter doesn’t just drag people—he explains the social conditions that make anti-intellectualism feel comforting.

8) The Power of Moments — Chip Heath & Dan Heath

This book explores why certain experiences become “defining moments,” and how we can design moments that create meaning—at work, in community, in life. Heath Brothers+2Simon & Schuster+2

I read it like an organizer: movements aren’t only built on strategy; they’re built on memory. People stay involved because of moments where they felt seen, brave, connected, and useful. That’s not sentimental. That’s logistics for the human heart.

9) The Art of Gathering — Priya Parker

Parker argues that most gatherings are bland because we don’t design them with intention—and she offers a practical way to make coming together meaningful again. Priya Parker+1

This is quietly political. “How we gather” shapes “what we become.” A strong community doesn’t happen by accident; it’s built—like infrastructure, like habit, like love.

10) The Hand — Frank R. Wilson

Published in 1998, The Hand digs into how the evolution and use of our hands shaped the brain, creativity, language—basically: civilization is a craft project. PenguinRandomhouse.com+1

I love books like this because they pull you out of doomscroll reality and remind you: humans make things. We’re not only consumers of chaos; we’re builders of meaning.

Bonus classics and roots

The Old Man and the Sea — Ernest Hemingway

A 1952 novella about an aging fisherman’s struggle with a giant marlin; it won the 1953 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. Wikipedia
This is one of the cleanest stories ever written about dignity, stubbornness, and what it means to keep going when life is actively disrespecting you.

عصارة الزمن: سيرة ومسيرة — الدكتور نسيب فواز

The Arabic memoir in the collage appears to be “عصارة الزمن: سيرة ومسيرة” by Dr. نسيب فواز—a life-and-journey story tied to Lebanese diaspora life (including community visibility in Michigan). Al Binaa+2halasour \ هلا صور+2
This one matters to me because our communities aren’t just “immigrant success stories.” We’re archives. We’re memory. We’re proof that identity survives distance.

The through-line (because yes, I noticed the pattern)

This list is basically three rebellions in book form:

  1. Rebellion against distraction (Anxious Generation, Power of Moments)
  2. Rebellion against burnout (Rework, Crazy at Work)
  3. Rebellion against cruelty as “policy” (Utopia for Realists, Freedom, Humankind)

And then Hofstadter shows up like: “Also, your country has a long-standing allergy to thinking, good luck.” Fair.

Disclaimer: This is a personal reading list and commentary, not mental health, legal, or financial advice. Book interpretations are subjective, and editions/titles may vary by region.

Sources / book references (for factual details)

The Anxious Generation — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Anxious_Generation
Nature review (Odgers) — https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-00902-2
The Guardian critique roundup — https://www.theguardian.com/books/2024/apr/27/anxious-generation-jonathan-haidt

Rework (Google Books) — https://books.google.com/books/about/Rework.html?id=3oSoqGOmI4sC
It Doesn’t Have to Be Crazy at Work (37signals) — https://37signals.com/podcast/it-doesnt-have-to-be-crazy-1/

Utopia for Realists — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utopia_for_Realists
Humankind (publisher) — https://www.littlebrown.com/titles/rutger-bregman/humankind/9780316418539/

Freedom: The Case for Open Borders (pub date) — https://www.amazon.com/Freedom-Case-Borders-Joss-Sheldon/dp/B0CT89PL5R

Anti-Intellectualism in American Life — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-intellectualism_in_American_Life
Pulitzer page — https://www.pulitzer.org/winners/richard-hofstadter-0

The Power of Moments (Heath brothers) — https://heathbrothers.com/the-power-of-moments/
The Art of Gathering (Priya Parker) — https://www.priyaparker.com/book-art-of-gathering

The Hand (publisher) — https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/191866/the-hand-by-frank-r-wilson/
The Old Man and the Sea — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Old_Man_and_the_Sea

عصارة الزمن / نسيب فواز coverage — https://www.al-binaa.com/archives/429072

The 10 Best Films I Watched in 2025 (Out of 70)

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I watched 70 films in 2025. These 10 hit the hardest—some like a gut-punch, some like a mirror, and a few like a chaotic little group chat that accidentally tells the truth.

I’m not ranking these by “objective greatness” because I’m not a robot (and even robots have Letterboxd opinions now). This is about impact: the movies that stayed in my head after the credits, the ones that made me rethink how we love, cope, deny, perform, survive—especially under systems that profit from our confusion.

1) Anora — the “funny-thriller” that turns into a spiritual audit

My notes were: powerful, funny, engaging—then boom: self-denial, losing yourself, materialism as emotional Novocain. That’s still the best summary.

Sean Baker takes what looks like a chaotic modern Cinderella setup—Brooklyn sex worker meets rich kid, sudden marriage—and uses it to expose the soft, seductive violence of money and fantasy. It’s fast, entertaining, and lowkey terrifying because it’s not about villains twirling mustaches. It’s about how easy it is to trade pieces of yourself for a story that “sounds” like winning. And then realizing you sold the wrong parts. Wikipedia+2IMDb+2

2) I’m Still Here (Ainda Estou Aqui) — grief as resistance

This one is a true-story gut-check: a family living under Brazil’s military dictatorship, and the mother—Eunice Paiva—having to rebuild reality after the forced disappearance of her husband. It’s not just “sad.” It’s that specific suffering families carry when the state disappears people and then tries to disappear the truth too.

What hit me: the film doesn’t treat survival like a motivational poster. It treats survival like work—like courage you don’t get credit for until decades later (if you’re lucky). And it lands even harder knowing it’s adapted from Marcelo Rubens Paiva’s memoir, meaning this is literally memory fighting back. Wikipedia+2AP News+2

3) Babygirl — desire, denial, and the chaos of not knowing yourself

This movie is a psychological maze about sex drive and fantasy—especially that maddening human thing where we want what we deny we want… and we also don’t want it to be clear, because clarity comes with consequences.

Halina Reijn builds it as an erotic thriller where a powerful CEO risks everything in an affair with a younger intern, but the real thriller is internal: the tug-of-war between identity, control, shame, and impulse. It’s messy in a way that feels honest—because humans are messy, and pretending otherwise is how we end up emotionally illiterate with good lighting. Wikipedia+1

4) The Hypnosis (Hypnosen) — cringe comedy with a philosophy degree

A couple building a women’s health app goes to pitch it at a fancy startup competition… and then hypnosis cracks the “normal person” mask right off. Watching it felt like being trapped at a networking retreat where everyone is performing “purpose,” and then one person accidentally becomes real.

It’s funny, but it’s also a sharp little satire on conformity: the way “professionalism” becomes a cage, and how quickly society punishes anyone—especially women—for stepping outside approved behavior. Also: it premiered at Karlovy Vary and cleaned up attention back home in Sweden (major Guldbagge love). Wikipedia+2kviff.com+2

5) Sick of Myself — body horror, attention economy, and the saddest laugh

This is an absurdist black comedy that’s shockingly deep about self-hate, image, and attention as a survival strategy—until it becomes a trap.

The story is basically: a woman spirals into increasingly extreme behavior to become the center of attention, and the film dares you to ask whether you’re judging her… or recognizing the culture that taught her attention equals worth. It premiered in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard, which makes sense because it’s both hilarious and psychologically rude (compliment). Wikipedia+1

2025 watchlist truth: A lot of “mental health” discourse is really just people trying to name the pain caused by systems that monetize insecurity.

6) A House on Fire (Casa en flames) — family love, but make it explosive

I went in expecting “family drama,” and got a sharply funny, painfully real pressure-cooker: a divorced mom drags the whole family to a Costa Brava house weekend while everything simmering underneath finally boils over.

It’s the kind of movie that understands a brutal truth: family can be the source of your deepest wounds and the last thing standing when the world collapses. Also, quick correction to my own brain: it’s Catalan/Spanish (not French), and it skewers bourgeois hypocrisy with a smile that shows teeth. Wikipedia+1

7) Soul Kitchen — joy as a serious human need

This is the “simple but happy” pick, and I mean that with full respect. Fatih Akin gives us Hamburg life, a chaotic restaurant, friendship, music, and a kind of grounded optimism that doesn’t feel fake.

In a year where so much cinema (and reality) is about collapse, Soul Kitchen is a reminder that joy isn’t a distraction—it’s fuel. It even snagged major Venice love back in 2009, which is wild for a crowd-pleasing comedy. Wikipedia+2Wexner Center for the Arts+2

8) Happening (L’Événement) — a necessary reminder in a rollback era

Set in 1963 France, a student tries to obtain an abortion when it’s illegal—meaning the state forces her into danger, isolation, and humiliation, then pretends it’s “morality.”

This film is intense because it refuses to look away. It’s based on Annie Ernaux’s memoir and it won the Golden Lion at Venice, which tells you how hard it hit. Watching it now—while women’s rights are openly under attack again—lands like a warning flare. Wikipedia+2Vanity Fair+2

9) The Encampments — student courage vs. the crackdown machine

This documentary is painfully relevant: it tracks the student encampment movement that ignited at Columbia and spread across campuses, as students protested their universities’ ties to the war on Gaza and faced escalating repression.

It features Mahmoud Khalil—who later became a symbol of the U.S. crackdown on pro-Palestinian activism when he was detained by immigration authorities, and then released months later after a judge’s ruling. Whatever your politics, that sequence should set off every civil-liberties alarm bell you own. AP News+3Wikipedia+3Watermelon Pictures+3

10) The Charmer (Charmøren) — immigration, desperation, and moral weather

Set in Denmark, this is a tough, realistic story about an Iranian man racing against time to secure legal stay—trying to find a woman to marry, and slowly revealing how love, manipulation, fear, and trauma can tangle together.

It’s not interested in easy moral judgment. It’s interested in the psychological cost of borders—how immigration systems turn relationships into survival math. The film premiered at San Sebastián in the New Directors program, which fits: it’s controlled, smart, and emotionally sharp. DFI+2Film Forum+2

Honorable mentions (aka: the bench was stacked)

  • Emilia Pérez
  • The Brutalist
  • The Seed of the Sacred Fig
  • No Other Land
  • The Idiots
  • Certified Copy
  • The Delinquents
  • Passages
  • Lurker
  • The Bests
  • Die My Love
  • Harvest
  • Moon
  • Non-fiction
  • Yannick
  • The History of Sound

The pattern I didn’t expect

A lot of my “best of 2025” ended up being about denial—personal denial, family denial, state denial, cultural denial—and the moment it cracks. That’s not just cinema. That’s the world. And from Dearborn to anywhere else, we know what it’s like to live with big narratives forced onto real human lives—and still insist on being human anyway.

Disclaimer: This list reflects personal viewing and opinion, not medical/legal advice or official endorsements. Film availability, versions, and release dates may vary by region and platform.

Sources (for the factual film details)

  1. Anora — Wikipedia (release, Cannes, awards). Wikipedia
  2. Anora — IMDb / Rotten Tomatoes (synopsis). IMDb+1
  3. I’m Still Here — Wikipedia (story basis, credits). Wikipedia
  4. I’m Still Here — AP / Reuters (Oscar win). AP News+1
  5. Babygirl — Wikipedia / Rotten Tomatoes (premise, release). Wikipedia+1
  6. The Hypnosis — Wikipedia / KVIFF (premise, premiere). Wikipedia+1
  7. The Hypnosis — Guldbagge Awards page (nominations/wins context). Wikipedia
  8. Sick of Myself — Wikipedia / Cannes (premiere context). Wikipedia+1
  9. A House on Fire (Casa en flames) — Wikipedia (plot/setup). Wikipedia
  10. Soul Kitchen — Wikipedia / Wex Arts (Venice prizes). Wikipedia+1
  11. Happening — Wikipedia / Venice coverage (premise, Golden Lion). Wikipedia+1
  12. The Encampments — Watermelon Pictures / Wikipedia / coverage (film description). The Washington Post+3Watermelon Pictures+3Wikipedia+3
  13. Mahmoud Khalil release — AP (timeline detail). AP News
  14. The Charmer — Danish Film Institute / Film Forum / Wikipedia (premise + premiere). DFI+2Film Forum+2