Tricycle’s Favorite Books of the Year

The year 2024 had no shortage of great Buddhist books. Many of these titles were featured in our quarterly What We’re Reading column, which can be found online and in print, where we regularly share a collection of new books that we’re enjoying—as well as older ones we think are worth a second look. Others can be found among our bevy of magazine and web offerings, whether in the form of author interviews, featured book passages, or in reviews. This year’s selection of office favorites includes a wide spectrum of material, including nonchronological fever dream novels depicting spiritual violence and struggles taking place over a sea of lifetimes to collections of monastic gathas on grief and resilience. These books etched their way into our hearts and imaginations, reminding us to be unwavering in our resolve, and to perhaps see the world from a different angle. 

We hope these stories, histories, and lyrical compendiums will keep you company in uncertain times and help you to see all of life’s obstacles as opportunities to further your practice. 

Without further ado, here are some of our favorite books from 2024.

Rakesfall by Vajra Chandrasekera
In Rakesfall, Vajra Chandrasekera explores the permeability of the self, following two characters as they’re reincarnated across histories and worlds, traversing a mythic past, modern Sri Lanka, and even a distant future. Through endless lifetimes together, the characters find themselves trapped in cycles of violence and betrayal, haunted by their past lives. For more on Chandrasekera, check out this recent episode of Tricycle Talks, where he and Tricycle’s editor-in-chief, James Shaheen, discuss the weaponization of religious myths in Sri Lankan Buddhism and why he describes himself as “unbuddhist.”

Three Years on the Great Mountain: A Memoir of Zen and Fearlessness by Cristina Moon
At the age of 25, Cristina Moon sat her first ten-day meditation retreat to prepare for the possibility of arrest and torture inside military-ruled Burma. While Moon acknowledges the naivete of her initial intent, on the retreat she nevertheless discovered not only a method to withstand pain but also a new way of seeing the world that set her on a decades-long spiritual path. Eventually, Moon found her way to Daihonzan Chozen-ji, a Rinzai Zen temple and martial arts dojo in Honolulu that emphasizes warrior Zen training. Her latest book, Three Years on the Great Mountain: A Memoir of Zen and Fearlessness, follows her first three years at Chozen-ji as she learns ferocity and grace through swordsmanship, ceramics, and the rigors of all-night training. For more on Moon, listen to a recent episode of Tricycle Talks, where she discusses the importance of learning to face challenges directly, why the highest directive of a Zen priest is to give courage and take away fear, and how she’s learning to take herself less seriously while remaining entirely sincere.

The Silk Dragon II: Translations of Chinese Poetry by Arthur Sze
Unlike many contemporary American poets, Arthur Sze did not attend a traditional MFA program to learn to write poetry. Instead, the National Book Award winner and Pulitzer Prize finalist turned to translation to hone his craft. His latest collection, The Silk Dragon II: Translations of Chinese Poetry, compiles fifty years of his translations, illustrating the vitality and versatility of the Chinese poetic tradition across nearly two millennia. The collection is unique in bringing together classical and vernacular Chinese poetry in the same volume, highlighting the ruptures and continuities between the two. Listen to Sze discuss the destruction and renewal inherent in the process of translation in a recent episode of Tricycle Talks.

Lotus Girl by Helen Tworkov
This memoir by Tricycle’s founder spans decades and continents in its retelling of America’s encounter with Buddhism in the shadow of the Vietnam War. Tworkov first became aware of Buddhism when the Vietnamese monk Thich Quang Duc self-immolated in 1963. She traveled to Asia and lived in Japan and Nepal, teaching and learning, and practices Buddhism in several traditions in her search for meaning and identity. The book deals with painful topics, such as the anguish of Tibetans in refugee camps in western Nepal, and the damage inflicted throughout southwest Asia by the convulsions of the US war in Vietnam. But it also contains humor (at one point Tworkov is stranded for several hours atop a stubborn horse that refuses to move forward back on a narrow ledge) and moments of genuine revelation. As the book progresses, Tworkov’s practice deepens, and of course, she launches Tricycle in the fall of 1991. But her journey doesn’t end there. Read an excerpt from her winter retreat with Pema Chödrön. 

Dependent Origination in Plain English by Bhante Gunaratana 
Born in Sri Lanka in 1927, Bhante Henepola Gunaratana, affectionately known as “Bhante G,” has been teaching and leading Buddhist communities for more than sixty years. Following his ordination at age 20, Gunaratana left Sri Lanka for missionary work with the Maha Bodhi Society. His travels led him to the United States, where he attended graduate school, lectured at universities, and founded the Bhavana Society, a retreat center in West Virginia. The latest installment of his “In Plain English” series sees the scholar-monk and his student Veronique Ziegler breaking down a keystone Buddhist teaching from the Pali canon into its core components, guiding readers step by step from ignorance and suffering to their innate potential for liberation. Read an excerpt on “Cutting the Roots of Craving.”

Lifting as They Climb by Toni Pressley-Sanon
Weaving together the timelines and testimonials of six Black Buddhist women—Jan Willis, bell hooks, Zenju Earthlyn Manuel, angel Kyodo williams, Spring Washam, and Faith Adiele—this collection, edited by Toni Pressley-Sanon, pays tribute to an essential history relevant to contemporary American Buddhism. This poignant autobiographical text explores the isolation shared by Black women Buddhists in predominantly white, affluent Buddhist spaces. Beyond this, it’s a love letter and spiritual guide. Pressley-Sanon spotlights the contributions of Black Buddhists who also embrace African wisdom traditions and ancestry in their work toward collective liberation.

Meditation for Modern Madness by His Eminence the Seventh Dzogchen Rinpoche
Dzogchen is an ancient Tibetan Buddhist and Bonpo tradition, which roughly translates to “great perfection” or “great completion” and is said to be the most direct path to realizing one’s true nature. In his highly anticipated first book, His Eminence the Seventh Dzogchen Rinpoche, Jigme Losel Wangpo, shows us how we can incorporate Dzogchen teachings into our everyday lives, turning our day-to-day activities into a rich spiritual practice. In 2024, we published two pieces of crucial life advice from this collection, including “Let Come, Let Go” and “Beyond Time.”

How to Let Things Go by Shunmyo Masuno
Take life’s challenges day by day with the help of the newest book from Shunmyo Masuno, a Japanese Zen monk, professor, and garden designer. How to Let Things Go contains ninety-nine practical tips oriented toward easing your attachment to a variety of people, places, and things. Masuno’s voice shines through his tips, which are often simply put and charmingly straightforward. Despite being rooted in Zen concepts, this book’s accessible format and worldly focus make it a great choice for readers of all backgrounds.  

The Essential Buddhadharma by Bhikkhu P. A. Payutto, trans. Bruce Evans
Originally written in Thai, this Buddhist masterpiece comes to life in English thanks to translator Bruce Evans’s thirty-plus years spent with the text. Scriptural knowledge, inner-tradition wisdom, and practical life advice merge seamlessly over the course of eight hundred pages to form an expansive guide to the teachings of Theravada Buddhism. The Pali canon is delivered through accessible prose, with Ven. Payutto navigating topics such as the five aggregates, nibbana, and the Middle Way. Readers of all experience levels will appreciate this manual, which will remain a classic for years to come.

Being with Busyness by Brother Pháp Hữu and Jo Confino
Born in Vietnam and raised in Canada, Brother Pháp Hữu (the name meaning “True Dharma Friend”) is a senior teacher in Thích Nhất Hạnh’s international community and the abbot of the monks’ community in Plum Village. For over ten years, he served as Thầy’s closest attendant and assistant. In Being with Busyness, Brother Pháp Hữu, along with cowriter Jo Confino, provide Buddhist wisdom and practices for dealing with busyness, overwhelm, and burnout, calling upon some of the most intimate lessons passed down by their late teacher. Part memoir, part self-help, in Being with Busyness, Brother Pháp Hữu’s kind and calm demeanor is on full display as he shows how mindfulness and compassion can help us when we run out of energy and inspiration to deal with the many needs of our active lives.

The Life of Tu Fu by Eliot Weinberger
Tang dynasty poet and politician Tu Fu (712–770) is considered one of the greatest “nonepic, nondramatic poet[s] whose writings survive in any language.” Along with his contemporary Li Bai, Tu Fu is said to have changed the face of Chinese and Japanese literature, leaving an indelible mark on forms that would later become kanshi, haiku, and tanka. In his note at the end of this chapbook, author Eliot Weinberger states how The Life of Tu Fu is not a translation of individual poems but rather a montage, a fictional autobiography of Tu Fu, derived and adapted from the poet’s extensive oeuvre into fifty-eight concise poems. A product of the An Lushan Rebellion of 755, which ravaged China, Tu Fu’s words—which are littered with images of bloodshed and contagion—feel all too familiar. With equal parts Taoist, Confucian, and Chan Buddhist references thrown in for good measure, these verses, which meditate on death as well as the natural world, feel like Tang-era analogues for our present-day reality.

Welcoming Beginner’s Mind: Zen and Tibetan Buddhist Wisdom on Experiencing Our True Nature by Gaylon Ferguson
A PhD in religious studies and an acharya (senior teacher) in the Shambhala tradition, Gaylon Ferguson is not a beginner in any sense, yet he embraces beginner’s mind as taught by Shunryu Suzuki Roshi of the San Francisco Zen Center. In this book, Ferguson explores the classic Ten Oxherding Pictures “as one example of an unfolding spiritual path.” The book includes Ferguson’s own insight from his decades of teaching and practice, as well as  commentary from Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche and Suzuki Roshi. The book is not just for beginners. Experienced practitioners will find a great deal to consider here as well. As Ferguson writes, “Beginner’s mind is not the mind we had yesterday or last year or whenever we began meditation practice.” Instead, Ferguson tells us, “Beginner’s mind is what is already always here with us.” Hear Ferguson discuss the book on Tricycle Talks.

The River in Me: Verses of Transformation by Sister Dang Nghiem
Born in Central Vietnam at the height of the Vietnam War, Sister Dang Nghiem grew up singing made-up songs to comfort herself and alleviate her suffering. After moving to the United States, she began writing poetry at the encouragement of an English teacher, and eventually ordained as a nun in the Plum Village tradition following the sudden death of her partner. Her book, The River in Me: Verses of Transformation, brings together over three decades of her poetry, charting her own journey from turmoil and loss to tranquility and compassion. For more on Sister D, listen to this August episode of Tricycle Talks, where she and Tricycle’s editor-in-chief, James Shaheen, discuss how writing has helped her process the violence she witnessed, why she hopes her poetry can offer a way out of suffering, and how gathas, or verses, can transform mundane activities into moments of awareness.

Enticement: Stories of Tibet by Pema Tseden
If stories by exiled Tibetan writers begin with the separation from and fixation on the homeland they knew, writings from inside Tibet are about witnessing and chronicling its changing landscape. In Enticement, Pema Tseden explores the quiet absurdity and alienation of modern Tibetan life through portraits of ordinary villagers, like the shepherd Tharlo, and supernatural beings, such as the two siblings named Gang. The imaginative stories included in this collection unfold under the coercive presence of the Chinese state, but they emphatically focus on Tibetan characters and their relationships to the natural world, identity, and religious faith. Marking one year since Tseden’s passing, at 53, in May Tricycle looked back at his seminal 2018 short story collection. Read the full review.