Ted Koppel's 6 favorite books

The former anchor of Nightline recommends works by J.D. Salinger, Ta-Nehisi Coates, and more

Ted Koppel
(Image credit: Steven Biver)

Meditations by Marcus Aurelius. (Dover, $3). This slender volume transcends time, fashion, and scientific achievement — everything, in short, that feeds our illusion that we are evolving. Marcus' 2,000-year-old observations about our conceits, as well as his commonsense recommendations on the virtues of self-control, require no refrigeration, because they're still fresh.

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. (Little, Brown, $9). Because it's all but impossible to remember exactly how we felt as teenagers, Salinger's portrait of a wiseass prep-school refugee roaming Manhattan should be as mandatory as an annual health exam. It may not create genuine understanding between generations, but it can remind an adult why his or her teenager doesn't care.

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