In this excerpt from her new book, Courtney Martin reflects on the repercussions of a world filled with gizmo-laden gadgets … and shows how a simpler way is both possible and good for the soul.

As Facebook’s director of product design, Margaret Gould Stewart has to keep a billion customers happy. See the design books and articles that guide her.

At the end of 2014, find repose by exciting the mind. 52 of the world’s leading thinkers offer the books that inspired them and their work.