The 5 Books Natalie Portman Wants Everyone to Read
Between acting in prestige dramas, directing films, and casually running her own book club, Natalie Portman still finds time to read — and she has some strong opinions about what you should be reading too.
In a recent interview with Dior, Portman listed five books she recommends to pretty much everyone. It's a mix of cinematic inspiration, heavy-hitting essays, and page-turners with existential dread. You know, classic bedtime material.
Here's what made the cut:
1. Exhibition Catalogue – Todd Haynes
Yes, the Todd Haynes. Portman calls this collection of the director's film imagery "an incredible way to see the ideas that informed his filmmaking." She's a fan of his work (especially Safe), and getting cast in his 2023 film May December was a big deal for her. The book's full of visual inspiration and deep-cut references — catnip for anyone who's into film theory or just wants to peek inside a director's head.
2. On Photography – Susan Sontag
Portman doesn't mess around with her nonfiction picks. "The most compelling thing I've read about how we consume images… how we look at art," she says. What struck her most? Sontag's precision:
"It all feels logical, but I'd never have thought of it on my own — which is the greatest gift a writer can give you."
Heavy praise, well-earned. If you've ever doomscrolled Instagram and wondered what it's doing to your brain, Sontag was already there 50 years ago.
3. When We Cease to Understand the World – Benjamín Labatut
"This is one of the most miraculous books I've read,"
Portman said. It's a weird hybrid of real scientific biographies and fictional flourishes — think quantum mechanics meets existential dread.
"It's the biographies interwoven of people who discovered incredible things and their passion," she said, "and some of their discoveries led to the destruction of the world in many ways."
So yeah, it's light summer reading... if your idea of fun is watching genius lead to apocalypse.
4. My Brilliant Friend – Elena Ferrante
Portman fell hard for this one:
"I just could not put them down," she said of Ferrante's Neapolitan novels. "It reminded me of reading in my childhood... the truest portrait of female friendship I've ever read."
If you've ever wondered what it's like to grow up in 1950s Naples in the shadow of economic hardship, Catholic guilt, and your terrifyingly brilliant best friend — Ferrante's your answer.
5. Hope in the Dark: Untold Histories, Wild Possibilities – Rebecca Solnit
To wrap it up, Portman picked a little hope. "This is a book completely dedicated to hope, which I think is so inspiring." Solnit's essays highlight political movements that actually worked — MeToo, climate activism, you name it — and argue that change is possible even when things look bleak. Portman calls it a reminder that "progress is imminent despite the challenges we face."