Few rock stars achieve the extraordinary stature of Michael Stipe, the artist and former frontman of R.E.M., the art rock band from Athens, Georgia, that managed to find global fame without sacrificing the alt-rock instincts that suffused their music. Or, as Spin writer Charles Aaron put it, within the punk-inspired scene of the day, “R.E.M. was first to show us you can be big and still be cool.”

Below are Michael Stipe’s favorite books, available to purchase individually or as a set.