I loved my summertime trips to the library as a kid. There wasn’t an Encyclopedia Brown book in the Franklin, Tennessee library that I hadn’t read at least once, some twice. Reading for pleasure much less personal growth wasn’t something I did much beyond those early summers. There are some books I read for school that come to mind. Where the Red Ferm Grows. And Then There Were None. Red Badge of Courage. Reading just wasn’t a priority beyond Sports Illustrated. Even less so in college, all textbooks and report research.

After college I spent time as a consultant and traveling made trips to the bookstore in a strange town a highlight. Reading books for both pleasure and personal growth became a hobby.

When my youngest was born in October 2016 I took four months of leave to bond. I have extremely fond memories of sitting on the couch in the living room holding Hanna and reading for hours. I cleared many books, including Patrick Rothfuss’s “The Name of the Wind” (662 pages) and “The Wise Man’s Fear” (994 pager).

I might have read a dozen other fiction book in print since. Why? The magic of audio books! I can “read” when I’m in the car, doing yardwork, or exercising. The time really adds up. Audible is great. Libby is life changing. My goal is to balance my reading by going from fiction to non-fiction and repeat. I can read a few fiction books all in a row, but I start to get anxious when I’ve ready too many non-fiction books without a break in between.

From January to December

1. Start With Why – Simon Sinek
2. The Checklist Manifesto – Atul Gawande
3. Effortless – Greg McKeown
4. Thinking Fast and Slow – Daniel Kahneman
5. The Island of Sea Women – Lisa See
6. Sacred Hoops – Phil Jackson
7. The Martian – Andy Weir
8. Crazy Rich Asians – Kevin Kwan
9. More Than A Game – Phil Jackson
10. Sapiens – Yuval Noah Harari
11. Project Hail Mary – Andy Weir
12. The Guest List – Gillian Flynn
13. Everything is F*cked – Mark Manson
14. Wrong Place Wrong Time – Gillian McAllister
15. Artemis – Andy Weir
16. Daily Rituals – Mason Currey
17. Rogue Lawyer – John Grisham
18. The Reckoning – John Grisham
19. Wired to Eat – Robb Wolf
20. The Racketeer – John Grisham
21. Ansani Boys – Neil Gaiman
22. Darth Plagueis – James Luceno
23. The Boys of Biloxi – John Grisham

I didn’t include books I started and didn’t finish. I also didn’t include any Blinkist books summaries, which is magical for so many reasons. I’ve had a free account for years and in 2022 finally splurged and paid for the premium membership. Lightening in a bottle.

Owen