Last year’s roundup was very unsatisfying for me to write. I found it difficult to motivate myself to write it, and I believe the quality of the content suffered. I’m going to try a slightly different format this year, which I hope will focus me more to write something better for the consumer
A Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
Why I chose to read it
I heard the sequel to this novel came out this year, “The Testaments”, which made me intrigued since I had assumed this was a very very old novel.
Why you should read it
If you enjoyed 1984, and would like to read an alternate version of it, where the oppressive government is extremely religious, and the main character is an oppressed female.
Rating
Good: I felt the writing style was very verbose and at times tiringly descriptive of the main character’s feelings and imaginations on things, which I confess I skimmed through. But the narrative arc was satisfying, and the author did a good job of very slowly and deliberately revealing the world to the reader.
Nine Pints by Rose George
Why I chose to read it
Bill Gates recommended it, and I often enjoy his recommendations.
Why you should read it
Read this if you want a better idea around the massively complex infrastructure required for blood and other bodily fluid donations.
Rating
Meh: The book felt quite boring at times, regaling the reader with narratives that were not super interesting.
Children of Ruin by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Why I chose to read it
The sequel to Children of Time, which I loved.
Why you should read it
If you like hard science fiction and you’d enjoy exploring the development of intelligence in a non primate fashion.
Rating:
Great: There was one huge surprise in the middle of the book that drew me deeply into the finish.
The Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler
Why I chose to read it
I had heard of this author often, and it finally made it off my book backlog. You’ll see that I enjoyed it so much that I went on an Octavia Butler binge this year.
Why you should read it
If a climate-change-induced post-stable-society survival story wouldn’t be too heavy on you.
Rating
Amazing: Octavia Butler writes books with very novel situations that weigh heavily on you, provoking thought long after you finish the book.
The Parable of the Talents by Octavia Butler
Why I chose to read it
I ordered this from the library before I finsihed “The Parable of the Sower”.
Why you should read it
If you liked the first one.
Rating
Amazing: The second novel fast forwarded greatly from the first one, and continued pursuing the novel world Octavia Butler created, without rehashing any of the first one’s themes.
Kindred by Octavia Butler
Why I chose to read it
I was looking for more Octavia Butler, and this is one of her most famous and more recent ones. It’s about a modern black woman who was transported back in the past to an Antebellum South with slavery.
Why you should read it
This is an utterly unique horror / historical fiction / science fiction, that hits you very heavily. The weekend I read this, I couldn’t put it down and it affected my dreams.
Rating
Amazing: I can’t think of any other novel remotely similar to this.
Fledgling by Octavia Butler
Why I chose to read it
More Octavia Butler!! Honestly I haven’t disliked a single one of her books yet. This was written in 2005, almost two decades later than the earlier works. It another modern day take on the vampire story.
Why you should read it
Butler imagined some unique characteristics to explain vampires and vampire society. It felt very believable and natural.
Rating
Great: Another success by Butler. It wasn’t as heavy as the other works, but was still definitely a page-turner and Butler never ceases to surprise the reader.
The Redemption of Time
Why I chose to read it
A fan-fiction in the Three Body Problem universe that was so popular that it was published and translated into English.
Why you should read it
If you can’t get enough Three Body Problem, this takes one aspect of the plot and runs along with it.
Rating
Meh: It only really shares a backdrop and characters with Liu Cixin’s writing. It lost the hard science fiction feel of Three Body Problem, and just felt like wild speculative fiction.
I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
Why I chose to read it
Malala is the Nobel Peace Prize winning Pakistani girl who survived being shot in the head by the Taliban for campaigning for her right to an education. This is her amazing story.
Why you should read it
The whole memoir is extremely moving, forcing you to walk the same difficult path and feel the same injustice as Malala.
Rating
Amazing: There’s a father-daughter passage in this book that actually brought tears to my eyes.
Upheaval by Jared Diamond
Why I chose to read it
Jared Diamond’s books are always pretty famous, and I enjoyed Guns, Germs, and Steel.
Why you should read it
Explains a historical narrative around dramatic nation-wide changes in several countries, e.g. Finland, Japan, Chile, etc.
Rating
Meh: I enjoyed the deeply contextual story telling of each of these nations in a time of upheaval, but the end of each chapter was followed by a really boring and repetitive compare/contrast of this new nation with nations previously analyzed in earlier chapters.
Wheelmen by Reed Albergotti
Why I chose to read it
I’ve been getting really interested in cycling over the past several years, and this is an investigative journalist type book about the rise and fall of Lance Armstrong.
Why you should read it
If you think the cycling doping scandal was interesting, then this tells you all about it.
Rating
Amazing: The writer picked all the relevant details and constructed them into a clear narrative that gave a very deep understanding of the state of cycling doping and Lance Armstrong’s role.
Never Grow Up by Jackie Chan
Why I chose to read it
I like memoirs, and I figured Jackie Chan’s memoir might be interesting.
Why you should read it
If you’re a huge Jackie Chan fan.
Rating
Meh: Honestly I finished the memoir with less respect for Jackie Chan than I had previously. He was previously just a funny actor who’s movies I enjoyed. This memoir revealed all the ugliness of his life behind the screen, such as his rampant materialism in his early career and his romantic infidelities.
The Fifth Risk by Michael Lewis
Why I chose to read it
I really enjoyed all previous Michale Lewis books, especially The Big Short, and Liar’s Poker
Why you should read it
It’s about a bunch of government agencies that no one thinks about, such as how the Department of Energy protects the world from nuclear proliferation. It goes heavily into how the Trump administration is messing these all up.
Rating
Meh: It feels like a biased fear-mongering piece. I find it difficult to generate valid conclusions when someone tells me to feel injustice about something I’ve never heard about.
The Uninhabitable Earth David Wallace-Wells
Why I chose to read it
I’ve been becoming increasingly environmentally aware over the past few years, and this is one of the standout recent environment books.
Why you should read it
If you’re interested in a mix of speculative and projection-based climate possibilities for the future.
Rating
Meh: I didn’t really get anything new out of this. All the well-supported things, like rising sea levels, increased droughts, more wildfires, are all things I already know about. The new stuff…. isn’t very well supported. Like he has a whole chapter about how the next ebola will be unearthed from thawing permafrost in the arctic. Also some of his logic didn’t really make much sense, such as when he denigrated California’ supposed green energy initiatives, saying wildfires contribute more greenhouse gases than are saved by green energy initiatives. Wildfires would happen whether or not California tried to reduce its carbon footprint, so they’re totally separate things.
AI Superpowers by Kai Fu Lee
Why I chose to read it
Kai Fu Lee is a pretty famous AI researcher and venture capitalist, and this book tries to explain AI’s future, and how China and the United States compare in the different sectors.
Why you should read it
If you want a glimpse into China’s tech startup scene, as well as as glimpse into what Chinese tech startups are already doing with AI, this gives you exactly that.
Rating
Good: The author gives a pretty broad summary of the AI race between the United States and China, and gives western readers exposure to what’s happening in the east. However, I sort of skimmed through the second part, which diverges to try to suggest that humans in a post-AI world might be good for just service-oriented tasks, like being a smiling driver or nurse, things that an AI cannot emotionally give.
Flyboys by James Bradley
Why I chose to read it
The Flyboys were a group of American pilots who were captured as POWs by the Japanese. This book was presumably about their story. It ended up being much more about the backdrop of the two warring nations in general, lighting up war atrocities committed by the Americans as well that were not highlighted by history.
Why you should read it
Although I already knew much about WWII in the Pacific, this offered some new insights, specifically about the fire bombings in Japanese cities that were in many ways more destructive than the atomic bomb droppings.
Rating
Good: James Bradley has an amazing ability to describe a man in a few paragraphs with just the most important points to let you know exactly his character and also to engender sympathy and empathy for him.
Bad Blood by John Carreyrou
Why I chose to read it
An investigative journalism piece on the rise and fall of Theranos and by proxy, Elizabeth Holmes.
Why you should read it
The book read like Walter Isaacson’s biography of Steve Jobs, except with a decidedly less happy ending. Perhaps this is unsurprising given that Holmes envied Steve Jobs and tried to emulate him in many ways.
Rating
Amazing: A real page turner. There’s a certain dark desire within humans watch the failure of the rich and arrogant, which this book certainly portrays Holmes as. The book really plucks these “outrage” emotional strings for the reader to give a satisfying read.
Black Hole Blues Janna Levin
Why I chose to read it
Gravitational waves were recently verified in observation. This book would give me a deeper understanding of the search for them.
Why you should read it
The author does a great job waxing poetic about scientific concepts, and these brief passages are quite satisfying.
Rating
Bad: Only 15% of the book was about cool science and engineering. The other 85% is endless minutiae about the lives of the scientists and politics of the organizations, stuff totally unrelated to gravitational waves…
Closure, Limited by Max Brooks
Why I chose to read it
I loved World War Z the novel by Max Brooks. This contained a series of short stories set in the same universe.
Why you should read it
If you really loved World War Z.
Rating
Meh: the short stories were really short and limited in what they could exposit. I enjoyed being back in Max Brooks’ world, but left feeling unsatisfied.
Dark Banquet by Bill Schutt
Why I chose to read it
A non-fiction tour of biology around blood sucking animals. It’s not a dry science novel, but rather follows the author as he investigates various species and stories around the world.
Why you should read it
If you’re morbidly fascinated by creatures that make their livelihood by drinking blood (sanguivores).
Rating
Great: An interesting page-turner that taught me many random interesting facts about blood sucking animals.
Born to Run by Chistopher McDougall
Why I chose to read it
I competed in part of a triathlon this year, and so I began getting into running. This book tells a story about a remote tribe in Mexico who run hundreds of miles in sandals.
Why you should read it
If you’re interested in the minimalist running movement, and also interested in the crazy lives of ultra endurance runners.
Rating
Great: This book really kept you on the edge of your seat. The author was a first-hand witness of most of the events he wrote about, and you feel like you’re on a journey with him to rediscover the lost arts of running.
Midnight in Chernobyl by Adam Higginbotham
Why I chose to read it
Nuclear disaster is interesting to me.
Why you should read it
It begins by describing the problematic soviet nuclear culture then goes minute-by-minute, day-by-day to describe the incident itself in excruciating (in a good way) detail.
Rating
Amazing: As a software reliability engineer, reading this book was harrowing. When my stuff fails, a website goes down. When their stuff fails, in the worst case, vast swathes of Europe would be rendered radioactively uninhabitable for centuries.
Becoming by Michelle Obama
Why I chose to read it
It made the top of the bestsellers for this year, and I felt it would be useful to gain an additional perspective on our previous presidency.
Why you should read it
It’s a very down-to-earth and genuine telling of Michelle’s story from humble Chicago beginnings to becoming the First Lady. I was particularly moved by how she described coping with the every-day challenges of being the first lady. It humanizes the position in a way I never expected, having only known the white smiling dolls of first ladys in the past.
Rating:
Good: She definitely knows how to write and tell a story, which made it an enjoyable read, but there wasn’t anything particularly amazing in the memoir.
Dataclysm by Christian Rudder
Why I chose to read it
A friend left it in my apartment and never picked it up, so I decided to read it.
Why you should read it
It’s the founder of OKCupid taking years of online dating data to draw conclusions about romantic behvior of humans, especially with regards to inter-racial preferences.
Rating
Great: A lot of the conclusions were quite surprising, but make a lot of sense. I found the read wholly enjoyable.
Zealot, the Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth by Reza Aslan
Why I chose to read it
It showed up in some “interesting books of year” list for giving a secular and historical account of who Jesus was, minus the biblical aspects.
Why you should read it
If you want to learn about how early Christianity formed out of the zeitgest of their era from a historical perspective, this can help you better understand the roots of Christianity.
Rating
Meh: Certain parts were interesting, but as expected, it was a bit too pedagogical.
Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith
Why I chose to read it
I like quirky undead (non-twilight) content, and this really fits that.
Why you should read it
If you want to read a fantastical and humorous reimagining of Abraham Lincoln as a man who fought the Confederacy and simultaneously the Southern vampire aristocrats, then this is your book. Just don’t take it too seriously.
Rating
Great: Really a short and enjoyable page-turner. I really appreciated that the author truly researched historical events and tried to find an alternative vampire explanation for them.
Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
Why I chose to read it
I like memoirs, and I enjoy Trevor Noah’s comedy, so I figured he had something to say.
Why you should read it
Trevor surprised me. I expected a rehashing of his Netflix comedy skit–just some funny stories about race and South Africa. But instead, I received a very insightful reflection of Trevor’s growing up in poverty and apartheid–still absolutely hilarious, Trevor can’t not be funny. Trevor’s upbringing was truly unique, being a mixed race in a country where his mixture is literally illegal. Furthermore, he has moved through so many socioeconomic strata that his perspective on life and people is truly wise.
Rating
Amazing, Best Book I’ve Read This Year: The pacing, the jokes, the amazing conclusion all combined to make an utterly satisfying read.
This Road I Ride by Juliana Buhring
Why I chose to read it
I participated in a relay triathlon this year, and wanted to read something from an endurance athlete to get me more in the mood.
Why you should read it
A very straightforward story that draws you in for its honest simplicity, Juliana decided to circumnavigate the world on a bicycle after the loss of a loved one. I really love these kinds of works, where the author candidly describes every day life, letting you live vicariously through them. Through her experiences in various different countries, you get a surprising sense of the nature of the country. The way a country treats strangers, specifically a lone woman riding a bicycle, reflects surprisingly well on the character of the nation.
Rating
Great: I finished this book in one evening, although I was also suffering from pre-triathlon jitters, so take that with a grain of salt.
Poorly Made in China by Paul Midler
Why I chose to read it
Some bike blog mentioned this book to better understand how wholesale cheap manufacturing gets done in China.
Why you should read it
If you’re curious about what really goes on behind every “Made In China” logo that has become so ubiquitous in our modern lives.
Rating
Good: Paul Midler tells some really funny and interesting stories that keep you relatively engaged.
The Last Question by Isaac Asimov
Why I chose to read it
A friend recommended this short story to me, without giving me too many details.
Why you should read it
It offers a speculative future path for what happens when we develop super intelligent AI, from its first creation until the heat death of the universe.
Rating
Great: The plot line was really clever with a solid conclusion (usually very difficult for hard sci-fis).
Educated, a Memoir by Tara Westover
Why I chose to read it
This book made several bestseller lists for this year, I love memoirs, and her story seemed particularly interesting.
Why you should read it:
Tara Westover was born into an utterly rural fundamentalist anti-government Mormon family. From that very inward-facing beginning, she struck step-by-step out into the modern world to get degrees from BYU, Hardvard, and Cambridge. Her life is just so interesting that just retelling it would make a page-turner. She combines that base story with her degrees in literature and history to really craft a quality memoir.
Rating
Amazing: very much like Hillbilly Elegy, but perhaps more extreme, Educated enthralls you to take a long and crazy journey along an amazing life.
