Alan’s Reading List

Here is a list of books I have read recently. I have included notations for my favorite books (^^^), as well as the books that are not quite my favs but still very much recommend exploring!

One of my favorites: ^^^

A recommended read: +++

March 2023

A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas

February 2023

+++ Still Life by Louise Penny

Wordslut by Amanda Montell

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

January 2023

+++ Less by Andrew Sean Greer

^^^ The Rise and Fall of Dinosaurs by Steve Brusatte

December 2022

River of the Gods by Candice Millard

Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty

+++ The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley

+++ Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap… and Others Don’t by Jim Collins

November 2022

How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell

+++ Essentialism by Greg McKeown

+++ A Darker Shade of Magic by VE Schwab

+++ Taste by Stanley Tucci

October 2022

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by JK Rowling

^^^ Four Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss

September 2022

^^^ Holes by Louis Sachar

+++ The Guest List by Lucy Foley

August 2022

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling

July 2022

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling

Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson +++

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling

June 2022

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling

The Bond King by Mary Childs

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling

May 2022

Artificial Conditions by Martha Wells – The first book in this series (All Systems Red) was very entertaining to read. I thought the follow up was very disappointing. My plans to read through the series is cancelled after finishing this book.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling

All Systems Red by Martha Wells

+++ Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert A. Heinlein

April 2022

+++ Artemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident by Eoin Colfer

^^^ Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer

^^^ The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

+++ Music is History by Questlove

+++ High Fidelity by Nick Hornby

+++ The President is Missing by Bill Clinton and James Patterson

+++ The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben

March 2022

Deep Work by Cal Newport

+++ The Magicians by Lev Grossman

Armada by Ernest Cline

+++ The Hummingbirds’ Gift by Sy Montgomery

Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve

February 2022

+++ Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman

You Play The Girl

+++ Medium Raw by Anthony Bourdain

January 2022

+++ The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O. by Neal Stephenson and Nicole Galland

+++ The Martian by Andy Weir

Artemis by Andy Weir

December 2021

^^^ What Makes A Wine Worth Drinking: In Praise of the Sublime by Terry Theise

The Lost World by Michael Critchon

^^^ The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

+++ Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton

Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline

November 2021

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

^^^ Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

+++ The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain

October 2021

^^^ The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

Black Flags, Blue Waters by Eric Jay Dolin – This was a fascinating history of Pirates along the coast of the American Colonies around the Golden Age of Pirating in the Atlantic Ocean. Really interesting to learn more around reasoning for pirates of the time, their impact of governing and wealth of the American Colonies and how the history relates to the fictionalization of pirates we all know.

+++ The E-Myth Revisited by Michael E. Gerber

+++ The Queen’s Gambit by Walter Tevis

The Rooster Bar by John Grisham

September 2021

The Sky Below by Scott Parazynski (USA NASA Astronaut) and Susy Flory (Writer and Co-Author).

Calypso by David Sedaris

^^^ Dracula by Bram Stoker

Eragon by Christopher Paolini

August 2021

+++ The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand – A really well written novel that kept my attention and one which I found very thought provoking. I liked this one better than Atlas Shrugged which I read last fall. Worth giving it a read, take some of the philosophy with a grain of salt but some of it really makes you think and can be a bit inspiring.

Man’s Search For Meaning by Victor E. Frankl

July 2021

+++ Circe by Madeline Miller – This is a beautifully written piece of fiction. Circe is a very unique retelling of classic Greek myths through the first person account of Circe, a minor god and witch, who has outsized impact on the many Greek myths we already know. If you like greek mythology, but want something new and fun, this is a must read. Do note there is a rape scene in this book, its not overly graphiq but it is very emotional. Also the audio book is a delight to listen to.

+++ A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith – So many similarities with two books I recently read: “If Beale Street Could Talk” and “Where the Crawdads Sing”. A great piece of storytelling, with some similar themes and hardships explored as the above mentioned books. Also told from the point of view of a young girl, I found this book an insightful look into the world of lower class city dwellers after the turn of the century. Providing an unadulterated portrait of the struggle of the times.

The Continental Op by Dashiell Hammet – A collection of short stories originally published in 1923 as a series in a pulp fiction magazine. He is an amazing writer, of the short and direct prose style. The stories in the Op of varying quality, with the early stories capturing and holding your attention and the later stories a bit less developed and choppy. I highly recommend his novels The Maltese Falcon and The Thin Man, both of which are amazing novels.

+++ Endurance: Shackleton’s Incredible Voyage by Alfred Lansing

June 2021

Golden Son by Pierce Brown

Red Rising by Pierce Brown

The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster

+++ Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey – Oh man, what a storied life this guy has led. I gleaned more amazing insights than I could have expected or hoped for from this book. McConaughey is a thoughtful dude and shares his journey, lessons and insights with vigor and no filter. He talks openly about the abusive childhood he grew up in and how that has shaped his life. He weaves together hilarious stories with deep philosophical prose, fatherly advice and insights into his interesting decision making processes over time. I loved listening to this book and he is truly an amazing story teller. One of those books that you can take away a insight that can actually change your perspective and/or your life… Greenlight!

Is This Anything? by Jerry Seinfeld – Fun book(?) to listen to. Basically just a reading of a list of Seinfeld’s jokes over the decades. Read by him, it is great to listen to while going for a little walk or dozing off to sleep. I feel like it would be weird to read a paper version of the book. I feel like these jokes would not be as funny if Seinfeld wasn’t reading them out loud.

May 2021

+++ If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin – A love story set in the late 1960’s to early 1970’s in Harlem NYC, I found this book very moving and captivating. It is a window into lives of black people in New York City during that time. I found the racism explored through this book insightful and frustrating, given the continued issues around structural racism, specifically in our policing.

Giant of the Senate by Al Franken

The Death Cure by James Dashner

The Scorch Trials by James Dashner

The Maze Runner by James Dashner

+++ Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens – Amazing piece of literature. Captivating story and characters. The prose if beautiful. The story is sad, funny, thrilling and thoughtful. Hard to find a better piece of fiction

April 2021

Uncommon Type by Tom Hanks

^^^ Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson – One of the best biographies I have ever read. Really detailed and insightful. I learned so much about early computing, Steve Jobs impact in so many different realms and just general California pop culture history in the 70’s-late 90’s. Inspiring and cautionary as the same time.

+++ Why Buddhism is True by Robert Wright

+++ Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman – A collection of his short stories. Not for the faint of heart but I really liked “SunBird”, “Goliath”, “The Facts in the Case of the Departure of Miss Finch”, “The Day the Saucers Came” and The Monarch of the Glen (a novella continuing the story from American Gods, which is a book I loved in its own right). Some of the others are pretty weird or disturbing, but man is he a fantastic writer.

March 2021

The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman – meh. I read the shorter novella “Once Upon a Time in the North” earlier to get a feel for Pullman’s writing to see if this book series might be worth getting lost in. I really enjoyed “in the north” so I decided to give the series a try. I found The Golden Compass to be weak and not terribly compelling. Not worth continuing the saga.

^^^ A Gentleman In Moscow by Amor Towles – Truly one of the best pieces of fiction I have ever read. The prose is gorgeous and the story so witty and charming. It is a masterpiece and I was sad when it was over.

February 2021

Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg

Once Upon a Time in the North by Philip Pullman

Timeline by Michael Chrichton

Capital Gaines by Chip Gaines

^^^ Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

+++ Stardust by Neil Gaiman – a short fantasy tale in which Gaiman transported me into a magical world. The book flew by and I was sad when it was over. The audiobook is read by the author and is fantastic.

+++ 21 Lessons for the 21st Century by Yuval Noah Harari

January 2021

Dune: Messiah by Frank Herbert – not amazing on its own but I view this book as a continuation of the first Dune novel. It really wraps up the story and puts everything in perspective. If you liked Dune, read Messiah to complete the story.

+++ Brief Answers to the Big Questions by Stephen Hawking – really fascinating science, some of which was way over my head but also included interesting perspectives on where science and technology are going. Really inspirational stuff and the audiobook is great with little recordings of Hawking and his daughter mixed in.

+++ The Richest Man in Babylon by George S. Clason

The Lost City of the Monkey God by Douglas Preston

+++ As You Wish by Cary E B lwes – Really fun read for anyone who is a fan of The Princess Bride movie!

+++ Unshakeable by Tony Robbins

December 2020

^^^ The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler

+++ Dune by Frank Herbert

^^^ Desert Solitaire by Edward Abbey

+++ Theft by Finding by David Sedaris

November 2020

+++ Born Standing Up by Steve Martin

+++ Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

October 2020

Dirty Daddy by Bob Saget – Only worth reading if you are a huge Saget fan.

September 2020

^^^ Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari

The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett – I enjoyed the first half but my attention faded and I only made it about 2/3rds through the book.

August 2020

^^^ River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey by Candice Millard

June 2020

^^^ Robin by Dave Itzkoff

+++ The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

May 2020

Motherless Brooklyn by Jonathan Lethem – I recommend checking out the movie as well, great cast and interesting subject.

April 2020

^^^ American Gods by Neil Gaiman

March 2020

+++ The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett

December 2019

^^^ The Four Hour Body by Tim Ferriss

+++ The Great Train Robber by Michael Crichton

October 2020

+++ Cork Dork: by Bianca Bosker

September 2019

^^^ The Icarus Deception by Seth Godin

July 2019

+++ Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer

April 2019

+++ Tribe of Mentors by Tim Ferriss

December 2018

One Click by Richard L. Brandt

Cheers!

-Alan Evans