Books 2023

One of my annual traditions is to compile a list of books that I have read throughout the year, excluding things like academic texts or instruction manuals and the like, because… well, I say so.

I track these using GoodReads – something that I was initially skeptical of – but which I have come to appreciate. It helps give me a gentle nudge to make sure that I am not slipping into the trap of thinking I am a big reader, when I’ve barely finished a book in months. It also highlights patterns across time, and helps me reflect a bit, which can be a good thing.

Last year (well, in 2022), I read 32 books. That was a marked improvement on the 13 I managed in 2021 – but not quite up to the 40 I got through in 2020. Interestingly enough, it was the same figure as 2019. Okay, I’ll stop now.

The total for 2023 is (drum roll, please)… 29. According to GoodReads, that comprised of 7,207 pages (down from 8,110 in 2022).

The full list is as follows:

1. Controller – Jesse Kellerman (2018)
2. The Way the World Ends – Jess Walter (2018)
3. Boca Raton – Lauren Groff (2018)
4. There’s No Place Like Home – Edan Lepucki (2018)
5. Famous – Blake Crouch (2010)
6. Retired Teenagers – John D. McGonagle (2022)
7. Good Behavior – Blake Crouch (2013)
8. Bedroom Beats and B-Sides: Instrumental Hip Hop & Electronic Music at the Turn of the Century – Lauren Fintoni (2020)
9. The Creative Act – Rick Rubin (2023)
10. Steal Like an Artist – Austin Kleon (2012)
11. The War of Art – Steven Pressfield (2002)
12. Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow – Gabrielle Zevin (2022)
13. Elsewhere – Gabrielle Zevin (2016)
14. Ninth House – Leigh Bardugo (2019)
15. Hell Bent – Leigh Bardugo (2023)
16. Shampoo Planet – Douglas Coupland (1992)
17. Why I Killed My Best Friend – Amanda Michalopoulou (2003)
18. The Art of Noticing – Rob Walker (2019)
19. When Strangers Meet – Kio Stark (2016)
20. The Culture Code – Daniel Coyle (2018)
21. The Four Tendencies – Gretchen Rubin (2017)
22. The Art of Witty Banter – Patrick King (2020)
23. Creative Quest – Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson (2018)
24. Dilla Time – Dan Charnas (2023)
25. The Psychedelic Explorer’s Guide: Safe, Therapeutic, and Sacred Journeys – J. Fadiman (2011)
26. The Culture Playbook – Daniel Coyle (2022)
27. Entangled Life – Merlin Sheldrake (2020)
28. The 48 Laws of Power – Robert Greene (1998)
29. It’s Your Ship: Management Techniques from the Best Damn Ship in the Navy – D. Michael Abrashoff (2002)

Looking back over it now, it’s interesting how many non-fiction books there are in this list. There’s a marked increase in the number of work-related entries compared to previous years, which hopefully isn’t a marker of my increasing age. It’s kind of ironic, because these are the types of entries that often take me much longer to get through. Perhaps in 2024 I will make more of a conscious effort to return to non-fiction.

The full list of books with my comments on each are after the jump.

1. Controller – Jesse Kellerman (2018). A short story that is part of a series looking at the end of the world (or near enough) brought about by global warming. This is a dark tale set in such a future, focussed around the relationship between a mother and son. A compelling lens through which to imagine such a world. I would read more like this! Finished January 2023.
2. The Way the World Ends – Jess Walter (2018). Another book in the ‘Warmer’ series, that has the end of the world due to climate change as part of its core theme. I really enjoyed this one – Walter somehow managing to tell what feels like a much bigger story in a very short form. Here there is more than just the despair of things we can’t change, but a key message of hope. Thoughtful. Finished January 2023.
3. Boca Raton – Lauren Groff (2018). Part of the ‘Warmer’ series of short stories. Unfortunately I have to confess that this left me feeling… not a lot. It could well be down to my own lack of attention, or intellectual failures, but while I can appreciate the skill involved in this writing, it never really grabbed me. I couldn’t really tell you what the story was – aside from somebody depressed about environmental change – and think I would need to read it again to figure out what was going on. Disappointing. Finished January 2023.
4. There’s No Place Like Home – Edan Lepucki (2018). Part of the ‘Warmer’ collection of climate dystopian short stories. This one managed to paint the picture of a bigger world in a relatively limited space, which is tricky to do well. I enjoyed imagining what lay beyond the confines of the text for that reason, and also highlighted a few wise phrases that were included as advice from the main character’s father. However, that is about as far as it went. I didn’t love the story, and didn’t really take anything away from the relationships/characters. Overall, what could be an interesting setting for a longer piece, but as it stands it was just okay. Finished January 2023.
5. Famous – Blake Crouch (2010). Like every one of Blake Crouch’s books that I’ve read, I flew through this. There is something about his writing style that manages to keep me engaged at all times, and this was no different. What was different with this novel however, is that it focussed very much on a particular person and their own warped world – as opposed to an entire dystopian environment that a ‘regular’ person has to navigate through. The journey that the book takes you on as it follows the tale of a nobody who wants to be famous through to its climax is subtly twisty, engrossing, and more than a little chilling. Really cool idea, executed well. Finished January 2023.
6. Retired Teenagers – John D. McGonagle (2022). An enjoyable stroll down memory lane, detailing the ups and downs of creating and running a club night in Glasgow. I don’t think I ever made it to a Pin Ups night, but from the descriptions here, I wish I had. It made me lament the loss of live music club nights and live gigs in general. Interesting how times change. Finished January 2023.
7. Good Behavior – Blake Crouch (2013). This is a collection of short stories, or ‘novellas’ that centre on a particular character, which were used as the basis for a TV series (which I haven’t watched). I picked this up purely because I like Blake’s writing, and stumbled upon it on Goodreads. The stories themselves are crime based, rather than the sci-fi/dystopia that he is now best known for, but still interesting. I found some of the themes a bit dull (the whole drug addicted mother thing being a bit over-played), but still enjoyed them. What tied all of them together was some additional commentary from the author in between, talking about how the character came about, and how it became a TV show. Finished January 2023.
8. Bedroom Beats and B-Sides: Instrumental Hip Hop & Electronic Music at the Turn of the Century – Laurent Fintoni (2020). I picked up this book as the evolution of DIY music production interests me, and I don’t know a huge amount about the roots of hip-hop and interminglings with electronica. Unfortunately, even after reading this, I still feel the same way. There is no doubt that the book covers a huge amount, but a lot of it feels like it simply jumps from artist to artist, reeling off a list of facts – and there isn’t a single, unifying narrative thread you can hook onto. This is compounded by the use of album titles for different chapters, which didn’t clearly match up to any obvious differentiation or progression. When the book does occasionally shift to more of a narrative approach, it is far more enjoyable. Ultimately, while I learned some interesting things, and found a bunch of new artists to listen to, reading this felt like a bit of a slog to get through. Finished February 2023.
9. The Creative Act – Rick Rubin (2023) – An interesting and varied perspective on creativity for those of us that make stuff. – Finished May 2023.
10. Steal Like an Artist – Austin Kleon (2012) – I swear I’ve read this before, but alas… it bears reading again. This short book is a good push to be creative; reminding us that art comes from inspiration which can and should come from anywhere. My only criticism is that I wish it was a bit longer or a bit more in depth, but its digestibility is also part of its appeal. – Finished June 2023.
11. The War of Art – Steven Pressfield (2002) – This book reminds us that making art isn’t easy. It’s difficult, and it takes concerted, repeated effort to do so. It focusses on helping ‘creative people’ tackle the challenge. Finished June 2023.
12. Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow – Gabrielle Zevin (2022) – I read this on the strength of a recommendation, and was glad that I did. The synopsis itself didn’t sound all that appealing or interesting – and to be honest – in many ways it felt like I didn’t understand what the point of the book was, and nothing happened. However, it was also a beautiful reflection on the variations of intimacy and different kinds of relationships that we have throughout life – sometimes simultaneously; pain; and growing older without necessarily realising it. It is far greater than the sum of its parts. – Finished June 2023.
13. Elsewhere – Gabrielle Zevin (2016). I read this immediately after ‘Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow’, because I enjoyed it so much. I didn’t realise until afterwards that it’s apparently categorised as a Young Adults’ book. To be honest, I don’t think that matters at all, and it didn’t come across as such. It follows the journey of a young girl that was killed in a car accident in the after life, and provided a really interesting idea about what that would look like. It was reflective and hopeful and thought provoking. I enjoyed it. – Finished June 2023.
14. Ninth House – Leigh Bardugo (2019). This is a kind of fictional thriller, set in the modern world where magic breaks through at certain points and is kept hidden by various ancient societies at Yale University. It isn’t the kind of book that I would usually choose to read on my own – but picked it up after someone recommended it. Magic and witchcraft can often be associated with kids’ books (thanks Harry Potter), but this one very definitely was not – with some pretty blunt scenes of violence. After just a few pages I got sucked into the story, and finished it in record time. Lots of interesting ideas to stimulate the imagination, with twists and turns along the way in the plot. Can’t wait to read the next one. Finished July 2023.
15. Hell Bent – Leigh Bardugo (2023). I bought this book immediately after finishing the first in the series (‘Ninth House’), and finding myself sucked into the world (and underworld) that was introduced. At the risk of it seeming like I am simply making a lazy comparison, I found the detail and thoughtfulness that has gone into Lethe and the magic of this creation immersive and enthralling in a way that I haven’t really found since reading the early Harry Potter books (specifically, the Prisoner of Azkaban). I didn’t think I was really a fantasy sort of guy, but I guess I am now. I hope there will be a third. Finished July 2023.
16. Shampoo Planet – Douglas Coupland (1992). Ever since I was a teenager, I counted Douglas Coupland as my favourite author. Somehow, he always managed to tap into some of the deep existential feelings that I had but could never find words for – and do so both casually and seemingly effortlessly. I first read Shampoo Planet when I was about 17, so roughly half of my life ago. I held a particular fondness for it, even though I knew it wasn’t my favourite of his works, and I couldn’t tell you a single thing about the plot. I decided to re-read it recently, picking this one out of all the possibilities purely on the strength of my memories of the distinctive cover. I was a bit concerned that it would be a let down all these years on, throwing me into some fresh identity crisis – and to be honest – for the first part of the book I wasn’t particularly inspired. What was actually happening? What was the point? Where was this going? Ultimately, the answer was… nowhere. Much like most of Coupland’s books, you can get through the whole thing before you realise that there isn’t much of a ‘story’. Instead, you kind of dip into somebody else’s world for a while – and more often than not, end up feeling something of their existence. The plot and characters end up providing a vehicle for stimulating something deeper, without you even being aware of it at the time. Shampoo Planet definitely isn’t my favourite Coupland book. It didn’t and still doesn’t blow my mind. However, it has plenty of those naturally profound moments that made me pause and go ‘huh’, which were why I always enjoyed his work in the first place. This is a book about loneliness, the loss of youth, and bleak ambition. I inhaled it in two short sittings. Finished July 2023.
17. Why I Killed My Best Friend – Amanda Michalopoulou (2003) – This book has been superbly translated from the original Greek, in such a way that it felt like it was originally written in English. The story follows two girls with very different backgrounds, growing up together largely in Athens. Their relationship is impossibly close but also volatile, in a that feels both familiar and completely alien… something that also applied to the political backdrop of Greece and Exarcheia in particular. This was an interesting enough read, and I got through the first 2/3rds pretty quickly – but by the end it kind of lost me. Finished August 2023.
18. The Art of Noticing – Rob Walker (2019) – I loved this book. It is filled with short, practical ways that you can change your perspective. It reminded me of ‘101 Experiments in the Philosophy of Everyday Life’ by Roger-Pol Droit for its accessibility and immediate applicability. None of the points or suggestions were over-done or drawn out, and they sparked the imagination with almost every page. After reading this, I was left feeling immensely inspired – and with a pad full of notes. I want to find more like this. Finished August 2023.
19. When Strangers Meet – Kio Stark (2016) – This is a short, but fascinating book that examines how and why we should interact with strangers. I picked this up as I am a street photographer, and was curious about re-shaping my perspective on fleeting, chance encounters. As it happens, it made me reflect more generally on the value of different kinds of relationships, building trust, and it also helped me embrace the beauty in the transient. All of a sudden, those inconsequential chats in the coffee shop queue have taken on new meaning. I enjoyed this. Finished August 2023.
20. The Culture Code – Daniel Coyle (2018) – This book was recommended to me as part of leadership training at my job a while back, and I only just got around to reading it. In some ways I am glad that I did, because I appreciate it more with experience. I am not a big fan of ‘management’ books, but this one takes a different tact – identifying potentially surprising reasons why successful group work as well as they do. The main takeaway is that as a leader, you need to build up the team – not lead from the top down – which is something that deeply resonates with me. Anybody leading a team should read this. Finished August 2023.
21. The Four Tendencies – Gretchen Rubin (2017) – For a long time, I actively rejected personality tests. Something about the categorisation of people into clear groups grated with me significantly, and – in my view – took away from treating people as individuals. However, over the years I have come to appreciate learning about and developing different perspectives to help understand how both myself and others react and approach things in life. Rather than taking any one approach as an absolute, the multitude of mental models is something I can get behind. This book is one I would never have read before, but it came recommended from a colleague, and I can see why. It outlines various different ways that people respond to expectations – both from external sources – but also those imposed internally. This is a really specific, and fascinating way to consider the tendencies that folks have, and I found it to be a very clear, accessible idea – which has real practical application. Ultimately, as the author says themselves, simply being actively open to the fact that other people will react and approach things differently – in of itself – is liberating. I would recommend this. Finished September 2023.
22. The Art of Witty Banter – Patrick King (2020) – Oh dear. I picked this book up cheap when I was got a notion to research comedians and linguistics. Unfortunately there wasn’t really any focus on that side of things. Instead, this was more a playbook for how to approach small-talk – and not a particularly good one. Some of the discussion around interactions with people was interesting, but so many of the examples were incredibly cringe-worthy; the kind of obvious, basic remark that you might expect from an overly familiar American colleague trying to be smart. Truly, woefully bad. I am not entirely sure who this book is meant to be for. Most people will know how to engage in the manner presented already, and if they don’t, the advice provided has so much potential to go badly wrong for the tragically socially inept. I won’t be reading any other books from the author. Finished September 2023.
23. Creative Quest – Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson (2018) – Books on creativity can often feel very formulaic, or take a particularly ‘serious’ approach. This one felt much more natural, sharing insights and examples from Questlove’s own life and career, while also managing to not be overly prescriptive… asking as many questions as it gives ‘answers’. An enjoyable and uniquely thought-provoking book. One with value for artists of all kinds. Finished September 2023.
24. Dilla Time – Dan Charnas (2023) – I only discovered Dilla’s existence relatively recently, and learned some of the mythos surrounding his life. I was one of those that entered through the Donuts album, and found the way he chopped and flipped samples to be incredibly inspiring… before discovering how prolific he was outside of that. This book gives a comprehensive and insightful look into Dilla as a person, how unique his approach to rhythm was, and his legacy. A really interesting and worthwhile read for any producer, musician, or person interested in that world. Finished September 2023.
25. The Psychedelic Explorer’s Guide: Safe, Therapeutic, and Sacred Journeys – J. Fadiman (2011) – This was much more of a scientific book than I expected, describing the results of trials and experiences pre-criminalisation. There was lots of interesting stuff in here, but not quite what I was looking for. Finished October 2023.
26. The Culture Playbook – Daniel Coyle (2022) – I really enjoyed Coyle’s original book ‘The Culture Code’, which looks at ways to help build and manage productive, high performing teams – so was looking forward to this one. This is laid out in the form of short chapters which provide specific ideas to work around, in a concise, actionable way. However, while it was useful and stimulating, a lot of it covered the same ground as Culture Code, and there was a chunk of space dedicated to empty lines to be used in a workshop, which just seemed to take up space. The additional content was often very specific, to hybrid teams and/or dealing with racial diversity specifically – which wasn’t as applicable as the original. Overall I still took value from this and think it’s worth a read for those who may be stretched for time, but in many ways this is just a condensed version of The Culture Code – and you’d be as well reading the OG. Finished October 2023.
27. Entangled Life – Merlin Sheldrake (2020) – A look at the hidden role which fungus, lichen, and other under-appreciated organic entities shape our world and minds. At times the science of this book lost me, written as it is by an actual expert in the field (pun intended), but it also unveiled different ways of thinking about mushrooms that I had never known or considered. The curiosity and passion of the author is obvious and infectious as a result. The most interesting portions for me were the questions that veered more into the philosophical. Why do mushrooms produce psilocybin? The necessity of breasking down elements in order for new ones to be created. A worthy read for anybody interested in the natural world. Finished November 2023.
28. The 48 Laws of Power – Robert Greene (1998) – This is a clever book that outlines 48 strategies for gaining and maintaining power. At first it can seem quite bleak or ill-willed – something that is clear from reading online comments. However, it is actually more of a smart way of categorising and explaining different approaches taken by historical figures – littered with examples from various bits of literature. This is effectively a sneaky way of teaching people about a particular element of history – not (necessarily) intended as a guidebook for ne’er-do-wells. Once I realised that, I generally enjoyed it, and its perspective on the events that it covered. The deeper I got, the more I realised that it was actually pretty thought provoking in an unintended manner. The only criticisms that I have are that it felt rather long, and some of the examples were used more than once. In addition, the formatting of the Kindle version made it very difficult to read some of the additional stories that are inserted at place, though that isn’t the author’s fault. Overall: a creative concept, which means I’ll be seeking out others in the series. Finished December 2023.
29. It’s Your Ship: Management Techniques from the Best Damn Ship in the Navy – D. Michael Abrashoff (2002) – I am no big fan of the military, don’t really care for management books, and I know literally nothing about ships, but this was worth the read. Written in a straightforward, accessible manner, it gives an insight into what it is like to hold a position of significant responsibility in a rigid organisation – and how to make the most of that. Bending rules, surprising people, but most importantly – listening to and caring about the folks that report to you. Finished December 2023.