Books 2025

Every year I share details of the books that I have read over the past twelve months.

In 2025, I apparently read 28 books – up from 22 in 2024. I have no idea why the graph shows 28. It’s wrong.

According to Goodreads… that means a total of about 8274 pages. Up significantly from the previous few years…

The full list from 2025 is as follows:

1. Run – Blake Crouch (2011)
2. Pines – Blake Crouch (2012)
3. You’re Doing It Wrong – Michael M (2024)
4. Wayward – Blake Crouch (2013)
5. Last Town – Blake Crouch (2014)
6. Four Thousand Weeks – Oliver Burkeman (2021)
7. Careless People – Sarah Wynn-Williams (2025)
8. Adults in the Room – Yanis Varoufakis (2017)
9. Talking to My Daughter About the Economy – Yanis Varoufakis (2013)
10. May You Have Delicious Meals – Junko Takase (2022)
11. El Infierno – Pieter Tritton (2017)
12. Little Eyes – Samanta Schweblin (2020)
13. Exit Interview: The Life and Death of My Ambitious Career – Kristi Coulter (2023)
14. Collaborating with the Enemy: How to Work with People You Don’t Agree with or Like or Trust (2017)
15. 52 Times Britain was a Bellend: The History You Didn’t Get Taught At School – James Felton (2019)
16. Mythos: The Greek Myths Retold – Stephen Fry (2017)
17. Corker – Hannah Crosbie (2024)
18. We are the Nerds – Christine Lagorio-Chafkin (2018)
19. Cultish – The Language of Fanaticism – Amanda Montell (2021)
20. The Good Enough Job: Reclaiming Life from Work – Simone Stolzoff (2023)
21. Anyone Can Do It: My Story – Duncan Bannatyne (2008)
22. Fluent On The First Try – Federica Lupis (2020)
23. Mania – Lionel Shriver (2024)
24. I’m Starting to Worry About This Black Box of Doom – Jason Pargin (2025)
25. John Dies in the End – David Wong (2007)
26. Rumours of my Demise – Evan Dando (2025)
27. The Let Them Theory – Mel Robbins (2024)
28. Kitchen Confidential – Anthony Bourdain (2000)

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This year started off with me reading and re-reading a number of Blake Crouch novels. I had recommended a list of dystopian books to a friend, and needed to refresh my memory so we could speak about them, and I also finally read through the Wayward Pines series – something I had initially put off, as I had already watched the TV show.

Things started to slow down a bit in February and March – at least in terms of completed novels – as I ended up reading a number of books simultaneously.

For more thoughts on the specific books, click through to read more.

1. Run – Blake Crouch (2011) – I read this book just a couple of years ago, and decided to re-read it after recommending it to a friend, and realising that I couldn’t actually remember what the plot was like from my own notes. The basics are that for some unknown reason, large numbers of people have started turning on their fellow human… hunting them down and brutally torturing then killing them. The story follows the desperate journey of one family as they are left with just a few minutes to throw everything they can into their car, and… run. This is one of the few books I’ve read that has genuinely left me horrified at times, capturing the chilling terror of facing wanton violence and danger all around. Frightening, but brilliant. Finished January 2025.
2. Pines – Blake Crouch (2012) – Many years back I watched the TV show ‘Wayward Pines’, and whilst I enjoyed it, it kind of put me off reading the book as I knew big chunks of the story – but I am glad I finally did, as the book is great – and quite different to the series in some ways. The synopsis is effectively that some kind of Special Agent is sent to an isolated town to investigate the mysterious disappearance of other Agents, but is thrown into a confusing world where nothing makes sense. If you haven’t read this before or seen the show, I would recommend it. I flew through this in just over a day, and will go on to read the next one in the trilogy as well. Finished January 2025.
3. You’re Doing It Wrong – Michael M (2024) – This book was written by a friend, and chronicles the years that he spent in a band that had a taste of commercial success but which never quite broke through into the wider commercial consciousness. The tales included in here are hilarious to the point of almost being unbelievable, though having been around during the period in question, I can attest to the fact that they are much more rooted in reality than they may seem. This is much more than just a comedic jaunt though, balancing the humour with poignant observations about the reality of the music industry and deeply personal stories which illustrate his own journey. The whole thing is very cleverly put together and well written. I very much enjoyed it. Finished January 2025.
4. Wayward – Blake Crouch (2013) – Second book in the Wayward Pines series, which I blasted through right after the first. Even though I have watched the TV show I loved this. Well worth diving into. Finished January 2025.
5. Last Town – Blake Crouch (2014) – The final book in the Wayward Pines series, which was probably my favourite of the three. Bleak, disturbing, twisted… raising moral questions. Everything I like. I got through this in record time, and glad I finally took the chance to read through the series. Finished January 2025.
6. Four Thousand Weeks – Oliver Burkeman (2021) – This book came recommended from a friend, and I am glad that I took the time to read it. Couched as a ‘time management’ book, it takes a very different approach – speaking about what it means to be ‘productive’, and ways to re-frame how we approach life in general, outside of just cramming more and more in. This resonated, and I highlighted a bunch of sections to return to later. Finished February 2025.
7. Careless People – Sarah Wynn-Williams (2025) – This book outlines the experience of one Facebook staff member that played a key role in the early development of the platform’s global approach to policy. These kind of exposé pieces by previous employees always need to be taken with a significant grain of salt, but unfortunately many of the stories about the attitude and approach of the social media platform and their executives are wholly unsurprising. Thankfully, whilst dark, this is written well enough to avoid sending me in to complete despair. Finished April 2025.
8. Adults in the Room – Yanis Varoufakis (2017) – At the end of 2014 I had spent a few months in Athens – at the height of the Greek economic crisis. Every day the streets were filled with riot police, with public transport shut down and the sting of tear gas hanging in the air. We left as tumultuous elections swept the so-called radical left – Syriza – to power. In the following months, Yanis Varoufakis acted as finance minister – standing up to tremendous pressure from across Europe. Despite my personal connection to that period, it was difficult to tell what exactly was going on, such was the amount of disinformation and propaganda in the press. This book is a fascinating (albeit depressing) insight into the politics and closed-door meetings that created and sustained the crisis. Well worth a read. Finished April 2025.
9. Talking to My Daughter About the Economy – Yanis Varoufakis (2013) – As somebody who had no idea what Government bonds were or how banks could print money, this book from Varoufakis helped me understand the basics of fundamental economic principles. Accessible, and illustrated with clear examples (and a touch of socialist commentary) – I whizzed through this. Is the economy still a mystery? Yes, but a little bit less than it was before. Finished April 2025.
10. May You Have Delicious Meals – Junko Takase (2022) This book takes a peek into the peculiar office politics in a Japanese business. It was a bit of a strange book in that it meandered about the place, and felt very surface-level. None of the characters were especially likable, or even all that interesting. I understand that part of this is down to the particulars of Japanese office culture, and perhaps even the point… but I just didn’t find it hugely engaging. A fine read (especially as it was short), but not one I would rush back to. Finished May 2025.
11. El Infierno – Pieter Tritton (2017) – I came across Pieter Tritton by chance on a YouTube video where he was rating the realism of various movies with drug production/smuggling scenes. The calm and informative way that he spoke piqued my interest, and I went down a rabbit hole… watching interviews where he spoke about his life as a drug smuggler. This book details his time and experiences in some of Ecuador’s toughest jails, as well as briefly looking at how he ended up there. Despite the serious subject matter and often shocking descriptions of violence, Pieter’s narrative is both natural, and compelling. Finished May 2025.
12. Little Eyes – Samanta Schweblin (2020) – A relatively short, strange book that folks would describe as ‘Black Mirror’ esque. The concept involves a near-future scenario with 4G enabled Furby-like creatures which are powered by remote connection to a stranger, with all of the pitfalls that would entail. As other reviewers have noted… this is more interesting as a concept than it is in execution. There were a number of holes which weren’t really addressed or fully realised… but I still found it interesting, and will probably seek out other books by the same author. Finished May 2025.
13. Exit Interview: The Life and Death of My Ambitious Career – Kristi Coulter (2023) – Eesh. This book (obviously) chronicles the experience of a writer that spent twelve years working in the corporate side of Amazon – sharing stories of the impossibly high expectations and career frustrations along the way. As somebody with similar tenure in a tech company, some of the stories struck very close to home, but the book is also very well written – in a manner which tackles sensitive topics such as sexism, over-work, and alcoholism in a manner that is light-hearted and engaging without diminishing their gravity. Worth a read. Finished May 2025.
14. Collaborating with the Enemy: How to Work with People You Don’t Agree with or Like or Trust (2017) – The title of this book sets up the expectation that it will provide insights and advice on how to work more effectively with people that you don’t agree with… but unfortunately, it doesn’t live up to that promise. Much of it seems to be about repeating high level points around the importance of collaboration or the necessity of working with people that you don’t see eye to eye to – with examples drawn from the author’s own experience. However, it doesn’t really go into the ‘how’ portion to more than a shallow degree. If the book had a much clearer narrative structure and was written more purposefully it could be great, but as it is… I didn’t come away much wiser having read it. Finished June 2025.
15. 52 Times Britain was a Bellend: The History You Didn’t Get Taught At School – James Felton (2019) – A (very) short collection of stories from British history that the flag-wavers would prefer us to forget – and probably aren’t even aware of. This is a bit of a strange book, in that it reads kind of like an introduction for kids or teenagers to various atrocities committed by the UK, but then uses language that is clearly geared towards adults. For what it is, and the length it was, it was fine – but more detail in the examples would have made it far more compelling. Finished June 2025.
16. Mythos: The Greek Myths Retold – Stephen Fry (2017) – Greece has a special place in my heart. It is somewhere that I have visited regularly since birth, thanks to the fortune of having Greek family – and I’ve sunk deeply into the politics, food, and language. However… when it comes to the myths; the Gods and the curses and the tales of Mount Olympus, I’ve been neglectful. I wanted an easy, engaging re-introduction that I could sink my teeth into while on holiday in Naxos… and this was perfect. At first, I found Fry’s distinct way of writing a bit irritating, but I quickly settled into it, and came to appreciate the life and levity that he breathed into a dizzying array of layered and complex tales. A great overview, and one that left me feeling both entertained, and… maybe even a bit smarter. Finished June 2025.
17. Corker – Hannah Crosbie (2024) – I discovered the Guardian’s wine critic Hannah Crosbie after she appeared on a YouTube video as an expert, tasting different beverages – one of which turned out to be prison wine. I was interested by her reaction and her reputation as a young (Scottish) wine upstart… so picked this up and read it over the course of an hour or so. Less a ‘book’ than a collection of recommendations for different types of wine that may be suitable for specific scenarios, this is a light-hearted and accessible introduction and guide to various common wines that folks like myself may blithely order without understanding a single thing about. One that I will probably come back to reference in the future… Finished June 2025.
18. We are the Nerds – Christine Lagorio-Chafkin (2018) – The story of how Reddit came about – with a focus on the story of the founders, and the early days. Seemingly comprehensive, and an interesting tale. I enjoyed it, but felt like the end was pretty sudden. Finished July 2025.
19. Cultish – The Language of Fanaticism – Amanda Montell (2021) – Once upon a time, long-long ago, I was planning on studying linguistics. Like many others, I also have something of a morbid fascination with cults. This book combines those two interests, looking at the use of language by groups who inspire cultish behaviour to pull in and maintain those connections – from CrossFit to Scientology and beyond. I want more now. Finished August 2025.
20. The Good Enough Job: Reclaiming Life from Work – Simone Stolzoff (2023) – An interesting and relatively short read, reflecting on our tendency to over-work, and the dangers of associating your self-worth and identity with your career or job. Finished August 2025.
21. Anyone Can Do It: My Story – Duncan Bannatyne (2008) – I recently fell down a rabbit hole of watching Dragon’s Den clips on YouTube, which was addicting in a manner that watching full episodes never was. As a result, I found myself curious about the backgrounds of some of the characters they have on there, and picked this up. While I definitely don’t align with some of the values or positions Duncan takes (anti-Union for a start), this was a fairly interesting read about the upbringing and not-so-glamorous way that he became rich – and provided an insight into how he views the world. Finished September 2025.
22. Fluent On The First Try – Federica Lupis (2020) – More like a booklet than a book – with a good chunk of the total taken up by notes. There are a few interesting tid-bits in here, but nothing groundbreaking, and nothing that you won’t find laid out much better elsewhere. Finished September 2025.
23. Mania – Lionel Shriver (2024) – A dystopian novel set in a fictional near-future slash present, where equality has ‘gone too far’, and discriminating on people based on their ‘perceived intelligence’ has become culturally unacceptable. In some senses, this is an interesting idea, and I enjoyed reading through it. However, parts felt strangely disjointed – like the extent to which the author’s childhood was explored – and the overall ‘political correctness gone mad’, ‘anti-woke’ message was so on the nose as to… well, not be very clever at times. For that reason, I liked it… but didn’t love it. Finished September 2025.
24. I’m Starting to Worry About This Black Box of Doom – Jason Pargin (2025) – I loved this. An intriguing tale of mystery with social commentary that felt natural. The ideas and twists were great, as was the original premise: A girl offers a rideshare driver a stack of cash to drive her and a flight case across the country… but they have to leave immediately, and they can’t talk about the contents of the box. I could pick apart ‘flaws’ like the length (500 pages according to Amazon), or that I’d have preferred a bit more depth to the characters, but the truth is that the story really drew me in, and the writing felt alive. I’ll be seeking out more books by Pargin. Finished October 2025.
25. John Dies in the End – David Wong (2007) – I picked this up after reading and really enjoying another of the author Jason Pargin’s books – “I’m Starting to Worry About This Black Box of Doom”. Albeit, it’s worth noting, this was written under a pseudonym. Unfortunately… this didn’t quite live up to what I’d hoped for. The story was overly long, drawn out, and seemed to lack a cohesive central narrative or plot. It was honestly pretty difficult to follow at times, and kind of felt like a number of different stories that were stitched together… something that made sense after I learned that it had started out as a series of online articles. I don’t think I’ll be diving any further down this particular series, but will give the author’s other books a shot… after a bit of a break anyway. Finished October 2025.
26. Rumours of my Demise – Evan Dando (2025) – I first discovered Evan Dando in High School, when one of my English teachers turned me on to his first ‘solo’ album – ‘Baby I’m Bored’. That LP probably inspired and influenced me musically more than any other, and to this day remains one of my all-time favourites. My relationship with the Lemonheads is a bit more fractured, with some of their back catalogue speaking to me far more strongly than others. I’ve seen them a bunch of times, and been both in-awe, and disappointed in equal measure. Either way, they are still a formative influence for me, so I picked up this book immediately on release and blasted through it in just a couple of nights. It gives a glimpse into the chaotic world of both Evan Dando and the Lemonheads, without ever getting too heavy. While I feel like it skates in the shallow-end of the pool a bit, never quite diving as deep as I would like, I think it’s probably as close as we’ll ever get to actually understanding what is going on with Evan. Would recommend for any Lemonheads fan, but… probably not for anybody who isn’t. Finished October 2025.
27. The Let Them Theory – Mel Robbins (2024) – Another one of those ‘self help’ type books, which largely just re-packages concepts from Stoicism and the like into a snappy, one-liner, self-affirmation. In terms of helping you shift your perspective at times it seems like it could be undeniably impactful – though the book itself is thin on substance, and at least double the length it needs to be. Finished November 2025.
28. Kitchen Confidential – Anthony Bourdain (2000) – This has long been on my ‘to read’ list, and I am glad I finally got around to it. Very funny, very sharp, and an insight into a world that most of us come close to, but will never catch more than a glimpse of. Wonderfully written, and sucked me in from the first page. Well worth a read. Finished December 2025.