Books Read 2024
In alignment with tradition, I've listed the books I read in 2024 so anyone interested in a particular title can pick it up on their own accord. As always, the content of these books doesn't always reflect my personal opinions as I attempt to expose myself to a variety of differing perspectives. Enjoy!
Non Fiction
My Struggle: Volume Three (2009) by Karl Ove Knaussgard
In the third volume of this series, Karl Ove recalls his childhood to a simultaneously beautiful yet heartbreaking intensity.
How The World Works (2022) by Vaclav Smil
A University of Manitoba professor examines the current problems we face in the world and their history, offering clarity regarding misconceptions to help answer questions about the future.
Writing Down The Bones (1986) by Natalie Goldberg
A collection of essays incorporating Zen meditation that helps writers move past creative blocks so that they can continue from the words swirling in their heads to seeing them on paper.
Marfa for the Perplexed (2018) by Lonn Taylor
After a visit to Marfa this year, an artist community located in West Texas, I picked up this book at a local shop so that I could learn more about its history and hopefully better understand how such a tiny little town could cause such a big wave of enchantment.
Waiting to Derail: Ryan Adams and Whiskeytown, Alt-Country’s Biggest Wreck (2018) by Thomas O'Keefe with Joe Oestreich
Ex-tour manager for alt-country star Ryan Adams' first band, Whiskeytown, recounts the tumultuous and magical days on the road with them, capturing their recklessness and sentimentality.
Factfullness: Ten Reasons We're Wrong About the World––and Why Things Are Better Than You Think (2018) by Hans Rosling with Ola Rosling and Anna Rosling
Before dying of pancreatic cancer, statistician Hans Rosling set off on a journey to write a book about how errors in logic cause us to think that the world is worse off now than it actually is.
The Skeptic's Guide To The Future: What Yesterday's Science and Science Fiction Tell Us About the World of Tomorrow (2022) by Dr. Steven Novella with Bob Novella and Steve Novella
As the subtitle suggests, Dr. Novella examines popular science fiction, both books and movies, taking ideas and concepts to see if they could be viably applied to today's world.
Business
Masters of Scale: Surprising Truths From The World’s Most Successful Entrepreneurs (2021) by Reid Hoffman
Much like the popular podcast of the same name, PayPal mafia member and LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman, discusses various case studies of important lessons for start up leaders to internalize when navigating their respective markets.
Psychology/self-help/philosophy
What We Owe The Future (2022) by William MacAskill
A popular way of life, particularly in Big Tech, the founder of the Effective Altruism movement outlines his philosophy.
Love and Will (1969) by Rollo May
Existential psychotherapist Rollo May examines how as a culture en masse we have forgotten or disregarded stories and accompanying values which has caused us as people to find meaning in ourselves or demphasize meaning in life and oneself. May argues that the concept and value of love helps in creating a will to meaning and life.
Out of the Shadows: Understanding Sexual Addiction (1983) by Patrick Carnes, Ph.D.
I read two books by Dr. Carney this year. This first one is more of a self-help guide for those struggling with sexual compulsion.
Contrary to Love: Helping the Sexual Addict (1989)by Patrick Cranes, Ph.D.
The second book I read by Dr. Carney is more clinical and designed to be read by professionals that are assisting their clients with sexual compulsion.
The State of Affairs: Rethinking Infidelity (2017) by Esther Perel
Perel offers several explanations for why people in committed relationships will stray, betraying their partner's trust in the process. Additionally, she offers pathways forward in the aftermath of infidelity.
Helping Gay Men Find Love: Tips for Guys on Dating and Beginning a Healthy Relationship (2017) by Israel Martinez
Written as a self-help guide by a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Martinez takes his practice wisdom to examine why gay men have such a difficult time finding love and connection and offers several useful tips for how to prepare yourself to start meeting men who have traits and qualities that you would look for in a partner.
Polysecure: Attachment, Trauma, and Consensual Non-Monogamy (2020)by Jessica Fern
Typically, I would stray from reviews, as I want my clients to pick up books that appeal to them and leave my opinion out of it, but this one was a dud. Fern is someone with a professional title who is oblivious to their cognitive dissonance. Meant as a guide for those who are looking to navigate polyamorous relationships, Fern over-divulges by using her own traumatic childhood experiences to provide a reference for her theories and more or less suggests polyamory as a solution for those who have insecure attachments stemming from childhood rather than helping them form more secure attachments.
The Birth of Tragedy (1872) by Friedrich Nietzsche
This is a very early work by the German philosopher, in which he provides a theory of music through the lens of Apollonian and Dionsysiun archetypes.
Escape from Freedom (1941) by Erich Fromm
An existential psychotherapist philosophizes that societies and cultures that benefit from an abundance of freedom will seek order in the form of authoritarianism, as it is in our nature to defer control to others.
Commitment and Healing: Gay Men and the Need for Romantic Love (2006) by Richard A. Isay, M.D.
I'm both glad and disappointed that this book exists. I'm glad because it validates the work I have been doing on my own book about insecurities stemming from childhood inhibiting gay men from experiencing romantic love. I'm disappointed because I discovered that the ideas in my writing aren't all that novel.
Fiction
The Plague (1947) by Albert Camus
An absurdist novel about a population that encounters a plague with a cowardly and stubborn response.
The Passenger and Stella Maris (2022) by Cormac McCarthy
McCarthy's final novel, published before his passing, is a two-volume work that follows two siblings whose father helped develop the atomic bomb.
Under the Volcano (1947) by Malcolm Lowry
This novel tells the story of a British diplomat estranged from his wife, who retires to Mexico to live out, unbeknownst to him, his final days.