The Best Books I Read This Year (er...the last two years)
I am an anti-speed reader
I read slow.
I mean, I read words quickly, but I read books slowly.
Back to that ADHD thing I talked about a few weeks ago.
So it takes me a long time to get through a book. But a weird thing about me is that I usually will finish a book, no matter how long it takes me.
In college I did the “Bible in a Year” thing. It took me two full years.
Several years ago I read William Manchester’s The Last Lion: Visions of Glory, the first volume of his three volume biography of Winston Churchill, published in 1983. It took me a year and a half. I actually wrote an entire book in less time than it took me to read that one. I then took two years to read through volume two, Alone. I started volume three, Defender of the Realm published in 2012, a few years ago and my bookmark is stuck at page 20 of 1232. Only 1212 to go..William Manchester himself didn’t even live long enough to finish that book. He died a full 14 years before it was finished by Paul Reid and published.
Point being, I don’t devour books. I chew them slowly. I leave them on my plate for a while so I can talk. I get up and walk around and forget about them. Basically, I read books like my four-year-old son eats meals1.
I wish I read faster because there’s a lot I want to read. Fortunately, I just discovered this cool new technology called Audiobooks. They were invented during the Nixon administration. I’m cutting edge.
Spotify premium includes audiobooks in the monthly price. Every time I say this people are shocked. It’s true. You only get 15 hours a month but I have rarely hit the limit.
So, here are some of the books I’ve read or listened to over the last couple of years that I found very thought-provoking.
The Books I Read (and Liked)
You Can’t Win - Jack Black (1926)
Before the name Jack Black was associated with a cartoon panda, the first famous Jack Black was known for a very different reason. This book is the memoir of a career criminal and professional hobo from the turn of the 20th century. It’s the true tale of a mostly regular kid who is drawn into the free-roaming lifestyle of the freight-hopping vagrants during that time. Reading Black’s tale is like being transported into a Woody Guthrie song. Written in his 40s after he was finally reformed from his life of crime, he describes his adventures, misfortunes, crimes, and the various characters he encountered as he traveled throughout the Unites States and Canada. Black does not portray himself sympathetically, nor as a victim of circumstances. At the same time, he doesn’t moralize much either. Instead you’re transported into dark houses as he sneaks around stealing valuables, hoping against hope that the owner doesn’t wake up, or worse, have a dog. It’s a story full of intense moments as well as deep tragedies, dark spirals into opium addiction, and, ultimately, a treatise on the value of reforming criminals.
Written 100 years ago, it’s incredible to see the ways that the world truly has not changed. Opiod and gambling addictions gripped massive portions of the population and drove them to become dangerous criminals. Crime was rampant (far more rampant than today). Debates raged on how to treat criminals, with those favoring harsher treatment gathering more support publicly even as the results often didn’t show improvements in the crime rate.
But You Can’t Win isn’t really concerned with many of these debates. Black just tells you what he did and the results of his actions. At times it reminded me of No Country for Old Men in its sparse prose, ambiguous morality, and dispassionate descriptions of violence. It’s a short book and could be read quickly. The action happens fast and there’s rarely a boring moment throughout.
Though a deeply influential book in the decades following its release, it’s not easy to find these days. I ordered this 2001 edition from Amazon.
The Anxious Generation - Jonathan Haidt (2024)
I wrote about this one in a previous newsletter so I’ll keep it brief here. It’s absolutely essential reading for all parents and grandparents in the 21st century. I think its impossible to come away from this book with any conclusion other than to prevent kids from getting smartphones until they are at least 16, ban social media until that time or later, and reevaluate your own relationship with smartphones and social networks. One of the most powerful suggestions from Haidt is to find other like-minded parents and commit to these rules together. You don’t want your kid to be the only one at the lunch table not on his or her phone. That could make them just as lonely as all the kids addicted to TikTok. Instead, find like-minded parents who will also commit to protecting their kids from the dangers of smartphones and then your kid will have other people his or her age to play with. Change starts at home and spreads throughout communities. Let’s commit to this together.
Jesus and the Powers - N.T. Wright and Michael F. Bird (2024)
N.T. Wright is one of the most well-known and well-respected theologians in the world at the moment. He has an amazing ability to create both in-depth, seminary textbooks as well as works that are for the layperson like me. Most Christian thinkers can only do one or the other, but he is equally skilled at both. With Jesus and the Powers, he (along with Michael F. Bird) takes on one of the most difficult topics in all of the Bible: how Christians are to interact with, and participate in, government. Wright and Bird are careful not to delve into specific people or many timely topics (though some inevitably come up) because their duty is to show how the Bible discusses our roles as believers in society and government and how that applies regardless of our current situation. Of course, the writers of the Bible had no concept of modern democracy or the ways that an average citizen could be involved in government. There’s no specifics on how we should vote in each election. But the Bible has a lot to say about how we should serve governments. When you consider the fact that the governments in New Testament times were exclusively made up of autocratic emperors serving only themselves and their evil empires, it becomes very convicting to a modern reader prone to constant complaints, protests, and defiance of our leaders.
However, Wright and Bird do not argue that the Christian should always stand idly by when evil is being perpetrated. They delve into the many historic situations in which Christians led the charge against evil tyrannies. They also discuss the numerous unfortunate historical periods in which the Cross was used by governments to commit atrocities. In the end, the book provokes more questions than answers, but I believe that is the purpose. It was written to be relevant in 2024 and in 2064 and 2224. Wright and Bird do not tell you who to vote for or which specific positions to take. They point you to Christ, his sacrifice on the Cross, and His commands to love God and love one another. If you think that can be best accomplished by one party or candidate over another, so be it. If you think you can best spread the Kingdom of Heaven on earth by yourself being involved in politics, so be it. But be wary of putting your hope in man or government.
I audiobooked this one because it is very dense at times and I know I would have gotten bogged down in the text if I was trying to read it through. It was great to ponder through as I walked the dogs.
Same as Ever - Morgan Housel
This book is essentially a collection of anecdotes throughout history that teach lessons about human nature. The lesson from all of them emphasizes the ways that our world actually stays the same more than it changes. I thought it was a fascinating book and it helped change my perspective on many things in life and business. Having a broad view of the world and of your specific circumstances helps prevent short-term panic and creates better long-term planning.
This is a perfect audiobook as it’s written like a series of podcast episodes that are connected to a main theme.
The Books I Didn’t Finish (yet)
Digital Minimalism and Slow Productivity - Cal Newport
I’m going to finish both of them, but I just started them a few weeks ago. Though different books they both focus on core ideas that Newport espouses and that many people are gravitating towards: less technology influence in your life + less busyness = more productivity and more reward.
The Books I’ll Never Finish
The Barbary Corsairs: Warfare in the Mediterranean 1480-1580 - Jaques Heers
I don’t know why I bought this at Half Price Books four years ago. It sounded interesting. It was right up my alley: history, pirates, and so niche that no one else I know will have read it. I’ve brought it on like five trips and only gotten through like two chapters.
But it doesn’t have good reviews. It’s not even the first book that comes up when you google “The Barbary Corsairs.” And it’s not a topic I have any background in, so I’m starting from scratch on the whole time period.
The topic sounds so cool: Muslim pirates vs European nations battling it out on the high seas! Maybe I should find a book on the same topic that people actually say is good.
The Gulag Archipelago - Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
I would love to be the type of person who could read a massive, dense, difficult tome like this one. It’s vitally important and strangely relevant today. But it was just too long and challenging, even in audiobook form2. I got through two chapters, which was more than five hours of listening.
Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
I bought it at a thrift store for 99 cents. I didn’t read it in high school so I decided to see what I was missing. Honestly, I just wasn’t impressed. I know it’s considered a classic, but it felt very predictable. Maybe that’s because so many books and movies since it have used its ideas, but I just didn’t feel the need to finish it.
Which of these books have you read? What should I dive into in 2025? Let me know by replying to this email or commenting on this post.
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The other day he didn’t eat any lunch at school and we said “Carter, are you not eating because you’re talking to your friends too much?” and he said “No! They keep trying to talk to me and distracting me. I’m just trying to sing my songs!”
The three volume set of these books is over 2500 pages and the audiobooks combine for over 75 hours of listening.