fantasy 4

I read 52 books in 2023 (about the same as in 2022, 2021 and 2020.) Here’s what I read (best books first). Fiction The Kingkiller Chronicle. I picked it up before a flight to London in 2014. Read it through the flight. Read it late into the night at our AirBnB. Skipped my workshop prep. Read it during the workshop breaks. Read it on the flight back. And I re-read it every year or two. The language is beautiful and the story gripping. I feel miserable this series isn’t complete. The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ The Stormlight Archive. Another series I re-read regularly. Brandon Sanderson takes the scale of the story up a notch in every book. Rhythm of War by Brandon Sanderson ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Andy Weir’s books. Since my daughter re-reads The Martian (laughing loudly), I picked up Project Hail Mary. It’s a brilliant depiction of alien physiology and communication, with a weird kind of humour I love. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir ⭐⭐⭐⭐ The Egg by Andy Weir ⭐⭐⭐⭐ The Martian by Andy Weir ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Red Rising Saga. A pleasant discovery of a new series. Somewhat like The Hunger Games and Divergent. Red Rising by Pierce Brown ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Golden Son by Pierce Brown ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Morning Star by Pierce Brown ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Blake Crouch’s books. The two I read were both time-travel related and I love that genre. These do a great job of exploring some of the deeper implications of time-travel. Recursion by Blake Crouch ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Dark Matter by Blake Crouch ⭐⭐⭐ Ready Player One by Ernest Cline ⭐⭐⭐. It’s as good as the movie with slightly different scenes. The Reckoners by Brandon Sanderson. Another series I re-read. Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Firefight by Brandon Sanderson ⭐⭐⭐ Calamity by Brandon Sanderson ⭐⭐⭐ The Year of Sanderson. Brandon Sanderson’s kickstarter raised $41m for 4 books this year (mostly Cosmere). The stories themselves were OK but the hints they drop about the Cosmere are invaluable. Yumi and the Nightmare Painter by Brandon Sanderson ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson ⭐⭐⭐ The Sunlit Man by Brandon Sanderson ⭐⭐⭐ Fullmetal Alchemist by Hiromu Arakawa. After Death Note, it felt like a let-down when it started. A mundane story. Then it grew funny. Showed shades of a much deeper story. I’m mid-way through the series and I’m hooked. Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 1 by Hiromu Arakawa ⭐⭐⭐ Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 2 by Hiromu Arakawa ⭐⭐⭐ Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 3 by Hiromu Arakawa ⭐⭐⭐ Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 4 by Hiromu Arakawa ⭐⭐⭐ Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 5 by Hiromu Arakawa ⭐⭐⭐ Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 6 by Hiromu Arakawa ⭐⭐⭐ Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 7 by Hiromu Arakawa ⭐⭐⭐ Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 8 by Hiromu Arakawa ⭐⭐⭐ Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 9 by Hiromu Arakawa ⭐⭐⭐ Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 10 by Hiromu Arakawa ⭐⭐⭐ Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 11 by Hiromu Arakawa ⭐⭐⭐ Mono no Aware e altre storie by Ken Liu ⭐⭐⭐. A nice short story Traitors Gate by Jeffrey Archer ⭐⭐⭐. A well-writter fast-paced average story. Mistborn: Secret History by Brandon Sanderson ⭐⭐⭐. Average story but with lots of “secrets” about the Cosmere. Asterix and the Griffin by Jean-Yves Ferri ⭐⭐. Some good jokes but not as good as the original series. Non-fiction ...

I read 52 books in 2022 (about the same as in 2021 and 2020.) Here’s what I read (best books first). Mind-blowing Man’s Search for Meaning. Viktor Frankl. It’s 75 years old and timeless. Who we are is independent of what’s around us. This book shows us why. This story is a great example. My best book of 2022. The Paper Menagerie. Ken Liu. I cried all the way from the beach to home. The skies joined me. It’s short. Touching. It healed a wound I can’t speak about. The most touching book of 2022. The Data Detective. Tim Harford. 10 powerful, down-to-earth rules for how to make sense of data, and avoid being fooled. I plan to incorporate every one of these into my talks. The most useful guide to working with data in 2022. The Extended Mind. Annie Murphy Paul. Explains how we think not just inside our brains, but in our bodies, in our physical environment, and in the people around us. The most effective guide to transforming my thinking in 2022. Life-changing ...

On my Goodreads 2021 reading challenge, I read 52/50 books in 2021. I managed 47/50 in 2020 (see 2020 reviews) and 26/24 in 2019. Here’s what I read (best books first). Mind-blowing The Almanack of Naval Ravikant. It’s the best non-fiction I’ve read in 5 years. It focuses Wealth and Happiness. It’s short. I finished it in a day. But it’s deep. I can spend a decade practicing just a single sentence. It’s available at navalmanack.com as a free e-book and audio book. Rhythm of War. The 4th book of the Stormlight Archives is an action-packed fantasy. A great gift for teenagers. In an extra-ordinary magic system, Brandon Sanderson builds up to the greatest climax I’ve read. What an ending! Death Note #1-#12. Light Yagami gets hold of a “death note”. If he writes a name on it, they die. “L” is out to catch him. In a cat-and-mouse psychological thriller, Light and L work next to each other, share their plans, and still try to outwit the other. It’s like chess. The pieces are visible. But it’s the strategy that counts. A brilliant comic series. Life-changing ...

My Goodreads 2020 Reading Challenge target is 50 books. I’m at 45/50, with little hope of getting to 50. (I managed 25/24 in 2019.) The 10 non-fiction books I read (most useful first) are below. The Lean Startup by Eric Reis. The principle of Build - Measure - Learn is useful everywhere in life too, not just in startups. Never Split The Difference by Chriss Voss. Shares principle-driven strategies to convince people. The 4 Disciplines of Execution by McChesney, Covey & Huling. Teaches how to build execution rigor in an organization. A bit long at the end, but the first section is excellent. Sprint by Jake Knapp. A detailed step-by-step guide to running product development sprints that you can follow blindly. How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big by Scott Adams. Dilbert’s author shares his strategies for life. Very readable, intelligent, and slightly provocative, but always interesting. The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni. Written as a story (like The Goal). Talks about the 5 problems in teams and how to overcome them. The Culture Code by Daniel Coyle. Explains the elements of strong cultures - belongingness, shared vulnerability, and shared purpose. Data-Driven Storytelling by Nathalie Henry Riche et al. Shares the latest points of view on telling data stories. My team and I read these chapters as a group. Leaders Eat Last by Simon Sinek. Inspiring when I read it, but I don’t remember what it said. Deep Work by Cal Newport. Shares tactics to focus. Practical and useful. I also started, by haven’t finished these four: ...