My Favourite Reads of 2023
“I think books are like people, in the sense that they’ll turn up in your life when you most need them.”
— Emma Thompson
This year I challenged myself to read about 50 books, I may not gotten to that exact number of books, but I did read consistently every month and blogged about what I read.
Here’s a list of all my blogs with what I read every month this year:
That said, here are my top 10 books of the year in no particular order. I left brief notes and summaries of what I liked about these books in previous blogs if you’d like to check that out, so here you go:
1. Bullshit Jobs: A Theory by David Graeber
A lot of jobs make no sense.
Notes: 2023 Reading Challenge: January
2. Marie Curie: A Life by Susan Quinn
She was a remarkable woman, and it was awesome to learn about her beyond her professional accomplishments. ❤️
Notes: 2023 Reading Challenge: January
3. Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism by Amanda Montell
*cough cough* so many cults everywhere, including corporate ones. Wonderful book, I 100% recommend.
Notes: 2023 Reading Challenge: January
4. Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents: How to Heal from Distant, Rejecting, or Self-Involved Parents by Lindsay C. Gibson
I’m grateful I got to bond with someone over this book, I felt seen, and it was wonderful learning from my experiences and figuring out what my next steps could look like + therapy. ❤️
Notes: 2023 Reading Challenge: January
5. Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World by David Epstein
Love! Love! Love! Really relevant for us in the Age of AI, where human creativity can’t be copied by algorithms.
Notes: 2023 Reading Challenge: February
6. You Look Like a Thing and I Love You: How Artificial Intelligence Works and Why It’s Making the World a Weirder Place by Janelle Shane
Speaking of algorithms, this is a great book for anyone who wants to learn about AI and its impact in simple terms.
Notes: 2023 Reading Challenge: February
7. The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel
Financial education is something I wanted to work on this year, and this book was what I needed to help me get started.
Notes: 2023 Reading Challenge: March
8. Mastery by Robert Greene
After reading this book, I became obsessed with Robert Greene’s works, and now I have all his books and can’t wait to read them all. This was worth the time and effort.
Notes: 2023 Reading Challenge: April
9. AI 2041: Ten Visions for Our Future by Kai-Fu Lee, Chen Qiufan
Another good book about AI that uses fiction to convey important concepts about artificial intelligence and its impact on our future.
Notes: 2023 Reading Challenge: May
10. The Laws of Human Nature by Robert Greene
I think everyone should read this. I’ll stop here.
Notes: 2023 Reading Challenge: September
11. Bonus: The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma
Bessel van der Kolk
Conclusion
I think I'll continue this reading challenge in 2024 as it helped me stay accountable and, reflect on what I read. I hope you found this list useful.
📚 Been reading and discussing books weekly with fun people at Silent Book Club.
🎊 Have a wonderful 2024! 🍾
