Books

2025:

  1. Libra – Don DeLillo – 14Sep25 – 5/5
    Novel where the author takes everything public about the JFK assassination and fills in the gaps with fiction. Stunningly well written in many places. But also a bit overwrought in a few places. I liked it way more than I liked White Noise by DeLillo, which I thought was drivel, head-in-its-own-ass prose. Libra provided a super compelling version of events for the assassination, but more than the factual plausibility, what I enjoyed most was the depiction of the characters' paranoia and neurosis and the collective American kind of patriotic narrativization of history. How history is more infused with personal psychoses than we realize. And how isolation and rumination breed fallacy, fantasy, prejudice, paranoia, etc. Cool book.

  2. Endurance: Shackleton’s Incredible Voyage – Alfred Lansing – 26Aug25 – 5/5
    One of the best books I’ve ever read. Incredibly well written, even if I didn’t understand all the sailing jargon. Such an amazing story, miraculously preserved and retold. My one criticism is I wish there were a bit more of a post-script or epilogue. It ends kind of abruptly. Notes.

  3. Prey – Michael Crichton – 19Aug25 – 4/5
    Fun, easy read. About a swarm of AI nanoparticles that go rogue. Published in 2002 but comes across perfectly current and eerily plausible.

  4. Chaos: Charles Manson, the CIA, and the Secret History of the Sixties – Tom O’Neill – 9Aug25 – 5/5
    Eye-opening. Kind of boils down to three stories: (1) holes in the official Helter Skelter explanation of the Manson murders; (2) shenanigans by the FBI and CIA in infiltrating counter-culture groups and inciting violence; and (3) insane coincidences and overlap between Manson, his Family, and G-men researching mind control and LSD at the same time and place that Manson was researching mind control and LSD. My one criticism is that the author spends too much time discussing his own journey and reporting, which, while impressive, I don’t care about nearly as much as the facts and speculation. Fun book for skeptics.

  5. The Final Account – Jeff Cooper – 10Jun25 – 4/5
    Another Grisham-esque legal thriller. Better than his first (After The Fact). Literary junk food, but tasty.

  6. Awareness – Anthony de Mello – 26May25 – 4/5
    I have a hard time reviewing books like this one because I don’t particularly enjoy reading them, but I really can’t estimate the benefits they may yield down the road. It’s possible I learned one or two small things that over time will noticeably improve my life. I think that’s true with this book. (I also did somewhat enjoy reading it. Made me feel peaceful.) Author’s main point is that you shouldn’t identify with your thoughts or emotions. You should identify with the self that observes those thoughts and emotions. Then you’ll notice negative events come and go, and you’ll develop your awareness muscles to more fully experience life, which is a blissful thing to do. Notes here.

  7. Just Mercy – Bryan Stevenson – 3May25 – 5/5
    Powerful read. Author has my full respect. Went into the belly of the beast and slowly tipped the system toward justice. Liked how the different storylines were woven together. A book that fully deserves its popularity. Notes here.

  8. Socialism … Seriously – Danny Katch – 25Apr25 – 4/5
    It’s a decent book. It reads well. I learned a lot, especially about the history of socialist movements. Notes and larger review here.

  9. Among the Thugs – Bill Buford – 19Apr25 – 5/5
    Gonzo-style plunge into British soccer hooliganism and crowd violence. Quite a trip to read. These lads were wild. Totally agree with the author that the riots and violence sprang from some kind of counter-cultural, anti-social, male desperation. But I thought the role of alcohol was noticeably overlooked. Still thrilling and thought-provoking and masterfully written.

  10. Rich Girl Nation – Katie Gatti Tassin – 22Mar25 – 5/5
    Every once in a generation, a book comes along that doesn’t just educate and entertain, it transcends. Rich Girl Nation is that book. It is a revelation, a bold new tack for the personal finance milieu, a seismic shift in literature itself. To read it is to know beauty. Every line sings with a lyrical grace seldom seen in modern writing. A work of such staggering genius demands to be read, re-read, discussed, shared, purchased, and re-purchased for millennia. I am forever changed by this masterpiece.

  11. The Pathless Path – Paul Millerd – 22Feb25 – 4/5
    Ex-McKinsey consultant writes about finding his own way in work and life. Does a good job of reframing some big questions. Pretty easy read, and a nudge in the right direction. Notes here.

  12. Franklin D. Roosevelt: A Political Life – Robert Dallek – 25Jan25 – 4/5
    Impressive book. Learned a lot about the New Deal and WWII. Writing style was not entirely my jam. And I wish it covered some stuff more—e.g., end of WWII (albeit after FDR died) and Japanese internment (how?). But covered the hits very well: his family (he was TR’s 5th cousin), upbringing, polio, cabinet, relationships with Churchill and Stalin. Pretty inspiring level of service and belief in America. Notes here.

Hall of Fame: