Currently Reading
- Curious Minds Danielle Bassett and Perry Zurn Descartes’ Error Antonio Damasio
- Games: Agency as Art C. Thi Nguyen
- Invisible Cities Italo Calvino
- On Not Being Someone Else Andrew H. Miller
Want to Read
- A Treatise of Human Nature David Hume
- An Everlasting Meal Tamar Adler
- Book of Why Judea Pearl
- Chip War Chris Miller
- Exercises in Style Raymond Queneau
- Fact, Fiction, and Forecast Nelson Goodman
- Governing the Commons Elinor Ostrom
- How To Fail at Almost Everything And Still Win Big Scott Adams
- Human Transit Jarrett Walker
- Introduction to Urban Science Luis M. A. Bettencourt
- Intuition Pumps And Other Tools for Thinking Daniel Dennett
- Language and Problems of Knowledge Noam Chomsky
- Les Miserables Victor Hugo
- Life, Death, and Other Inconvenient Truth Shimon Edelman
- Master of the Senate Robert Caro
- Middlemarch George Eliot
- Money for Everyone Malcolm Torry
- Only Revolutions Mark Z. Danielewski
- Order without Design Alain Bertaud
- Plagues upon the Earth Kyle Harper
- Reality Is Not What It Seems Carlo Rovelli
- Science and the City Laurie Winkless
- Stuff Matters Mark Miodownik
- Technology and the Virtues Shannon Vallor
- The Ascent of Information Caleb Scharf
- The Burnout Society Byung-Chul Han
- The Chip T. R. Reid
- The Closing Circle Barry Commoner
- The Collapse of Complex Societies Joseph Tainter
- The Commons in an Age of Uncertainty Franklin Obeng-Odoom
- The Complexity of Cooperation Robert Axelrod
- The Cultural Revolution: A People’s History, 1962―1976 Frank Dikötter
- The Difference Scott Page
- The Disappearing Spoon Sam Kean
- The Elements of Style William Strunk Jr.
- The Elephant in the Brain Kevin Simler and Robin Hanson
- The Ethical Algorithm Aaron Roth and Michael Kearns
- The Evolution of Great World Cities Christopher Kennedy
- The Genetic Lottery Kathryn Paige Harden
- The Lessons of History Ariel Durant and Will Durant
- The Making of Urban Japan Andre Sorensen
- The Making of the Atomic Bomb Richard Rhodes
- The Network State Balaji Srinivasan
- The Precipice Toby Ord
- The Song of the Cell Siddhartha Mukherjee
- The Way of a Pilgrim
- The World Is Flat Thomas Friedman
- Tragedy of the Commons Garrett Hardin
- Triumph of the City Edward Glaeser
- Urban Infrastructure: Reflections for 2100 Sybil Derrible
- Why Greatness Cannot Be Planned Joel Lehman and Kenneth O. Stanley
- Why Nations Fail Daron Acemoglu, James Robinson
Did Not Finish
I’ve come to realize that the books you choose to read are as important as the books you don’t. If a book isn’t interesting to me, even if highly reviewed, I’m okay with dropping it.
- Bowling Alone Robert D. Putnam
- Gödel, Escher, Bach Douglas Hofstadter
- The End of History and the Last Man Francis Fukuyama
- The Structure of Scientific Revolutions Thomas Kuhn
Read
2023
- A Crack in Creation Jennifer Doudna and Samuel H. Sternberg
- Autobiography of Red Anne Carson
- Emergence Steven Johnson
- Infinite Jest David Foster Wallace
- Perhaps the Stars Ada Palmer
- The Biggest Ideas in the Universe Sean Carroll
- The Emperor of All Maladies Siddhartha Mukherjee
- The Gene Siddhartha Mukherjee
- The Man Who Planted Trees Jean Giono
2022
- A Pattern Language Christopher Alexander, Murray Silverstein, and Sara Ishikawa
- A Room With A View E. M. Forster
- Complexity: A Guided Tour Melanie Mitchell
- Emergent Tokyo Jorge Almazán
- Enlightenment Now Steven Pinker
- From Literature to Biterature Peter Swirski
- Guns, Germs, and Steel Jared Diamond
- House of Leaves Mark Z. Danielewski
- In Praise of Slowness Carl Honore
- Jade City Fonda Lee
- Jade Legacy Fonda Lee
- Jade War Fonda Lee
- McNamara’s Folly Hamilton Gregory
- On Not Knowing Emily Ogden
- On Writing Stephen King
- Pour Your Heart into It Howard Schultz
- Seven Surrenders Ada Palmer
- Shop Class as Soulcraft Matthew Crawford
- Sync Steven Strogatz
- The Alchemy of Air Thomas Hager
- The Beginning of Infinity David Deutsch
- The Death and Life of Great American Cities Jane Jacobs
- The Evolution of Cooperation Robert Axelrod
- The Geography of Nowhere James Howard Kunstler
- The Playbook Jennifer Jacquet
- The Serengeti Rules Sean B. Carroll
- The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work John M. Gottman and Nan Silver
- The Will To Battle Ada Palmer
- Too Like the Lightning Ada Palmer
- Where Is My Flying Car? J. Storrs Hall
- Why Only Us Robert C. Berwick, Noam Chomsky
- Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance Robert M. Pirsig
2021
- A Promised Land Barack Obama
- Algorithms to Live By Brian Christian
- Amusing Ourselves to Death Neil Postman
- Battleground Jim Butcher
- Because Internet Gretchen McCulloch
- Blood Rites Jim Butcher
- Changes Jim Butcher
- Cold Days Jim Butcher
- Crime and Punishment Fyodor Dostoyevsky
- Dead Beat Jim Butcher
- Death Masks Jim Butcher
- Don Quixote Miguel De Cervantes Saavedra
- Four Thousand Weeks Oliver Burkeman
- Free Food for Millionaires Min Jin Lee
- Full Moon Jim Butcher
- Ghost Story Jim Butcher
- Grave Peril Jim Butcher
- Meditations Marcus Aurelius
- Men Without Women Haruki Murakami
- Mindware Andy Clark
- Oathbringer Brandon Sanderson
- Other Minds Peter Godfrey-Smith
- Peace Talks Jim Butcher
- Proven Guilty Jim Butcher
- Rhythm of War Brandon Sanderson
- Shadows of Self Brandon Sanderson
- Skin Games Jim Butcher
- Small Favor Jim Butcher
- Storm Front Jim Butcher
- Sum: Forty Tales from the Afterlives David Eagleman
- Summer Night Jim Butcher
- The Alloy of Law Brandon Sanderson
- The Bands of Mourning Brandon Sanderson
- The Fellowship of the Ring J.R.R. Tolkien
- The Final Empire Brandon Sanderson
- The Hero of Ages Brandon Sanderson
- The Innovators Walter Isaacson
- The Odyssey Homer
- The Rosie Effect Graeme Simsion
- The Rosie Result Graeme Simsion
- The Three-Body Problem Liu Cixin (Reread)
- The Two Towers J.R.R. Tolkien
- The Way of Kings Brandon Sanderson
- The Well of Ascension Brandon Sanderson
- This Is Your Brain on Music Daniel Levitin
- Tiny Habits BJ Fogg
- Turn Coat Jim Butcher
- Walden Henry David Thoreau
- White Night Jim Butcher
- Words of Radiance Brandon Sanderson
2020
- 10% Happier Dan Harris
- 1984 George Orwell
- A Deadly Education Naomi Novik
- A Gentleman in Moscow Amor Towles
- Atomic Habits James Clear
- Brave New World Aldous Huxley
- Catch-22 Joseph Heller
- Cloud Atlas Joseph Heller
- Death’s End Liu Cixin
- Digital Minimalism Cal Newport
- Essentialism Greg McKeown
- Grapes of Wrath John Steinbeck
- If on a winter’s night a traveler Italo Calvino
- Irresistible Adam Alter
- Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini
- Little Fires Everywhere Celeste Ng
- Lord of the Flies William Golding
- Make Time Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky
- Mastery George Leonard
- Mindfulness in Plain English Henepola Gunaratana
- One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest Ken Kesey
- Peak K. Anders Ericsson
- Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen
- Ready Player One Ernest Cline
- Rest Alex Soojung-Kim Pang
- Sapiens Yuval Noah Harari
- Study in Scarlet Arthur Conan Doyle
- The Alchemist Paulo Coelho
- The Big Sleep Raymond Chandler
- The Catcher in The Rye J. D. Salinger
- The Circle Dave Eggers
- The DaVinci Code Tom Egeland
- The Dark Forest Liu Cixin
- The Distraction Addiction Alex Soojung-Kim Pang
- The Handmaid’s Tale Margaret Atwood
- The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue V. E. Schwab
- The Little Prince Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
- The Midnight Library Matt Haig
- The Slaughterhouse Five Kurt Vonnegut
- The Three-Body Problem Liu Cixin
- Thinking in Systems: A Primer Donella Meadows
- When No One is Watching Alyssa Cole
- Why We Sleep Matthew Walker
- Wuthering Heights Emily Brontë
2019
- Deep Work Cal Newport
- How To Become a High School Superstar Cal Newport
- So Good They Can’t Ignore You Cal Newport
- The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas Ursula K. Le Guin
- The Rosie Project Graeme Simsion