2019 Summary

2019 was an enriching experiment. I read 82 books in total last year and enjoyed almost all of the experience, only having to push myself to finish about five of these. 

The outstanding books of the year in terms of impact upon my life were "The Little Book of Stoicism"  , "The Real Happy Pill", "The Memory Book and "The Chimp Paradox". I didn't have any expectations of any of these, but they all packed a lasting punch.  It just goes to show that reading widely can pay off since I probably wouldn't have got to them had I been reading more parsimoniously.   

The other key read was "The Body Keeps the Score"  as it offers a very fresh take on the old problem of unhappiness and proffers a number of new solutions that are further fleshed out in the "The Real Happy Pill".

Other books were profoundly important: "The War for Kindness" and "The Asshole Survival Guide"  are both clarion calls for better behavior in an age when decency is often hard to come by.  "Black Box Thinking" and "Adapt"  built on my pre-existing assumption that critical rationalism is the foundation of a great life.

I only read two works of fiction: "The Standing Chandelier" and "Riotous Assembly" but both left a mark.  I should learn from this.  Good fiction builds memorable images and insights in a way that non-fiction cannot.  However, I lost patience with too many novels within the first paragraph, being of the firm opinion that if a fiction writer cannot be bothered to be sufficiently truth-seeking and original from the off, I also cannot be bothered.

What with Christmas, a new relationship, a bout of flu and a couple of Netflix binges, all reading ground to a near total halt at beginning of 2020.

I fully intend to start again as I miss the discipline, the excitement, the confirmation of biases, the exploration, the making of connections across books and disciplines and the creativity that comes with that, the challenges and the revision.

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