I have a more detailed format for my reading list this year, with page counts and comments. As in the past, the exclamation mark (!) indicates books that I particularly liked.
In 2025, I started 20 books and finished 15 of those. This is down from 2024 (started 27, finished 23), which itself was down from a peak in 2023 (started 45, finished 35). I think reading was just less of a priority for me this year; even though I spent the year on sabbatical, I didn't really build a reading routine. I'm okay with that outcome, since I spent lots of time doing other interesting things, but I think it shows how important a routine is for my reading volume.
That being said, I really enjoyed my reading this year. Maybe there wasn't sheer quantity, but at least there was some quality?
| # | ! | Title and Author | Pages Read | Date Finished | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South of the Border, West of the Sun – Haruki Murakami | 213/213 | 1/13 | Starting off the year with Murakami. This one was interesting but I'm not sure I felt really captured by it the way I have been by some other books of his. | |
| 2 | An Elegant Puzzle: Systems of Engineering Management – Will Larson | 100/214 | Skimmed because I had to return it to the library, would like to return to it in the future. Many useful specific pieces of advice in here. | ||
| 3 | Thinking In Systems – Donella H. Meadows | 186/186 | 1/21 | Diagrams for days. Good primer and high-level systematic approach looking at stocks and flows. I was surprised that it's mostly policy- rather than engineering-focused, and also surprised at the more philosophical elements. | |
| 4 | ! | The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle – Haruki Murakami | 607/607 | 2/19 | Confusing and interesting and complicated, in a really fascinating way. A pretty long read, but worthwhile. Maybe one of my more favorite Murakami books. I felt like it had its own world whereas South of the Border, West of the Sun felt more like a collection of tropes. |
| 5 | I Hope This Finds You Well – Natalie Sue | 352/352 | 3/17 | It's a rom-com | |
| 6 | Automate Your Busywork – Aytekin Tank | 177/177 | 4/11 | OK, I guess | |
| 7 | Film Camera Zen – Bellamy Hunt | 191/191 | 4/14 | Fun coffee table book of cameras | |
| 8 | The Rise and Fall of American Growth – Robert J. Gordon | 170/652 | Big academic tome, I didn't care to read the entire thing but the thesis feels compelling and interesting, particularly the notion that real growth has fallen off in recent decades. | ||
| 9 | ! | Abundance – Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson | 226/226 | 5/4 | Landmark book. Synthesized a lot of frustrations and issues that have become increasingly top of mind for me the last couple of years. |
| 10 | Slouching Towards Bethlehem – Joan Didion | 273/351 | Collection of short stories, I enjoyed the vibes but lost momentum | ||
| 11 | ! | Apple in China – Patrick McGee | 387/387 | 6/17 | Great read, really fascinating details and stories. Thanks to my friend Denton for lending me his copy! |
| 12 | Growth – Daniel Susskind | 90/237 | Didn't get too far into this one | ||
| 13 | ! | Training and Racing with a Power Meter (3rd Edition) – Hunter Allen, Andrew Coggan, Stephen McGregor | 234/301 | 7/1 | This book was not interesting at all to me until I bought a power meter, and then it became extremely interesting. Didn't 100% only because the last couple of chapters are not relevant to me. |
| 14 | ! | Circe – Madeline Miller | 285/285 | 7/14 | Skillfully woven. Fun to read mythology after mostly forgetting it; I also found the depiction of motherhood really stirring |
| 15 | ! | The Art of Gathering – Priya Parker | 281/281 | 9/10 | Very useful for wedding planning |
| 16 | All the Colors of the Dark – Chris Whitaker | 592/592 | 9/28 | Page-turner! | |
| 17 | The City and Its Uncertain Walls – Haruki Murakami | 690/690 (ebook) | 11/4 | Another Murakami; this one felt even more abstract and inscrutable than usual. | |
| 18 | Twice – Mitch Albom | 100% (ebook) | 12/10 | Fun read, blasted through in one evening | |
| 19 | ! | The Murder On the Links – Agatha Christie | 249/249 | 12/21 | First Agatha Christie book I've ever read, and I understand now why she's considered one of the defining authors of the detective mystery genre. This had all the tropes but was so much fun. Sharlene and I read the whole thing in a single day. |
| 20 | Emotional Design – Don Norman | 133/325 (ebook) | I really liked The Design of Everyday Things but struggled more to get into this one; it didn't feel nearly as relevant or timeless. |
