Nothing makes time fly quite like the realization that 2020 hasn’t lasted an extra year and it’s already 2022. Much like 2020, 2021 has been full of events that happened several years ago, like the storming of the U.S. capitol, the inauguration of Joe Biden as president, and the 2020 Summer Olympics. With the year already coming to a close, it’s once again time for reflection and meditation and resolution and whatever else people do when the calendar resets. It’s also time for the second annual Book Awards based on the reading I’ve done this year. Once again, it was a fruitful year for reading (and, once again, a fruitful year of wasting my time doing things other than reading). Let’s get to it.

Awards

Best Fiction: The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas (Narrated by John Lee)
Wow, this book is truly incredible. And long. Which is why I didn’t even read it, I listened to it. I have a constant internal struggle about the validity of me listening to a book and then claiming I read it (and I question how much I get out of it), but in this case, because it was the only way I would have consumed Monte Cristo, (I previously tried to read it) I’m counting it. This book is awesome. The characters are all fabulous, and the way Dumas weaved and wove each of their lives together and introduced new characters whose lives also weaved and wove together was dynamic and exciting. The plot was also thrilling, and seeing the way the Count weaved and wove his own revenge into the lives and actions of the others was enthralling. 10/10

Runner-up: Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
This book also earns the award of most recommended, since I think anyone who knew I hadn’t read it told me I needed to (which is partly the reason it took me so long to read. That and I have an unexplainable aversion to science-fiction book covers from the 80s and 90s). Annoyingly, when I started reading this one I couldn’t stop because it was so good. Seeing Ender’s growth and development was really fun, because I always love seeing a character who is masterful at what they do, but it was also such a tragic story. No spoilers of course (even though it seems like I’m the last person to jump on this bandwagon), but the ending was shocking, and if the chance for redemption wasn’t offered I wouldn’t have liked it (which maybe was part of the point). Overall a stellar story with lots of emotion and tragedy and also hope and love. 10/10

Best Fantasy: The Lord of the Rings trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien
I mean honestly, when I read Lord of the Rings it’s going to come out on top in at least one category. These books are some of my favorite of all time and this certainly isn’t going to be the last time I read them. The world-building is phenomenal and the characters are all so good (even Tom Bombadil, you haters). I get lost in the story and the adventure and just have a blast. Beyond just the story though, I love the themes of courage and brotherly love and perseverance and the characters who embody those values. Plus the moral complexity of Gollum/Smeagol, Boromir, Tom, and others makes it more than just a basic good guys beat the bad guys story (even though that does happen in the end). 11/10

Runner-up: The Ranger’s Apprentice series, by John Flanagan
Though not as epic, grand, or complex as Lord of the Rings, These books (11 that I read out of 12) are also among my favorites (and are probably one of the principle reasons I received a bow and arrows for a birthday growing up). The characters, though sometimes a bit stereotypical, are a lot of fun to watch grow and develop and interact with each other. I also love seeing the nearly mythic proficiency they have in their respective skills (again, I love a good character who is masterful at what they do). Overall a fun, generally light-hearted romp through the England, mainland Europe, Africa, and Asia of an alternate universe.
Objectively: 8.5/10 Personally: 10/10

Most Emotional: When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi
This book often shows up in must-read lists, and because it was written by a neurosurgeon I decided I should give it a read. Which is good because this book was excellent, and the only one this year to make me cry. Paul did such a good job writing about his experiences and the way his perspective changed as he went from a top neurosurgeon to a suffering cancer patient trying to handle sickness, marriage, family, and work. The decision to have a child even though he was dying was really touching, and the passage he wrote to his newborn daughter just before his death really hit me. 9/10

Most Deceptive Title (Good): I Don’t Believe in Atheists by Chris Hedges
Given the title I was a bit concerned this was just going to be a fiery attack against all atheists everywhere and why they’re garbage. Fortunately, it was a much more balanced view about why both religious and atheist fundamentalists are often dangerous to society, and the flaws in both sides. It did have a bit more to say about atheists, but it wasn’t a condemnation to the lowest pits of hell for heresy and blasphemy. It wasn’t even an argument for or against the existence of a god, just a look at the dangers of fundamentalism. It was quite refreshing, though sometimes hard to follow. 8/10

Most Deceptive Title (Bad): God is a Question not an Answer by William Irwin
Given the title (and the synopsis on the inside cover) I expected this to be a solidly agnostic view of the question of a god that would have insights as to the positives and negatives of both atheism and theism. In reality, it was more of an atheist work thinly veiled in the guise of agnosticism. It was still a fine (as in, “ok”. Not like, “dang you fine!”) book with some good insights, but it was not what I expected. 6/10

Most Difficult to Understand: There is a God by Anthony Flew
I’m sure this is a good book, but because it was so heavy on the minutiae theological philosophy it was often very difficult to understand and not at all groundbreaking for me. It was interesting to see some of the reasons Anthony went from a devout atheist to a convinced theist, but because it was so dense and heavy on the jargon I got very little out of it. 5/10

Runner-up: Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift
I picked this one up because I love me a good satire and it’s also one of the oft-referenced classics everyone knows about but hasn’t read. In general I enjoyed this one, but because it was written back in the early 1700s, much of the satire was lost on me. The version I read was annotated by Isaac Asimov, so a lot of it was explained, but the hassle of switching between the actual novel and the explanations of the jokes really took its toll. It was really interesting seeing a conservative satire though; most satire I’m exposed to these days is from the liberal viewpoint, but seeing Swift hate on the advancement of science was quite entertaining on more than one level. 7/10

Book I expected to be Easier to Understand: Thing Explainer by Randall Monroe
Thing Explainer is a book explaining different machines or phenomena using only the 1,000 most common words in English, which seems like it might make it easier to understand (he can’t throw around fancy words like “quantum entanglement” or “chiasmal decussation” or “nine”), but when you try to explain rocket science without using the word “rocket” things can be a bit confusing. It becomes a puzzle trying to figure out that “sky bag air” probably means “balloon air” which probably refers to helium, which can either be really fun or really confusing (usually both). I had a fun time reading it and looking at the trademark comics that accompanied Monroe’s descriptions. 9/10

Best Historical Work: The History of the Ancient World by Susan Wise Bauer
With a great narrative voice (Bauer is hilarious and gives a great female perspective), plenty of explanatory footnotes, and more than enough maps to give visuals of unfamiliar land, this is easily one of the most engaging history books I’ve read (especially considering it was almost 800 pages long). It has the credit of really driving home for me (and this is something that will really stick with me) the idea that myth isn’t diametrically opposed to fact. Instead, much of myth/legend has roots in historical events and there’s much we can glean from it. The book’s only problem is that, while starting off strong as a history of a significant part of the world, it wraps up as essentially just a history of Rome (which normally would not bother me at all, but in this case made me feel like I missed out on a lot of Chinese, Indian, and southeast Asian history). 9/10

Runner-up: Istanbul: City of Majesty at the Crossroads of the World by Thomas F. Madden
Istanbul (not Constantinople) is one of those historical places everyone knows about without actually knowing much about. Istanbul (not Constantinople) has been, like it says in the title, at the crossroads of the old world since its conception and has played a significant role in world history for nearly as long. It was fascinating learning about such a well-known city, especially since Madden does such a good job of it. 8.5/10

Best Guilt Trip: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind by William Kamkwamba
This book was a great one, about a man who was trapped in a cave in the Middle East and built his own electric generator out of scraps to power his heart/suit. Oh wait, that’s not right. This is about a boy who grew up in rural Africa (Malawi to be specific) and decided to build his own electric windmill out of scraps to power his house after learning about electric generators in a book. It’s an awesome story, both inspiring on the one hand and kind of embarrassing (for me, not William) on the other. William is an amazing person who has done so much with so little, and his story makes me feel like I’ve done so little with so much. It’s like this scene in Iron Man. But anyway, the book was quite good and I’m glad I read it. 9/10

Favorite New Author: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
It’s a shame none of his books earned any other awards here; my first foray into the literary world of Sherlock Holmes was excellent and I can see why he’s been such a popular figure for so long. A Study in Scarlet was good, though the second half was rather strange and for a while I wondered if I was actually reading the right book. The Sign of the Four was even better (and the second half wasn’t a weird fever dream), and then to top it all off I read The Hound of the Baskervilles which was just fabulous; I loved it. I haven’t read all of the Sherlock Holmes stories yet, but they’re definitely on the list for next year.
8.5/10

Runner-up: Steven Pressfield
This is based mostly on my reading of The War of Art and Do the Work, though I did read The Afghan Campaign (and while very interesting and historical and well-written, wasn’t necessarily my cup of tea). The War of Art was really good though, and I enjoyed it a lot (shoutout to Joseph Douglas for recommending it to me). Do the Work was a bit of a rehash of the War of Art, which means it was still good just not strictly necessary. 8/10

The Movie was Actually Better: Stardust by Neil Gaiman
This isn’t to say the book wasn’t good, because it certainly was and it does of course deserve recognition for inspiring the movie. It’s built on a solid premise and has lots of clever, fun moments, but when it comes down to it, Stardust feels a bit unpolished. I imagine that if Gaiman were to revisit it, Stardust would be much more impressive, but as it stands it’s a fun story that I would prefer to consume in movie form.
Book: 7/10 Movie: 10/10

Most Eye-opening: Educated by Tara Westover
This book was a real mind-bender. Tara does an outstanding job of relating her childhood experiences, which were horrifying. It’s so easy to subconsciously adopt the idea that your own childhood and upbringing are the universal normal, but reading Educated really shook that idea at its core; Tara’s upbringing was so far removed from my own (and hopefully yours) that it was hard to believe sometimes. This, of course, made the book even more engaging, and I ended up really enjoying it. Tara really is a great writer. 9/10

Runner-up: Invisible Women by Caroline Criado-Perez
Shout out to my wife Sadie for recommending this one to me. This book, though not as overtly shocking as Educated, was still full of interesting and unexpected statistics/stories about ways the world has been designed around the male experience and how it subtly (and sometimes not so subtly) works against women. Overall it was an eye-opening read and it has really stuck with me. 8/10

Least Favorite: Terminal Man by Michael Crichton
This one pains me. Michael Crichton is one of my favorite authors, so I was of course excited to read another of his books. Imagine my disappointment when Terminal Man was a long science-y book about nothing (ok not nothing, but that’s what I remember from it). It also had one of the worst climaxes of any book I’ve read. Really just a huge disappointment. 1/10

Books I couldn’t Finish: Musicophilia by Oliver Sacks
This one also pains me, since Oliver Sacks is such a good writer and I really enjoyed The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat. Musicophilia has a really fascinating premise (really one of my favorite topics: the neuroscience of music), but it was a bit long and rather boring. It was far less about individual case studies and what they reveal and more a conglomeration of stories that supported the same hypothesis over and over and over again. It was still interesting, but far too slow and unwieldy for me. Perhaps I’ll try again later and I’ll be more in the mood for it. ??/10

The Success Principles by Jack Canfield
This one doesn’t pain me. I’m sure it’s a good book with a lot of good stuff, but it, too, was far too slow and just not my cup of tea. Perhaps it also just seemed a bit too preachy and “get-rich-quick”-y. Again, maybe I’ll be more interested if I try it again later, but I’m not really inclined to. ??/10

Honorable Mentions:
Just Like That by Gary Schmidt
Shout out to Annemerie Jensen for recommending this one to me. This is the third book in the world, along with Wednesday Wars and Okay for Now (both of which I highly recommend). This one, the longest of the three, was just as emotional and fun and I loved it.
9.5/10

Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
This one could have won the “It’s about time” award since it’s taken me so long to read even though I’ve claimed to love C.S. Lewis’s writing for so long. It’s not my favorite C.S. Lewis book, but I did quite enjoy it; It’s a thorough exposition on the tenets of Christianity and it’s importance as a religion. I’ll have to re-read it sometime soon, as there was so much in it that I can’t remember it all, but in the meantime I’ll remember it as a great read. 8.5/10

The Slight Edge by Jeff Olson
Shoutout to McKell Ruiz for recommending this to me. This was one of the better self-improvement/business/leadership/whatever-you-call-it genre of books I’ve read. It’s based on the idea of small, incremental improvements in daily life rather than large, life-changing habits. I remember it being very inspiring and very good while I was reading it, and being excited about the ideas it has, but now I don’t remember much about it at all. So take that as you will. I would still recommend it, but I’d have to re-read it to really remember what I’m recommending. 8/10



And there you have it: a taste of the reading I’ve done this year and my impressions of it. If you have any comments or criticisms or anything at all about the reading I’ve done (and my ratings and remarks) I’d be more than happy to hear it. And maybe fight you about it, depending on what you say.

For a complete list of my reading this year see here.