The Bookshelf

I don’t read anywhere near as many books as I used to—or as many as I’d like to—partially because I used to have a 45 minute each way commute that I used for reading and now I walk to work from home, but mostly because I’ve fallen out of the habit of reading regularly.

The rating scale is stolen from Frank Chimero. If I don’t like a book, I don’t finish it and it doesn’t get listed, so all of these books are at least somewhat recommended. Books with one heart are ones that I think are really good, books with two hearts are the literary equivalent of Breaking Bad; i.e. books I won’t stop talking about, even long after it has become insanely boring for everybody else. Books with a star are the ones I’m currently reading (and have a reasonable expectation of finishing).

• 2021

  • Every Tool's a Hammer: Life Is What You Make It Adam Savage

  • Year Book Seth Rogen

  • The Coloring Crook Krista Davis

  • Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You about Being Creative Austin Kleon

  • Color Me Murder Krista Davis

  • Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly Anthony Bourdain

  • Strategy Strikes Back: How Star Wars Explains Modern Military Conflict Max Brooks & John Amble

  • Fermat's Last Theorem: Unlocking the Secret of an Ancient Mathematical Problem Amir D. Azcel

  • The Physics of Star Wars: The Science Behind a Galaxy Far, Far Away Patrick Johnson

  • The Mystery of the Blue Train Agatha Christie

  • Storm in a Teacup: The Physics of Everyday Life Helen Czerski

  • Murder in the Mews Agatha Christie

  • Asterix Omnibus #3: Asterix and the Big Fight, Asterix in Britain, and Asterix and the Normans René Goscinny & Albert Uderzo

  • Peril at End House Agatha Christie

  • The 99% Invisible City: A Field Guide to the Hidden World of Everyday Design Roman Mars & Kurt Kohlstedt

• 2020

  • Murder in Mesopotamia Agatha Christie

  • Death on the Nile Agatha Christie

  • How to Read a Book: The Classic Guide to Intelligent Reading Mortimer J. Adler & Charles Van Doren

  • The Murder on the Links Agatha Christie

  • Critical Thinking Jonathan Haber

  • How to Take Smart Notes: One Simple Technique to Boost Writing, Learning and Thinking – for Students, Academics and Nonfiction Book Writers Sönke Ahrens

  • The Making of Prince of Persia: Journals 1985-1993 Jordan Mechner

  • The Coldest Winter: Atomic Blonde Prequel Edition Antony Johnston & Steven Perkins

  • Atomic Blonde: The Coldest City Antony Johnston & Sam Hart

  • The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask Gabe Durham

  • Thinking in Systems: A Primer Donella Meadows

  • An Age of License Lucy Knisley

  • Asterix Omnibus #2: Asterix the Gladiator, Asterix and the Banquet, and Asterix and Cleopatra René Goscinny & Albert Uderzo

  • Asterix Omnibus #1: Asterix the Gaul, Asterix and the Golden Sickle, and Asterix and the Goths René Goscinny & Albert Uderzo

  • The Office: The Untold Story of the Greatest Sitcom of the 2000s: An Oral History Andy Greene

  • The Calculus Affair Hergé

  • The Red Sea Sharks Hergé

  • Super Mario Bros. 3 Alyse Knorr

  • Super Mario Bros. 2 Jon Irwin

  • Explorers on the Moon Hergé

  • Destination Moon Hergé

  • Zigzag Street Nick Earls

  • Philosophy 101: From Plato and Socrates to Ethics and Metaphysics, an Essential Primer on the History of Thought Paul Kleinman

  • Ethics 101: From Altruism and Utilitarianism to Bioethics and Political Ethics, an Exploration of the Concepts of Right and Wrong Brian Boone

  • Grid Systems: Principles of Organizing Type Kimberley Elam

  • The Elements of Typographic Style Robert Bringhurst

• 2019

  • Universal Principles of Design William Lidwell & Kritina Holden

  • Graphic Design Theory: Readings from the Field Helen Armstrong

  • Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones James Clear

  • The Story of Philosophy: The Lives and Opinions of the World's Greatest Philosophers Will Durant

  • Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies Nick Bostrom

  • The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O.: A Novel Neal Stephenson & Nicole Galland

  • Atmosphæra Incognita Neal Stephenson

  • The World Without Us Alan Weisman

  • Rust: The Longest War Jonathan Walden

  • The Pleasure of Finding Things Out: The Best Short Works of Richard P. Feynman Richard P. Feynman

  • What I Talk About When I Talk About Running: A Memoir Haruki Murakami

  • Time Travel: A History James Gleick

  • The Psychology of Zelda: Linking Our World to the Legend of Zelda Series Anthony M. Bean

  • Endure: Mind, Body, and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Performance Alex Hutchinson

• Older

  • Spy Dust: Two Masters of Disguise Reveal the Tools and Operations That Helped Win the Cold War Antonio Mendez & Jonna Mendez

  • Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike Phil Knight

  • An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth: What Going to Space Taught Me About Ingenuity, Determination, and Being Prepared for Anything Chris Hadfield

  • War Plan Red: The United States' Secret Plan to Invade Canada and Canada's Secret Plan to Invade the United States Kevin Lippert

  • Lifelong Kindergarten: Cultivating Creativity through Projects, Passion, Peers, and Play Mitchel Resnick

  • Two Hours: The Quest to Run the Impossible Marathon Ed Caesar

  • Company Man: Thirty Years of Controversy and Crisis in the CIA John Rizzo

  • Life, the Universe and Everything Douglas Adams

  • The Restaurant at the End of the Universe Douglas Adams

  • The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Douglas Adams

  • A Burglar's Guide to the City Geoff Manaugh

  • Creative Confidence: Unleashing the Creative Potential Within Us All Tom Kelley & David Kelley

  • Thinking, Fast and Slow Daniel Kahneman

  • Thrilling Cities Ian Fleming

  • Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking Malcolm Gladwell

  • Stuff Matters: Exploring the Marvelous Materials That Shape Our Man-Made World Mark Miodownik

  • Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down J.E. Gordon

  • Where Good Ideas Come From: The Natural History of Innovation Steven Johnson

  • Just My Type: A Book About Fonts Simon Garfield

  • Empire State of Mind: How Jay Z Went from Street Corner to Corner Office Zack O'Malley Greenburg

  • Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future Ashlee Vance

  • The Cluetrain Manifesto: 10th Anniversary Edition Rick Levine & Christopher Locke

  • The Innovator's Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail Clayton M. Christensen

  • Creativity, Inc: Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration Ed Catmull

  • Rework Jason Fried & David Heinemeier Hansson

  • Churchill: An Unruly Life Norman Rose

  • On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction William Zinsser

  • Cryptonomicon Neal Stephenson

Disclosure: If you buy a book using one of my Bookshop links, I'll get a little kickback from them (which I'm likely going to spend on more books). And you'll also be supporting independent bookstores, which is an awesome thing to do.