Reading List 2023

I read a tweet by Lex Friedman about his reading list and was inspired to make one. I am not sure what was so controversial about his reading list but people were dunking on it and calling it a high-schooler read. Despite the criticism, I was inspired by Friedman's goal to read one book per week, which I think is quite admirable. Personally, as a former lit student, I would consider one book per week to be on the low side, as I was used to reading several books per week and writing reviews for them before the weekend. Obviously now, I want to enjoy reading and not be pressured to write essays and be analytical to it but some intellectual stimuli won’t do no harm.

For now, this list will only be up to May, just like Lex’s list. I will be updating them as soon as I reach May and getting back to this list. You can also read with me if you fancy the book that I suggested. Some of the list here are the books that I have read and own a physical copy of. While some are something new to me and it’s going to be my first time. Wish me luck so that I can find the paperback of them!

• Week of Jan 2 Brave New World Aldous Huxley
• Week of Jan 9 The Art of Thinking Clearly Rolf Dobelli
• Week of Jan 16 Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen
• Week of Jan 23 Fahrenheit 451 Ray Bradbury
• Week of Jan 30 Twilight John W Campbell

• Week of Feb 6 Fatherland Robert Harris
• Week of Feb 13 The Origin of Species Charles Darwin
• Week of Feb 20 From Russia With Blood Heidi Blake
• Week of Feb 27 The Color of Purple Alice Walker

• Week of March 6 The Essentials Kafka Franz Kafka
• Week of March 13 The War of The Worlds H. G. Wells
• Week of March 20 Utopia Thomas More
• Week of March 27 Youngblood by Matt Gallagher

• Week of Apr 3 Frankenstein in Baghdad Ahmed Saadawi
• Week of Apr 10 Thinking, Fast and Slow Daniel Kahneman
• Week of Apr 17 War and Peace Leo Tolstoy
• Week of Apr 24 Of Mice and Men John Steinbeck

• Week of May 1 The 48 Laws of Power Robert Greene
• Week of May 8 The Archaeology of Knowledge Michel Foucault
• Week of May 15 Anarchy, State, and Utopia Robert Nozick
• Week of May 22 Capitalism and Freedom Milton Friedman
• Week of May 29 The Midnight Library Matt Haig

I think there is value in re-reading a book, as it allows us to learn new things and see the material from a different perspective as we grow and change. I know, it can be challenging to find time to read regularly, especially for busy individuals or those who travel frequently. Since I plan to stay more this year and not travel sporadically, I reckon it’s the best year to feed my brain some knowledge. I also want to read more philosophy, history and archeology books which I will put around June-August. At the same time, some survivalism and homesteading books are on the horizon too. Oh yeah, don’t forget that Hive Book Club is hosting a contest too that you can participate here Tell us about the best book that you read in 2022.