Monthly Non-Fiction Reading List 12.24
Happy New Year! The December reading list has 5 books, and we got a mixed bag. I read the new Malcom Gladwell, a great new book on death, and some other interesting books. I managed to finish the year with over 130 books read.
If you’re not yet, be sure to follow me on Goodreads where I sometimes post my book reviews a little early. But I may be switching to Storygraph soon. It has some awesome features and it’s not owned by Jeff Bezos. And honestly, Goodreads is a little finicky at times anyway, but I’ll let you all know if I make the switch.
Also, feel free to become a paid subscriber for the low low price of $5/month to help support the substack so I can keep buying books!
Each of the links to the books are affiliate links, so if you use my link to purchase any of these books, some comes back to support what I do (and it also helps fund my reading habit).
Don't Believe Everything You Think (Expanded Edition): Why Your Thinking Is the Beginning & End of Suffering by Joseph Nguyen
This book is pretty popular, and it’s a short read, so I finally decided to check it out. It’s a pretty decent book that goes over a ton of topics regarding how our thinking can lead to unnecessary suffering. There are a lot of great lessons from this book, and it mainly leans on Buddhist philosophy, so I dig it. I think a lot of people can benefit from this book, so I’d definitely recommend it.
Revenge of the Tipping Point: Overstories, Superspreaders, and the Rise of Social Engineering by Malcom Gladwell
While it’s all subjective, I legitimately think Malcom Gladwell is one of the best non-fiction writers around. With that being said, I wasn’t a fan of this book. I loved the writing, but the book just wasn’t that great. I was super late to the Malcom Gladwell party and started reading his books a few years ago. After I got into books debunking bad science, I learned about many issues with Gladwell’s books like the original Tipping Point book, but he’s a great storyteller.
What I didn’t like about this book was that he didn’t really seem to connect dots and really give answers to why things get popular or spread. He tells stories and uses some of his personalized terms like “overstories”, but the book is more stories than it is explanations. I love his storytelling, which I’m usually not a fan of, but as someone who loves to learn, I don’t feel like I learned all that much from the book.
I think Gladwell means well, so I won’t get on him too much for bad science because I can look into that more later and it’s interesting hearing theories. But he just didn’t really have too many theories for me to even consider. There are definitely some great stories in this book though.
How to Think Like Socrates: Ancient Philosophy as a Way of Life in the Modern World by Donald J. Robertson
I cannot put into words how much I disliked this book. In 99% of situations, I would have stopped reading this book halfway through and cut my losses, but for some reason I just kept reading this one. Before I lay out my issues with this book, I will say that I think most people who enjoy learning about history will like this book. I just feel like this was a big bait and switch, and I didn’t get what I was sold.
I’m a massive fan of the Socratic method, and I love learning about Socrates and how he asked questions. Based on the title of this book, you’d think that’s what this was about. The book is a sort of biography of Socrates, and in the beginning, there’s a lot sprinkled in about how Socrates operated and what we can learn about his methods. As the book goes on, it turns to even more of a biography and less analysis and lessons from this “way of life” like it says in the title. What’s worse is that about halfway through, it doesn’t even talk about Socrates as much as it does about some of his students.
I’m not a fan of biographies and I’m not a fan of history books, so again, I think people who are into that stuff may love this book. But I doubt those people will even come across this book because that’s not how the title or synopsis is framed. I feel like I was tricked into reading some of my least favorite non-fiction genres and wasted a whole lot of time. But if you want to learn about the Roman empire during the time of Socrates, you may enjoy this book. As for me, I really wish I had spent my time reading something else.
Dancing with the Devil: Why Bad Feelings Make Life Good by Krista K. Thomason
I love re-reading my favorite books, but it’s extremely rare that I read a book twice in one year. Not to take away from this book at all, but this year has been pretty bad for new non-fiction. This book was released in January of 2024, and I’ve thought about it regularly. At the end of the year, as I was bored with all of the new releases, I decided that I was going to give this book another read because it’s so damn good.
Krista is a philosopher, and this book is all about how many of the bad feelings we experience like anger, envy, jealousy, and so many others are actually useful in different situations. She brings in ideas from various philosophers throughout history while also giving her own thoughts and opinions.
I’m a pretty happy guy who lives a great life these days, but I still experience a ton of negative emotions because I’m human (and still have some lingering anger issues lol). This book is a great reminder that not only are these emotions normal and OK, but they can also be useful and teach us valuable lessons. If I’m being completely honest, I can see myself reading this book again in 2025 when I need a reminder.
Memento Mori: The Art of Contemplating Death to Live a Better Life by Joanna Ebenstein
Memento mori is an old saying that has us remember our mortality, and as I get older, I think about death quite a bit. I’m a former drug addict who worked in a rehab for a few years, so I’ve experienced a lot of death. I’m only 39 years old, but it’s regularly on my mind. Fortunately, it’s not in a bad way. Thinking about death really makes me grateful for how far I’ve come, the people I have in my life, and everything else life has to offer. This book really highlights all of that in a great way, and I think it can help a lot of people who struggle with the thought of death.
Joanna Ebenstein covers just about every angle of death. From dealing with our own mortality to the grieving process, making plans for our family once we pass and so much more. She also gives readers a lot of information about how various cultures around the world deal with death, and it’s super interesting because there are some great lessons we can take from others.
My only criticism of the book is a personal one that I don’t think many others will mind. I think the book on its own is pretty perfect, but at the end of each chapter, it’s very mainstream self-helpy in the fact that it gives you little activities to do to reflect on the lessons from the chapter. For me, it kind of messed up the flow of the book a little bit. Other than that, I absolutely loved it and hope a lot of people read it.
Subscribe to the reading list! It’s free! Although I’ve been publishing this weekly reading list for free for multiple years, consider becoming a paid subscriber for $5 to help me pay for new books and keep this list free for everyone.
If you enjoyed this post, it’d mean a lot to me if you shared it. Forward it in an email, share it on social media, or whatever suits your fancy.