My Year in Reading

Send me your recs for 2025, please

Dear Friends,

Every morning, friends send me links to what I can only describe as a reaction to a reaction to the day’s news. It’s like, “Here’s a TikTok of someone roasting a TV pundit opining on Elon Musk’s latest brain fart on X.” Sometimes funny, mostly brain rot.

Meanwhile, only a couple of friends write me about the books they’re reading (🫶 Dulce, Luis, Pablo) and I would like more. So in that spirit, here’s an abbreviated list of my 2024 reading with the full list here. Did we read any of the same books? What’s next on your list?

1. La Cabeza de mi Padre by Alma Delia Murillo — A tough, bright girl grows up in Mexico City without a dad and decides to find him. Delia Murillo has a strong online presence and a divisive reputation. I love her intellectual irreverence and simple prose. How is this book still not available in English?

2. Power and Progress by Acemoglu and Johnson — A very long book to argue that technology enriches elites and public policy saves the day. I agree with Noah Smith’s critique.¹

3. The Creative Act by Rick Rubin — Iris and I savored this one together. Five stars, endless inspiration.

   

4. The Primary Solution by Nick Troiano — The book that convinced me there are pragmatic, achievable solutions to our political polarization and extremism.²

5. The Centrist Manifesto by Charlie Wheelan — Part of my deep dive into solutions to our democratic dysfunction.³

6. The Politics Industry by Katherine Gehl and Michael Porter — The third book in my deep dive into solutions to improve U.S. democracy.⁴

7. Energy and Civilization by Vaclav Smil — Dry and boring prose, but what an achievement in scope to describe the relationship between humans and energy since the invention of fire. Probably the most interesting book I read all year.

8. Troubled by Rob Henderson — I’m a fan of Henderson’s Substack on the psychology of status, and I relate to his contempt for traditional Ivy League elites while becoming one himself. I’ll always root for him, even if our politics continue to diverge.

9. Acts of Contrition by Luke Cohler — Written by a friend, and not publicly available (yet). A closeted gay man escapes the Midwest to attend Princeton in the 1980s but never learns to accept himself. In the style of Amor Towles, a page-turning reflection on the internal and external forces that keep us from becoming our most authentic selves.

10. Dilla Time by Dan Charnas — One of the best audiobooks I’ve heard — right up there with Trevor Noah’s memoir. If you give it a listen, take advantage of the supplemental listening guide.

    

11. Meditations for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman — “About what changes once you grasp that life as a limited human being – in an era of infinite tasks and opportunities – isn’t a problem you’ve got to try to solve.” Not as good as Four Thousand Weeks, but still great.

12. It’s Not You by Ramani Durvasula — Highly recommended for anyone who grew up with a narcissist. This was the first in a deep dive about narcissism, people-pleasing, and self-awareness.

    

13. When It’s Never About You by Ilene Cohen — Had a profound impact on me. In short: When we solve other people’s problems, we become distant from our own desires and they become less able to solve their problems.

14. No More Mr. Nice Guy by Robert Glover — “Nice Guys repress their emotions and desires to avoid disapproval. They often struggle with resentment, passive-aggressiveness, and lack of fulfillment.” I like nice guys, but Glover makes some good points throughout.

15. Nexus by Yuval Noah Harari — An ambitious history of how totalitarians control information, how populists manipulate us, and how every culture has some version of the witch hunt. Harari inherited the “pseudo-intellectual dilettante” crown from Malcolm Gladwell, but I think he’s one of the most original thinkers of our time. A persuasive pessimist on AI.

Currently Reading:

1. My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante — Iris convinced me to read the Neapolitan series and won’t let me watch the TV show until I finish. After a slow start, I’m now hooked on the characters and get the hype.

2. The Wall Speaks by Jerr — Part of my latest deep dive (on masculinity). Misogynistic though at times thought-provoking — especially for men who grew up with a domineering single mom.⁵

On my upcoming list:

1. Doppelganger by Naomi Klein — Three friends say I’ll love it.

2. Furia by Clyo Mendoza — Oaxaca’s rising star.

3. The Performer: Art, Life, Politics by Richard Sennett — Sennett’s Homo Faber series changed how I see the world. So much of contemporary life feels like performance … even typing this sentence. I trust Sennett will help me come to terms with the good and bad of the performative life.

4. The Eyes and the Impossible by Dave Eggers — If I were to read an illustrated book about life through a dog's eyes, it would have to come from a writer of Eggers’ caliber.

I pasted my list into ChatGPT and asked what it says about me:

• A thirst for growth, reflection, and big ideas.

• Into systems thinking and intellectual creativity.

• A slight neglect of joy, humor, or escapism.

• A tilt toward Western, male-dominated perspectives.

Fair points, robot. I’ll consider them for 2025.

Yours,

David

1. Then again, I hear Marc Andreesen talk about the tech billionaires’ influence on the Trump administration and think we need all the regulatory oversight over tech that we can get.

2. Also convinced me to consult for the organization Troiano leads, Unite America. Unfortunately, we made little progress this year, but hope remains.

3. Before Unite America advocated for changes to primary elections, it was called the Centrist Project and tried to get more centrist candidates elected to the Senate. The two strategies now may be converging with Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington State and Jared Golden of Maine proposing a select House committee on electoral reform.

4. You’d be just as well served to listen to the Freakonomics Radio episode based on the book.

5. I hesitate to include it in the list, but these days, I’m interested in points of view I disagree with more than vice-versa.