8 eye-opening books I read in 2020

“There are two motives for reading a book; one, that you enjoy it; the other, that you can boast about it.”

 Bertrand Russell

If there was one upside to 2020 for me, it was that I was able to read more than usual. I read more novels too, including Jeanine Cummins’s ‘American Dirt’ where I came across one particularly foretelling line: “Books: cheaper than airline tickets.”

I’d love to learn which books you enjoyed this year. Please share your top picks in the comments below. Here are eight books that I found particularly informative and thought-provoking. As you’ll see I took a particular interest in books that help us better understand the big forces shaping our world. My list includes a few books that go back in time – always a good way to evaluate the present.  

1.    Deaths of Despair and the Future of Capitalism by Anne Case and Angus Deaton

This book contains a brilliant and thorough analysis of the widening economic and social divergence in the US between college-educated Americans and the working class. Case and Deaton show how social and economic inequality is increasing the number of ‘deaths of despair’ resulting from drug poisoning, alcohol abuse, and suicide. They also chart a practical way forward for reigning in capitalism’s excesses so that the benefits of economic growth are more evenly distributed.

I learned that there are ~160,000 ‘deaths of despair ‘every year in the U.S. This is four times the number of fatal car accidents and eight times the number of homicides. The data show ‘Deaths of despair’ are concentrated among those without a college education and especially high for both white men and women between the ages of 45 and 54.

The book includes a detailed account of the various attributes of the American economy and social structures that are contributing to a decline in the ‘American dream’. For example, Case and Deaton show how the benefits of economic growth over the last four decades have been almost exclusively captured by the educated class. Meanwhile, the working class has been experiencing economic stagnation and social decline which manifests in lower rates of marriage, weaker community affiliations, and a sharp rise in mental and physical health problems.

I have shared a longer note about the book and also interviewed Anne and Angus for a podcast episode earlier in the year. Their work proved ever more urgent during the COVID-19 pandemic. Counties with a high number of ‘deaths of despair’ also counted for more COVID-19 cases by late fall, and exhibited some very clear voting patterns in both 2016 and 2020 elections.   

2.    Tyranny of Merit by Michael Sandel

In this perfect companion to Case’s and Deaton’s book Sandel argues that the rising number of deaths of despair and social polarization is not necessarily the result of widening economic inequality, but rather can be attributed to a loss of social esteem. Sandel writes that in aristocratic times economic inequality had little to do with talent or effort and more to with luck at birth. Privilege was limited, but dignity was unbounded.

In today’s meritocratic age, so it goes, success is available to anyone who is willing to work hard enough for it. Sandel complicates that narrative by showing how social mobility in America is in fact lower than in the past, and even lower than in Europe and China. The ethos of meritocracy, he writes, leads society’s winners to look down at less successful citizens, and drives significant self-doubt and a loss of dignity among the working class. At the same time, the privileged are nonetheless working harder and taking on more stress to demonstrate their relative merit to qualify to the most prestigious schools and companies and advance to higher-paying jobs. Sandel explains how we got here, and what it might take to reverse this trend and avoid the social unrest Michael Young warned would characterize the 2020s in his 1958 book, The Rise of the Meritocracy.

3.    Caste: The Origins of our Discontent by Isabel Wilkerson

A timely and timeless exploration of humanity’s tendency to establish and tolerate injustice. Superbly written and organized, Wilkerson’s book offers valuable history lessons, as well as some sober analysis of recent events and trends in America. Wilkerson draws on multiple disciplines–including economics, political and social science–to underscore how omnipresent and deeply rooted the current social system of hierarchy of castes is. She also explains why ‘casteism’ is harder to eradicate than racism.

 Wilkerson wants readers to feel and act with more empathy. She certainly succeeded with me. By weaving a mix of personal and other powerful stories of prejudice, intolerance, and apathy she elucidates the numerous trials and tribulations faced by members of minority groups (or members of the ‘subordinate class’, in her words). She shows how the more talented and motivated members of these classes, whom many are wrongly inclined to think are exempt from injustice, are in fact facing constant stress, microaggressions, and more harrowing abuse. 

I found it an uncomfortable, yet compelling read.

 4.    The Deviant’s war: The Homosexual vs. The United States of America by Eric Cervini

An engrossing biography of Frank Kameny, a brilliant but unemployed astronomer turned gay rights activist and a hero of the gay rights movement. This is a poignant story of unfulfilled professional potential during the space race with long bouts of loneliness and poverty that is intertwined with a broader story of wicked injustice. Cervini’s meticulous research shines with detailed accounts of the policies and activities of the FBI, police and the civil service that were designed to purge any gay government worker. Politicians and judges either played an active role in treating them as a national security risk (susceptible to communist pressure) or otherwise turning a blind eye.

Kameny’s activism challenged homophobia (he coined the phrase “Gay is Good” in the later 1960s) and contributed significantly to the evolution of the movement and the embrace of pride. It is was a hard journey to make when the media (and the word of the law) echoed such strong anti-gay sentiments. His angry speech at a psychiatrists’ conference is one of the book’s only cathartic moments. I learned a lot from this excellent book, but as is so often the case with such books, it further highlighted how much I still need to learn.

5.    The Hour of Fate: Theodore Roosevelt, J.P. Morgan, and the Battle to Transform American Capitalism by Susan Berfield

Berfield’s book takes its readers back to the turn of the 20th century when American politics was primarily defined by the battle between conservatives emphasizing economic prosperity, and progressives lamenting its unfairness. She describes an American economy focused on the railroad industry which was powered by mining and enabled by finance. Financial power was concentrated in the name of efficiency and global competitiveness. The most powerful figure was J.P. Morgan–the architect behind huge companies and trusts including railroad trust Northern Securities, which under President Theodore Roosevelt became the focus of a landmark anti-trust case.

Berfield writes that while the elite viewed Roosevelt as an insurgent within the republican party, Teddy viewed himself as the protector of conservatism with a mandate to make the economy work for everyone. Berfield’s excellent book makes it very clear why lessons from the gilded age are relevant for our times. She spells this out in the final sentences: “In 1902 coal mining profited a few, today data mining does. Big companies don’t always put public interests first and don’t reliably benefit their workers. Politicians can be swayed by their donations or threats. Corporate power is concentrated again and so is privilege”. 

6.    If Then by Jill Lepore

You’ve heard this start-up story before. An ambitious set of people, some with tech skills and some with market analysis skills, join-up to deliver a vision enabled by computing power and big data. So what’s different about this book? This story took place over 60 years ago, long before the many we know. The book chronicles Simulmatics’ attempts to automate predictions as a tool for politicians and marketers (and later for military purposes in Vietnam). What is now taken for granted, was then revolutionary, controversial, and mostly unmanageable. Because Lepore is a better (and brilliant) historian than a corporate anthropologist, what makes the book compelling isn’t the story of the company and why it failed. It is her studious account of the era and of the debate about the opportunities and perils of what we now broadly refer to as ‘AI technology’. It’s a reminder of how technology gets vastly underestimated and overestimated by very smart people. It shines a light on how hard it is to regulate technology even for those who try. Some of the characters in the book were astoundingly prescient – foreseeing the internet and the future power of algorithms to unravel the economic and political order.

7.    No Rules Rules by Reed Hastings and Erin Meyer

 This is the story of Netflix’s unusual corporate culture. It should provoke every organization to rethink at least some of its norms and assumptions. By no means is Netflix’s culture easy to replicate (and some elements would simply not fit elsewhere) but as I have shared in more detail in this post, at a time when employee engagement, collaboration, and trust are all very low across most jobs, we must challenge the conventional wisdom that has brought us to this point.

 Hastings explains why Netflix has chosen some very different cultural norms and Meyer links this to other social science research and shares how she overcame some of her own skepticism about certain unorthodox practices. In sharing his own mistakes and upward feedback comments, Hastings also makes it clear that Netflix still has a long way to improve as he strives to create an environment where what matters is the quality of an idea or plan, not the seniority of the person proposing or judging it.

 8.    Immortality, Inc.: Renegade Science, Silicon Valley Billions, and the Quest to Live Forever by Chip Walter

A fascinating book that covers important developments by scientists working to stop aging and dramatically extend lives. Billions of dollars are being poured into this field. Walter also provides great backstories about Ray Kurtzweil (known futurist and AI advocate), Craig Venter (famous for mapping the Genome), and Art Levinson (Calico CEO, previously Apple Chairman and Genentech CEO), as well as a few others. Spoiler alert: There is still no evidence that immortality is within our grasp. But some companies are now bringing together advancements in machine learning, genomics, genetics, and molecular biology. What no one is really working on is what to do if they succeed! As we struggle to handle growing medical bills, rising inequality, and ethical confusion about technological advancement, we are certainly not prepared for much longer lives.  

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 If you made it this far, with a bit of self-reflection, let me close by sharing my new favorite Churchill quote. I picked it up this year, reading in Erik Larsson’s 2020 book, The Splendid and the Vile: ‘It’s slothful not to compress your words.’

I’m always on the lookout for book recommendations. Please share the highlights of your 2020 reading adventures with me in the comments below.  

You can see below additional standout books I read this year and also find my 2019 list here 

Other Notable mentions:

Non-Fiction

JFK (volume 1) by Frederik Logevall

Triumph of Doubt By David Michaels

Hidden Valley Road by Robert Kolker

Author in Chief by Craig Fehrman

Competing in the Age of AI by Marco Iansiti and Karim Lakhani.

Humankind by Rutger Bergman

House of Glass – Hadley Freeman 

Fiction

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

Apeirogon by Colum McCann

The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead

The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Dare

Such a Fun Age – Kiley Red