Less "Infinite Scroll" More "Flip" - 50 Books in 2022 - February
In a post a few weeks ago I commented on how momentum often doesn't kick in until after you start on a project. Once you get into the groove you want to continue that good feeling. Month two of my journey to read fifty books this year and I enjoyed five new reads (with no false starts!)
Long distance running and writing are both solitary ambitions with much time for introspection. "What I Talk About When I Talk About Running" by Haruki Murakami is a book I kept seeing on people's favorites list. Haruki's clean, focused and insightful writing style clicked with me as he talked about his journey along both paths.
How do we understand another person's story? The first novel of the year was "White on White" by Aysegül Savas. A well written story of slowly understanding another person's pain and being compassionate (or not) to a relative stranger.
"A Sheldon-esque (Bing Bang Theory) character develops a plan to find a partner - chaos ensues". That is my one-liner for "The Rosie Project" by Graeme Simsion. It is a delightfully funny read, the very clever writing had me laughing out loud often. My favorite book of the month.
Mary Roach's name kept popping on my radar as a writer of well written research into unusual subjects: human cadavers, the alimentary canal, sex, and in "Grunt" the many people working behind the scenes to ensure soldiers can survive in the wild range of environments they deal with. Writing on technical subjects can be SO bad, but Mary knocks it out of the park with in-person research and humor.
Reading books from just ten years back in the tech world can bring chuckles as long gone sites and services are mentioned, but the main principles in Guy Kawasaki's "Enchantment" are rock solid. How do you truly build connections with people and build support for your product/service/org? Reading it from start to finish was fine, but I can see going back to certain chapters for quick refreshers. Lots of gold in there.
"Coincidence" of the month: Strategic Operations, a firm that creates hyper-realistic training for military, first responders and law enforcement was highlighted by both Mary Roach and Guy Kawasaki.
Product Master Digital Marketing Director
3 年Yay. Great goal. I read over 50 books last year. If you haven’t read and Michael Polen, I highly recommend The Botany of Desire. It’s about how plants partner with humanity to succeed in natural selection.
Director at Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.
3 年Another reader! I am currently reading "Mortal & what matters in the end" by Dr. Anul Gawande. It was recommended by my sister as we navigate my Mothers aging together. Thanks for your suggested reads.