2024: The Year in Books

I’m not what you’d call a prolific reader, but I do like to read books and the occasional manga now and then. Here are the highlights (and lowlights) of my reading in 2024.

Bird by Bird by Ann Lamott seems to have gotten a lot of attention because of Ted Lasso so I thought I’d give it a whirl. Maybe it’s because I’m not a writer, but this book didn’t work for me at all. Apart from the anecdote that gave the book its name, I didn’t find much of value here that couldn’t have been better distilled into a few pages of bullet points.

Conclave by Robert Harris is one in what I now know to be a huge collection of “Papal fiction.” Is it great literature? No. Was it a fun read? Yes. (And the movie was pretty good too.)

It took me a while but I finally did finish all 44 volumes of Drops of God by Tadashi Agi. I enjoyed it a great deal, although it really is nothing like the Apple TV+ series of the same name. (In case you’re wondering, the television adaptation is better.)

Spaceman of Bohemia by Jaroslav Kalfar is unlike any other book I think I’ve ever read. It is a book with one foot in each of very different genres, magical realism and science fiction—a combination that I wasn’t at all expecting when I went into it. I enjoyed it thoroughly, as well as the Netflix adaptation with Adam Sandler.

What’s Next: A Backstage Pass to The West Wing, Its Cast and Crew, and Its Enduring Legacy of Service by Melissa Fitzgerald and Mary McCormack appeals to a sense of nostalgia that we West Wing fans have, and most of the behind-the-scenes stories were not ones I had heard so it was worthwhile.

There you have it. Short and sweet. Keep an eye on my Now page if you want to see what I’m reading next. Cheers!