At the start of 2021, I took a new year resolution that I will read 52 books this year, basically 1 book a week, and even though I was not able to complete 52 books, I did reach a good number and an improvement from what I have read before. And the number can grow much more from here and now.
So, this article is a collection of my recommendations from my reading of this year, which hopefully helps you decide on your next read. Have a happy year ahead.
Disclaimer: I have only included a book in one category, so if a book is covered under one category, I have not included it in other categories, so that we can cover as many books as possible.
Best Travel Read
The best travel read is a book that is relatively short, but quite easy to read and makes you excited so that you do not fall asleep while you forgo your sleep while traveling.
A book that read like a thriller movie. Very fast pace, and easy to understand the character without knowing the backstory as well.
Though there were some stretches, like having 10 kids and a million-dollar house, those were loose points, but every page was gripping and you could easily read it in one sitting.
The ending was unexpected and the book was a perfect 1-day companion to me.
If you keep a little bit of interest in football, you would have heard about the maverick striker Zlatan, who has defied odds throughout his career, still going strong in his 40s. He is famous for his outspoken attitude and his book doesn't disappoint. So get ready to get a lot of honest inside scoop about some of the most popular names in world football.
A great read for football fans.
Best Educational
Educational Books are a great example of the type of books that provide entertainment and knowledge in a great small package.
Statistics can be quite scary if you don’t know how to really picture it. Often times, we are taught the subject without telling how it really affects the world around us
Naked Statistics help you visualize Statistics and connect it to real world. Though I would still suggest to have a basic idea about the subject before reading the book.
P.S: Better to read the book than listen it on Audible, since there are a good number of charts.
Runner Up: Dhandho Investor by Mohnish Pabrai
The book is mainly about Dhandho way of business, Dhandho business is run by the Gujarati community, in particular Patel community.
The book is inspired by the Warren Buffet Ways of business and how, Dhandho way is followed by many successful people in the world, like Richard Branson, Laxmi Mittal.
It talks about how we can find stocks that are trailing well below their intrinsic value, and through the formula , of Heads I Win and Tails I don’t lose much, you can get much better returns and win the market.
Best Humorous Book
In times like this, we all can do with a bit of light-hearted humor that is strung along with a great storyline. There is quite a nice collection of such books out there
It’s not just one book, but the whole P.G Wodehouse series of Jeeves stories is a must-try. The stories, while being simple in terms of the background, will draw you in and keep a smile on your face throughout.
The storytelling is something that you have to notice of the Wodehouse books as that is the strength of the series.
P.S: I listened it on Audible, and it was a very good experience, so that’s what I would recommend.
An intriguing plot with a lot of abstract plot lines that will make you wonder what is happening. The book kept on increasing the number of plot lines, but in the end the way it was all connected was simply brilliant and deserves a special round of applause.
It will make you laugh at many moments, and will make you want to read many more books of the Author.
Best Autobiography
Books by some of the most accomplished people in the world always makes up for a great reading, as you get to know the person behind the news, their failures and POVs.
The autobiographies this year were all too good and quite difficult to select the best one. So I have decided on 3 instead on 2.
Winner: Shoe Dog by Phil Knight
One of those books, which once I started, I could not keep it off, somehow I could connect so well with Phil Knight, his insecurities, his need to make a mark in the world. This book was like a breath of fresh air, where it wasn’t written like they knew Nike would be successful, but how they fought for the mere survival of Nike, every month, despites sales growing geometrically every year. Phil does a tremendous job in sharing moments, where they were lucky, giving credits to people who were due and how they constantly kept at it trying to best their biggest competitor of the time, Adidas. A must read from my side.
Joint Runner Up: A Promised Land by Barack Obama
I enjoyed listening to the book, for me, this was the first political book that I read, but I appreciate the great detail that the Author has went to explain things.
While reading the book, I was able to connect the time when he was working on his Presidential campaign with my own and appreciate the great detail in which the process was explained. The book also provided perspectives about how tough a job it is to take decisions for a large country, and USA, with their decisions having implications on the whole world, gives added scrutiny to every decision taken.
Joint Runner Up: Hit Refresh by Satya Nadella
I did not have much expectations from the book when I started it. I approached the book with an open mind, with a question, why is someone who has so recently been appointed as CEO, writing a memoir. But it was cleared at the beginning itself that this book is more of a real time work that is being done.
In this book, Satya focused a lot on culture as he felt that Microsoft had lost his soul and they needed to once again energize the brilliant minds in the company that there is so much they can do to make an impact and he started his work with his Senior Leadership team to ensure that culture change happens, just like we hit refresh button on our browser, which does not remove everything on the screen, but does make it updated.
Best Historical Fiction
These are the books that bring the best of History/Mythology and Fiction together and you will enrich your knowledge while getting the thrill of a proper thriller. Best of both worlds.
Once again, I read some amazing books in this genre this year and it was impossible to distinguish between the two choices.
Winner: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
What a beautifully written book by Markus Zusak. This is the only book in a long time that bought tears to my eyes.
Based in Germany when Nazi party was at the helm. It tells a story about a little girl and one very special part about this book is that it is written from the Point of View of Death.
A strong recommendation to read, you’ll understand so much about what goes through the lives of common folks when their whole world is falling apart
Joint Winner: The Empire of Moghul Series by Alex Rutherford
If you are interested in understanding Indian history, then this book series is the one for you.
For me, it was such an eye opener to understand the history of Babur and his Turkish and Mongol ancestry and how by accident Babur decided to conquer India and change its history throughout. The series continues then for each emperor of Moghul dynasty.
The major content has been taken from the writings of the emperor and their close aides but written in a gripping manner, it was no surprise to me, when I heard that the series is not going to be converted into a Television show, because it had all the aspects of it.
Best Series
Often for the best stories, one book ain’t enough. So, we get a series of books to keep us on the edge of our seats. Think of Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, you cannot get enough of them.
It’s a trilogy that is a collection of 5 books and that itself can tell you how wacky these books can be. The all-time classic series, will take you across the entire galaxy and tell you the best ways to travel the galaxy, which trying to find the meaning of life and making you laugh all the way.
The meaning of 42 will change forever after reading this book.
P.S: I suggest reading it on Audible since THGTG first was released as a radio show and it just adds to the whole story.
Runner Up: The Kane Chronicles by Rick Riordan
Are you intruiged by Mythology? Do you want to know more about Egyptian Mythology in particular? Then I belive Kane chronicles makes for a perfect entrace to understanding it. Rick Riordian is master of creating fictional stories on mythology and after reading Percy Jackson Series and Magnus Chase series, I gave a try to Kane Chronicles, and like before, I got quite a lot of information about Egyptian Mythology.
Though not his best work, if you can look over the cringey behavior of 10–12 year old obsessed with romance, this will definitely make for a good read.
Best Fiction
Fiction books are the epitome of literal masterpeices. Something that is conceived in the minds of author and that takes us into an entirely new world of it’s own. Having a great fictional book is always a great way to ensure that you are never going to lost in a place.
Haruki Murukami is one of the pioneers of “Magical Realism” genre and Kafka on the shore is a perfect example of why.
An extremely engrossing tale of two central characters — a teenage boy, Kafka Tamura, who has run away from his home in search of his long-missing mother and sister or to escape an Oedipal prophecy. Another central character is named Nakata, who, in his own words, is ‘not so bright’. Both these characters, living their individual lives, their destinies are somehow entwined.
Murakami’s forte lies in using bizarre instances, simple but soul-touching dialogues, interesting & quirky characters, to weave a magical tale. This novel is no different and is an absolutely crazy ride. If you’re picking this book, you should expect all this, and more. What I love about Murakami, is that the story almost always takes you beyond the normal bounds of human reality, into some sort of an alternate world where metaphysical magic happens!
Runner Up: The Institute by Stephen King
According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, roughly 800,000 children are reported missing each year in the United States. Most are found. Thousands are not.
And thus you turn into the first page of a brilliant novel by Stephen King. The Institute isn’t the generic Stephen King horror. Damn, it isn’t horror at all. It’s about this sinister organization, an Institute, that kidnaps children with special abilities and uses them for something you should find out while reading. Now, considering the fact about the missing children, this whole thing makes a great conspiracy theory and that’s what makes the book scary.
After reading the book, you are left with an empty feeling, a void that would want to make you feel that the story never ended in the first place. King talks about friendship and how strong and eminently important that special bond is throughout your life. If you love reading King, his ability to point out all the intricate details and backstories of characters you never asked for, you are definitely in for a treat.
Best Non-Fiction
While Fiction takes you into an imaginary world, Non Fiction helps you unravel the world around you. It helps you improve your thought process and find inspration. And no, not all non fictional books are Self-Help books.
While reading, you come across some books that really change and help you define your life. When it comes to money, the first book that helped me, when I was starting into my job was Rich Dad, Poor Dad. Pschology of Money is the next that has helped me understand it better, and trust me, I have read my fair share of them.
This book, is not about money really, it is about your mindset in general, and it helps you in understanding why the whole generations think the way they think.
Reading this book allows you to declutter your mind a bit from the advice that is coming all around you regarding making money, growing rich. It helps you understand your game, and then let you decided how you want to play. And even if you loathe reading about money, you can still read for psycology and stories and it will still be an entertaining book. Must read according to me.
I have loved all of Yuval’s book so far, how he has looked into past, into future and with this book, he looks into present.
This is a mind-expanding book. Every lesson being talked about here will make you think and see the world around you in a different shade.
The main theme is that the pace of change is much faster than at any other time in human history, and that by 2050 life on Earth will look significantly different. Yuval Noah Harari speculates that biotechnology, information technology and ‘Big Data algorithms’ will reshape the world for Homo sapiens over the coming decades.
It will definitely force you into thinking about the immediate future, and it is coming towards us faster than ever before.
Non-Recommended Books
This might be a controversial topic, but I want to tell my honest reading experience, and while the following listed books are popular for a reason and have good content in it, I felt that it was waaaaay too much streched for what they wanted to say. So I would suggest that you skip them and rather get a small summary of what they are really saying rather than repeating or adding points that are not required in the book.
It is a great book, don’t get me wrong, but for the size of it and the learning that I can extract from it, I feel after the first few chapters, it is the same repetitive thing being said again and again.
I will save you the hassle. The book basically wants to tell you, that if you or someone is not able to understand a design at first glance or makes same mistake repeatedly, that is not the person’s fault but rather then designer’s fault.
That concept is a brilliant concept and once you understand it, you will realize how much better we can make the design of everyday things, but we do not need a 350 page book to keep telling the same point again and again to us.
The 12 rules are really good, and some of them, you would really find quite useful. But the author has used so much references from Bible, that almost 8 of the 12 rules will look like a Bible sermon.
A lot of the rules also deviate and go totally away from what actually the point mainly was. Sometimes, while listening I could not exactly recall what rule I was at, and by simple listening to the book, I just could not tell what point that was. So good points littered with unneccesary points.
The good thing is that the points in themselves are quite good and simple, very much part of our everyday life. So I would save you the hassle and give you a link to a nice summary of book. You’re welcome.
Conclusion
So that wraps up my ramblings about the books that I read from my previous year, I did read more, but did not really find them to stand out as books that I liked or disliked. I hope some of these books become great companions to you as well, just like they were mine. I would love to know what books do you recommend, so that I can add them to my wishlist as well.
Happy Reading to You
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