Read in 2022
Read in 2022
-
Foundation and Empire
Isaac Asimov
Finished: Jan 15 -
Second Foundation
Isaac Asimov
Finished: Jan 27 -
Foundation's Edge
Isaac Asimov
Finished: Mar 12 -
Me talk pretty one day
David Sedaris
Finished: Mar 26Resolved to get his after hearing him on Adam Buxton, and delivered in spades.
-
Foundation and Earth
Isaac Asimov
Finished: Mar 31Loved the conclusion of the epic.
-
Shooting History
: A Personal Journey
Jon Snow
Finished: Apr 18Bit slow going in parts, but refreshingly honest about his roots, career and a sense of unbelief at his luck.
-
Prisoners of Geography
: Ten Maps That Tell You Everything You Need to Know About Global Politics
Tim Marshall
Finished: Apr 27Did what lots of books tend to do for me - got me excited enough to bore people with the revelations.
-
The Accidental
Ali Smith
Finished: Jun 3Lovely writing - interesting voices.
-
Naked
David Sedaris
Finished: Jun 22Funny and witty.
-
Arriving Today
: From Factory to Front Door -- Why Everything Has Changed About How and What We Buy
Christopher Mims
Finished: Jun 26Really enjoyed the bits on the early part of the early supply chain - the containers and boats. The later parts of the chain were a bit depressing - a story of screwing workers to marginal gains - all to feed shareholders.
-
The Nowhere Men
Michael Calvin
Finished: Jul 17Good on a subculture that is largely unremarked on, yet crucial to a multi billion dollar industry.
-
God is not great
Christopher Hitchens
Finished: Aug 2Strong start and compelling dismantling of religious thinking. Did ramble a bit, but worthwhile read.
-
The Lost Honour of Katharina Blum
Heinrich Böll
Finished: Aug 14Really nicely written and tight little story.
-
The Thursday Murder Club
Richard Osman
Finished: Aug 31Perfect relaxing beach book - which isn't damning with faint praise. Was charming and enjoyable.
-
Managing archives
: Foundations, principles and practice
Caroline Williams
Finished: Sep 5Work book - plenty to learn - will come back to it.
-
The Book You Wish Your Parents Had Read (and Your Children Will be Glad That You Did)
Phillipa Perry
Finished: Sep 26Engagingly written with things to try.
-
Inverting the Pyramid
: The History of Football Tactics
Johnathan Wilson
Finished: Oct 1Detailed, but a bit dry and seemed to run out of steam, once some major innovations had been dealt with. Did make me think that one setup seems to inveitably blend into the next.
-
Record Play Pause
Stephen Morris
Finished: Oct 11Always intersting insight into music making, and a slow reveal about Stephen himself.
-
Quirkology
: The Curious Science of Everyday Lives
Richard Wiseman
Finished: Nov 1Women's personal ads would attract more replies if they were written by a man. The opposite is not true of men's ads.People would rather wear a sweater that has been dropped in dog faces and not washed, than one that has been dry-cleaned but used to belong to a mass murderer. Many more nuggets like that in an enjoyable book.
-
Kind of Blue
: A Political memoir
Ken Clarke
Finished: Nov 5His reasoned opinions on the stupidity of the Brexit referendum made me intrigued to read about him. Working class roots and then steady path through government. A bit of a hagiography, but as with many retiring politicians able to say more interesting things when the urge for power fades.
-
A Map of the World
: According to Illustrators and Storytellers
Antonis Antoniou,Robert Klanten,Sven Ehmann, Hendrick Hellige, Lincoln Dexter
Finished: Nov 24Nice illustrated maps - bit a bit lacking in variety. Was considering buying this - glad I borrowed instead.
-
Empire of Pain
: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty
Patrick Radden Keefe
Finished: Dec 3Listened to this over the course of two weeks, and I loved the way that he kept the focus on the Sacklers, and painstakingly went back through their history to catalogue what awful venal people they are. He took his time to build up a fair picture and even with that they rightly come across as monstrous. I particularly like how the slippery later generations weren't let of the hook despite their wriggling. It does still sting that they all have got off very lightly for the chaos they caused and profited from.
-
Becoming a Supple Leopard
: The Ultimate Guide to Resolving Pain,Preventing Injury and Optimizing Atheltic Performance
Dr Kelly Starrett
Finished: Dec 6Flicked through and pulled some ideas. Might be good, but haven't drink the kool aid.
-
Municipal Dreams
: The Rise and Fall of Council Housing
John Boughton
Finished: Dec 28A great introduction to a layman like me of the broad sweep of how, housing and economic policies, architecture, design, culture and poltics mix and made concrete (and other materials) in housing. Loved how accessible he made what could easily have been very dry material.