2016 Book Summary.
Since 2010 I’ve taken part in a yearly challenge to read 100 books. I love reading so this is not too hard. For 2016 I read 112 books, and they were mostly fun books given the nature of the year.
I do a big book summary each year too, if you want to take a look at past years for some reading ideas check them out here: 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015. So what are my top books of the year?
If you only read 3 books this year I recommend the following:
1. Red Phoenix is a book based at the end of the Cold War and follows a North Korean invasion of the South and our response. It has echoes of Tom Clancy and I enjoyed it immensely.
2. Dawn of Wonder is an amazing fantasy book and I can’t wait for the second one. The premise is simple, a young boy as he suffers a tragedy and then as he joins a very elite military unit. Beautifully written, great characters, and just fantastic.
3. The Wolf of the North was a fantastic book and I can’t wait for the next one. Solid fantasy and beautifully written story with viking undertones.
Top 3 Scifi / Fantasy:
1. The Lives of Tao series. This is a GREAT science fiction series and very well written. Aliens crashed into earth and have been driving our evolution in order to get to a technology level to enable them to leave. At some point the group split into a group trying to help humanity and improve them, and another that just wants off the planet no matter the cost to earth. The aliens are a symbiotic relationship, and they combine with a human and can talk to them and effectively live forever. Which makes some really interesting topics on history when an immortal alien was inside the human’s head talking to them and giving them advice. Great series, highly recommended and I can’t wait to read more by this author.
2. The Black Gate Series is awesome fantasy and huge in scope. You see the world through a variety of characters that are slowly driven toward each other. Pretty unique world too.
3. The King’s Dark Tidings series. These are not the most complex, but boy are they fun. The main character is like a fantasy James Bond but a monk who seems to kill just about everyone. Fun world and characters, good for the beach.
Top 3 *Real* Books:
1. I was interested in learning how the USA passed a recent constitutional amendment so I picked up
Last Call: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition. It was very well written and fascinating to learn about. I was also curious how it mirrored Cannabis and the path to legalization a lot of states are taking.2. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life . This is a GREAT read and I love his website as well. I wish we passed this out to every student in high school or college.
3. The Rent Is Too Damn High: What To Do About It, And Why It Matters More Than You Think – This was a really interesting look at the cost of housing on Americans and the impact on the economy.
3 Honorable Mentions:
1. I read every book in the Gabriel Allon spy series. They are all very solid books and highly recommended.
2. The First Rule of Ten series, which is a fantastic detective series based in LA. The main character is a Buddhist monk and apart from the newest they are all amazing.
3. Waking the Kiso Road. This is a pilgrimage route in Japan I am thinking of doing and it made for a great read.
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