This website appears to be turning into a log of what I have read each year. In 2025 I’ll have to make efforts to make more of an effort.
Meanwhile, rest assured, Notion continues to feature in my daily life. If you’re a user too then why not take a look at my Quotes and Library templates (for free, I may add) to help log your reading journey. If you find them useful you can always thank me by buying me a cheeky coffee, but no obligation, of course – https://ko-fi.com/andyexperience
For me, logging my reading is not just a tally of how much I have read year on year, it also provides me with a treasure trove of quotes and beautiful writing and brilliant thinking that I return to over and over again. When I look at the book covers in my log, it is like looking at a gallery of all the places I went this past year, but where I went in my head rather than where I went physically. That reads like it was written by Alan Partridge, but hopefully you get what I’m trying to say!
The log reflects my thoughts and learning and all those interests, challenges, adventures and new experiences my reading journey provided me. It inspires me to keep reading, to keep writing, and much to my wife’s disdain, keep buying more books.
So, what did I read in 2024?
As always, I try to read a mix of fiction and non-fiction and I use both physical books and audiobooks. I think the great thing about interests is some remain consistent and others move in and out of your life, catching your attention, fading away, then coming back again with a freshness that sparks the imagination.
I read some excellent books this year, including Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain. Like many, I was introduced to Cain via her popular TED talk about the power of introverts. I related very strongly to the content of this book and found it reassuring and important. I felt seen. I want introverts and non-introverts alike to read it.
I re-read The Road by Cormac McCarthy, the first re-read since I’ve been logging my reading here. Quite simply, it is stunning and shocking and I will continue to re-read this book for a long time. As a father, it makes me ache to read it but I just think it is brilliantly written. In 2025 I will be reading more McCarthy since I have many as yet unread novels of his on my shelf.
I read The Wind in The Willows by Kenneth Graeme to my son at bedtime and there is nothing as perfect as the descriptions of Badger’s cosy and inviting underground home.
I’m currently researching (anything instead of actually writing) ideas for a novel and that included many of the texts I read this year, including Rural Rides by William Cobbett which I thought was fantastic, especially the illustrated edition I own.
Finally, I went down a bit of a Jack Hargreaves rabbit hole this year, devouring a DVD boxset of Out of Town and enjoying Dave Knowles’ YouTube uploads. Nostalgia is a theme I’m currently drawn to, perhaps because of my age, and Jack’s insights into a past time are interesting and relaxing. I’m sure he’s not everyone’s cup of tea but I was captivated. I read his book The Old Country and I’m sure I’ll keep revisiting the DVDs.
So, here is the 2024 list in full:
A Sand County Almanac: And Sketches Here and There, Aldo Leopold
Alan Partridge: Big Beacon, Alan Partridge
Alchemy, Rory Sutherland
As I Lay Dying, William Faulkner
Calypso, David Sedaris
Golf in The Kingdom, Michael Murphy
Norwegian Wood, Haruki Murakami
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking Susan Cain
Raising Emotionally and Socially Health Kids, Eileen Kennedy-Moore
The American West: History, Myth and Legacy, Patrick N. Allittt
The Art of Writing and the Gifts of Writers, C.S. Lewis
The Body Keeps the Score, Bessel van der Kolk
The Need to be Whole: Patriotism and the History of Prejudice, Wendell Berry
The Old Country, Jack Hargreaves
The Oregon Trail: A New American Journey, Rinker Buck
The Road, Cormac McCarthy
The Story of the Lygon Arms, Alison R Ridley and Curtis F Garfield
The Time Traveller’s Guide to Medieval England, Ian Mortimer
The Time Traveller’s Guide to Regency Britain, Ian Mortimer
The Well-Lived Life, Gladys McGarey
The Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Graeme
Tuesdays with Morrie, Mitch Albom
Ultra-Processed People, Chris van Tulleken
Village Children, Charlotte Yonge
Weep Not My Wanton: Selected Short Stories, A.E Coppard
William Cobbett’s Illustrated Rural Rides 1821-1832, William Cobbett
If you’re interested I offer free Notion templates with a range of uses, and a YouTube channel showcasing them. I also run the Medicine, Arts, Humanities Resource List if that topic floats your boat. All my links can be found on my Linktree.
Wishing you all a prosperous and happy 2025. Happy reading!
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