Yes, it’s the time of year when I share my favorite books of the year. Just in time for Christmas shopping. Actually, if you buy one of these books via my blog, then Amazon gives me a small commission. Like a nickel or something. But it adds up! And I promise to donate it to the PathLight matching gift campaign.
Looking through my reading list, I see a lot of history, psychology, business, religious, and mystery books. Pretty normal for me. So let’s get right to it. Here are my favorites of the year:
The coveted “would you shut up about this book? it’s all you talk about anymore” award goes to Quiet by Susan Cain. I loved this book and told everybody who’d listen (mostly introverts) they should read it. Susan shares keen insights into what it is like to be an introvert in an extroverts world. Her “quiet” voice is needed in our crazy culture where loud too often wins. D’Aun and I spent more time over dinner talking about this book than any other on the list.
The “I wanted to branch out into a new venue and found myself really enjoying this book” award goes to the Commissario Guido Brunetti Mysteries by Donna Leon. These books are simple, easy to read, and fun.
The “best business book that even a non-MBA can read” award is a three way tie. Good Strategy Bad Strategy by Richard Rumelt is a great reminder of how important it is to create a business strategy. Great by Choice by Jim Collins is another brilliant piece by the author. And Anything You Want by Derek Sivers is the perfect book for a small business owner.
The “yes, I’m biased, but I don’t get paid to write this blog so I might as well have fun with it” award goes to …. me. Sorta. I’m having a lot of fun with my series on 25 books that influenced my life, and you should read them all. My latest entry in the countdown is #13. You can find it and links to #14-25 here.
The award for “most helpful on my spiritual journey without being so weird it makes my skin crawl” is easily won by Sabbath by Dan Allender. It changed the way I think of a Sabbath and refocused my attention on this misunderstood concept.
The “this books should be considered by the Pulitzer Prize people” goes to John Quincy Adams by Harlow Unger. Everybody knows about John Adams, one of the founding fathers and the second President of the USA. But his remarkable son is often overlooked. This book fixes that problem.
The “best book for lots of laughs, to generate traffic on my blog, and to promote because it’s my blog and I can do what I want” award goes to Love Does by Bob Goff. A childhood friend of mine, it was pure fun to read about Bob’s exploits as a kid. And to see the way he lives out his love for Jesus today. Bob tweeted the link of my review and it generated the single most active day of the year on my blog. Thanks, Bob!
The “I don’t know anything about this topic and I really should” award goes to The End of Illness by David Agus. A medical doctor and researcher, Agus looks at the steps we can take to live healthier lives. His ideas fly in the face of a lot of the so called experts. This was another one that generated a lot of conversation around the dinner table with D’Aun.
The “this blog is called Junkyard Wisdom so we need a car book” award goes to Engines of Change by Paul Ingrassia. The author (one of my favorites when it comes to cars) offers his list of the most influential cars in history. All gear heads love lists like this.
The “how can I better understand this phenomena of China” award goes to the book China in Ten Words by Yu Hua. A brilliant writer and insightful observer of his own country, the author presents the idea of modern China in ten different words. Great stuff.
The “why did it take me so long to finally get around to reading this book” award goes to Culture Making by Andy Crouch. I can’t believe it took me years before finally getting to it — this is a brilliant book.
Now in past years I had an award that honored the San Francisco Giants. But I didn’t read any baseball books this year. So I just want to say THE GIANTS WON THE WORLD SERIES!
Finally, my favorite book of the year. Truth is that Quiet is probably the winner here, but I’ve already mentioned it. So I’m going to go with Turn Right at Machu Picchu by Mark Adams. I loved this book because it is filled with adventure, colorful characters, cultural insights, and history. Plus it makes you laugh out loud. Highly enjoyable.
So that’s my list for 2012. Hope you find something that works for you. If you read all of them above, you will have read some outstanding books. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!