I Read 100+ Books in 2023. Here is My Top 10 List.
You will find a hidden gem or three. Guaranteed.
I read 100+ books for the third consecutive year.
I wasn’t planning to. At the start of the year, I was shooting for 50. I reached my goal easily by mid-2023, despite increased responsibilities in my day job. I got into a reading spree — a flow state — where reading was effortless and enjoyable. Before I knew it, 50 soon became 100.
I read some delightful gems in this list of 100. I suspect you will, as well.
Without further ado, here is my top 10 list for 2023:
1 — The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
Wow. Just wow.
This is one of the best books I’ve read. Ever.
Matt Haig’s novel taught me an important life lesson: regrets are futile.
We all have regrets. We play the “what if” game ad infinitum — What if I had pursued my dreams? What if I had not broken up with her? What if I had broken up with her?
My life would have been much better.
Not so fast, says Haig.
The life we desire can derail in ways we can’t imagine. The protagonist in The Midnight Library has the option to live in an alternate universes that she regretted not pursuing. And if she does not like the way one universe pans out, she can return to the “Midnight Library” and choose yet another alternate universe.
She soon finds out that the alternate universes are not so rosy as she imagined. For example, she regretted not marrying her boyfriend and breaking up with him. In the universe where she marries him, he turns indifferent and has an affair. Not the ideal romantic life she imagined!
Our best course of action is to practice radical acceptance at what life offers us. Not convinced? Read The Midnight Library and you will delete the word ‘regret’ from your dictionary.
2 — The Relationship Handbook by George Pransky
Every other couple appears to be divorcing due to “irreconcilable differences.” Self-help gurus urge people to get out of “bad marriages”. Couples second-guess their relationships all the time. “Are we compatible?”, they ask each other.
There’s no such thing as compatibility, George Pransky shocks the reader.
Wait, what ?!?
It’s all about respect, says Pransky. Where there is respect, couples look at their differences with a sense of curiosity, with an intention to understand their partner.
Indeed — when you travel abroad, you try to understand the local people with a sense of curiosity and awe, and not with a lens of judgment. Looking at your spouse with the same sense of curiosity with a desire to understand them is a recipe for marital bliss.
3 — Playful Parenting by Lawrence Cohen
This is the best parenting book I’ve read so far.
Lawrence Cohen suggests turning everything into play.
Turn lectures into play. Turn discipline into play. Turn just about everything into play.
When I remember to apply this with my older son, the results are delightful.
Going one step further, why not turn adult interactions into play?
In any case, playfully laughing and giggling is a fun way to discipline and interact as a parent, and I look forward to experimenting with this approach.
4 — Be Useful by Arnold Schwarzenegger
I confess, I didn’t expect much going into this book.
Schwarzenegger pleasantly surprised me. He gave concentrated doses of motivation throughout the book.
The overarching theme: Be a useful member of society. Schwarzenegger gives his readers repeated doses of motivation, giving examples from his life. He offers seven tools to readers:
- Have a clear vision.
- Never think small.
- Work your ass off.
- Sell, sell, sell.
- Shift gears.
- Shut your mouth, open your mind.
- Break your mirrors.
5 — Excellent Advice for Living by Kevin Kelly
This is a book I’ll read repeatedly.
This book is filled with short aphorisms that add value to the reader. I’ve incorporated several into my life. I’ve left some aphorisms simmer in my back burner.
Here are a few gems:
- You are as big as the things that make you angry.
- Making art is not selfish; it’s for the rest of us. If you don’t do your thing you are cheating us.
- The greatest teacher is called “doing”.
Long story short, there are aphorisms that will benefit *everyone*.
6 — Aghora 3: Karma by Robert Svoboda
Aghora 3 changed the way I look at things.
I have known about karma, but Svoboda and his guru Vimalananda impressed upon the significance of karma in our lives.
Stated simply, each action has a consequence. If you do good, you will get good results. And vice versa.
This book has convinced me to build the muscle of being good — for my own sake. And when others are mean to us, the law of karma tells us that they harm themselves more than us — so we really don’t have to retaliate.
In his Aghora series, Robert Svoboda introduces his readers to the mystic world of Tantra. This third book in the series offers us tangible takeaways that can positively impact the way we live our lives.
7 — How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big by Scott Adams
Failure sucks.
Society glorifies ‘success stories’ and shames people who have ‘failed’. But we also know that ‘failures are the stepping stones to success’, and many other cliches which we relegate to their status as cliches and don’t follow them.
Scott Adams writes this delightful book where he outlines how he failed on multiple occasions, and yet made it as a ‘success’. He offers the readers several strategies by way of example.
A refreshing read.
8 — Become an Idea Machine by Claudia Altucher
This is an unusual book.
It is an exercise book. Claudia Altucher gives several prompts, and asks the reader to come up with 10 prompts for that idea.
I diligently did the exercises, and flexed my idea muscles. I was not disappointed.
I recommend Become an Idea Machine if you want a workbook to strengthen your idea muscles.
9 — Anxious People by Fredrik Backman
A Man Called Ove warmed millions of hearts.
Anxious People will not disappoint loyal Backman readers. Backman weaves a masterful story surrounding a hostage situation. There are twists and turns, likeable characters, and an ending that leaves the reader satisfied.
If I choose to read more fiction, Fredrik Backman’s books will be at the top of my reading lists.
10 — The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday
Ryan Holiday has perfected the art of packaging timeless wisdom into easy-to-digest content.
He offers 366 Stoic meditations to live a better life. The points are hard-hitting in trademark Ryan Holiday style.
Very few authors can lay claim to writing books that can change a reader’s life. Ryan Holiday churns bestselling books that adds value his readers.
The Daily Stoic will flood you with wisdom that makes you reflect and effect changes in your life.
