Very Best Books I Read This Wild Crazy Year
Reading is a privilege.
What a year?!
Another year in the books and on to the next one. I think it’s safe to say we all hope that 2022 is ‘normal.’ But, let’s be honest, what does that mean? I think it’s pretty likely that there is a new ‘normal.’
Either way, for me, one thing that doesn’t change, no matter how crazy life gets, is reading. I read to grow as a person, develop more skills, become a better husband and father, and find wisdom in those who came before us, who found themselves in similar times of uncertainty. Their wisdom is a gift, and I want to take advantage of it.
Here is my 1st year-end reading summary, the very best books I read in 2021:
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
I’m not a big fiction reader. It’s something I’m trying to read more. I’m not sure why because I’ve enjoyed the last several I’ve read.
A Gentleman in Moscow is amazing. I’ll be checking out Towles’s new one, The Lincoln Highway, in 2022. It’s a long read that essentially serves as a fictional biography on Count Rostov, who’s brilliant, funny, stoic, and honorable. I won’t give the story away, but reading this book during a worldwide pandemic added extra elements and an interesting perspective.
This book is funny, insightful, and entertaining — all the ingredients you’d like to have in a great novel. If you only read one fiction book all year, read this one. You won’t regret it.
And if you have time check out Steven Pressfield’s Gates of Fire. Fantastic! Just like A Gentleman in Moscow, it had me glued to every page, wondering what the outcome would be.
Pappyland: A Story of Family, Fine Bourbon, and the Things That Last by Wright Thompson
I think Wright Thompson is a brilliant writer, and I’ve followed his work on ESPN for years. This book is about Julian Van Winkle III of the legendary bourbon, Pappy Van Winkle.
Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon is the most sought-after bourbon globally because of scarcity. But it’s more than just its rarity. As Thompson tells this story, you get a glimpse into…
