Favourite Reads of 2023 đź“š
10 books that I loved reading over the past year that a few of my friends have had to endure me talking about over and over again.
I’m 21 days behind my goal to publish this piece at the end of 2023 / start of 2024, but that’s okay, because it’s a new year, and we’re being kinder to ourselves, not overthinking things, and remembering that no one has any expectations about this blog except for the person writing it. Great.
Last year was a pretty good year for reading. I managed to hit (and surpass) my goal of reading 36 books. I was intentional about reading more books by women, more poetry, more international authors, and more historical fiction—a genre that I’ve always flirted with but never truly dated.
While reading 44 books in a year might feel like weaksauce to avid readers, for many, this can appear as an unattainable goal. This is understandable, because just a few years ago, I found myself grappling to finish even three books annually. In my 2021 roundup (famously known to myself as the year I unlocked a new reading habit), I shared how listening to audiobooks and planning and tracking what I consume to be a really great motivator. At the bottom of this post, I’ve shared a link to my Notion book logging template that has helped me develop rigour around this practice. Feel free to poke around, duplicate, and use it.
Anyway, here’s my top 10 from 2023…
10. Happy-Go-Lucky by David Sedaris
One Word Review: Acerbic
The Slightly-Longer Review: I’ve only listened to David Sedaris narrate his own audiobooks, so it’s impossible to imagine reading them with the same effect. My opinion is that everyone should listen to these books rather than read them. Sedaris’ tart, astute observations on the most mundane aspects of life continue to make me wish I kept a journal, or that I had an audience to listen to my rants, or that I had a more dysfunctional family to write book after book about. While it’s easy to dismiss the author as a rich, white, out-of-touch comedian, I think his writing cuts through the bullshit of everyday existence and explores the human condition in its finest details.
If you’re looking for something light, something that highlights our collective absurdity as a species, “Happy-Go-Lucky” is simply comedic gold.
9. Dear Ijeawale, or A Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
One Word Review: Excellent
The Slightly-Longer Review: This compact yet powerful volume transcends its epistolary form, becoming a timeless resource for individuals seeking to cultivate a feminist consciousness. In 63 pages, Adichie offers 15 accessible suggestions to her friend, Ijeawele, on advocating for autonomy, equality, and dismantling ingrained stereotypes around gender. This book made me question a lot of my own experiences and behaviours that I’ve passively adopted over the years, without much question, creating space for me to reshape my perspective and narrative around what it means to be a man and a husband.
If you’re able to put aside the controversy around her statements on trans people in the past, “Dear Ijeawele” feels like essential reading to those interested in championing gender equality.
8. When We Cease to Understand the World by BenjamĂn Labatut
One Word Review: Absorbing
The Slightly-Longer Review: In “When We Cease to Understand the World,” BenjamĂn Labatut takes us on a mind-bending exploration of scientific discovery, chaos theory, and the intricate dance between genius and madness. As a self-proclaimed resident of this nexus (though I’m more often seen on the mad side), I found myself completely absorbed in these fictionalised histories of luminaries such as Haber, Grothendieck, and Schrödinger. This is essentially a story about obsession, and how the unpredictable nature of scientific discovery has driven the most brilliant people to the ends of their wits (and their lives).
Treat this as a literary kaleidoscope, one where the boundaries between fact and fiction are somewhat blurry and ever-changing, and be prepared to embark on a journey that makes you question your own sanity.
7. Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel
One Word Review: Captivating
The Slightly-Longer Review: To me, this book is a masterclass in storytelling, and it’s one of my favourite novels I’ve read in recent years. I’m an easy target for any book that’s about questioning reality, bending time and timelines, layering plot lines, and spurring the imagination, and this book delivers on every single front. The audiobook version is stunningly rich with its multiple voice actors, creating an immersive experience for the listener to find themselves in totally different worlds at the turn of every (figurative) page.
Huge thanks to Emily St. John Mandel for this gorgeous book, and for the free point at my local trivia night when they asked “what is the name of the first location on another celestial body to be visited by humans?”
6. Rifqa by Mohammed El-Kurd
One Word Review: Vivid
The Slightly-Longer Review: As the genocide in Palestine rages on, I’ve found myself looking for books that navigate the tumultuous landscape of displacement, identity, and the relentless pursuit of justice under occupation. Non-fictive accounts of history and politics are helpful in providing context of course, but I find myself returning to poetry, and poets like El-Kurd to bring to life the human stories that often get lost when everything around you ends up as a heated socio-political debate.
Written as a dedication to his grandmother, “Rifqa,” is a beautiful, yet painful book that transcends individual experiences, becoming a profound exploration of the collective struggle of Palestinian people.
5. The Good Enough Job by Simone Stolzoff
One Word Review: Crucial
The Slightly-Longer Review: Full disclosure: the author is a good friend and ex-colleague of mine. However, that is not why this book is in my top 10 of the year. Through the pandemic (is it still going on?), and in the wake of me leaving a company I worked at for 9 years, I’ve been reflecting on what a job and a career mean to me. Personal achievement has forever been defined by societal expectations, that like most of the emails in my inbox, I never remember actually subscribing to. Yet, they continue to oppress me. In my conversations with Simo as he wrote this book, and in the long hours I’ve spent staring off into space here in Rwanda, I’ve managed to shed some of these harmful tropes of what it means to “be successful” and how I can better find balance in the work that I do and the life that I live. This book provides several stories and fresh takes on this topic exactly, and has helped clarify some of my most existential feelings about having a job and finding purpose.
A highly recommended read for anyone who has found themselves in the post-pandemic, great resignation era of 21st century work.
4. Mythos by Stephen Fry
One Word Review: Epic
The Slightly-Longer Review: While the graphic designer in me is upset that I chose to listen to this book rather than read it—given all the pretty pictures and illustrations that embellish the printed edition—the audiobook enthusiast insists that I made the right decision. I want Stephen Fry to narrate everything I listen to. Seriously. This reimagination of Greek mythology was so well done, and made perfect by Fry’s evergreen charm and wit.
Whether you are interested in mythology or not, this book is a tour de force of storytelling, and worth reading over the course of a few months (as I did) whenever you’re looking to be entertained and educated at the same time.
3. Caste by Isabel Wilkerson
One Word Review: Revealing
The Slightly-Longer Review: It’s been quite some time since I encountered a book that stirred within me a desire to deeply scrutinise the fabric of our societies, and “Caste” has definitely sparked that intellectual curiosity. By drawing parallels with traditional caste systems and hierarchies from around the world, Wilkerson exposes how these models have had an enduring impact on society, particularly in the United States. In this confronting book, the author weaves historical analysis with personal narratives, exposing the ways in which we all continue to uphold and perpetrate inequities in everyday life.
I’ve heard great things about her other book, “The Warmth of Other Suns,” and while I’m not the biggest reader of American history, “Caste” was an excellent, excellent book.
2. Africa is Not a Country by Dipo Faloyin
One Word Review: Vast
The Slightly-Longer Review: Is there a theme emerging with books that confront your biases, stereotypes, and views of the world, or is it just me? I’ve recommended this book to many people, not just for the incredible work it does in challenging dominant narratives and educating its readers on a continent that many (non African) people know little to nothing about, but for the belly-laugh inducing humour in which Faloyin meets his readers with. I was surprised to find that this was such a funny book, given how serious the topic is.
If you’re a muzungu living on the continent, someone working in international development, or anyone who’s from a country that has once laid claim to a colony in Africa, do yourself a favour and read this book.
1. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
One Word Review: Perfect
The Slightly-Longer Review: And… the results are in! Project Hail Mary is one of the best, if not the best, audiobook I have ever, and will ever encounter. I had been putting this off for a while since it wasn’t available on Libby, but I finally bit the bullet and paid $26 on Apple Books to buy what ended up becoming my favourite book of… recent time. I love a story of a lonely, unlikely protagonist in space (wait, isn’t The Martian the same plot?) and the idea of someone journeying through the universe looking for ways to protect Earth was an unexpected complement to journeying through India on a recent trip, looking for ways to protect my cholesterol intake. It all just made sense.
All I have to say is, listen to this book! *jazz hands*
