10 Books I Like—November 2023

From a young age I have loved reading, and I am very glad to have rediscovered it as a meaningful hobby over the past few years thanks to the Kindle, the Denver Public Library, and recently a lot more time on my hands thanks to not being at a desk 40+ hours a week. I’ve gone pretty nerdy with it, setting up a spreadsheet to track what I read and plan what’s next. So far in 2023 I’m up to 28 books finished, which I’m proud of, but still looking up to my friend who hit 99!! in 2022.

I realize that not everyone has a ton of free time to pick up a book, especially if you’re not sure you’ll even like it, and I do not take it lightly that anytime you tell someone they should read something you’re basically assigning them hours and hours of homework. But I do think that book recommendations from other people get you outside of your favorite authors or subjects or styles, which is why I’ve been asking people to tell me a book or two they like and then adding those to my reading list.

If you need some recommendations for yourself or for a gift, here are 5 fiction and 5 nonfiction books that I’ve enjoyed recently, plus a few extra because I couldn’t help myself:

Fiction

Blacktop Wasteland by S.A. Cosby

On the edge of your seat like reading an action movie script

A former getaway driver gone straight gets sucked back in for one last heist. If you always watch that movie (I always watch that movie), then this is your book. Originally released in 2020, I discovered it in 2022 and S. A. Cosby immediately became one of my favorite authors, taking his place among greats like Elmore Leonard thanks to sharp, punchy writing that is so easy to visualize I’m really going to need a movie version.

The City We Became and The World We Make by N.K. Jemisin

Incredible modern-day fantasy worldbuilding

In this duo of novels, the great cities of the world have avatars to protect them from supernatural threats, and New York City is under attack. These books are wildly inventive, super fun to read, and feel both topical and timeless. If you like fantasy novels in general, I think this will be up your alley. (Shoutout to Tara for this recommendation.)

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

Like the movie Troy but also not at all like the movie Troy

This is a beautifully written book. It’s from 2011 so I’m a little late to the game here, but I was so enthralled by the reimagining of this ancient story that it was one of my favorite reading experiences of the past year. Humans have been trying to put the emotions of love into words for thousands of years, and yet the writing in this story felt fresh and new and real.

Confessions by Sean Eads

A Colorado Book Award nominee for Literary Fiction

Sean is a local author and my friend, and he is always so generous when talking about writing and providing feedback when someone has created something. When I read his books I don’t have feedback to provide at all because I’m usually just astounded by his talent. This novel walks us through the inner lives of three intertwined characters during a momentous day in their rural Kentucky town, and it packs a punch. I feel like if you’re a fan of Richard Russo / Empire Falls / small-town drama, this is for you.

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

Friendship, Tragedy, and Video Games

This is a “big” book, at the heart about two friends who develop video games together, but covering so so so much more. A lot happens, and a lot of it is tragic, so this isn’t an easy read, but it is certainly a powerful one. I feel like it is a relative of The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon, so if that rings a bell for you, don’t miss this one. And if it doesn’t sound up your alley, I get it—go back to the top and read Blacktop Wasteland by S.A. Cosby.

Non-Fiction

The Book of Joe: Trying Not to Suck at Baseball and Life by Joe Maddon and Tom Verducci

An account of failure, success, and thinking outside the box

Joe Maddon never played in the majors, became a minor-league coach in 1979, and won the World Series as a manager for the Cubs in 2016. A lot happened in between, and you really get a sense of how his family, friends, and experiences shaped his thought processes and contributed to his unorthodox and fun approach to leading a team. I enjoyed this book for the baseball second, and for the practicality and originality of the lessons I learned first.

The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin

Inspirational meditations on how and why we make things

Did you watch Rick Rubin talk to Paul McCartney about the creative process on Hulu’s “McCartney 3, 2, 1”? I did, and it was stunning. This book is like Rick Rubin talking to me about the creative process, which works because I have less to say than Paul McCartney. One afternoon I texted a friend no less than six screenshots of different pages because I thought the lessons applied to a novel he was working on. Chapters are brief and can be read in or out of order depending on what you need that day. If you create anything at all, I think this is the kind of book you would want to have around in a place you can just pick it up.

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari

Endlessly fascinating, and a little bit life-changing

I’m a bit late to this one too, but I have noticed since discovering it that it’s often sitting unread on people’s bookshelves, so it gets a plug here because I believe it is very much worth making the effort to read, or listen to as an audiobook given just how much information is contained in the book. I’m not sure how much I ever thought about being a human being at all before this book, but I sure do now—just ask Kelly how many times I say weird things like, “You have to hear about how humans killed all the megafauna in Australia” or “Did you know that humans are the only animals who tell stories?” If you’ve read it and you want to talk about it, call me and we’ll set a few hours aside.

Dirtbag, Massachusetts: A Confessional by Isaac Fitzgerald

While I don’t necessarily wish I lived this book, I do wish I wrote it

This fascinating memoir about growing up in and eventually leaving Massachusetts has a chapter on The Hold Steady, one of my favorite bands, and in Googling that chapter just now I found a Reddit post where one person is recommending the book and user fantseepantss replies, “Funny. I got this book from the library and was so surprised when I got to the chapter called hold steady. Having said that, I did return the book without having finished it. Author reminded me of one of my friends who gets too sentimental when drunk. Wasn't bad. I just wasn't interested enough to finish.” I am pretty sure that the friend fantseepantss is talking about isn’t me, but not 100% sure. Personally I was very much interested enough to finish this book, and you might be too if you “grew up in denial, and went to school in Massachusetts” like the Hold Steady says.

KG: A to Z—An Uncensored Encyclopedia of Life, Basketball, and Everything in Between by Kevin Garnett

The Education of Kendrick Perkins: A Memoir by Kendrick Perkins

Reimagining the athlete autobiography

Kevin Garnett wrote his book as an alphabetical encyclopedia instead of a narrative because as a kid he struggled with dyslexia and learned his own methods for processing information. Kendrick Perkins worked with professor Seth Rogoff to weave historical perspective into the narrative of Perkins’s life and basketball career, creating powerful and meaningful context. I love when people own the power of their voice to tell their unique personal stories, and I love the creativity, honesty, and perspective on display in these books. Enjoy this clip of Kevin Garnett fanboying over Kenny G, and you’ll see a bit of what I mean.

Do you have any book recommendations for me? Send them to jed@kindandfunny.com.

Have you read any of these books and want to talk about them? Let’s get a coffee!