Books I read in 2024
My 2024 Reading Journey (including Audible listens) - some books were fantastic, while others less so.
Ordered in the order I read them.
💯 Unscripted: The Epic Battle for a Media Empire and the Redstone Family Legacy by James B. Stewart & Rachel Abrams (https://amzn.to/3ORC9RO) // This one is an absolute crazy. The book provides a detailed look into the tumultuous dynamics within the Redstone family and their control over Viacom and CBS. A key insight from the book is how personal ambition, family discord, and the complexities of managing a vast media empire can lead to dramatic power struggles and corporate governance issues. The narrative illustrates how Sumner Redstone’s deteriorating health and contentious relationships with his daughter Shari and various former girlfriends led to legal battles, boardroom coups, and a reshaping of media landscape, highlighting the often blurred lines between personal life and corporate governance in legacy media companies. This was also interesting as a context to current news this year of the Paramount-Skydance Media merger…
💯 When the Heavens Went on Sale: The Misfits and Geniuses Racing to Put Space Within Reach by Ashlee Vance (https://amzn.to/3OL2GAm) // The main insight from this book is a look into how the Space industry is shifting from government-dominated frontier into a commercial battleground. It covers the entrepenurial story behind innovative startups like Astra, Firefly, Planet Labs, and Rocket Lab in their quest to transform space and make access to eat cheaper and more widely available. This book even helped me make some money introducing me to Rocket Lab (RKLB) way before it was more widely known…
🌟🌟🌟 The Fund: Ray Dalio, Bridgewater Associates, and the Unraveling of a Wall Street Legend by Rob Copeland (https://amzn.to/4gsCmXG) // This ones reminds ome of Unscripted a bit - a crazy (TK) billionaire has everone around him conspiring to take over. This one is much lets detailed or “yellow” though…
🌟 Caffeine: How Caffeine Created the Modern World by Michael Pollan (https://amzn.to/41uFLAT) // This book explores the profound impact of caffeine on society, culture, and human behavior. Rather than going deep into facts and figures (like
Coffee for Onebelow) this book deals more with reflections on our relationship with coffee and caffeine and what it says about human nature, our need for stimulation, and our control over or surrender to stimulants. He ponders whether caffeine enhances our lives or if it’s merely a crutch for modern living. This read prompted me to listen more attentively to how caffeine affects me personally, and to reconsider my consumption habits regarding when and how I use it.🌟🌟🌟 Press Reset: Ruin and Recovery in the Video Game Industry by Jason Schreier (https://amzn.to/41pmKji) // The main insight from this book is that despite the glamour and success of blockbuster games, the industry’s business model often leads to sudden layoffs and studio shutdowns, highlighting the precarious employment conditions for game developers. It really highlights how hard game development really is, not just on the technical side.
🌟 How to Raise Successful People: Simple Lessons for Radical Results by Esther Wojcicki // navigate the challenges of being new parents. It’s not that it’s filled with mind-blowing techniques or tricks, but just reaffirms certain behaviors, the thinking behind them and how to be more methodical about it.
😐 The Core of an Onion by Mark Kurlansky (https://amzn.to/3VxZPOZ) // A deep dive into the world of onions, exploring their history, cultural significance, and culinary use. It’s an exploration of how a simple bulb has woven itself into the fabric of human society, influencing everything from daily meals to global trade networks.
🌟🌟 The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rock Rubin (https://amzn.to/3ZOxo0P). Rick is a unique person - a music producer without formal music training, who doesn’t play instruments, yet has collaborated with an incredibly diverse roster of artists, from heavy metal bands like Slayer and Metallica to hip-hop and pop icons like Jay-Z and Adele. He credits his taste and creative process to his success and goes through his process in the book. Its an easy read, structured into bite-sized chapters, each focusing on a different aspect of the creative process.These range from the practical advice to the more abstract reflections on creativity.
🌟🌟🌟The Library at Mount Char by_Scott Hawkins_ (https://amzn.to/41sADgG) // I’ve resolved into readon more fiction lately and after looking for sci-fi/fantasy recommendations this one piqued my interest. The story is a blend of horror, science-fiction and mythology telling a story about children raised by a god-like figure in a vast library.
🌟 The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation for Failure by Greg Lukianoff & Jonathan Haidt (https://amzn.to/3OO4OaD) // This book explores how certain well-intentioned but misguided ideas are negatively impacting young people in America.
🌟🌟 Masters of Doom by David Kushner (https://amzn.to/49BVUGL) // Nostalgic. This book took me back to my own early days of computing - playing games and later learning to code. The book reveals that the combination of technical genius and creative vision, as exemplified by John Carmack and John Romero, can lead to industry-defining innovations but is inherently unstable. Their journey underscores that while groundbreaking technology and game design can catapult individuals to fame, the personal dynamics and differing ambitions within such a partnership can just as swiftly lead to its unraveling, teaching us that the very elements that fuel creativity might also sow the seeds of discord.
😐 Coffee for One by KJ Fallon (https://amzn.to/4f85kuL) explores the modern transformation in coffee consumption, focusing on the single-serve coffee makers like Keurig and Nespresso. Another interesting food history book - it is well researched with some intersting information and tidbits I didnt know of before. However, the writing can feel a bit clunky and is occasionally bogged down by an overload of data and statistics.
What will I read on 2025? suggest some books in comments!