Books Read in 2019

My goal in 2019 was to read 53 books – I only got to 36, but I’ll call it a good year as I think that’s my new norm. I’ve recorded the books I’ve read in 2018, 2017, 2016, and 2015, in case you’re curious.

Books reviewed on a 5-star scale (5 being the best):

#1 – The Billionaire Who Wasn’t ***** Absolutely loved this book. Chuck Feeney is someone I aspire to be more like.

#2 – The Running Man ***** One of my new favorite Stephen King books.

#3 – Thirst ***** TERRIFIC entrepreneurial and inspirational story.

#4 – Start Something That Matters *** Story of Tom’s Shoes. I was hoping for more story of the journey and instead it was more about how to build a company with heart. Which is a great thing to study, but I’ve personally studied that enough…so this would probably be rated higher for others, but for me, a 3-star(er).

#5 – Kitchen Confidential ***** Absolutely loved this book. I never knew much about Anthony Bordain, and now I’m kinda obsessed. Immediately jumped into his second book. Bonus, they’re both on Audible and he reads them, which he does extremely well.

#6 – Flash Boys *** Enjoyed it but dragged in places, and not as good as some of his others.

#7 – Final Days ** Eventually bailed on this about halfway through. Just kind of felt like the same thing over and over…lost interest.

#8 – Letters from a Self-Made Merchant to his Son * Honestly found this so-so. Many people highly recommended it, but it wasn’t resonated with me. Then, out of nowhere, it casually used the n-word, which caused me to put it down for good. I understand it was written in “old times”, but then go back and edit it (I read it on Kindle, changing it would have been easy.)

#9 – Your Mountain is Waiting ***** (my review)

#10 – Medium Raw *** Not nearly as good as Kitchen Confidential, but I did enjoy it.

#11 – Finding Ultra ****

#12 – Neon Prey ****

#13 – White Fragility *****

#14 – Own the Day, Own Your Life *** (some good stuff but not enough related to me)

#15 – Shortest Way Home **** (Pete Buttigieg’s story)

#16 – The 5-Day Turnaround ***** (5 stars cause its mine :)…also, had to re-read it for editing, but I’m counting it)

#17 – Trillion Dollar Coach ***

#18 – But Seriously **** Pretty good book on McEnroe’s life post-career. He dives into his career, but also hits on the pros of today. Several chapters were focused on art, which is a passion of his, but not mine, which dropped a star from the rating. For tennis geeks, pretty solid.

#19 – Great at Work ****

#20 – Running to the Edge **** Very solid running book.

#21 – Shaq Uncut (Audible) **** Enjoyed hearing his story

#22 – I See You ***** Brilliant book by Terence Lester. Book review.

#23, 24, and 25 – Team of Rivals ***** LOVE LOVE LOVE this book. Just took me about a year given its 1,000+ pages :)

#26 – The Bat: A Harry Hole Novel **** Good enough of a crime thriller that I’ll try book 2.

#27 – Leadership in Turbulent Times *** I really just read the Lincoln sections. It was fine.

#28 – I May Be Wrong But I Doubt It (Charles Barkley) ***

#29 – That Will Never Work **** Good story of how Netflix started

#30 – Flight Path ***** Excellent book. I highly recommend it, especially for my fellow Atlantans!

#31 – It Doesn’t Have to be Crazy at Work **** I lot of things I like in this book, though it goes a little too far into the “no rules” methodology. But 75% of it I agree with, and its a quick read.

#32 – The Infinite Game *** I’m a big fan of Simon Sinek, but this felt like enough content for a TED Talk but not for an entire book. I found myself agreeing with almost everything in the book, however.

#33 – Cockroaches: A Harry Hole Novel ** Enjoyed the first novel in the series, but this one was too complex, with too many narratives and plot points, and the writing just didn’t seem as good.

#34 – The Long Run **** Pretty great story about a man overcoming a traumatic accident and getting back on his feet.

#35 – Man’s Search for Meaning **** Inspiring story, but got slow as the book went on.

#36 – Running with Sherman *** Couldn’t make it through, but enjoyed the first half of it. I just got tired of the new characters and changes in the story, wasn’t as interesting to me as it went on.