I’ve read a good amount of books this year and wanted to share my favorites. I’ve listed my top books this year with a small review. These five aren’t necessarily my top five but are all vastly different from one another which I think is important when reading.
The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable by Nassim Taleb – Psychology/Math
A book about low predictability events that have a huge impact.
Humans are incompetent at predicting Black Swans because we find routine easier to understand and it’s hard to imagine that our history is shaped by random events.
A central tenant of the book is that what you don’t know is way more important than what you know.
Taleb discusses confirmation bias, narrative fallacy, ludic (game) fallacy, survivorship bias (silent evidence conceals randomness) and a bundle of other psychological terms that inhibit humans to think about Black Swans. Humans are overconfident in what they know and tend to underestimate the significance of a Black Swans.
Although Taleb is incredibly arrogant and his writing can at times drag, this books is incredibly educational and teaches you something you would never learn in school or at work.
Surely You’re Joking, Mr. Feynman! By Richard Feynman – Autobiography
Incredibly easy and fun to read! Recounts the fascinating life of a Nobel-Prize Physicist who among his work in physics recounts his adventures working on the Manhattan Project, life as a University professor, Times in Brazil and Japan and a plethora of other short anecdotes.
Feynam’s stories are inspiring, and his character of questioning authority, refusal to give up on tough problems and to learn by understanding instead of memorization is inspiring. I love this book! Some of the memorable stories are him recounting picking up women, his life in Brazil and Japan, the ways he entertained himself in Los Alamos and how he became an expert lock picker. I especially like the last few chapters which focus on science and pseudoscience and how it is essential always to be a skeptic. Question yourself regularly and if you think you found a theory or new idea, always play the devil’s advocate!
Being Mortal by Atul Gawande – Non-Fiction
This novel describes the limits of medical care and how being a doctor is not always about prolonging life but more importantly ensuring the well-being of your patients.
The beginning of the novel changed my opinion on senior care and how we can improve it for the better. End of life care is being done wrong not only in hospitals but at home as well. We are asking the wrong questions and not talking about death! Not all medical conditions can be fixed permanently, more importantly, we need to learn how to live well with them.
Ultimately, the purpose of medicine shouldn’t be prolonging life but ensuring that the remaining years are comfortable and happy.
Benjamin Franklin An Exciting Life by Walter Isacson – Biography
A riveting tale of Benjamin Franklin, an inventor, printer, entrepreneur and civil servant. The book starts with his lineage and his childhood. Franklins escape from his domineering brother and sets out to conquer the printing industry. The biography later describes his scientific and political endeavors. I’ve never seen, listened or read such a deeply fulfilling life, filled with rare gems into his life that the author brilliantly anecdotes. His political trips to Europe and his diplomatic adventures before, during and after the war are incredible. The book not only sheds view into his life but all of colonial life back then and how Franklin meshed with other great thinkers of our time like Adam Smith, Hume, and the other founding fathers of America. The book is long but incredibly delightful to read. I couldn’t put it down.
Column of Fire by Ken Follet – Historical Fiction
Column of Fire takes place in the 16th century and depicts the romance of Ned Willard a protestant and Margery Fitzgerald a Catholic. The book is incredibly immersive and teaches you a lot about the time period. Tolerance vs. Fantacisim is a central theme in the book as Ned fights for the reign of Queen Elizabeth. After reading a few pages, I was addicted and couldn’t put the book down. I recommend reading other Ken Follet books like Pillars of the Earth (one of my all-time favorite books).