My 2024 Reading Year

#170: My favorites of the non-fantasy genre, most anticipated read of '25, and shoutouts

Happy Holidays everyone,

What another outstanding reading year it has been. I will look back on this year with fondness and gratitude. I had moments of euphoric bliss and moments of subtle heartache. This year had it all for me.

Rather than providing a list of my favorite books, I’m going to touch on a few highlights from my reading year.

Notable New Releases by Amor Towles and Percival Everett

I read four new releases this year by authors I had read and enjoyed previously. All four were fantastic and further cemented these guys as must-read writers. Slow Productivity by Cal Newport and Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt both left me with a lot to think about.

Table for Two by Amor Towles broke my heart multiple times, but the part that has stuck with me since April is on page 178 near the conclusion of “The Bootlegger.” When I opened my copy, I knew exactly where to find it. Trust me when I say it’s even better in context:

James by Percival Everett was intelligent, funny, and brought the character of Jim from Huckleberry Finn to vivid life. Reading it in tandem with Huck Finn while on vacation in Palm Springs was an unforgettable experience. I immediately wanted to read everything Everett had written. Upon returning home from vacation, I checked out six of his other books from the library just to be near them. So far, I’ve read The Trees (2021) and Erasure (2001) but there are many more.

Year of Sanderson

I read 16 books and 8 short stories by Brandon Sanderson to prepare for his new release, Wind and Truth. With how much I want to say about his books, I think the Year of Sanderson recap deserves its own post. To tease that a little bit, I’ll let you know two things: 1) I’m proud of myself and thrilled with how the year went and 2) I’m looking forward to reading books written by authors not named Brandon Sanderson. More to come!

Knockout Non-fiction: Robert A. Caro and Evan Puschak

Even during a year of non-stop fantasy, I snuck in 8 non-fiction audiobooks. Robert A. Caro’s Working: Researching, Interviewing, Writing and Evan Puschak’s essay collection Escape into Meaning inspired me the most. I want to write like these guys. Working got me excited and motivated to read Caro’s The Power Broker and LBJ series starting in January of next year. Escape Into Meaning showed me what a smart and engaging essay about film and pop culture looks like. Both were read by the authors, which enhanced the experience. I’m now praying daily that Bob Caro lives long enough to publish the fifth book in his Lyndon B. Johnson series and a full memoir about his own fascinating life.

Trilogy Heavyweight Champion

I’m a sucker for series and trilogies and Cixin Liu’s Remembrance of Earth’s Past holds the undisputed position of “Trilogy That Melted My Brain.” Every book presents mind-boggling sci-fi ideas that are truly terrifying and have me hoping we are alone in the universe. The weapon used in Death’s End is so unexpected and original and should make for some trippy visuals when it’s adapted by Netflix.

Photo credit Andrew Liptak

Caroline Lee’s Voice

Give this lady all the awards. I love her charming narration of Liane Moriarty’s books, especially Apples Never Fall. She imbues the characters with humor and compassion. Set in Australia and about an Australian family, it’s only appropriate that I’m hearing the story told by an Australian narrator. I certainly wouldn’t have read it with an Australian accent. This is part of the magic of audiobooks, similar to Gerard Doyle’s biting British narration of the Slough House series and Jim Dale’s acclaimed performance for Harry Potter. No, it’s not the same as my inner voice, it’s much better.

I hope you also had a memorable reading year. I’d love to hear what your favorite books and bookish moments were in 2024. Let me know in a comment or simply reply to the email.

Thanks for reading and thanks to all who make the Substack community such a wholesome place to be.

Kyle

Stats and graphs

(Because if I can do anything in excel, it’s a basic pivot table)

• Total books read: 57

• 50 written by men, 7 written by women.

• 13 by authors new to me, 44 by familiar authors (because after reading my first Sanderson book, the remaining 23 fell into the “familiar” category).

• 6 re-reads (Dune, The Three Body Problem, A Gentleman in Moscow, Adventures of Huck Finn, Harry Potter 5, The Outsiders).

• 49 fiction (26 fantasy and 8 sci-fi); 8 non-fiction.

• Oldest Book: Huck Finn (1884). Read 5 books published in 2023, the most of any publication year (3 were Sanderson “secret projects”).

1 from 1800s, 9 from 1900s, 47 from 2000s

• 15 five-star ratings and only 2 of 57 that were just ok or worse. I enjoyed just about everything this year.

Most Anticipated Book of 2025

Big Dumb Eyes by my favorite comedian, Nate Bargatze. I’ll get to see him live next year, too.

Shoutouts

• Camille
  Casey - Top of the list this year! Thanks for collaborating with me and writing the enticing Booket List bookstore reviews. Let’s keep it going in ‘25.

• Jenny Pate - It’s your birthday for 20 more minutes so I need to hit Publish! Happy Birthday to my biggest supporter.

• Michael Likes Stories
  - You can articulate a thought better than literally anyone.

• Cat Matthews - For book talk walks (I just came up with that, it might be too much) and for the future mountains you’ll climb.

• Shelby Boyer
  ! The Good Word is a substack staple for me, thanks for all your honesty and humor this year.

• Vanessa Gerard - My Friend with a capital F.

• Kalie Sosdian - Your wedding was the social highlight of my year.

• Jeremy Anderberg
  - A constant source of inspiration and encouragement.

• Sara Skidmore - You always have a kind word and it means a lot.

• Emily Rabe - If I ever moved back to Houston, we would be neighbors and chat books.

• Keturah B - No, Amor Towles is not paying me. I do this noble work for free.

• Mom and Dad for reading every word.

• Jam Canezal
  - We have a lot of overlap in our tastes! Keep up the great work.