My Best Reads of 2024
Photo by Element5 Digital on Pexels.com
" data-medium-file="https://i0.wp.com/jamierubin.net/wp-c..." data-large-file="https://i0.wp.com/jamierubin.net/wp-c..." src="https://i0.wp.com/jamierubin.net/wp-c..." alt="assorted books on book shelves" class="wp-image-25760" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/jamierubin.net/wp-c... 1880w, https://i0.wp.com/jamierubin.net/wp-c... 400w, https://i0.wp.com/jamierubin.net/wp-c... 550w, https://i0.wp.com/jamierubin.net/wp-c... 768w, https://i0.wp.com/jamierubin.net/wp-c... 1536w, https://i0.wp.com/jamierubin.net/wp-c... 1200w, https://i0.wp.com/jamierubin.net/wp-c... 1800w" sizes="(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px" />Photo by Element5 Digital on Pexels.comWith 2024 behind us, I can finally post my list of best reads for 2024. Each year, I have a goal of reading 100 books. I didn’t make my goal in 2024, reading 85 books, but that is because many of them were very long. So rather than including the 10 best reads, I am going to include 8 to keep to the top 10 percent of books that I read in 2024. I was going to wait until morning to post this, but I’m already 9 days late, so here they are:
The World She Edited: Katharine S. White at the New Yorker by Amy ReadingE.B. White’s essays are among my favorite writing. So it was great to get a different view of his life through the eyes of his wife’s biography. Katharine S. White was a founding editor at the New Yorker, and so this biography of White was not only a biography of an extraordinary editor but also a biography of the magazine during her long tenure there. It was a fascinating read from start to finish.
The Notebook: A History of Thinking on Paper by Roland AllenI knew as soon as I saw the title of this book that I was going to like it. Sometimes, you just know. An entire book on the history of notebooks? How can someone who enjoys notebooks so much not appreciate this? And what a great history it was, covering notebooks from their origin through today, even covering the current bullet journaling trend. This was a well-written and engaging read, especially considering it is a fairly obscure subject.
The Invention of Nature: Alexander von Humboldt’s New World by Andrea WulfI probably first encountered Alexander von Humboldt in the writing of Stephen Jay Gould. Wulf’s biography of him was fantastic. I am fascinated by polymaths and hard workers, and von Humboldt was both of these. Von Humboldt was also a remarkable hub in a network of remarkable people. As I wrote in a note while reading this book:
Alexander von Humboldt turns out to be an amazing hub of science and culture. He knew Simón Bolívar and Thomas Jefferson. He made Napoleon nervous. He was admired by great scientists of Europe (Humphry Davy among others). Charles Darwin credited him with inspiring his journey on the Beagle.
After reading this biography, I bought a collection of von Humboldt’s writing and am looking forward to reading it, perhaps later this year.
Remembrance: The Selected Correspondence of Ray Bradbury edited by Jonathan R. EllerReading Ray Bradbury’s letters over the course of his lifetime was a pleasure. I was particularly delighted by some of his correspondents early on, like Leigh Brackett and Edmund Hamilton. I lived in Los Angeles for a long time and never particularly liked it, but this book made me reminiscent of a Los Angeles that no longer exists, the Los Angeles of the 1930s. It was also nice to see that Bradbury expressed the same insecurities that many up-and-coming writers express about their own writing—and found ways to overcome those insecurities.
An Unfinished Love Story: A Personal History of the 1960s by Doris Kearns GoodwinI’ve been a fan of Goodwin’s books ever since I read The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism in 2015. Since then, I’ve read just about everything she’s written. So to read a new Doris Kearns Goodwin book was a delight, especially one as personal as this one. I knew very little about Richard Goodwin before reading this book, but I came to admire his abilities as a political speechwriter. Early in the book, there is a reference to just how young our country really is. Goodwin, 80 at the time, says that America is just three Goodwins old. Three 80-year lifetimes is not very long.
Given the turbulent times we are living through, two passages from Richard Goodwin’s writing really stood out for me. The first was on dissent and patriotism, which is absolutely true today:
Some have called upon us to mute or stifle dissent in the name of patriotism and the national interest. It is an argument which monstrously misconceives the nature and process, and the greatest strength of American democracy. It is not our privilege, but our duty as patriots to write, to speak, to organize, to oppose any president and any party and any policy at any time which we believe threatens the grandeur of this nation and the well-being of its people. This is such a time.
On a citizen’s obligation to speak out, Goodwin wrote:
The government of the United States is not a private club or college fraternity. Its policies are not private oaths or company secrets. Presumably, a man enters public life to serve the nation. The oath taken by every high officer of the nation, elected or appointed, is to support and defend the Constitution of the United States, not an administration, a political party, or a man. Dissenters are sometimes accused of demeaning the presidency. That office should demand respect. Its dignity, however, flows not from private right or title, or the man who occupies it, but solely from the fact that its occupant is chosen by the people of the United States. It is their office, and if they, or any among them, feel it is wrongly used, then it is their obligation to speak.
The book was bittersweet, knowing the ending, but it was still a wonderful read.
You Like It Darker: Stories by Stephen KingI love that Stephen King still writes short fiction. Not many successful novelists seem to take the time to publish short fiction. This was a fun collection with at least two standout stories. “Two Talented Bastid” is the best piece of short fiction I’ve read by King since his story “A Death,” which appeared in The New Yorker in 2015. In addition to this story, there was “Danny Coughlin’s Bad Dream,” which I simply could. not. put. down.
North Woods by Daniel MasonThis was my pick for the book club I belong to, and I really liked this one. It was a unique mix of styles that let a writer really test out their range. The story was engaging and a lot of fun. This book was everything a good novel should be.
John Quincy Adams: A Man for the Whole People by Randall WoodsThis is the third biography of John Quincy Adams that I’ve read. I never tire of reading about him. He has supplanted his father as my personal favorite U.S. President. (Not necessarily the best president, just my favorite.) Given all of the biographies I’ve read of U.S. Presidents, I’d say he was probably the smartest President we’ve ever had in terms of brainpower. He was probably also the best-prepared for a job that one cannot really prepare for: Minister to the Netherlands, Minister to Prussia, Minister to Russia, Minister to the United Kingdom, member of the Massachusetts Senate, U.S. State Senator from Massachusetts, Secretary of State, President of the United States. And then, after serving a single term, he went on to serve 17 years in the U.S. House of Representatives. I read a book like this and am just flabbergasted by what Adams accomplished. My meager deeds pale in comparison.
So there’s my list for 2024. Did you have books you really enjoyed in 2024? Let me know about them in the comments.
Here are some best reads from previous years:
My best reads of 2023My best reads of 2022My best reads of 2021My best reads of 2020My best reads of 2019My best reads of 2018Did you enjoy this post?
If so, consider subscribing to the blog using the form below or clicking on the button below to follow the blog. And consider telling a friend about it. Already a reader or subscriber to the blog? Thanks for reading!
