2008 Reading List

Just for kicks, in 2008 I started keeping track of the books I read.

Here’s 2008’s list:

1. Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson- loved, loved, loved the setting of this book.

2. True Brits by J. R. Daeschner- slightly amusing, mostly forgettable.

3. Millionaire Magic – pretty much worthless.

4. Confessions of a Street Addict by James Cramer- from the Mad Money man, a pretty interesting look into running a hedge fund.

5. Leaving Microsoft to Change the World by John Wood- very inspirational. I started donating to Room to Read.

6. I Never Knew That About England by Christopher Winn- hit or miss book containing some fun facts about England.

7. Among the Gently Mad by Nicholas Basbanes- interesting look at book collecting and book collectors

8. The Little Book That Beats the Market by Joel Greenblatt- an investing book which contains a special formula for stock investing.  I never tried the formula, but remember being intrigued at the time.

9. Seven Years to Seven Figures by Michael Masterson- I remember being inspired by this book.  I remember taking notes and dog-earring pages for further review.  I guess I should go back and find this book.

10. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy- read this book on Bird’s recommendation.  Loved it.

11. Four Quartets by T.S. Eliot – first read this while studying abroad in the UK.  I’ve read these poems at least once a year since.  Love them.

12. A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson- I’m a big Bill Bryson fan and this book was fascinating and hilarious.

13. The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell- I had already read Blink, but this cemented all things Gladwell as a must read.

14. The Sunday Philosophy Club by Alexander McCall Smith – I read this one at my cabin.  A nice little mystery book.

15. The Wisdom of Crowds by James Surowiecki- kind of Gladwell-esque.  A fascinating look at crowd behavior.  Lots of fun facts to spout at parties came from this book.

16. Man Walks Into a Room by Nicole Krauss- another recommendation from Bird.  I know she loved it, but two years later, I can’t remember much about it.

17. Books: A Memoir by Larry McMurtry- received this as a gift from Bird.  She knew I would love it because it was about books.  And I did.

18. Banker To The Poor by Muhammed Yunus- I was really into microfinance in 2008.  An interesting and inspirational read.

19. The Road by Cormac McCarthy- What do you think, was the ending hopeful or hopeless?

20. Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich – not my favorite, but interesting enough.

21. The Shack by William P. Young- probably one of the biggest books of 2008 but I couldn’t tell what all the fuss was about.

22. Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri- collection of short stories that I LOVED.

23. Persuasive Business Proposals by Tom Sant- read this for book club at work.  It could have been worse.

24. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer- unlike Bird, I was able to stop after the first one.  It’s no Harry Potter.

25. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie- Two years later and I don’t remember much about this one either.

26. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini- Bird didn’t like this one bit but I did.