Friday, December 1, 2017

As the days grow shorter (and colder) I inevitably find myself reading more books. So today I’m sharing with you six of my top reads (three fiction and three non-fiction) that I’ve enjoyed this past year. I usually share shorter articles and resources but today’s list is all about the long form written word. Happy December!

Fiction

Artemis. Andy Weir (author of The Martian) is such a talented world builder that when I picked up his sophomore novel last Friday it immediately displaced Andi Simon’s book about blue ocean strategy, On the Brink, from my weekend reading list. (Sorry Andi, you’re up next).

Ghost Fleet: A Novel of the Next World War. Ghost Fleet blends cutting edge science, products and politics into a gripping tale of the very near future. If you’d like to peek around the corner to see what might be coming, this is your book.

Pinnacle Event. Richard Clarke’s most recent novel didn’t grip me as firmly as his debut, The Scorpion’s Gate, but it’s still quite entertaining. Clarke’s national security pedigree is unmatched among fiction writers and he weaves top notch tales from his real world experience.

Non-fiction

The Unfettered Mind: Writings From a Zen Master to a Master Swordsman. William Scott Wilson’s translation of Takuan Sōhō’s writings belongs on your shelf beside Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. ‘Nuff said.

Astrophysics for People in a Hurry. Neil deGrasse Tyson makes complex science approachable and understandable. Too often we read headlines about scientific breakthroughs and nod like we understand when we really don’t – this book will help change that for you.

On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century. Historian Timothy Snyder has penned a series of short essays about tyranny and how to effectively oppose tyrants of all stripes. Drawn from history, yet extremely timely, it’s an instructive collection of thoughts for anyone interested in Western Democracy and its institutions.

Factual Friday brought to you by Chad Harvey & The Result Center