It's the end of 2023, which means it's time to review all the reading and listening I've done over the past calendar year. Here's how this past year broke down in terms of titles and numbers:
= favorite
= also really enjoyed
Books (click to expand full list) ▼
Upgrade by Blake Crouch
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood by Quentin Tarantino
The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis
We Lie Here by Rachel Howzell
The Midnight Lock (Lincoln Rhyme #15) by Jeffrey Deaver
Mothered by Zoje Stage
No One Knows Us Here by Rebecca Kelley
Someone Else's Life by Lyn Liao Butler
Chrysalis (Jeremy Logan #6) by Lincoln Child
Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson
Hollow Beasts (Jodi Luna #1) by Alisa Lynn Valdes
State of the Union (Scot Harvath #3) by Brad Thor
Where They Lie (Nora McTavish #1) by Joe Hart
The Last Orphan (Orphan X #8) by Gregg Hurwitz
Delta-v by Daniel Suarez
A Killer's Game (Daniela Vega #1) by Isabella Maldonado
The Frugal Wizard's Handbook for Surviving Medieval England by Brandon Sanderson
Doomsday Match by Jeff Wheeler
The House at the End of the World by Dean Koontz
To Die For by Lisa Gray
Broadway Butterfly by Sara DiVello
Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
Salt House Place by Jamie Lee Sogn
Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Deadlands by Victoria Miluch
X-Men: Hellfire Gala (2023) by Gerry Duggan
X-Men: House of X / Powers of X by Jonathan Hickman
Book of Night by Holly Black
All the Little Raindrops by Mia Sheridan
Oblivion's Dawn (The Confederation Saga #1) by Dave Alexander
Hell House by Richard Matheson
Fomorian Brigade (Gene Soldiers #1) by James David Victor
Starter Villain by John Scalzi
A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay
Jessica'a Vampire Diary by Bob Saenz
The Rise: A Short Story by Ian Rankin
NONFICTION
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson
Feral: Losing Myself and Finding My Way in America's National Parks by Emily Pennington
Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God by Tim Keller
Letters to the Church by Francis Chan
Live No Lies by John Mark Comer
Multiply: Disciples Making Disciples by Francis Chan
The Road Back to You: An Enneagram Journey by Ian Morgan Cron
Passionate Marriage: Keeping Love and Intimacy Alive in Committed Relationships by David Schnarch
The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact by Chip Heath & Dan Heath
The Bullet Journal Method: Track the Past, Order the Present, Design the Future by Ryder Carroll
The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin
The Woman in Me by Britney Spears
The Holy Bible (NLT) by Various Authors
10 Things Jesus Never Said by Will Davis Jr.
After eight straight years of reading over 100 books a year, I intentionally scaled back this year and set a goal of 50 books. Overall, I enjoyed the much slower pace this year; I definitely was able to enjoy and appreciate books more than when I was powering through them at a rate of two a week. I didn't end up writing much more than in previous years or picking up any additional habits, but it was nice to take a more relaxed approach to the things I read this year. I'm looking forward to doing the same in 2024.
Podcasts (click to expand full list) ▼
Ask N.T. Wright Anything - 5 episodes
Dead Pilots Society - 15 episodes
Deadline Strike Talk - 30 episodes
Economics of Everyday Things - 30 episodes
The Ezra Klein Show - 50 episodes
Freakonomics - 38 episodes
The Gray Area - 23 episodes
Hard Out - 1 episode
How Did This Get Made? - 14 episodes
How I Built This - 10 episodes
Imaginary Worlds - 21 episodes
Matter of Opinion - 34 episodes
Offline with Jon Favreau - 46 episodes
Pod Save America - 106 episodes
Pod Save the UK - 1 episode
Pod Save the World - 37 episodes
Positively Dreadful - 26 episodes
The Q&A - 4 episodes
The Rewatchables - 36 episodes
Scriptnotes - 57 episodes
Six Figure Authors - 3 episodes
Slate Political Gabfest - 59 episodes
TED Radio Hour - 18 episodes
Untitled Female Driven Podcast - 9 episodes
Weeds, The - 13 episodes
What A Day - 238 episodes
Write On - 4 episodes
Writer's Panel - 16 episodes
Ye Gods - 27 episodes
Last year, I wondered if the 900-ish podcasts I've listened to annually over the past few years would be some kind of equilibrium and it seems like it very much is. I listened to about 100 more than last year, but that's probably owed to the fact that there are a few new shorter-length podcasts that I've found and really enjoyed this year, including The Economics of Everyday Things (which are usually only 15-20 minutes long), as well as the fact that Scriptnotes did a series of about 50 mini episodes during the WGA writers' strike this year.
Comics (click to expand full list) ▼
Hellfire Gala (2023) #1
House of X #1-6
Powers of X #1-6
I read fewer comics than last year. For some reason, it just never occurs to me to open my comic book app (probably because I have a long list of books I want to read), but like last year, I'm going to resolve to read more comics in 2024 because I really do love the medium and want to get more familiar with what's being released.
Scripts (click to expand full list) ▼
PRODUCED
YELLOWSTONE (Pilot) by Taylor Sheridan
THE CHRISTMAS STAR by Bob Saenz
A BRUSH WITH CHRISTMAS by Bob Saenz
UNPRODUCED
FALLING/APART (Pilot) by Steve Basilone
THROUPLE (Pilot) by Richie Keen
WHELAN MOTORS (Pilot, Episode 2, Episode 3) by Brooks Whelan & Isaac Rentz
YOUNG PROFESSIONALS by David Litt
THE KINGS OF OHIO (Pilot) by Katt Likkel & Josh Hoberg
THE SLEEPING FATHER (Pilot, Episode 2) by Michele Mulrony & Kieran Mulroney
EAST WILLY B (Pilot) by Julia Ahmada Grob & Yamin Segal
TRIAL (Pilot) by Matteo Borghese & Rob Turbovsky
PRETTY (Pilot) by Lindsey Kraft
LET'S DO LUNCH (Pilot) by Maria Blasucci & Amanda Lund
SAM IN RETROGRADE (Pilot) by Sam Jarvis
FULFILLMENT (Pilot) by Vali Chandrasekaran
I only read about twenty scripts this year, same as last year. I still haven't quite gotten my mojo back when it comes to screenwriting, so it makes sense that I haven't been reading a lot of screenplays lately. I'd like to change that in 2024, but I'm also hesitant to be too prescriptive about what I'm trying to read. If scripts pop up that I want to read, I'll read them.
TOTALS: 50 books, 971 podcasts, 13 comics, 18 scripts
According to Goodreads, my book reading resulted in the following stats:
Total Pages Read: 16,828
Average Pages Per Book: 336
Shortest Book: 78 pages
Longest Book: 1,152 pages
That's it for my 2023 reading... time to see what 2024 has in store!