Peter Knox — Articles

How to Read David Foster Wallace's Infinite Jest

Mon, 18 May 2026 17:32:14 GMT

In the spirit of an online recipe blog, allow me first some introspection, reflection, and then the resources and direction for you to do it yourself...

No one should have to read a 1,088 page book by themselves. But I've found there's no more reliable conversation starter than Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace, published in February 1996, clocking in at 1,088 pages with 386 endnotes in 8pt font. It published with great hype onto the bestseller lists and changed contemporary fiction forever.

It's my desert island book.

If only I could have that forced monk-ish time and dedication to this book, imagining the countless (nay, infinite) treasures and easter eggs and connections that reliably reward re-readings of this book!

Instead I have only just now re-read it for the first time, sixteen years after my original reading of it in 2009. I simply never re-read books as an adult (something I used to do constantly as a younger reader), given the always-growing list of books I have yet to crack the covers of, but with the 30th anniversary of the publication of Infinite Jest and the opportunity to participate in a monthly group read with McNally Jackson's 'Jest Fest' at their South Seaport location, I chose to revisit this masterpiece and I'm glad I did.

2009

As a very active Tumblr user (2007-mid 2010s), I was overjoyed to discover fellow DFW fans on the social network. I came to first read David Foster Wallace circa 2000 when I read 'the cruise story' during a college travel writing class (that I elbowed my way into because I heard they were reading Fear and Loathing) which I feel is how most people honestly come to starting their DFW journey. It was so smart and funny that I couldn't help but fall in love... but his fiction seemed more intimidating and inaccessible that I stayed on the non-fiction side of his catalog.

Enter 'Infinite Summer' in 2009. I don't know where this idea came about to group-read Infinite Jest online during the summer of 2009, but of course I found out about it on Tumblr.

The concept was simple. There would be a blog (naturally hosted on Tumblr, among other platforms) and weekly posts with a guide and a reflection, encouraging everyone to read 75-100 pages a week and we'd be done in 12 weeks. Without this community, I would never have finished—much less started—the book that would change my life.

I was 25 and hauling around a 3.2 pound paperback book with two bookmarks in my messenger bag, stealing every free moment I had during commutes on the subway (near impossible to hold and read standing up), lunches at work, plane travel, and every where I'd be waiting for something around New York City for an entire summer.

The common first-read impact of IJ is that the book cracks your head open in the best way. I'd never read anything like it (or since). I describe the magic of DFW's words on paper as writing the way someone thinks, in both stream-of-consciousness and meandering meta-references, and suddenly you're sharing your brain with someone else.

To do it right would require a dictionary, an interpreter, and a hive-mind of others undergoing the same experience. Thankfully Infinite Summer provided all that and more, making IJ the best beach read and summer book club I have ever had as a reader. The archive is still online and you can join anytime. Reddit reads the book every summer. Simply start... and don't stop until it's done with you.

2026

Fast forward 15 years and now we're coming up on the 30th anniversary of the book's initial publication. Everyone is saying the novel is more relevant now than ever and everyone is right.

I'm no longer the 25 year old reading DFW's fiction writing for the first time. I've read his other novels and short stories, as well as everything about DFW that's published in the wake of his 2008 suicide. I'm now a parent in my early forties and I'd say a more empathetic person albeit less patient reader, struggling to keep up with 100 pages a month (squeezed in around other books I'm reading) for this Jest Fest Club.

But I'm now meeting monthly in-person (something missing from my first go-around with IJ) with first-time and fourth-time readers of all ages and backgrounds. The discussions are loose, rambling, and incredibly engaging. Everyone has different favorite lines that they read aloud from each section, and wide ranging insights they bring to the group.

This time around I'm no longer tied to just the paperback edition. I'm listening to the audiobook (51hrs+ and while some monologues work well enough, I can't recommend it for a first read because it's hard to follow and you don't get the endnotes as intended), reading the ebook (do recommend, if just for the dictionary feature and connivence) on my Kindle/iPhone/Cloud, and switching between my black-market three part editions with footnotes (as opposed to endnotes) as well as the full paperback version.

To read it now in 2026, I'm far more appreciative just how much DFW saw everything coming and you'll never read the sections about USA's tv President Gentle's isolationist geo-politics or the video phone culture the same way. Even the idea of the entertainment as an addictive binge-able endless stream of visual consumerism hits way harder in our streaming era. Throw in terrorism, competitive youth sports, and rehabilitation houses... everything is relatable. Now that I own a car in NYC, I'm particularly struck by the alternative-side parking rituals in Infinite Jest. You too will find something new each time you read it.

Like DFW himself trains you to do, you have to put in the work, keep coming back, and don't give up. The book rewards you if you give yourself over to it. And if you're lucky, you'll meet people to talk about it with in the process.

The DFW x IJ Tattoo

After my first read and for the occasion of my 28th birthday (and what would've been DFW's 50th birthday), I knew I wanted the chapter header symbol from DFW’s Infinite Jest on my left wrist (coverable!) for well over a year.

“It is about being in the moment and paying attention to the things that matter…” [The New Yorker piece on DFW]

As a bonus, there are 28 of these symbols (shaded white circle) in IJ and I turn 28 this year. I’d seen other DFW/IJ tats, but never this image. And that makes me even more happy with it.

There were a few true fans in the crowd—one person had a tattoo of the novel’s circular section dividers on his wrist.. [The Paris Review]

How to Read Infinite Jest

Everyone in a cult wants others to join them. Perhaps you've met someone that has just run a marathon and they're saying you should run one too. Reading Infinite Jest is a marathon for sure, but your nipples won't be bleeding when you cross the finish line. Do it.

Buy the book. I highly suggest you start with the paperback, but buy an ebook as backup so you never have an excuse not to be reading. Get two bookmarks (one is to save your place and one is for the endnotes). And commit to a schedule, whether that's 10 pages a day, 75 a week, or 100 a month. Then find someone else crazy enough to do it with you.

Finally, lean on the resources available. You're not alone (trust me, the entire book is a mediation on loneliness and you'll want help). Start reading. Don't stop. And promise you'll make it to page 223.

I cannot recommend bookmarking this Infinite Summer index of links, posts, and schedule enough. This resource by itself can be enough to make reading the book a full experience.

Then I could copy and paste the many valuable references, links, and support media available at The Howling Fantods, but I'll simply just link to the main page there. Everything you could hope for and more, you'll find here.

I would be remiss not to mention the famous Wallace list-serve email community. I found it not long after my first read of Infinite Jest and subscribed immediately. Through this email list I've met people in NYC, attended events, found and bought books, read amazing articles, learned about conferences, and in general the people that found each other through DFW end up sharing so much more than that. Join us.

Jason Kottke was one of the best and most active bloggers during the original Infinite Summer and has tagged all of his posts here. Consider him another voice in your head. Here are words (along with their definitions, usage/context, and citation) you'll learn by reading DFW.

There's an entire scene-by-scene guide on this webpage that can help you remember what you've read.

If that's not enough for you, here's a reordered chronological timeline of everything in the novel. Wait until you've finished the book for this one to avoid spoiling the experience as DFW intended.

This is the most beautiful and interactive data visualizations project spurred by the book and well worth any superfan's time.

Bookworm has this April 1996 interview with DFW, as well as many others following his other publications that I loved.

Each anniversary edition of Infinite Jest has a very special foreword. This is the latest, by Michelle Zauner (Crying in H-Mart author and artist behind Japanese Breakfast), but I loved the 20th anniversary's foreword by Tom Bissell the most. Harder to find online is the first foreword by Dave Eggers, but it's here in this (full!) book scan and also worth your time.

The New Yorker did a 30th Anniversary piece with a great deal of cultural context I enjoyed. If you like D.T. Max's 2009 piece centered on DFW's unfinished work, you'll absolutely love his full biography of DFW which puts every published piece in context of his life.

When DFW passed, McSweeneys published a collection of memories for many in the community that always makes me sad when I revisit it, but is comforting in its own way and I'm glad exists.

And then there's a bounty of DFW interviews, profiles, reviews, documentaries, and biographies awaiting you, as well as his entire body of work. Keep reading. Let me know which is your favorite. Then find a new favorite and tell me about that one.

I wish you way more than luck.

Finally a version my kids can understand! Infinite Jeffs is available for the IJ fan in your life and contains almost 1 million 'Jeffs' matching the source material word for word swapping in 'JEFF'

2025 Reading Recap

Tue, 30 Dec 2025 22:51:00 GMT

Another year in the books means it’s time for my annual reading recap and 2025’s list is really special.

Here’s a quick look at the 2025 breakdown by the numbers:

Total Books: 40
Total Pages: 11,582
Format: 8 Print / 32 Digital
Genre: 15 Fiction / 25 Non-Fiction
Author Gender: 12 Female / 28 Male
Library Use: (100% digital) 32 library books (including 6 audiobooks)

The year to year trends that stand out to me, given that I read exactly the same number of books in 2024, is that I read six fewer books by female writers, slightly less fiction, and just two more physical books (and one less audiobook). I did read one poetry book! And since I started tracking two years ago, my reading is ‘frontlist’ heavy which means 24 (more than half!) of the books I read in 2025 either published in 2025 or 2024, within the last year. I can’t help but want to know which books live up to the buzzy hype and have my own opinion about them (which helps you sift through new recommendations!).

Even though I read two fewer fiction books this year, those were the ones I that will stay with me. There’s something about single word title novels like Perfection, Culpability, Playworld, Martyr!, Dogs, Rejection, (incl. non-fiction like Lorne, Montaigne, Molly) that made the list in 2025 that stand out looking back now.

Usually it’s the novels by female authors that rise to the top for me, and there were so many good ones this year like Rental House, Colored Television, and Long Island Compromise that I loved that were just slightly overshadowed (and maybe this is recency bias) by the men I read that I’d call my top favorites. Those men who wrote Culpability, Perfection, and Playworld (as well as Martyr!) rocked my reading experiences this year. Everyone should read all of these, I can say without a second’s hesitation.

When I can get lost in a masterful biography, I tend to learn a ton with a deep dive into cultural, political, and social history more than any class I’ve ever taken and this year was no different with Lorne (absolutely fascinating anecdotes I’ll never forget), Master of the Senate (a true education in its comprehensive history of the Senate, civil rights, and LBJ),and The Fish the Ate the Whale (trust me, you need to know more about how the banana shaped our world) were complete standouts that I think everyone would love as much as I did.

There were several essay collections that made my year, everything from David Lynch’s mediations on creativity to Anthony Bourdain’s overlooked mixed bag, to many newer (and still living!) writers like Maris Kreizman and Ira Madison III’s breakouts that I enjoyed.

Now that I can see the data laid out in a grid, I’m going to make my common pledge to try to shift more towards print fiction books by female writers to balance the scales a bit more in 2026. But who knows where the year will take me.

If any book below catches your interest, I hope you follow through and read it. You can check out my reviews for every book I read on my Goodreads page. Let me know what you’re reading these days and send me your recommendations!

And without further ado, here are my top reads from 2025.

My Top Reads from 2025

Favorite Fiction:

Playworld by Adam Ross
Perfection by Vincenzo Latronico
Culpability by Bruce Holsinger

Favorite Non-Fiction:

The Fish that Ate the Whale by Rich Cohen
The Master of the Senate (The Years of Lyndon Johnson #3) by Robert A. Caro
Lorne by Susan Morrison

Honorable Mentions:

Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar
A Marriage At Sea by Sophie Elmhirst
Rental House by Weike Wang

Want to read reviews of every book here? Visit my GoodReads profile.

My Updated Stats

Books to Gift Last Minute

Mon, 15 Dec 2025 14:22:45 GMT

When we enter the second half of December every year, gift-givers are coming down to the deadline. I operate on, or rather live by, deadlines and my love language is books so it’s natural that I’m giving books every year.

Most books, especially new books, are easy to order or pick up in any bookstore (my recommendation – support your local indie always!) and adding that book to someone’s bookshelf ensures they’ll think of me whenever they see it and eventually pick it up and finally thank me maybe years down the road.

So don’t think of this yet as my 2025 reading recap YET (I’m still racing to finish some short books to pump up my title count still – that will come closer to 2026), but here’s some GREAT reads you can gift without even having read them yourself (but you might think about picking up a second copy for some holiday reading so you can talk about it with the person you’re giving it to!)… so without further ado.

Playworld
by Adam Ross

My top 3 reads from 2014 [39 books]

Favorite Fiction:

Shantaram

10:04

The Circle

Favorite NonFiction:

Going Clear

Unbroken

The Skies Belong to Us

Honorable Mentions:

The Empathy Exams

Bad Feminist

New Kings of Nonfiction

Read all my annual reading recaps here.

25 Books Down: My 2025 Reading Journey

Thu, 03 Jul 2025 03:02:00 GMT

Halfway through 2025 and the reading count is already at 25 books. Not work books, but personal reads that actually matter.

The pace might slow down now that the third LBJ biography by Caro has started (one volume every summer is the tradition), but there's already a solid collection of favorites from the year.

Top Picks

The standout reads of 2025 so far come down to three clear winners:

Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar
Playworld by Adam Ross
Long Island Compromise by Taffy Brodesser-Akner

These are the books that hit different. The ones that stayed on the mind long after the last page. Perfect picks for that upcoming beach trip or vacation flight when you need something that will actually keep you engaged at 30,000 feet.

Other Books

Here's a list of the other books from the first half of 2025:

The Employees — Olga Ravn
This Black Box of Doom — Jason Adam Katzenstein
Lloyd McNeil's Last Ride — Will Leitch
Rejection — Tony Tulathimutte
The Barn — Wright Thompson
Molly — Blake Butler
Lorne: The Man Who Invented Saturday Night Live — Susan Morrison
Rental House — Weike Wang
Pure Innocent Fun: Essays — Ira Madison III
I Want to Burn This Place Down: Essays — Maris Kreizman
An Honest Woman: A Memoir of Love and Sex Work — Charlotte Shane
Montaigne — Stefan Zweig
The Devil Behind the Badge — Rick Jervis
Careless People — Sarah Wyman Williams
How to Change Your Mind — Michael Pollan
Bibliophobia: An American History — Sarah Chihaya
Dark Wire — Joseph Cox
Slow Getting Up: A Story of NFL Survival from the Bottom of the Pile — Nate Jackson
Colored Television — Danzy Senna

Reading Reviews

Want more details on any of these books or the other 22 that made the list? Full reviews for everything get posted on Goodreads. It's where the real thoughts and reactions live, beyond just the quick recommendations.

Visit my Goodreads profile.

For my complete list of book recommendations from every year, check out my favorite reading recommendations.

Conclusion

If you're looking for your next beach read or planning ahead for that long flight, these three books deliver. Martyr, Playworld, and Long Island Compromise represent the best of what 2025 has offered so far in personal reading.

The year is only half over, but the reading list is already strong. Even with the LBJ biography slowing down the pace, there's still plenty of time to discover more great books before December hits.

For more content and updates, follow me on LinkedIn, X, or Patron View.

2024 Reading Recap

Sun, 05 Jan 2025 16:39:00 GMT

Another year, another reading goal in the books!

This year, I really rushed at the end to meet my goal of 40 books. While it was 3 less than last year (and about 3,000 fewer pages), it felt like I went longer periods without getting through books this year. Next year, I’ll slow down and aim for a more comfortable pace of 36 or so.

Here’s a quick look at the numbers:

Total Books: 40
Total Pages: 11,264
Format: 6 Print / 34 Digital
Genre: 17 Fiction / 23 Non-Fiction
Author Gender: 18 Female / 22 Male
Library Use: 25 books were from the library (including 7 audiobooks)

I got back to reading more books published before 2024, but still read 11 new frontlist books. I also read more female authors than last year—not quite as many as men, but much closer to a balance. The biggest trend was the shift away from print; with almost none of my reads (only 6 out of 40!) being physical books, it’s clear that my Kindle Voyage and audiobooks have taken over my reading life.

As usual, despite loving nonfiction and reading more of it than fiction, my favorite books of the year were all female-authored fiction. Both The God of the Woods and The Secret History blew me away. They feel like kindred spirits, and I can’t say enough amazing things about TGOTW—talking about it nonstop has gotten 25+ people to tell me they’ve picked it up and loved it.

So in 2025, I’m pledging to pick up more fiction, more women authors, and more print books to reverse some of these trends.

I keep track of my favorite reads from each year in my complete reading recommendations list.

And without further ado, here are my top reads from 2024.

My Top Reads from 2024

Favorite Fiction:

The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
The Secret History by Donna Tartt
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

Favorite Non-Fiction:

The Art Thief by Michael Finkel
Ambition Monster by Jennifer Romolini
Means of Ascent (The Years of Lyndon Johnson #2) by Robert A. Caro

Honorable Mentions:

The Measure by Nikki Erlick
Godwin by Joseph O’Neill
Health and Safety by Emily Witt

Want to read more? Visit my Good Reads profile.

2023 Reading Recap

Fri, 05 Jan 2024 16:49:00 GMT

As I've gotten deeper into publishing news, marketing, and advertising, I’ve found myself more susceptible to jumping into newer books as they're published—and it's paying off. I loved so much of what I read this year.

I read 43 books, just five less than last year, but 10 more than in 2021 and 2020. What's most crazy is how many more new (aka frontlist) books I read this year compared to most years. 21 out of 43 books—almost half—were released in 2023. Add in the 8 I read that were published in 2022, and two-thirds of the books I read in 2023 were published in the last two years!

Here's a quick look at the numbers:

Total Books: 43
Total Pages: 13,757
Format: 13 Print / 30 Digital
Genre: 17 Fiction / 26 Non-Fiction
Author Gender: 12 Female / 31 Male
Library Use: 27 books were from the library (including 11 audiobooks)

Despite again reading almost 10 more non-fiction books than fiction, it’s the fiction I recall most fondly. While I enjoyed learning about Matthew Perry, behind-the-camera stories of Bourdain, and the history of the Oscars, the best non-fiction was closer to therapy—Good Inside was the best parenting book I’ve ever read, and I Think You Should Talk to Someone was a therapy book wrapped in a memoir.

Fiction was the standout. I listened to more audiobooks than ever, and I highly recommend the hybrid model of switching between an audiobook and the Kindle version. I also read twice as many male writers as female writers—not intentionally! It's helpful to look back on this now, as my favorites from the year were almost all by women.

So in 2024, I’m pledging to pick up more fiction, more women authors, and more print books.

If any book below catches your interest, I hope you find a way to read it. I write a review for every book I read, and you can find them on my Goodreads profile. Send me your recommendations!

My Top Reads from 2023

Favorite Fiction:

Wellness by Nathan Hill
Yellowface by R. F. Kuang
Now is Not the Time to Panic by Kevin Wilson

Favorite Non-Fiction:

The Path to Power by Robert A. Caro
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb
Good Inside by Dr. Becky Kennedy

Honorable Mentions:

Vintage Contemporaries by Dan Kois
The Midcoast by Adam White
Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton

Want to read more? Visit my Goodreads profile.

2022 Reading Recap

Thu, 05 Jan 2023 16:59:00 GMT

This year I read 48 books, the most I’ve read since 2018 and the second most since I started tracking in 2010! My focus for 2022 was to read more books and get beyond the lower counts of the post-COVID years, and I’m happy I did. I have to be honest, though—the title count feels a little inflated due to some shorter books and coffee table reads. But a book is a book is a book!

I listened to more audiobooks than ever this year, and I also splurged on a Kindle Oasis, which spurred me on to read more and more through my 27 library rentals.

Here's a quick look at the numbers:

Total Books: 48
Total Pages: 13,795
Format: 14 Print / 34 Digital
Genre: 20 Fiction / 28 Non-Fiction
Author Gender: 13 Female / 35 Male
Library Use: 27 books were from the library

Unlike last year, I skewed heavily male/nonfiction in 2022, somehow reading slightly fewer female authors yet more than double the number of male authors. That’s something I’ll look to balance out better next year, as my favorite genre is typically female-authored fiction. Continuing my recent trends, I again read mostly new (frontlist) books published over the last few years. There are so many amazing new books that I’m just trying to keep up with.

One of the last books I read in 2022 was also my favorite: Tomorrow, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin. I haven't felt this jazzed about a book for awhile and have not held back in telling others about it with wonderful results.

If any book ever catches your interest, I hope you follow through and check out my reviews—I write one for every book I read! Let me know what you're reading these days.

My Top Reads from 2022

Favorite Fiction:

Tomorrow, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel
The Parade by Dave Eggers

Favorite Non-Fiction:

Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner
In the Land of Men by Adrienne Miller
Dirtbag, Massachusetts by Isaac Fitzgerald

Honorable Mentions:

Bliss Montage by Ling Ma
Blood, Sweat, & Chrome by Kyle Buchanan
Crossroads by Jonathan Franzen

Want to read more? Visit my Goodreads profile.

2021 Reading Recap

Wed, 05 Jan 2022 17:07:00 GMT

This year I read 32 books, which was below my yearly average and my set goal. But considering my new life—a post-two-hour commute, two children, and much more reading for work—I’m happy with anything above 30. It’s my new PAR, like getting more than 100 in bowling. I even read one less book (thanks, Ulysses) but more pages than in 2020!

This was the first year that I actually reached a balance, reading exactly the same number of female and male authors, and as many fiction as non-fiction books.

Here's a quick look at the numbers:

Turns out, I didn't pay for a single digital ebook all year. They all came from the Library, NetGalley, or Prime, which has been a goal of mine for a while. If I want a book, I’m either buying it in print or waiting for the library hold. As usual, all my favorite fiction is from female writers, and I continued my trend of reading mostly new (frontlist) books published over the last two years.

If any book ever catches your interest, I hope you follow through in finding a way to acquire and read it—you can check out my reviews for every book I read. Let me know what you're reading these days!

My Top Reads from 2021

Favorite Fiction:

Such A Fun Age by Kiley Reid
Laserwriter II by Tamara Shopsin
No One Is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood

Favorite Non-Fiction:

Gone to the Woods by Gary Paulsen
Why Fish Don't Exist by Lulu Miller
Fulfillment by Alec MacGillis

Honorable Mentions:

How Lucky by Will Leitch
On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong
The Smash-Up by Ali Benjamin

Want to read more? Visit my Goodreads profile.

2020 Reading Recap

Tue, 05 Jan 2021 17:10:00 GMT

This year I read 33 books, which was 13 books below my yearly average. But I stand proud by this number, having persevered through many changes to remain a reader.

2020 was the first full year that I was a father of two children under the age of four. That alone accounts for so much. I also changed jobs in March, abandoning my daily two-hour commute on trains where I had done the majority of my reading for the last 14 years. This new job brought a lot more responsibility and work (and reading!). Of course, with the pandemic, no one had a commute, and to have finished any books in a year with an election and ongoing protesting is something to be proud of.

Here's a quick look at the numbers:

Total Books: 33
Total Pages: 8,029
Format: 14 Print / 19 Digital
Genre: 14 Fiction / 19 Non-Fiction
Author Gender: 16 Female / 17 Male
Library Use: 18 Library Digital

Some trends make sense: I read more library ebooks and more ebooks in general than in previous years. Being on the move for five unexpected months with my family meant I didn't bring as many print books along. I was also glad to have read many new books published in 2020 (12) and 2019 (5). It was a great year for publishing, and I hope those books are still discovered and remembered.

For my complete list of favorites from every year, check out my favorite reading recommendations.

If any book ever catches your interest, I hope you follow through and read it. You can check out my reviews for every book I read. Let me know what you're reading these days!

My Top Reads from 2020

Favorite Fiction:

The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel
Luster by Raven Leilani
All Adults Here by Emma Straub

Favorite Non-Fiction:

Eat a Peach by David Chang
Ask For More by Alex Lieberman
Uncanny Valley by Anna Wiener

Honorable Mentions:

Leave The World Behind by Rumaan Alam
Run Studio Run by Eli Altman
Writers & Lovers by Lily King

Want to read more? Visit my Goodreads profile.

2019 Reading Recap

Sun, 05 Jan 2020 17:15:00 GMT

Here is a statistical breakdown of my reading in 2019.

Total Books: 46
Total Pages: 14,455
Format: 22 Print / 24 Digital
Genre: 17 Fiction / 29 Non-Fiction
Author Gender: 20 Female / 26 Male
Library Use: 21 Library Digital

Want to read more? Visit my Goodreads profile.

2018 Reading Recap

Sat, 05 Jan 2019 17:18:00 GMT

This year I read 52 books—one for every week of the year! Of course, some books took longer, and I caught up in other weeks with a few short books. This is the most books I’ve tracked since I started five years ago, but it came with fewer pages than I’ve ever recorded. This was a necessary trade-off to reach a higher quantity of titles, relying on shorter reads.

My goal was to read more female fiction authors, and I did, reading three more novels by women than in 2017. It's funny, but I read exactly as many novels by both genders (10) in 2018.

Here's a quick look at the numbers:

Total Books: 52
Total Pages: 12,504
Format: 30 Print / 22 Digital
Genre: 20 Fiction / 32 Non-Fiction
Author Gender: 21 Female / 31 Male
Library Use: 18 Library Digital

Overall, I read as many books by male writers as last year but added more women to reach a higher total. I also reversed my two-year trend of reading more digital books than print, especially since the thinner books were easier to carry around. I’d like to continue focusing on reading more female writers and fiction (same goal as last year—because it's working!).

My Top Reads from 2018

Favorite Fiction:

Severance by Ling Ma
Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney
Less by Andrew Sean Greer

Favorite Non-Fiction:

Bad Blood by John Carreyrou
Small Animals by Kim Brooks
I Am, I Am, I Am by Maggie O'Farrell

Honorable Mentions:

New York Mumbai Scranton
Like Brothers by Mark and Jay Duplass
When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi

Want to read more? Visit my Goodreads profile.

2017 Reading Recap

Fri, 05 Jan 2018 17:21:00 GMT

This was the first year I read slightly fewer books in four years of tracking. My list skewed heavily toward non-fiction, male authors, and digital reads from the library.

My goal for 2017 was to read more print (which I did, just barely), more fiction (which I didn't), and more female non-fiction (which I almost doubled from last year). So, two out of three—success! Still, I'm reading more than double the number of male authors over female authors. Of my top nine books this year, six are by female writers, and all three top non-fiction books are intensely intimate personal histories from women.

Here's a quick look at the numbers:

Total Books: 47
Total Pages: 15,472
Format: 19 Print / 28 Digital
Genre: 18 Fiction / 29 Non-Fiction
Author Gender: 16 Female / 31 Male
Library Use: 25 Library Digital

My goal for 2018 is to read more female fiction writers and continue getting my ebooks from the library.

I keep track of my all-time favorite books in my complete reading recommendations.

My Top Reads from 2017

Favorite Fiction:

Manhattan Beach by Jennifer Egan
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Here I Am by Jonathan Safran Foer

Favorite Non-Fiction:

Hunger by Roxane Gay
Arbitrary Stupid Goal by Tamara Shopsin
The Rules Do Not Apply by Ariel Levy

Honorable Mentions:

Goodbye, Vitamin by Rachel Khong
Barbarian Days by William Finnegan
The Disaster Artist by Greg Sestero and Tom Bissell

Want to read more? Visit my Goodreads profile.

2016 Reading Recap

Thu, 05 Jan 2017 17:24:00 GMT

So this year I read more books, more pages, more nonfiction, more male authors, more digital, and more from the library. My 2016 goals were to read more books and more female non-fiction—which I accomplished. Even better, I read 6 more books overall than last year, and 20 more books from the library.

Here's a quick look at the numbers:

Total Books: 50
Total Pages: 18,944
Format: 18 Print / 32 Digital
Genre: 22 Fiction / 28 Non-Fiction
Author Gender: 15 Female / 35 Male
Library Use: 27 Library Digital

My goal for 2017 will be to read more fiction in general, get back to reading more print, and read more female nonfiction (again, my shortest list this year).

My Top Reads from 2016

Favorite Fiction:

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
Before the Fall by Noah Hawley

Favorite Non-Fiction:

Shoe Dog by Phil Knight
Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
Lust & Wonder by Augusten Burroughs

Honorable Mentions:

Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
Home Game by Michael Lewis
Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler

Want to read more? Visit my Goodreads profile.

2015 Reading Recap

Tue, 05 Jan 2016 17:26:00 GMT

This year I read more books, more pages, more fiction, more male authors, more print, and less from the library.

Here's a quick look at the numbers:

Total Books: 44
Total Pages: 14,765
Format: 30 Print / 14 Digital
Genre: 25 Fiction / 19 Non-Fiction
Author Gender: 10 Female / 34 Male
Library Use: 7 Library Digital

My goal for 2016 is to focus on reading more female non-fiction.

For my complete list of favorites from every year, see my favorite reading recommendations.

My Top Reads from 2015

Favorite Fiction:

Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides

Favorite Non-Fiction:

Missoula by Jon Krakauer
Console Wars by Blake J. Harris
My Salinger Year by Joanna Rakoff

Honorable Mentions:

The Martian by Andy Weir
Room by Emma Donoghue
Purity by Jonathan Franzen

Want to read more? Visit my Goodreads profile.

2014 Reading Recap

Mon, 05 Jan 2015 17:29:00 GMT

This year, I read 39 books start to finish, down from 46 in 2013. But that's because I read more pages this year—14,294 pages, to be exact! Massive books like Shantaram, Red or Dead, and Wind-Up Bird were all read in print and contributed to that high page count.

I rarely rate books with 5 stars, but I would still recommend books that got 3 stars from me. I enjoyed all the books on this list and suspect you might as well. How do I do it? I commute two hours a day on subways, take time to read at lunch, and usually end my nights in bed with a book. I always have a book ready to go on my phone and never waste time in a line.

I track my all-time favorite reads from each year in my complete reading recommendations list.

Here's a quick look at the numbers: