2015: The year in books
I’m reviving an old tradition from my defunct blog, where I used wrap up each year by sharing a list of books I read.
My goal for 2015 was to read 26 books: an average of one every two weeks. As of December 19, I’ve only made it to 24. But I don’t feel bad, since I also wrote a book this year!
Here’s what I read in 2015, with a few notes about some of my favorites.
Money: Master the Game by Tony Robbins
Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell
Blood Will Out: The True Story of a Murder, a Mystery, and a Masquerade by Walter Kirn
It was only after finishing Blood Will Out that I realized Water Kirn also wrote Up in the Air, another of my favorites.
Fascinate: Your 7 Triggers to Persuasion and Captivation by Sally Hogshead
What I Learned Losing a Million Dollars by Jim Paul and Brendan Moynihan
A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy by William B. Irvine
I became curious about stoicism after reading about it from Mark Sisson and Tim Ferriss. This is an excellent practical guide.
Better Than Before: What I Learned About Making and Breaking Habits — to Sleep More, Quit Sugar, Procrastinate Less, and Generally Build a Happier Life by Gretchen Rubin
There’s a lot I like about this book, but I found the Four Tendencies to be especially insightful.
The Thin Green Line: The Money Secrets of the Super Wealthy by Paul Sullivan
Cape Horn to Starboard by John Kretschmer
I read Flirting With Mermaids last year. After Cape Horn to Starboard, Kretschmer became one of my favorite authors—on sailing or any topic.
The One-Page Financial Plan: A Simple Way to Be Smart About Your Money by Carl Richards
Pragmatic Capitalism: What Every Investor Needs to Know About Money and Finance by Cullen Roche
Blown Away by Herb Payson
Hilarious true story of a family who buys a wooden sailboat in LA, moves aboard, and sails to the South Pacific for a few years.
Vagabonding: An Uncommon Guide to the Art of Long-Term World Travel by Rolf Potts
The Happy Isles of Oceania: Paddling the Pacific by Paul Theroux
I got this book as a gift more than 10 years ago. For some reason I decided to pick it up this year, and I’m sure glad I did.
You Can’t Blow Home Again by Herb Payson
Assembling California by John McPhee
Panama by Thomas McGuane
Ninety Two in the Shade by Thomas McGuane
In a (very) roundabout way, the television show Californication inspired my McGuane kick this year. In addition to Panama and Ninety Two in the Shade, I enjoyed this long McGuane interview in the Paris Review.
Wanderer by Sterling Hayden
A rambling, expansive memoir. But it’s one of my favorite books from 2015.
The Art of Seamanship: Evolving Skills, Exploring Oceans, and Handling Wind, Waves, and Weather by Ralph Naranjo
Reclaiming Conversation: The Power of Talk in a Digital Age by Sherry Turkle
The Ivy Portfolio: How to Invest Like the Top Endowments and Avoid Bear Markets by Mebane Faber and Eric Richardson
Sailing a Serious Ocean: Sailboats, Storms, Stories and Lessons Learned from 30 Years at Sea by John Kretschmer
Jack London: San Francisco Stories (edited by Matthew Asprey)
Sprint: How to Solve Big Problems and Test New Ideas in Just 5 Days by Jake Knapp, John Zeratsky, and Braden Kowitz
Hey, that’s me! And lest you think I’m just trying to be funny, I did read Sprint—many times. We wrote and reviewed dozens of drafts while working on the book, and I think it made the book a lot better. We hope you’ll agree.
What did you read this year?
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