Blogocentric Formulations

2023 Reading List

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!