2022 Favorites: Books Edition
If you didn’t catch my nerdiness last week with my 2022 podcast favorites, then you are in for a super nerdy treat this week! I read and listen to a LOT of books. I love reading a good ole paper copy of a book because my eyes can rest from screens. I mostly read non-fiction because I have little willpower to read a good fiction book and go to bed at a decent hour. And I go for more serious reads on topics that interest me.
I’ve read or listened to 51 books in 2022 (full list below). Sometimes I need to step out of the serious stuff and read a good fantasy story (Ex. Harry Potter or Percy Jackson) for a mind palate cleanse. Then I go right back to it. Typically, I choose audiobooks based on the narrator. What have been your favorites this year? Let’s talk on LinkedIn.
In the following list, I’ve bolded my favorites and provided brief snippets of why this book changed me.
1. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
2. Clay’s Ark by Octavia E. Butler
3. Undrowned by Alexis Pauline Gumbs
4. The Yonahlossee Riding Camp for Girls by Anton DiSclafani
5. A History of Britain: Volume 1 by Simon Schama *audible
6. A History of Britain: Volume 2 by Simon Schama *audible
7. Beloved by Toni Morrison
8. Unbound by Tarana Burke *audible
9. Welcome to my Panic by Billie Joe Armstrong *audible
10. Didn’t We Almost Have It All by Gerrick D. Kennedy *audible
11. Brave New Work by Aaron Dignan
This book is a must read for anyone who works in organization design and development. Aaron Dignan offers a manifesto for centering human dignity in the workplace and creating strong, adaptive teams. I read this book twice because I kept referencing it in my conversations. He also hosts a podcast by the same name, which I definitely recommend.
12. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling
13. Patternmaster by Octavia E. Butler
14. The Power of One by Bryce Courtney
15. The Afghanistan Papers by Craig Whitlock *audible
I learned about this book by listening to an interview with the author via the Black on the Air podcast. I was so struck by the length of the Afghanistan war (20+ years) and how many presidents managed the war that I wanted to read more. This books offers an expansive overview of the USA war in Afghanistan from beginning to now and how we managed a war across multiple presidential administrations with very different views and approaches. If you love history, then you’ll love this one.
16. James Baldwin by David Leeming *audible
17. I Am Mine by Eddie Vedder *audible
18. Strength to Love by Martin Luther King, Jr.
19. A Very Punchable Face by Colin Jost *audible
20. Looking for Lorraine by Imani Perry *audible
21. Year of Yes by Shonda Rhimes *audible
22. Hunger by Roxane Gay *audible
This book has been on my list for years, and I finally took the plunge into this beautiful pool of reflection by Roxane Gay. Gay offers raw insights into living in a larger body and how dominant culture demeans people with unreasonable beauty definitions and patriarchal standards. I felt like Gay was reading from her heart straight into mine as I struggle so deeply with body image.
23. Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay *audible
24. You Got Anything Stronger? By Gabrielle Union *audible
This is the second book by actress Gabrielle Union where she shares her life in essay style. My fan adoration of Gabrielle Union started with the movie Bring It On, and I have been honored to watch her grow in her career and thought leadership for the last 15 years. In this book, Union details her struggle with infertility and raising a queer child while also experiencing racism in her career. As Trevor Noah said in his final Daily Show episode, we need to listen to Black Women. Listen to Gabrielle Union.
25. The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer
26. Titan by Ron Chernow
Ron Chernow is one of my favorite authors. I first encountered him when I read his book Hamilton, which was the source material for the Hamilton musical. Chernow’s books are thick (800-900 pages) with deep research into history and relationships. Titan follows the story of John D. Rockefeller, Sr., the first billionaire in the United States. In particular, I wanted to read this book because Rockefeller fought against the government’s goal to break up his company, which was the first monopoly. We are living through something similar today with large companies like Amazon and Microsoft owning so much market share. This books shows how a few elite can impact our daily lives.
27. Wolfpack by Abby Wambach
28. Catherine de Medici, Renaissance Queen of France by Leonie Frieda
29. Dopesick by Beth Macy
30. The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende
31. Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle by Emily Nagoski & Amelia Nagoski
32. Codependent No More by Melody Beattie *audible
33. The Temple of My Familiar by Alice Walker
Have you ever read a book and felt it pierce your soul? That’s how it felt to read this one. I picked up the book in a multi-year commitment to only read books by black authors, and I am new to Walker’s fiction books. Wow, I had no idea what I was missing. While much of the book shares the trauma of being black in this world, one character shares hope: “To the extent that it is possible…you must live in the world today as you wish everyone to live in the world to come. That can be your contribution. Otherwise, the world you want will never be formed. Why? Because you are waiting for others to do what you are not doing; and they are waiting for you, and so on.”
34. Nothing Like I Imagined by Mindy Kaling *audible
35. The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk
36. The Reporter Who Knew Too Much by Mark Shaw *audible
37. The Argonauts by Maggie Nelson *audible
38. The Purpose of Power by Alicia Garza *audible
I’ve been studying power and how it is used for several years. With DEI work, power comes up quite a bit. Power is not bad; it just is. However, how we use power can greatly impact our relationships, our workplaces, and our communities. I picked up this book with the goal of learning more about power in organizing movements. Garza, one of the founders of the Black Lives Matter movements, provides generous examples and rich definitions of how to organize change as individuals and groups.
39. The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
40. The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan
41. The Titan’s Curse by Rick Riordan
42. The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan
43. The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan
44. The Demigod Files by Rick Riordan
45. Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
46. Mediocre by Ijeoma Oluo
47. The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan
48. Meridian by Alice Walker
49. On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong
A friend of ours gave this book to my husband, so it was not on my radar. But I kept hearing about it in other places, so I picked it up. I’m so glad that I did. Ocean Vuong is known for his poetry. This book is his first entry into the world of fiction. On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous is a letter from a son to a mother that shares parts of the boy’s life story while also his exploration in understanding his mother. It is a story of the Vietnam war, immigration to the United States, and queer love.
50. The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan
51. Eloquent Rage by Brittney Cooper *audible
This book slapped me hard in the face because I continue to be challenged by my own privilege and ability to move in this world as a white woman. Cooper reflects how feminism has been focused on a certain kind of feminine experience (mainly white, cis, able-bodied), which only supports the systems that oppress us. My work in equity, diversity, and inclusion is rooted in the belief that helping the most marginalized move to a thriving experience liberates all of society. And no group has quite been more marginalized than Black women in the United States. Listen to Brittney Cooper.
Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash