Favorite books of 2024

I successfully replaced less valuable uses of my free time with reading in 2024 resulting in the enjoyment (for the most part) of thirty eight books. I finished the last two years with retrospectives on the books I enjoyed the most (see here for 2022 and 2023), and I figured I would continue the tradition.

I have the full list of books on Goodreads and Storygraph, but you can also see all of my ratings and reviews on my Reading hobby page, too.

So, as the years prior, below is a review of my favorite books from this year in order of how fondly I look back on them.

1. Slow Productivity

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author: Cal Newport

Newport’s Deep Work was my first exposure to his productivity systems. Deep Work was generally about how to get more higher-quality work done in a controlled, sustainable manner. Slow Productivity was a continuation of this theory, but extended to a lifetime. Instead of thinking about how to control today’s time or how to get a project completed, this book presents the idea of thinking about productivity over one’s career and life (that is, the advice and perspective were not necessarily limited to a career). A primary premise of the book is that most projects completed will be forgotten relatively quickly – not to say they are unimportant or not worth doing, just that they are small or intermediate steps. Instead, Newport argues that great works are completed over longer periods of time; sure, they are composed of these smaller building blocks, but a short-term mindset of productivity will hinder this true progress. Thus, focussing on the day to day blinds us to the greater accomplishments that require time. The book details a system and provides guidelines for achieving this, dramatically altering my view on productivity¹. From this book and Newport’s podcast, the following saying has stayed in my head: “Days are long, but life is short.”

2. Brunelleschi’s Dome

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author: Ross King

The story behind Filippo Brunelleschi’s greatest masterpiece was the perfect introduction to my self-education about the Renaissance as I prepared for my trip to Italy in the fall. When I eventually made it to Florence in late October, I toured the Duomo and climbed atop the dome and clock tower, recalling so many of the facts I learned in this book. While waiting in line for my reservation to climb the dome, I started talking with the family in front of me, a son studying abroad in Florence with his visiting parents. Eavesdropping on their conversation, they had a lot of questions about the dome and cathedral, in general. My love of this building persuaded me to offer to provide an introduction and I basically outlined the story I learned from this book (of course noting and recommending my source). In addition, I pointed out architectural details of the dome as we walked up it, including the herring-bone organization of the bricks and two-layers of the dome as we walked between them.

King is a great writer, providing insight into the primary story based on a strong understanding of the historical context. I originally rented this book from the Boston Public Library, but ended up purchasing a copy for my personal library because I loved it so much. This was my first King book, but I eventually read his The Bookseller of Florence and am currently reading Mad Enchantment about Monet’s painting of the water lilies, and I forsee adding more to my collection.

3. Four Seasons in Rome

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author: Anthony Doerr

I had enjoyed Doerr’s All the Light We Cannot See earlier in the year, so when I found he had written a memoir about a year living in Rome with his family (as, I believe, he was writing the aforementioned novel), I figured it would be a fun tie-in. I didn’t realize how much I enjoyed this book until I arrived in Rome. Doerr’s clearly had great appreciation for the city, its history and modern day culture, and his description of the lifestyle guided my outlook on my visit. I followed his lead in taking in the city by walking amongst the history, enjoying the food and wine, and just being grateful for such an opportunity. I can see retrospectively that this relatively simple memoir had a profoundly positive impact on my Roman adventure.

4. Autumn in Venice

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author: Andrea di Robilant

To continue to beat a dead horse, I adored my Italian adventure, and Venice was no exception. This book in particular, though, brought together so many wonderful threads – background on several of Hemingway’s novels, a contentious Hemingway romance, some details and the essence of Venice before the modern era, etc. As a fan of Hemingway’s, this was an enthralling view into his personal life at an interesting time in his career following several back-to-back hits, a dud in Across the River and Into the Trees (I read it while it Venice and agree it was not his best), followed by a triumphant return with The Old Man and the Sea. For these reasons alone, I would have found this book interesting, but then paired with my trip to Venice, it will have a cherished spot in my memory². To get the most out of Venice, I believe one must gain an appreciation for its duality of romance and mystery. Along with other books I read, including The City of Falling Angels, this tale of Hemingway’s not-so-secret affair provided sense of this unique Venetian aesthetic.

5. The Wide Wide Sea

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author: Hampton Sides

I will start by saying I am biased towards enjoying a story about Captain Cook, a great English adventurer with whom I childishly like to think I share a familial lineage. I recall hearing about this book on The Meateater Podcast last year and looking forward to its release, so much so, that I bought the first copy I found (which also happened to be signed by the author) while visiting my girlfriend in Michigan. Sides provided a thrilling recounting of Cook’s final voyage, expertly describing the historical context for the voyage such that I gained an appreciated for how difficult and unprecedented a trip it was and also Cook’s greatness as an explorer at the time.