As an avid reader of science fiction, it should come as no surprise that books about the colonization of other planets, especially Mars, regularly show up in my Amazon recommendations. These recommendations led me to the Colony Mars Series by Gerald M. Kilby. The description looked interesting, so I decided to give it a go.

In the first book of the series, Colony One Mars, a group of astronauts is sent to the red planet to determine the fate of the first settlement established there. Contact was lost with the fifty-four colonists who inhabited the base. With the colonists presumed dead, the goal of the latest mission is to identify what is left of the base, determine what happened, and recover any salvageable materials. When a mysterious illness starts affecting the crew, the mission takes on a new goal – finding a cure before it’s too late.

Consistent action and unexpected plot twists make for an interesting story with good pace. The book interested me enough that I chose to read the second installment in the series, aptly named Colony Two Mars. It turned out to be just as engaging as the first. Where Colony One focuses on the technology required to establish a colony on Mars, Colony Two’s premise revolves around genetic modification and cloning.

Both books are easy reads that keep the technology details accessible by not going too deep into the mechanics of how things work. Kilby also does a good job developing the characters without overdoing it. Bottom line, he does a great job weaving what you need to know into the story so it keep things moving along, which is what I like in my recreational reads.

Would I call the Colony Mars Series a Must Read? No, but it’s a Fun Read for sure. There are 3 main books in the Colony Mars Series along with three standalone novels that are set in the Colony Mars environment. Eventually, I may come back to read the third book, and possibly the standalone novels. For now, the first two were enough. Just be warned, once you start the series, you may find yourself hooked and unable to walkaway until you finish the entire compilation.

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Brad and I recently returned from our annual destination golf trip. This year we went to Pinehurst, referred to as ‘The Cradle’ of American golf. With ten courses, a nine hole Par 3, and an 18 hole putting green, there are a lot of choices when it comes to golf. In fact, there are so many choices it can make it hard to decide which courses you should play. Since I caught some grief for not reviewing the courses from our last trip to Phoenix promptly (yes, I’m looking at you Connor), here are my thoughts on the courses at Pinehurst while the trip is fresh in my mind.

Pinehurst offers some great golf packages through their website, and we chose their 3-night Premier package which comes with unlimited golf, breakfast and dinner, and accommodations at one of their on-site properties.

The result of our choice? Eight rounds of golf over four days.

I was confident that four of the rounds would involve playing No. 2, No. 10, No. 4 and No. 8. The hard part was figuring out the remaining four to choose, which ended up being No. 1, No. 5, No. 7, and No. 9. Here’s my take on the eight courses we played, based on the ones I liked best.

Top course: No. 2

There’s a reason they play the U.S. Open on No. 2. It’s a true test of one’s golfing ability. A test which I failed miserably. The turtleback greens play every bit as difficult as advertised, and while the fairways are generous, there is very little rough before wayward shots are collected in the waste areas. Even though I struggled with the driver the entire round and don’t have the short game to navigate the greens, I can’t say enough about how impressive a course it is. If it’s your first trip to Pinehurst, No. 2 needs to be at the top of your list. I would recommend setting low expectations for your score and just enjoy the walk. It will increase your appreciation of how good the pros are given how well they are able to score on such a difficult course.

Must plays: No. 10 and No. 4

No. 10 is the new kid on the block at Pinehurst, but it has quickly risen to one of the best courses on the property. It’s a Tom Doak layout that reminded us a lot of the Pacific Dunes tract he designed at Bandon Dunes Resort minus the ocean views. Doak did a great job using the natural contours of the sand mines that were present on the property to create interesting visuals with challenging slopes and elevation changes. Fortunately, we played it in March when the weather was relatively cool. We heard that it can be a challenging walk during the warmer months of July and August, so be prepared if you’re playing it during the summer months.

No. 4 is right up there with No. 10 in terms of layout and challenge. No. 4 is closer in feel to No. 2 without as many punishing turtleback greens. The waste areas are just as prevalent along the course as No. 2, but aren’t as penal. Overall, it’s a strong layout that mimics No. 2 but gives the opportunity to shoot a better score and enjoy your round.

Highly recommend: No. 8, No. 1, No. 9

Both No. 8 and No. 1 are strong courses that have a similar feel to No. 2 and No. 4. The layouts aren’t as memorable nor as strong as the top courses, but they are still worth playing. On the other hand, No. 9 is a different animal. It’s a Nicklaus designed course that requires a lot of thought to navigate tee-to-green. Scoring on No. 9 requires precision as there are specific targets you need to hit and places you need to be if you’re going to score well. The other big difference with No. 9 are the bent grass greens, which is different than the Bermuda grass used on all other courses. No. 9 wasn’t one of my favorites on the trip, but it’s a course I would consider playing again.

The rest: No. 7, No. 5

To be honest, there aren’t any bad courses at Pinehurst. There are just some that I like better than others. While No. 7 and No. 5 weren’t my favorite courses of the trip, they were my least favorite courses. If I was going back to Pinehurst, I’d probably put No. 6 or No. 3 on my dance card over these since I haven’t played those two courses yet. I can’t say with experience or certainty that those courses are better than No. 7 or No. 5, just that I would want to try those first before replaying these. Bottom line, No. 3, No. 5, No. 6 and No. 7 are courses you can use to fill any remaining slots after booking No. 2, No. 10, No. 4, No. 8, No. 1, and No. 9.

General recommendations while at Pinehurst

Caddies

Caddies are not required while playing Pinehurst, but I would highly recommend them on courses No. 2, No. 4, and No. 10, which are walking only. Sure, you could push or carry your own bag, but Pinehurst has an excellent caddie program. Our caddies were extremely knowledgeable, fun to be around, and enhanced our overall experience and enjoyment of our rounds. It’s an added expense, but one that is well worth it for those three courses, especially if it’s your first time.

The Cradle and Thistle Dhu

Unfortunately, we weren’t able to squeeze in a round on The Cradle, the par 3 course, nor did we get a chance to experience Thistle Dhu, the 18 hole putting green. To be fair, we were pretty fried both physically and mentally after playing 36 holes each day. However, we heard only good things about both venues during our stay, so I’d recommend making the effort to squeeze these in if you can. It will definitely be on my to-do list the next time I visit the resort.

The Deuce, Carolina Vista Lounge, and The 1895 Grille

These were the best places we ate at while on property. The Deuce is in the main clubhouse that overlooks the 18th green. While the food and drink selection are good, it’s the atmosphere that really makes The Deuce worth stopping at for lunch or dinner.

Located in the The Carolina Hotel, Carolina Vista Lounge had the best bar area on the property. The drinks, food, and atmosphere were excellent, and there was plenty of seating and standing room around the bar if you have a larger group.

Finally, for a more upscale meal, The 1895 Grille in The Holly Inn was my favorite. I can’t speak to everything on the menu, but I would highly recommend the sourdough bread. It was by far the closest I’ve had to true artisan sourdough while dining out.

Overall, it was another great golf trip. While I didn’t play my best throughout the week, there were flashes of brilliance which culminated in a great round on No. 10 that was aided by at least a half dozen great reads on the green by our caddie. Above all, getting to spend the week with Brad at The Cradle of American golf was an experience I will cherish and always remember.

Needless to say, if you haven’t made the trip to Pinehurst, I’d highly recommend putting it at or near the top of your list of destination golf trip.

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While there’s an allure to the bright lights of the big city, there’s no place like home. Or is there?

That’s the philosophical question that Matt Dunn explores in the novel Home. For anyone, like me, who left a small town for the big city, it makes you wonder what it would be like if you returned to your roots.

Home is en entertaining story about our protagonist, Josh Peters, moving from London back to his “sleepy” hometown of Derton-on-Sea. He’s not necessarily returning by choice, but when things start to sour in London with his work and romantic life, Josh decides it would be best to return home to help his mother care for his ailing father. What follows is a series of comedic moments as Josh reacquaints himself with his family, old friends, and the town he grew up in, which isn’t what it used to be. There’s all the typical characters you would expect in such a story including an over-bearing father, the high school bully, the childhood love interest, an out of touch work boss in London, and a superficial big city girlfriend who Josh can’t seem to please no matter what he does.

The book has plenty of well placed humor that may have you laughing out loud, touches of sadness that may cause you to shed a tear or two, and even moments of frustration (at least for me) as you observe Josh bumble his ways through the various relationships in his life. It kept leading me back to why doesn’t this guy get it, but then I realized it was all part of the philosophical introspection that Dunn is taking us through. Overall, Dunn does a good job making one realize that what we run from, to what we see as better, is not all it’s cracked to be, and that staying put also comes with its own set of challenges. In other words, there is no perfect situation. Life is messy, and that in itself is what makes it worth living.

Even though Home isn’t in my normal reading genre, it was good to take a sojourn outside of my typical science fiction, highly technical fictional reads. I found it to be an entertaining, light read that, as a former colleague liked to say, will make you laugh, make you cry, and possibly make you pee your pants. While it’s not a book you need to put at the top of your reading list, it’s definitely one I consider a Fun Read, and it might even make you contemplate the what-if’s should you ever decide (or have) to leave the big city and return to your small town roots.

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Needless to say, 2024 has gotten off to a slow start for the blog. There’s multiple reasons (aka excuses) this has happened, but I’ve come to the conclusion that I need to update and reorganize the website to get me focused on more regular posting.

Those were the words I used what I made the plans for the blog in 2024 – August of 2024 to be exact. If you don’t be believe me, you don’t have to scroll down the front page of the blog that far to read the entire article. It more or less sums up what happened in 2024 because that slow start extended through the end of the year.

Normally, I do a review of my blogging from the previous year and post plans for the coming year. I’m going to keep it simple this year.

2024 Review

I didn’t do a lot of writing last year. There was a lot going on in both my personal and professional life (mostly personal) that made it difficult to blog on a regular basis. Regardless, it’s more of an excuse than a reason for not doing it.

Bottom line, I posted 7 articles last year. Seven.

It’s disappointing and the fewest I’ve posted in a full year of blogging, which dates back to 2013. I could go through charts and tables of articles posted and most popular posts, but it won’t tell much given the lack of content generated for the year. I could also throw out a whole bunch of reasons defending the low production, but it’s time to look forward, not backward.

2025 Blog Plans

I know what I want to do for the blog. After 12 years, it’s in need of an overhaul. I’m talking about more than a new paint job. It needs ripped down to the studs. The layout needs changed. Walls need to be moved.

Will it happen in 2025? It’s hard to say. I blew up my personal life last year, by choice, and I’m still piecing it back together. If I manage to find the time, there will be posts about what’s happened, but don’t hold your breath. I’m going to do my best, but I predict 2025 is going to be another tough year for the blog.

When I do get around to changing things up, here’s what I would like to do. It’s more or less what I mentioned in last year’s state of the blog post, which I’m going to recap here:

• This blog is going to be broken apart and split up into multiple domains. Each site will have a specific content focus to make it easier for people to find what they’re looking for, especially if they make it to one of the sites via a Google Search.
• This site, which I consider the main blog, will be a life journal, which was the original intent when I started.
• Book reviews will be moved to a separate area on the main blog where I can highlight my must reads, fun reads, and recently finished books. By splitting these into a separate section, there’s a better chance I can keep up with posting a review when I finish reading a book. Currently, I have a backlog of over 340 book reviews to publish.
• Technical posts will be moved to a new site. The site will be related to the software consulting business I started in 2022, MavTech Consulting. Content migration will happen once the website for that entity is live.
• My experiences with sourdough, baking, fermenting foods, and roasting coffee beans will get moved to its own site. In addition to providing tips and suggestions to those getting started on their journey in these areas, I also plan to share some of my favorite recipes and coffees.

In my mind’s eye, I can see the finished product(s). It’s just a matter of getting it done. I certainly hope I can make some progress during 2025, but we’ll see. As the ancient Chinese proverb says, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”

I’m looking forward to taking that first step.

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While I don’t read as many business books as I used to, I’m always on the lookout for books that can help me grow my knowledge to run a successful business. As a solo-preneur, it’s critical to always be learning, especially given how fast the business environment is changing these days. So when Priyesh Dhorajiwala reached out to me to review his book, The Power of Marketing Channels: A Comprehensive Guide to Growing Your Results, I accepted the offer.

As one would expect, The Power of Marketing Channels reviews the different ways a business can market its products and services. It also covers the different tools, websites, and services that are available to maximize the results from each channel that is covered in the book.

For SMBs, small marketing teams, or individuals just starting out in business with limited marketing knowledge, it’s a good book to understand the different marketing channels that are available today and how they can be used effectively. However, therein lies one of the problems with the book. It covers marketing channels as they exist today, which means it covers the period from 2020 through 2024. In other words, this is not a book full of evergreen content, and I doubt that it will age well.

I would also posit that the book is more of a reference manual that covers nearly all the different marketing channels a business could use. It doesn’t get into specific strategies on how to employ them in your business, which would be a tall task since the implementation of marketing tools will vary depending on a business’ needs. Therefore, there isn’t much marketing strategy covered in the book. It basically describes what the marketing channels are, why they may be useful, and gives an example or two of companies that successfully used the channel. How it can be used in your business is left as an exercise for the reader.

What I really liked about the book is Priyesh’s passion for the subject. It really comes through in the first two chapters of the book where he reviews what marketing is and its purpose. It’s clear that he wants to help small businesses and marketing team excel, and creating this reference manual of marketing channels is one of the way he is doing just that. I give him a lot of credit for sharing his knowledge and letting his passion for the subject show in his writing.

I wouldn’t recommend the book for someone who has an extensive knowledge of marketing or experience in the field. However, if you are just starting out, it can be a useful way to get a general feel of the numerous channels available to market your business. Just be aware that by the time you read the book, some of the channels may be outdated simply because the marketing channels are constantly evolving.

Note: I would like to reiterate that Priyesh Dhorajiwala reached out to me during the middle of 2022 to read and review his book. It took me a while to get around to reading it and then finally publishing this review. The opinions expressed herein are my own and were not influenced by the publisher or author in any manner. 

I should also point out that the book has since gone out of print (according to Amazon), so availability of this title may be limited.

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When I published the first set of goals. the targets were simple – workout 160 days, walk 700 miles, and eat healthier. It’s a formula that has worked over the years, keep things simple. It’s what I did last year, and what I plan to continue to do this year. Before detailing this year’s plan, here are the results from last year.

2024 goal review

Working out

120 days was the goal last year. I made it to 100, which is pretty good given some unexpected personal events that took precedence. Plus, I changed up my routine the last few months of the year and replaced my Friday workout with a hike instead.

Physical activity

I made it over 1,000 miles last year – 1,003.75 to be exact. The number consisted of 742.5 miles of walking + hiking and 261.25 miles of running. I didn’t track any other activities, and fortunately I didn’t need to in order to check this one off the list.

Diet

Diet continues to be a work in progress. The field of nutrition is constantly evolving, but there are definitely some consistent themes that have emerged – avoid ultra-processed foods, cut-out added sugars, eat more natural foods such as vegetables and fruits, and mix in fermented foods where possible.

If there was one area where I made progress last year, it was in the fermented food category. I definitely upped my game there, and even experimented with making my own sauerkraut and other fermented fruits and vegetables. It’s been an interesting area to explore, and one I expect I will be doing a lot more experimentation with throughout 2025. It falls under the category of “protect the liver, feed the gut,” which was the biggest takeaway I took from Dr. Lustig’s book, Metabolical, which I would highly recommend.

The goals for 2025

If it isn’t broken, then don’t fix it, right? That’s the approach I’m going to continue taking over this next year. Of course, I’ll learn some new things that I’ll roll into these goals, but the overall themes are going to remain the same.

Working out

Since I really enjoy my Friday morning hikes, I’m going to cut back my work out goal to 75 days. I have a Monday-Wednesday rhythm going that I want to continue doing throughout the year. And there’s always the chance that I might change things up and add a Friday or two back in.

Physical activity

I like the 1,000 mile goal for walking, running, hiking, and cycling. It’s a nice, round number that’s easy to remember. I suspect the activities will consist primarily of walking and running, but who knows what the next year will bring.

Diet

It’s hard to get too specific here because my nutrition knowledge continues to evolve and grow based on what I read and how my body reacts to what I put into it. I’m going to continue my avoidance of ultra processed food and added sugar. I also plan to continue focusing on good carbs and practicing moderation among all things. The biggest change I am anticipating over the next year is the amount of fermented foods that I will add to my diet, which is going to be a function of how adventurous I decide to get. I’d also like to incorporate longer fasting intervals of 24-72 hours throughout the year, but that’s an area I haven’t been good at committing to over the past few years. At a minimum, I’ll stick with my daily intermittent fasting schedule of 14-18 hours, and if the opportunity presents itself, I’ll see if I can fit in a longer fasting period.

And just like that, another year is in the books. I’m looking forward to 2025 and continuing my fitness journey. I don’t know exactly what’s in store or how it will unfold, but one thing is certain. I’m sure I’ll learn a lot over the next year.

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My typical reading routine involves reading a short story between titles on my reading list. Sometimes the story will come from a collection, such as Stories of Your Life and Others (Ted Chiang) or Selected Stories of Philip K. Dick. Other times, interesting stand-alone titles appear.

Such was the case with The Scenic Route by Christina Baker Kline. An email from Amazon alerted me that it was available for free as an Amazon Original. Since I had really enjoyed Kline’s Orphan Train, it was an easy decision to make this one of my short story readings.

The Scenic Route is different from my typical reading genres, which mostly revolve around science fiction. It’s an interesting look at how someone’s life can be upended by an unfortunate series of events, and how that same life can get back on track through a fortuitous series of events. The key message I took away from the book is that no matter what happens in life, we need to keep trying, to keep on the path, to keep working to understand our self and discover who we are, and at the end of the day, things will work out the way they are supposed to.

Overall, the books is well written, tells a good story, contains relatable characters, and conveys a positive, uplifting message when read start-to-finish, which can be done in one sitting under an hour. While the tone of the book does not necessarily involve fun, I’m putting it in my Fun Reads category, which are those books that make for great reading when you’re looking for a good book to pass the time.

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Similar to recent years, I’m maintaining two lists. The first list is my fun reads, which are generally fictional works from the science fiction genre. I read these books for entertainment, although there are distinct reasons why the list leans towards science fiction that you can read about here. My morning reads is the list that I use for learning. The themes are primarily personal development, health and wellness, and business. The guidelines I use to comprise each of these lists are included at the end of this post.

My ‘Want to Read’ list on Goodreads had 205 books on it to start the year which, believe it or not, is an improvement from last year when there over 220 books on it. I generally read about 30 books in a year – 20 from my fun reads and 10 from my morning reads. I’ve trimmed the overall number of books in my queue by being more selective in what I add to it.

While I create and use the lists to guide my reading, I’m don’t rigidly adhere to them. If a strong recommendation or new title comes up, it could jump the queue if I find it interesting.

And now, for this year’s lists.

The fun reads

1. Eversion – Alistair Reynolds
2. Quantum Radio – A.G. Riddle
3. Red Mars – Kim Stanley Robinson
4. Silicon Man – William Massa
5. Foundry – Eliot Peper
6. Calypso – David Sedaris
7. Hyperion – Dan Simmons
8. Please Report Your Bug Here – Josh Reidel
9. The Martian Chronicles – Ray Bradbury
10. Upload – Mark McClelland
11. How to Stop Time – Matt Haig
12. The Fountains of Paradise – Arthur C. Clarke
13. Slick – Daniel Price
14. The Measure – Niki Erlick
15. Startup – Doree Shafrif
16. The Warehouse – Rob Hart
17. The Balloon Hunter – Hugh Howey
18. The Fury – Alex Michaelides
19. The Genius Plague – David Walton
20. Antarctica Station – A.G. Riddle
21. Providence – Max Barry
22. The Immortality Code – Douglas E. Richards
23. vN -Madeline Ashby
24. The Big Disruption – Jessica Powell
25. Just One Damned Thing After Another – Jodi Taylor
26. Returning to Zero – Alan B. Johnston
27. The Premonition: A Pandemic Story – Michael Lewis
28. Machinehood – S.B. Divya
29. Firebreak – Nicole Kornher-Stace
30. Pillar to the Sky – William R. Forstchen

The morning reads

1. Hell Yeah or No – Derek Sivers
2. Good Energy – Casy Means, MD
3. Stoicism and the Art of Happiness – Donald J. Robertson
4. Way of the Turtle – Curtis Faith
5. The Spiritual Brain – Mario Beauregard
6. The Body – Bill Bryson
7. The Expectation Gap – Steve Cuss
8. Reality is Not What it Seems – Carlo Rovelli
9. Company of One – Paul Jarvis
10. Thinner This Year – Chris Crowley
11. Neurofitness – Rahul Jandial
12. Greenlights – Matthew McConaughey
13. Cholesterol Clarity – Jimmy Moore
14. Die with Zero – Bill Perkins
15. The Brain – David Eagleman

The revisit list

Each year, there are a couple of titles that I like to try and revisit. It’s a good way to reinforce the key concepts I took away the first (or last) time I read it. I didn’t do a good job of this last year, but I’d like to revisit at least one or two off this list in 2025.

1. Ego Is the Enemy – Ryan Holiday
2. Mastery – George Leonard
3. The Power of Positive Thinking – Dr. Norman Vincent Peale

Even though I spend considerable effort arranging my reading list, there’s always room for more. Every year, a few books find a way to jump the queue. Feel free to leave recommendations in the comments as I’m always on the lookout for new additions, and if they’re compelling enough, they may find their way onto this year’s list!

If you’re interested in the lists from years past, you can find them here.

The reading list guidelines

To make the curation process a little easier, I’ve come up with a set of guidelines that help me build the reading list.

• I read multiple books at once. I have a couple of daily readers/devotionals, a non-fiction book about personal development, business, or health that I read in the morning, and a recreational book that I like to read in the evening. Therefore, my first task is to split the list into two, my fun reads and my morning reads.
• I keep a third, short list of personal development books to reread. The goal is to revisit and reinforce concepts that I want to incorporate into my day-to-day living.
• Recommendations from trusted sources get highest priority.
• Books from authors I like receive preferential treatment. A few of my current favorites are Blake Crouch, A.G. Riddle, Eliot Peper, Daniel Suarez, and Ryan Holiday.
• If I’ve already purchased a book, I make an effort to prioritize it. In the past, this list was rather lengthy. There are just a handful of books on this list heading into 2025.
• I like to include a few books by new authors. It’s fun reading books by authors I’m not familiar with and discovering up-and coming talents.
• Books still on the 2024 list got moved to the 2025 list. If it was on last year’s list, it belongs on this year’s list. I do my best to put higher priority on books from the prior year’s list, and I made good progress closing out my reading lists from 2021 and 2022.
• My fictional preference is primarily science fiction, but I will venture outside of this genre if provided with a good recommendation. My science fiction books tend more towards books that explore hard science fiction or plausible ideas such as artificial intelligence, human augmentation, or robotics. I’m not one for space operas, although I will dabble here and there if the first book in a series looks interesting.
• I always save room on my list for “classic” science fiction. It fascinates me how authors have foreshadowed or predicted the future in their books, some which were written well over 50 years ago.
• My non-fiction reads center around self-learning, business learning, founder/company stories, neuroscience, and health and nutrition. I do my best to include books from each of these categories every year to stay current on the latest findings.

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Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson was on my radar for a long time. I originally added to my 2017 reading list. I carried it through to my 2020 reading list, where it finally percolated to the top. When I opened the book on my Kindle, I was taken aback by the length – over 900 pages! Having already slogged through Peter Hamilton’s Pandora’s Star earlier that year, I couldn’t bring myself to read another tome of this length. So it languished on my reading list until the second half of 2023, when I finally decided to take the plunge. I knew I would have to eventually given how highly recommended it came from some close friends.

There are two distinct plots in the book that are set in different times. One takes place during World War 2 while the other takes place in the present day.

The World War 2 timeline is a fictional account of how the Allies broke the Enigma code used by the Germans, and how they hid that fact from them. The story is loosely based on actual events that took place during the War. Stephenson does an outstanding job of using these events and his characters to create a believable story about how events could have unfolded around the war and influenced its outcome.

The modern day timeline is about a group of people who are attempting to create a cryptocurrency. Bear in mind that Stephenson wrote the story before cryptocurrency and Bitcoin were a thing. Stephenson raises some excellent points about the benefits of cryptocurrency along with its viability. He also reinforces one of the biggest issues I have with current cryptocurrencies. There’s really nothing backing them outside of hope. It’s topic for another rant post, but it’s the thesis that drives the motivations of the characters in the present day timeline.

The coolest thing about the book is the way Stephenson concludes the book by bridging the events of the two timelines. It’s classic Stephenson at his storytelling best.

My main beef with the book was its length. The book has its high points, but there are also spots where material fills like filler and does little to move the plot along or develop the characters. In other words, there were a number of slow spots that I had to plow through to make it to the reward at the end.

Overall, it’s a good book. I really like Stephenson. He is a master storyteller. And I have nothing against Cryptonomicon. It’s an impressive work with a complex plot that Stephenson somehow holds together for over 900 pages. It’s just a slower read than what I like. If you’re new to Stephenson, I’d recommend starting out with one of his other works, such as Snow Crash. If you’re already a Stephenson fan, then Cryptomicon is worth the effort.

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General Recommendations

1. Exhalation by Ted Chiang
   In between books, I like to read short stories. I picked up this collection by Ted Chiang and had a hard time putting it down. There are nine short stories in the book, but don’t be fooled by their length. These stories are mind-benders, and most have an ending that will blow your mind. At least that was the effect that they had on mine!
2. The Water Knife by Paolo Bacigalupi
   A near future, post-apocalyptic novel set in the Western US. The backdrop is that the drought has worsened, and water rights have become as valuable as gold, if not more so. It involves greed, deception, double-crossing, and an ending that was as mysterious as it was fitting. I also loved the way the author wove in references to a number of non-fiction books covering the nature of water rights in the West, including one of my favorites of all time – Cadillac Desert.
3. Pandora’s Brain by Calum Chace
   When the son of a prominent neuroscientist studying artificial intelligence is killed, a controversial decision is made to upload the slain son’s brain into a conscious, self-aware, artificially intelligent computer. The overall plot and story is not the best I’ve read, but the exploration of how to handle an extremely powerful, conscious AI makes it well worth reading. The big question I was left wondering was whether such an AI would be an aide to humanity or the cause of its destruction. The book also explores the issue of whether humanity is living in a simulation, but I’ll leave that topic as an exercise for the reader to consider.

Technology and Personal Development

1. The Choice by Edith Eger
   I’m not sure where to begin with this one. In The Choice, Dr. Eger recounts her personal story starting from her childhood in Hungary, the traumatic experiences of World War 2 where she was imprisoned in the Auschwitz concentration camp, forced to march across Europe, and rescued in Austria, her move to the United States, and her journey to let go of her past and achieve her ultimate freedom from the prison she created in her own mind. While her personal story is powerful, the book had a profound impact on me personally. It caused me to do a lot of introspection where I learned a lot about myself by reading her story. The Choice can be graphic at times when Dr. Eger recounts specific moments from the concentration camp, and it can be emotionally wrenching to read about her struggle for survival both during and after her imprisonment. However, there are valuable lessons to learn about how letting go of our past is key if we are to experience the freedom to become who we are meant to be.
2. Mindf*ck: Cambridge Analytica and the Plot to Break America – Christopher Wylie
   Wylie was one the primary whistleblowers who came forward to expose how Cambridge Analytica misused Facebook users’ data to manipulate the public and influence important events, such as the 2016 presidential election and Brexit vote. Wylie details how social media has been used, and how it is still being used, to target individuals with specific messages and how this targeting has disrupted governments around the world. In fact, governments are now using social media as a weapon to wage information wars on each other that have the effect of dividing the public, influencing elections, and in extreme cases, inciting violence. Even within countries, powerful entities use these tools to divide and conquer the public in an effort to preserve their power. While one-sided, the book is an important read that will cause you to pause and rethink your use of any social media network, if not the internet itself.
3. Outlive: The Science & Art of Longetivity by Peter Attia
   I like to read one or two health and fitness books per year that challenge my beliefs around health and fitness. Outlive exceeded my expectations. My most important take aways from the book is that there is no “one-size-fits-all” strategy to staying healthy and living longer, and that anyone who espouses it is wrong. We are all different, from our genetics to our experiences and environments that shape us. The challenge is learning, experimenting, and finding what works best for you, and Dr. Attia provides plenty of ideas and resources to help you get started.
4. You Are the Placebo: Making Your Mind Matter by Joe Dispenza
   I wouldn’t recommend this book if you are in the early stages of personal development. Dispenza’s work is more of a 200-level or 400-level course on how to more effectively use your mind to affect your physical condition. It’s a highly meta-physical book, so if you don’t buy into the power of the mind, then this book is going to fall flat, and I mean really flat. But if you believe in the power of the mind, and have found that having beliefs, having faith, and regular meditation can transform your mind and body, then You Are the Placebo will help you take it to another level. In other words, it’s not a book for beginners but for those who are looking to build upon and extend existing practices.

The Fun Reads

• The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick
  A thought-provoking exercise at how the world may have turned out if the Axis were the victors in World War 2.
• The Dog Stars by Peter Heller
  Back-to-back pandemics decimate the world’s population making it a battle for survival among those who remain. More than a story, it’s an exploration of what it means to be human and the drive to live when things are stacked against you.
• Three Laws Lethal by David Walton
  A fictional view of how self-driving cars could emerge, and how things could go awry given that the institutions, laws, and companies involved are either not equipped to handle the problem or have an incentive to exploit the system. Beware, this may make you reconsider self-driving cars, especially those autonomous, self-driving taxi services.
• The Artificial Divide by Gary Lee
  An interesting take on how artificially intelligent machines could evolve and put humans to work to serve the machines.
• When She Woke by Hillary Jordan
  A modern day take on the Scarlet Letter that explores how punishments could be meted out under our current cultural, political, and socioeconomic environment.

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