1. The Peloponnesian War by Donald Kagan, February 4, 2023, 8 Stars
2. The Odyssey by Homer, February 17, 2023 (reread) 7 Stars
3. The Storm Before the Storm by Mike Duncan , February 25, 2023, 10 Stars
4. Dune by Frank Herbert , March 23, 2023, 7 Stars
(From here, video only reviews. No star rating for the following books.).
5. Bulfinch's Mythology: The Age of Fable or Stories of Gods and Heroes by Thomas Bulfinch , March 23, 2023 (reread)
6. Diagramming Sentences by Amy Lynn Hess , March 26, 2023
7. The Linguistics Wars: Chomsky, Lakoff and the Battle Over Deep Structure by Randy Allen Harris Second Edition June 19, 2023 (reread)
8. How to Teach Listening by J.J. Wilson , July 6, 2023
9. Getting Things Done by David Allen, July 28, 2023
10. Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh, July 31, 2023
11. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle, August 3, 2023
12. Children's Stories From Old British and Irish Legends by J Emmerson-Hicks, August 11, 2023
13. How to Teach for Exams by Sally Burgess and Katie Head , August 25, 2023
14. Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel , September 8, 2023
14. Bring Up the Bodies by Hilary Mantel , September 21, 2023
15. Dracula by Bram Stoker, October 24, 2023 (reread)
16. Journey to the West by Wu Cheng'en translated by W. J. F. Jenner, October 27, 2023
----Volume 1 February 15, 2023
----Volume 2 June 02, 2023
----Volume 3 August 05, 2023
----Volume 4 October 26, 2023
1. Classics Illustrated: The Odyssey: Illustrated by Harley M. Griffiths, February 12, 2023
2. Buddha by Osamu Tezuka, April 13, 2023
---- Buddha, Vol. 1: Kapilavastu February 1, 2023
---- Buddha, Vol. 2: The Four Encounters February 02, 2023
---- Buddha, Vol. 3: Devadatta February 03, 2023
---- Buddha, Vol. 4: The Forest of Uruvela February 07, 2023
---- Buddha, Vol. 5: Deer Park February 18, 2023
---- Buddha, Vol. 6: Ananda March 02, 2023
---- Buddha, Vol. 7: Prince Ajatasattu March 30, 2023
---- Buddha, Vol. 8: Jetavana April 11, 2023
3. Batman Knightfall Volume 1, April 15, 2023
4. Mighty Marvel Masterworks: Captain America Vol. 1: The Sentinel Of Liberty by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, June 8, 2023
5. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Ugly Truth by Jeff Kinney, June 17, 2023
6. Marvel Horror Lives Again!, September 1, 2023
7. Thor Epic Collection #8: War of the Gods, October 1, 2023
8. The Incredible Hulk Epic Collection #13: Crossroads, November 16, 2023
9. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Roderick Rules by Jeff Kinney, November 17, 2023
10. Superman: Funeral for a Friend, November 28, 2023 (reread)
11. Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, December 22, 2023 (reread)
12. Doomsday Clock (Parts 1 and 2) by Geoff Johns, Gary Frank and Brad Anderson, December 25, 2023
13. Aquaman: War for the Throne: by Geoff Johns, Paul Pelletier, Ivan Reis, December 31, 2023
Abandoned Books (aka DNF):
Notes
* The Peloponnesian War by Donald Kagan was actually finished on December 28, 2022. But I reviewed it in 2023, and I've always done these lists by the review date. Also, The Odyssey by Homer was finished in 2023, but just barely. I finished the last few pages on January 1, 2023, but the bulk of the book was read in 2022.
* I also finished (and reviewed) Three Kingdoms Volume 1 by Luo Guanzhong. But since I still have 3 more volumes left to go, I'll hold off on counting this until I've read the whole thing.
* There's been a small change in my accounting since 2022. In 2022, I counted books from the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series as regular books. In 2023, I decided it would be more accurate to count them as comic books.
* As with every year, my goal is to read a mix of classic books and guilty pleasures. So no apologies for all the lowbrow stuff on my reading list. Hopefully the more serious books helps to balance things out.
* As with every year, I wish I had read more. I always feel embarrassed when I compare my list to other booktubers. (e.g. HERE is the 2023 reading list of a friend of mine from high school. 289 books. How do these people do it?) And yet, as with the past few years, given my inherent slow reading pace, and given how busy I've been, I think I made a decent try at keeping up my reading. (It's been another really busy year over here. 2 kids, 3 jobs, lots of of lesson planning and marking, lots of filing paperwork and dealing with various government bureaucracies, studying Vietnamese, working on my story everyday, etc.)
However, it must be admitted that I've also wasted a lot of evenings. There have been several evenings this past year when I had an hour or two to myself after the kids have gone to bed, and I wasted that time watching junk on Youtube instead of reading. I must try to do better for next year!
(I know, I say that every year, and I never seem to kick the habit. Well, what can you do? Try again this year.)
* This year also is the year I stopped doing written reviews, and switched over to video only reviews. It was a decision I made with some mixed feelings, but on the whole I feel like it was the smart thing to do. I just don't have the time to write long reviews of everything anymore. Switching to video only reviews allows me to review my reading material without spending a lot of time on it.
The problem with doing video reviews is that I'm not very good at it. There have definitely been times this past year when I've felt guilty as I uploaded an incoherent and rambling video review to my Youtube channel. Is it okay to put this out into the world and subject other people to it when I know it's largely unwatchable? I don't know. I get some sort of satisfaction by being able to talk about the things I've read, and have an outlet for my thoughts. After I film a review, even if it's a bad review, I still feel like I've satisfied my urge to talk about the book, and I can move on with my life. And as for the video, I justify it to myself by telling myself that I'm not forcing anyone to watch my videos.
Which is not to say I'm not trying to connect with people. I am doing my best to make my videos something that other people can watch. I'm just not very good at it, and I don't have the time to do multiple takes or do any editing. (Also if you look at the length of my videos, it must be admitted that I am clearly prioritizing "talking about everything I want to talk about" over "keeping my videos down to a watchable length", but I am still trying to make the video as engaging as I can.)
Blogging, and by extension vlogging, occupies this weird in-between space where you're not really sure if you're doing it purely for as an outlet for self-expression, or if your doing it to connect with other people.
My Recommendations
I'm going to do something different this year. Rather than try to pick the best and the worst books (as I've done in the past), I'm just going to try to pick out the books from the list that I would recommend. These are books that may be flawed in some ways, but that are, on the whole, well-worth your time.
* The Peloponnesian War by Donald Kagan The Peloponnesian War can be a confusing mess. It lasts for decades, it has many different stages, many different belligerents, and many different theatres of war. But it is also tremendously important for world history, and (because of its impact on Greek literature and philosophy) important for world cultural history. So if you want to be cultured, I think you have to make a stab at understanding what was going on. And this book is as clear and concise a narrative as I think you're likely to find. Admittedly, I got a bit bored with some of the chapters detailing the various military maneuverings, but there was enough really interesting stuff in this book to make up for the boring parts. It's well worth your time.
* The Storm Before the Storm by Mike Duncan Another important event in world history, and a period that has a lot of parallels to current events. Mike Duncan is an excellent storyteller, so it's a pleasure to read.
* The Linguistics Wars: Chomsky, Lakoff and the Battle Over Deep Structure by Randy Allen Harris Second Edition As with The Peloponnesian War, this is another book that can be a bit of a slog at times, but has enough interesting stuff in it to make up for the boring bits. If you want to understand 20th century linguistics, the impact of linguistics on philosophy and cognitive science, and the towering, but mixed, intellectual legacy of Noam Chomsky, you need to read this book. If you're like me, there will be sections of this book you don't fully understand. Don't worry about it. Just keep reading, and eventually it will make sense again. There's enough interesting stuff in here that you'll be glad you stuck with it.
* Journey to the West by Wu Cheng'en One of the four great Chinese classics. A huge part of not only China's culture, but also the culture of Japan, Korea and Vietnam. I complained years ago that we Americans are terribly ignorant about the Asian literary canon, so reading this book was my long-overdue attempt to try to make up for my own ignorance. And the good news is, it's actually fun to read. It's an old Chinese classic, but the narrative is fast-paced, the prose is easy to read (at least in modern translation), it's action packed, and it's filled with wonderful and fantastic creatures. So much fun! Now, on the negative side, it is very long, episodic, and repetitive. So you do need some patience. About halfway through, I realized that this wasn't so much a novel as it was a collection of loosely connected folk tales, and that I should treat the reading experience just like reading The Brothers Grimm --savor each story for what it is, and don't worry about how long it takes to finish the whole book. Alternatively, you might be just as well off reading an abridged version if you don't have the patience to read the whole thing. But either way, it's definitely worth checking out.
Playlist for 2023 books here:
See also my Weekly Reading Vlogs for this year:
January 1, 2023 The Peloponnesian War p.396-494, The Odyssey p.212-320 (206 pages)
January 8, 2023 The Storm before the Storm p.1-226 (226 pages)
January 15, 2023 The Storm Before the Storm p.226-268, Dune p.1-884, Bulfinch's Mythology p.1-44 (970 pages)
January 22, 2023 Bulfinch's Mythology p.44-379, Journey to the West Introduction p.1-22, Story 1-222 (579 pages)
January 29, 2023 Journey to the West p.222-446 (224 pages)
February 5, 2023 Journey to the West p.446-466, The Peloponnesian War xxiii-xxvii, 1-4 (29 pages)
February 12, 2023 Journey to the West p.466-544, The Odyssey p1-18 (96 pages)
February 19, 2023 Journey to the West p.544-644, The Odyssey p.18-21, The Storm Before the Storm p.1-20 (119 pages)
February 26, 2023 Journey to the West p.644-698, The Storm Before the Storm p.20-41, Dune p.1-16 (91 pages)
March 5, 2023 Journey to the West p.698-742, Dune p.16-62, Diagramming Sentences p.1-82 (172 pages)
March 12, 2023 Journey to the West p.742-790, Dune p.62-68, Diagramming Sentences p.82-104 (76 pages)
March 19, 2023 Journey to the West p.790-832, Dune p.68-70, Diagramming Sentences p.104-108 (48 pages)
March 26, 2023 Journey to the West p.832-860 Diagramming Sentences p.108-120 (40 pages)
April 2, 2023 Journey to the West p.860-900, The Linguistics Wars p.i-xvi, p.1-36 (92 pages)
April 23, 2023 Journey to the West p.990-992, The Linguistics Wars p.104-106, Tiếng Việt 123 p.10-11 (5 pages)
April 30, 2023 Journey to the West p.992-1014, The Linguistics Wars p.106-158 (74 pages)
May 7, 2023 Journey to the West p.1014-1040, The Linguistics Wars p.158-184 (54 pages)
May 14, 2023 Journey to the West p.1040-1070, The Linguistics Wars p.184-202, How to Teach Listening p.1-46 (94 pages)
May 21, 2023 Journey to the West p.1070-1112, The Linguistics Wars p.202-246, How to Teach Listening p.46-56 (96 pages)
May 28, 2023 Journey to the West p.1112-1140, The Linguistics Wars p.246-270, How to Teach Listening p.56-86 (82 pages)
June 4, 2023 Journey to the West p.1140-1173, The Linguistics Wars p.270-334, How to Teach Listening p.86-100, Tiếng Việt 123 p.11-12 (112 pages)
June 11, 2023 Journey to the West p.1177-1192, The Linguistics Wars p.334-392, How to Teach Listening p.100-110 (83 pages)
June 18, 2023 Journey to the West p.1192-1200, The Linguistics Wars p.392-421, How to Teach Listening p.110-112 (39 pages)
July 2, 2023 Journey to the West p.1258-1336, How to Teach Listening p.122-130 (86 pages)
July 9, 2023 Journey to the West p.1336-1392, How to Teach Listening p.130-177, Getting Things Done p.1-28, Tiếng Việt 123: Vietnamese for Beginner p.12-13 (132 pages)
July 16, 2023 Journey to the West p.1392-1486, Getting Things Done p.28-108 (174 pages)
July 23, 2023 Journey to the West p.1486-1520, Getting Things Done p.108-202, How to Teach for Exams p.1-66, Tiếng Việt 123 p.13-14 (195 pages)
July 30, 2023 Journey to the West p.1520-1660, Getting Things Done p.202-259, How to Teach for Exams p.66-94, Harriet the Spy p.1-164 (389 pages)
August 6, 2023 Journey to the West p.1660-1758, How to Teach for Exams p.94-96, Harriet the Spy p.164-300, A Wrinkle in Time p.1-236, Old British and Irish Legends p.1-60 (532 pages)
August 13, 2023 Journey to the West p.1761-1874, How to Teach for Exams p.96-102, Old British and Irish Legends p.60-190, Wolf Hall p.1-32 (281 pages)
August 20, 2023 Journey to the West p.1874-1924, How to Teach for Exams p.102-106, Wolf Hall p.32-184, Tieng Viet 123 p.14-15 (207 pages)
August 27, 2023 Journey to the West p.1924-1958, How to Teach for Exams p.106-141, Wolf Hall p.184-292 (177 pages)
September 3, 2023 Journey to the West p.1958-1996, Wolf Hall 292-378 (124 pages)
September 10, 2023 Journey to the West p.1996-2046, Wolf Hall 378-532, Bring Up the Bodies by p.1-70, Tieng Viet 123 p.15-16 (275 pages)
September 17, 2023 Journey to the West p.2046-2082, Bring Up the Bodies by p.70-346 (312 pages)
September 24, 2023 Journey to the West p.2082-2130, Bring Up the Bodies by p.346-485, The Mirror and the Light p.1-54 (241 pages)
October 1, 2023 Journey to the West p.2130-2198, The Mirror and the Light p.54-94 (108 pages)
October 8, 2023 Journey to the West p.2198-2210, The Mirror and the Light p.94-112, Dracula p.1-110, Tieng Viet 123 p.16-17 (141 pages)
October 15, 2023 Journey to the West p.2210-2232, The Mirror and the Light p.112-142, Dracula p.110-240 (182 pages)
October 22, 2023 Journey to the West p.2232-2254, The Mirror and the Light p.142-180, Dracula p.240-350 (170 pages)
October 29, 2023 Journey to the West p.2254-2346, The Mirror and the Light p.180-216, Dracula p.350-365, Three Kingdoms Introduction p.1-20, p.1-35, Leviticus 1-11, Teaching Speaking p.1-18 (226 pages)
November 5, 2023 The Mirror and the Light p.216-268, Three Kingdoms p.35-108, Leviticus 11-15, Teaching Speaking p.18-40 (155 pages)
November 12, 2023 The Mirror and the Light p.268-330, Three Kingdoms p.108-224, Leviticus 15-22, Teaching Speaking p.40-48 (194 pages)
November 19, 2023 The Mirror and the Light p.330-352, Three Kingdoms p.224-302, Leviticus 22-27, Numbers 1-4, Teaching Speaking p.48-96 (161 pages)
November 26, 2023, The Mirror and the Light p.352-388, Three Kingdoms p.302-386, Numbers 4-18, Teaching Speaking p.96-110 (154 pages)
December 3, 2023, The Mirror and the Light p.388-392, Three Kingdoms p.386-456, Numbers 18-21, Teaching Speaking p.110-136 (104 pages)
December 10, 2023 The Mirror and the Light p.392-414, Three Kingdoms p.456-502, Numbers 21-22, Teaching Speaking p.136-138 (72 pages)
December 17, 2023 The Mirror and the Light p.414-416, Three Kingdoms p.502-542,597-612 Numbers 23-24 (56 pages)
December 24, 2023 The Mirror and the Light p.416-440, Three Kingdoms p.612-678 Numbers 24-26 (92 pages)
December 31, 2023 The Mirror and the Light p.440-494, Three Kingdoms p.678-780, Numbers 26-36, Deuteronomy 1-3 (171 pages)
Weekly Page Count Average: 168 pages
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