My 2025 20-Book Reading List

Here we are again. For the fifth year in a row, I’ve completed my annual goal of reading 20 books in a calendar year.

Why 20? I’ve written about that before, but the short answer is discipline. More specifically, it’s my personal version of Jim Collins’ idea of the 20 Mile March – a commitment to steady, non-negotiable progress, regardless of conditions.

The original concept comes from explorers who survived brutal expeditions by marching a fixed distance every day, no matter the conditions. The consistency mattered more than the pace. The march wasn’t about heroics, it was about showing up. Over time, those small, disciplined wins compound into something meaningful. My quest happens to be 20 books per year.

Books are an entry point to knowledge, perspective, and ideas. But wisdom only sticks when it’s tested in real life.

This past year delivered its share of change, curveballs, and setbacks, alongside meaningful rewards. As my wife and I prepare to welcome our first baby next year, the importance of consistency over intensity feels more real than ever. Reading became both an escape and a practice – one controllable commitment that helped me stay grounded amid uncertainty. I leaned even more heavily on audiobooks this year, meeting the march wherever life allowed.

With that, here’s my 2025 list, shared in the order I read them. Amazon links included, even when the “reading” happened through headphones.

This year started out with a bang. This is definitely the best science fiction book I have ever come across. Highly recommend the audiobook version narrated by Jonathan Davis. It will transport you to a different world, filled with hyper-capitalism and linguistic warfare, but it won’t be hard to draw parallels to our current society’s predicament of warped public opinion and disillusionment with respect to technological advancement.

I’ve gifted this on iBooks at least 3 times already – it’s that good.

 

If you’re a writer, or even pretending to be one like me, this is a must read. McPhee threads the needle of prose and pragmatic advice to articulate the finer points of writing with purpose. Through essays, interviews, and examples from his own work, he demystifies structure, revision, and voice, showing that good writing is less about inspiration and more about disciplined thinking on the page.

 

Snow Crash is a hard act to follow, but this thriller absolutely delivered. Written by the author of The Martian, this audiobook is a masterclass in science fiction storytelling, elevated by outstanding voice acting that had me completely hooked. The timing couldn’t have been better as the first trailer for the Ryan Gosling–led film dropped shortly after I finished. If this adaptation captures even a fraction of what makes the book special, space nerds are in for the biggest treat since Interstellar.

 

That said, as every bookworm will insist: read (or listen to) the book first.

 

Wildly entertaining and surprisingly practical. If you’ve ever worked in restaurants (or even just love restaurant culture), this one will hit home. Guidara blends great stories with concrete lessons on raising the bar for what’s “expected” in order to create experiences that feel truly exceptional. Think of this as a guide on how to become world-class.

 

I ended up gifting this to my brother-in-law, who’s deep into The Bear, and it was an easy win. Fans of the show will find a lot to love here.

 

This earns the top spot as the best all-around novel I read this year. Towles writes with a level of craft and patience that feels increasingly rare, creating characters who are rich, memorable, and deeply human. While the entire cast shines, Billy (the younger brother) quietly steals the show and lingers long after the final page.

 

If you’re looking for your next great adventure or a perfect beach read, consider this your sign. They just don’t make `em like this one anymore.

 

I’ve been a massive Blink-182 fan my whole life, so I jumped on this the moment it came out. With Mark narrating the audiobook himself, the format choice wasn’t even a question. Even as a self-proclaimed Tom DeLonge fanboy, it was fascinating to hear Mark’s firsthand account of the band’s struggles on their path to superstardom. If you’re a Blink fan, this one’s a no-brainer.

 

If you don’t know who Kevin Kelly is, go listen to a podcast or two. He’s a modern-day Socrates with a dash of Seth Godin. Don’t let the Amish-looking beard fool you; nearly everything he puts into the world is thoughtful, original, and worth your time. A great gift for all ages.

 

It wouldn’t be a good year without mixing in some Bourdain, one of my favorite authors and personalities. Unlike his other books, this one is more travelogue than memoir. Equal parts food, culture, and unapologetic curiosity. It reads like a passport stamped with great meals, sharp observations, and the raw honesty that made Bourdain impossible not to idolize.

 

You’ll notice a theme from here through #18. This book marked the beginning of a difficult stretch at work and became a real inflection point for the year. I was craving practical frameworks and honest stories from battle-tested leaders, and Horowitz delivers both without sugarcoating the reality of hard decisions. Even if you’re not a founder or CEO, there are clear takeaways here for any leader navigating uncertainty and pressure.

 

I read the print copy of this book years ago, but stumbled across the audiobook after Dr. Andrew Huberman recommended it on his podcast as a necessary annual reminder. Pressfield’s blunt, no-nonsense take on creativity, resistance, and showing up does exactly what it’s supposed to do: it snaps you out of excuses and back into the work. Short, sharp, and endlessly re-listenable. I will definitely continue to revisit this one.

 

A strange, but thought-provoking read. While it ended up being my least favorite of the year, it did force me to question which parts of my life are truly necessary versus merely habitual or extraneous. The first half carries most of the book’s insight; the back half drifts into territory that feels less compelling and increasingly abstract.

 

The theme of hunting for management advice continued here, and this one lived up to its reputation. Grove breaks down management into clear systems, leverage points, and decision-making frameworks that feel just as relevant today as when the book was written. Dense at times, but packed with practical insights for anyone responsible for building teams and driving results.

 

This short read offers an interesting window into how someone like Thiel thinks about building and scaling companies. While not every idea lands, the book challenges conventional startup wisdom and pushes you to think more clearly about differentiation, monopoly, and creating something truly new rather than iterating on what already exists.

 

I first read this as a young adult after Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, and it unexpectedly resurfaced in my mind years later, sparked by a vivid memory of its cover art. That flash was enough to send me to eBay in search of a hard copy like the one I owned as a kid. Written in plain, accessible language for a younger audience, the novel follows Paul, a mixed-race protagonist navigating brutal realities in the post–Civil War South. His journey is both inspiring and infuriating, delivering hard lessons that stick.

 

I’m not a worrier by nature, but this book arrived at a moment when anxiety was undeniably present. I finished the audiobook during our move from Marina del Rey to Manhattan Beach, unpacking boxes while trying to make sense of a season full of change. Along the way, I realized how often I interact with worriers, both at work and in my personal life, and how useful it is to understand anxiety from the inside out.

 

Beyond managing my own worry, the biggest value here was learning how to help others through theirs. The core takeaways were deceptively simple: gather the facts, write them down, and revisit them later. Only facts enable good decisions; only writing turns vague fear into something concrete; and reflection has a way of revealing how many worries dissolve with time. Live inside of day-tight compartments.

 

As Seneca put it, “We suffer more in our imagination than in reality.”

 

Another re-read, this time in audiobook form. I first read the print copy when it came out during the pandemic, silently channeling my best McConaughey impression while sitting in a beach chair outside my Venice apartment. As you’d expect, hearing the stories in his own voice hits louder, funnier, and far more entertaining than anything I could’ve supplied myself.

 

As you might expect (wink), once we knew we were welcoming a baby in 2026, I went straight to the most popular pregnancy books. Candidly, my wife isn’t much of a reader. She prefers the SparkNotes version, so this quickly turned into me flipping pages before bed and shouting out highlights. Fortunately, Oster’s data-driven, myth-busting approach made those summaries both useful and reassuring…even if they were delivered at volume.

 

Set and setting matter. I first read the print copy years ago, in a cold hospital waiting room while my father-in-law was dealing with a kidney infection during the holidays. At the time it felt dry and forgettable. But after hearing so many people I respect (Tim Ferriss, Jim Collins, etc.) speak with near reverence about this book, I decided it deserved another pass.

 

I’m glad I chose the audiobook this time, because it finally clicked. Yes, some sections are still dense, but buried within are the lessons that matter most, especially Drucker’s insistence that effectiveness is a learned discipline, not a personality trait. 

 

Some core insights I took away were: 

• Focus on doing the right things, not just doing things right. 
• Careful analysis of where & how one’s time is spent can unlock great potential.
• Contribution trumps busyness; effectiveness is measured by impact, not motion.

This book is profound. This short, provocative guide to waking up from unconscious patterns that shape our thoughts, emotions, and relationships. Through blunt observations and spiritual insight, de Mello challenges readers to see reality clearly, let go of attachments, and discover freedom through self-awareness rather than self-improvement.

 

No surprise here, this is another Tim Ferriss recommendation he’s referenced countless times on his podcast. If you haven’t already picked up on the pattern, Tim probably accounts for a solid 50% of my reading list in any given year.

 

I wrapped up the year flying through this one from a beach chair down the street from our new place in Manhattan Beach. While there’s still some natural nervousness about what’s ahead, this book left me more excited about fatherhood than anything else I read this year.

 

And it’s hard to stay anxious when your new reading spot is a 10-minute walk from your front door, with a front-row seat to the Pacific. 

 

As I said earlier: set and setting matter.

 

Well, that’s a wrap on reading in 2025. What should I read in 2026?