Happy People Read Books: My 2017 Book List

As a history major in college, I read a lot of material for each class. And with my college being on the quarter system, that meant a dozen or two books per quarter. Unfortunately, this material wasn’t all something I’d choose. I’ve always been an avid reader, but as life went on, my reading scaled back due to family and work obligations over the decades.

This year I thought it’d push myself a little and set a goal of reading thirty books this year. I feel accomplished in a couple of ways. First, only 34,529 of 3.1 million Goodreads users who pledged a goal actually met their goal. Second, because I exceeded my goal by reading a 36-books in 2017. My reading interests are primarily science fiction, fantasy, spirituality and Buddhism.

The list intentionally included people of color, women, and non-binary authors. I also don’t necessarily stick to current-year titles, so I can’t give you a “best of…” for the year’s releases but I can highlight a few books to pick for yourself.

But first, here’s the list:

Science Fiction and Fantasy

• California Bones, by Greg Van Eekhout
• The Gunslinger, by Stephen King (my first Stephen King!?!)
• The Drawing of the Three, by Stephen King (my second SK!?!)
• Doomsday Book, by Connie Willis
• Ready Player One, by Ernest Cline
• The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter, by Theodore Goss
• A History of Bees, by Maja Lunde
• Helliconia Spring, by Brian W. Aldiss
• The Last Unicorn, by Peter S. Beagle
• The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet, by Becky Chambers
• A Closed and Common Orbit, by Becky Chambers
• The Left Hand of Darkness, by Ursula K. Le Guin (re-read)
• New York 2140, by Kim Stanley Robinson (environmental theme)
• Nemesis Games, by James S.A. Corey
• The Hum and the Shiver, by Alex Bledsoe
• Gateway, by Frederik Pohl
• The Salt Roads, by Nalo Hopkinson
• The Fifth Season, by N.K. Jemisen
• The Three-Body Problem, by Liu Cixin (hard SciFi)
• The Invisible Library, by Genevieve Cogman
• Everfair, by Nisi Shawl

Nonfiction

• What Does it Mean to by White?: Developing White Racial Literacy, by Robin DiAngelo (twice this year)
• Whistling Vivaldi: How Stereotypes Affect Us and What We Can Do, by Claude M. Steele
• Trans* in College: Transgender Students’ Strategies for Navigating Campus Life and the Institutional Politics of Inclusion, by Z Nicolazzo
• The Gandhian Iceberg, by Chris Moore-Backman

Spirituality / Buddhism

• The Other Shore, by Thich Nhat Hanh
• Happy Teachers Change the World, by Thich Nhat Hanh
• How to Fight, by Thich Nhat Hanh
• The Art of Living, by Thich Nhat Hanh
• The Art of Communicating, by Thich Nhat Hanh
• Silence, by Thich Nhat Hanh
• Hermitage Among the Clouds, by Thich Nhat Hanh
• At Home in the World, by Thich Nhat Hanh
• Interbeing, by Thich Nhat Hanh (re-read)
• Secular Buddhism, by Stephen Bachelor

Now that I’ve written out the list, I’m feeling a bit challenged to recommend anything. They were all good in their own way, but some were certainly better than others. I totally enjoyed reading Ready Player One, The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter, and The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet. All fun and quick. But I did pick up the second book in Becky’s Chamber’s universe so maybe I’ll recommend that one to you. The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet is a very sweet and touching story. Great character development. Appreciate the philosophical digressions about life, ethics, humanity. Solid on describing different species. Keeps the story moving when it’s time to move on to the next scene.

From the nonfiction stack, I can easily recommend reading What Does it Mean to be White? (especially to my fellow white-readers!). It’s a bit academic, being written by a sociologist, but still worth the read. Get challenged. Think critically about racism. See your privilege and move in the direction of racial literacy.

In the last category, spirituality and Buddhism, I’m going to need to say Happy Teachers Change the World was my favorite. It’s a great textbook for mindfulness practitioners both inside and outside the classroom. Don’t let the “teachers” part of the title turn you off because this can easily be used by just about anyone. Great practices, guidelines, and methods for learning to breath and being more mindful and present for others.

Coming up,  2018 will likely be more of the same. You might want to get started with Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus, originally released in January 1, 1818 by Mary Shelley. Considered by many to be the first science fiction book written.

Like what I read? Follow me on GoodReads. Questions about a specific title, write it in the comments.

Enjoy.