> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.andrewliptak.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # What I read in 2023 - URL: https://www.andrewliptak.com/what-i-read-in-2023/ - Published: 2024-01-03T16:21:30.000Z - Updated: 2024-01-03T16:25:48.000Z - Description: 38 books in 2023. - Author: Andrew Liptak - Tags: Books, Book List Something that I've done over the years is keep track of what I'm reading: I usually keep track on social media in a longer thread, but that sort of broke when I stopped using Twitter last fall. I had a goal of 52 books to read this year, and came up pretty short: I was only able to finish 38 before the end of the year. It was *a* year, so I'm not terribly surprised. I didn't really find myself in the right mindset to sink into books for most of the summer and fall. Here are my lists for the last couple of years: [2022](https://www.andrewliptak.com/what-i-read-in-2022/) (52), [2021](https://www.andrewliptak.com/2021-reading-list-science-fiction-fantasy-horror-books/) (52), [2020](https://www.andrewliptak.com/what-i-read-in-2020/) (44), [2019](https://www.andrewliptak.com/blog/what-i-read-in-2019-books-science-fiction-fantasy-history-reading?ref=transfer-orbit.ghost.io) (42), and [2018](https://www.andrewliptak.com/blog/2018/12/6/all-the-books-i-read-in-2018-science-fiction-fantasy-horror-history?ref=transfer-orbit.ghost.io) (74). I've been thinking a lot about *why* I keep track. Some of it is to keep me honest and to keep reading, rather than to mindlessly scroll through social media feeds. I had a lot of plans for 2023 – including an ambitious plan to read a number of SF classics – but fell short there. But I did find some books that I did really enjoy, some that were unexpected, some that were rereads that I happened to pick up, and some anticipated novels that I'd been looking for. I ended up reading a lot of nonfiction, too – books about the space race, eugenics, nuclear disasters, and pop culture. Despite the lower book count, I did come away from the year a little more interested and knowledgeable, so that's a win, right? Here’s what I read in 2023: 1. *Valuable Humans in Transit and Other Stories* by qntm 2. *Dune* by Frank Herbert 3. *Ghost of the Hardy Boys: The Writer Behind the World’s Most Famous Boy Detectives* by Leslie McFarlane 4. *Babel* by R.F. Kuang 5. *The Fisherman* by John Langan ([Review](https://www.andrewliptak.com/john-langan-the-fisherman-gothic-horror-book-review/)) 6. *Tread of Angels* by Rebecca Roanhorse 7. *Proving Ground: The Untold Story of the Six Women Who Programmed the World’s First Modern Computer* by Kathy Kleiman 8. *Across the Airless Wilds: The Lunar Rover and the Triumph of the Final Moon Landings* by Earl Swift 9. *README.txt* by Chelsea Manning 10. *Under the Henfluence: Inside the World of Backyard Chickens and the People Who Love Them* by Tove Danovich 11. *Sphere* by Michael Crichton ([Post](https://www.andrewliptak.com/used-bookstore-library-discovery/)) 12. *The Terraformers* by Annalee Newitz ([Review](https://www.andrewliptak.com/annalee-newitz-the-terrraformers-sci-fi-book-review/)) 13. *Yellowface* by R.F. Kuang 14. *Starter Villain* by John Scalzi 15. *Consider Phlebas* by Iain M. Banks 16. *Homicidal Psycho Jungle Cat* by Bill Watterson 17. *Ancillary Justice* by Ann Leckie 18. *The Bright Ages: A New History of Medieval Europe* by Matthew Gabriele and David M. Perry 19. *The Rise and Reign of the Mammals: A New History, from the Shadow of the Dinosaurs to Us* by Steve Brusatte 20. *The Middling Affliction* by Alex Shvartsman 21. *Midnight in Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World's Greatest Nuclear Disaster* by Adam Higginbotham 22. *Rose/House* by Arkady Martine ([Review](https://www.andrewliptak.com/review-arkady-martini-rose-house/)) 23. *Wild Spaces* by S.L. Coney ([Review](https://www.andrewliptak.com/sl-coney-wild-spaces-lovecraftian-horror/)) 24. *All the Sinners Bleed* by S.A. Cosby ([Review](https://www.andrewliptak.com/sa-cosby-all-the-sinners-bleed-review-rural-america/)) 25. *“Vermont for the Vermonters”: The History of Eugenics in the Green Mountain State* by Mercedes de Guardiola ([Interview](https://www.andrewliptak.com/vermont-historical-society-eugenics-book/)) 26. *Vampires of El Norte* by Isabel Cañas ([Review](https://www.andrewliptak.com/vampires-of-el-norte-isabel-canas-horror-book-review/)) 27. *Translation State* by Ann Leckie 28. *MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios* by Joanna Robinson, Dave Gonzales, and Gavin Edwards 29. *A Wizard of Earthsea* by Ursula K. Le Guin 30. *The Big Bang Theory: The Definitive, Inside Story of the Epic Hit Series* by Jessica Radloff 31. *Orders of Battle* by Marko Kloos 32. *Centers of Gravity* by Marko Kloos 33. *Flight Risk* by Cherie Priest 34. *A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies* by Bartolomé de las Casas 35. *The Culture: The Drawings* by Iain M. Banks 36. *The Time Machine* by H.G. Wells 37. *The Hard Switch* by Owen D. Pomery 38. *Eon* by Greg Bear ([Obit](https://www.andrewliptak.com/greg-bear/)) So, with 2024 now on the books, I've reset the clock: we'll see if I can muster up another 52 reads in the next 12 months. What did you read this year? What books stuck with you, and what are your plans for this year?