Drew Thomas Humphrey

I feel like a fraud. Anyone who publishes a year-end book list should have done enough reading to justify their opinions. And this year, I haven’t.

In terms of volume, it was my worst year of reading in over a decade. (It was also my busiest, which may have something to do with that.) At one point, I’m pretty sure I let two or three months slip past without finishing even a single book. It was a failure of epic proportions.

But since I’ve religiously shared this list for seven straight years, there’s no way I’m stopping now. Sure, my sample size might be significantly smaller than it usually is. But I still managed to spend some quality time with some quality tomes, and I’m here to tell you all about it.

Per tradition, the list below is numbered chronologically, reflecting the order in which I read each book, not its ranking in relationship to others. And as always, the primary criterion is my own subjective experience.

Here’s the official list for 2023:

1. Crossroads (Jonathan Franzen). After loving The Corrections and Freedom in years past, I had high expectations for this book. It didn’t disappoint. Featuring a complicated family with an arsenal of secrets, this story is depressing and chaotic in all the ways I would expect a Franzen novel to be. At the same time, there’s something refreshingly true and honest about the way it’s written. Life is messy, and stories like this are an important way we can cope with the complexity of it all. In a way I can’t fully explain, this book was almost therapeutic.

2. Racing the Clock (Bernd Heinrich). It doesn’t get more niche than this: a memoir about running ultramarathons interwoven with reflections on the inevitability of getting older. Can you tell where my mind is these days as I crank out the miles and creep up on my 40s? I loved the simple beauty of this book. It gave me a deeper appreciation for the daily discipline of long-distance running, but more importantly, it gave me a readiness to embrace the aging process and all that goes with it.

3. Our Missing Hearts (Celeste Ng). Writing one great book might be a fluke. Writing two might be a happy coincidence. But three? That can only be the result of unmistakable talent. Enter Celeste Ng. Having already blown me away with Everything I Never Told You and Little Fires Everywhere, her latest release proved every bit as good as the first two. Written with a tenderness and elegance that resonate with the soul, this dystopian drama celebrates hope, love, and the power of defiance.

4. Hell of a Book (Jason Mott). There’s a part of me that wonders if I only liked this book because I was supposed to. (It won the 2021 National Book Award and has appeared on nearly everyone’s list of notable literature the past few years.) Either way, this smash hit certainly left a lasting impression on me. Confronting racial violence is never an easy task, but Mott manages to pull it off masterfully, weaving a steady dose of wit and humor throughout. It was an uncomfortable read, yet I found it an important and rewarding one as well.

5. Cloud Cuckoo Land (Anthony Doerr). Nothing I could say about this entry would possibly do justice to the artistic masterpiece that it is. From beginning to end, I was utterly riveted. The scope of this book is immense, and the intricacy of the narrative is downright awe-inspiring. For me, it belongs in very exclusive company as an all-time favorite.

6. Range (David Epstein). Rounding out this year’s list is a fascinating bit of non-fiction that explores why diverse experience is often a greater advantage in the long run than intense specialization. The ideas were provocative, and the case studies and anecdotes brought the principles to life with arresting clarity. As someone who often wrestles with my own non-linear career path and questions about where my professional life is headed, this book gave me reason to be thankful for my unorthodox trajectory.

Whether these specific books speak to you or not, the moral of the story is the same: Go find a book you like and let it change the way you see the world.

Revisit all my lists from previous years:

• 2022
• 2021
• 2020
• 2019
• 2018
• 2017
• 2016

Want to support my work? Subscribe to my newsletter so you’ll never miss out on new content! And if you’re feeling extra generous, consider leaving a small tip using the form below.