Reading List

Recently inspired by Dan Pelzer’s impressive lifelong reading list, I decided to start my own to look back on someday.

An * indicates Audible/Audiobook format. List is in descending order, from most to least recent.

2025

Title Author Date Logged
A Search for Strategy: British-American Military Collaboration 1942 John F. Shortal Reading
The Prophets of Israel Leon J. Wood Reading
The Notebook: A History of Thinking on Paper Roland Allen 6/27/2025
Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals Oliver Burkeman 5/12/2025
Laozi’s Dao De Jing Ken Liu 4/26/2025
Writing to Learn William Zinsser 4/20/2025
To Build a Fire and Other Stories Jack London 4/14/2025
Shantyboat Journal Harlan Hubbard 4/02/2025
All Things Shall Give Thee Experience Neal A. Maxwell 3/25/2025
Save the Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting Blake Snyder 3/10/2025
2034: A Novel of the Next War Elliot Ackerman & Admiral James Stavridis 3/2/2025
Light of the Jedi Charles Soule 2/27/2025
Tubby: Raymond O. Barton and the U.S. Army, 1889–1963 Stephen O. Bourque 2/25/2025
Digital Minimalism Cal Newport 2/15/2025
Rough Stone Rolling Richard L. Bushman 2/2/2025
The Dark Path: The Structure of War and the Rise of the West Williamson Murray 1/5/2025

2024

Title Author Date Logged
The Mystery of the Great Pyramid (Adventures of Blake & Mortimer) Edgar Pierre Jacobs 12/28/24
The Articles of Faith James E. Talmadge 12/12/2024
Stillwell and Mountbatten in Burma Jonathan T. Ritter 11/15/24
An Island to Oneself Tom Neale 10/17/24
The War of Art Stephen Pressfield 9/12/24
The Energy of Money Marla Nemeth 9/04/24
The Guns of August Barbara Tuchman 8/17/24
Essentialism Greg McKeown 7/14/24
Enduring Alliance: A History of NATO and the Postwar Global Order Timothy Andrew Sayle 7/03/24
Story Craft: The Complete Guide to Writing Narrative Non-Fiction Jack Hart 6/2024
The Generals Thomas E. Ricks 5/2024
Andy and Don: The Making of a Friendship and a Classic American TV Show Daniel de Vise 3/2024

Pre-2024

Title Author
Deep Work Cal Newport
Atomic Habits James Clear
The Accidental President: Harry S. Truman and the Four Months that Changed the World A.J. Baime
The Shape of Design Frank Chimero
Working Robert A. Caro
Candide Voltaire
Sand & Steel: The D-Day Invasion and the Liberation of France Peter Caddick Adams
Becoming Supernatural Joe Dispenza
Running with Sherman: The Donkey with the Heart of a Hero Christopher McDougall
The Second World Wars Victor Davis Hanson
Sicily 43’ James Holland
Grant * Ron Chernow
The Peloponnesian War Thucydides
Naples 44 Norman Lewis
Battlegrounds: The Fight to Defend the Free World H.R. McMaster
Alger: 8 November 1942 Charles Mast
Spartan Gold Clive Cussler
The Incomplete Book of Running Peter Segal
My Year of Running Dangerously Tom Foreman
An Open World: How America Can Win the Contest For Twenty-First Century Order Rebecca Lissner & Mira Rapp Hooper
The Second World War: The Grand Alliance Winston S. Churchill
The Second World War: Alone Winston S. Churchill
The History of the Ancient World Susan Wise Bauer
Achilles in Vietnam: Combat Trauma and the Undoing of Character Jonathan Shay
Call Sign Chaos Jim Mattis
Master and Apprentice Claudia Gray
Can’t Hurt Me David Goggins
The Grand Design: Strategy and the U.S. Civil War Donald Stoker
Mission Critical Mark Greaney
Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant, Vols. 1-2 Ulysses S. Grant
A Christmas Carol Charles Dickens
The Afghan Way of War Robert Johnson
The Making of Prince of Persia, Journals 1985-1993 Jordan Mechner
Baghdad at Sunrise: A Brigade Commander’s War in Iraq Peter R. Mansoor
Ready Player One * Ernest Cline
The General C.S. Forester
George Lucas: A Life Brian Jay Jones
Living with a Seal Jesse Itzler
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court Mark Twain
Encyclopedia Blazertannica Roger Davis, Michael Davies
Alone Admiral Richard E. Byrd
Real Food, Fake Food Larry Olmstead
The Martian Andy Weir
Think & Grow Rich Napoleon Hill
As a Man Thinketh James Allen
The Vietnam War * Geoffrey C. Ward & Ken Burns
The Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World Edward Shepherd Creassy
Tools of Titans Tim Ferriss
Murder on the Orient Express Agatha Christie
Treasure Island * Audible Original
The Way of Thomas: Insights for Spiritual Living from the Gospel of Thomas John R. Mabry
A Conflict of Visions Thomas Sowell
How to Listen to Great Music: A Guide to Its History, Culture, and Heart Robert Greenberg
The Pilgrim’s Progress John Bunyan
Invasion Diary Richard Tregaskis
The Liberator Alex Kershaw
From Texas to Rome Fred L. Walker
The First Crusade: The Accounts of Eye Witnesses and Participants August C. Krey (ed.)
This Town Mark Leibovich
Philosophy: 100 Essential Thinkers Philip Stokes
Monte Cassino: The Hardest Fought Battle of World War II Matthew Parker
The Glory and the Dream William Manchester
The Boys in the Boat Daniel James Brown
The Alchemist Paulo Coelho
David O. McKay and the Rise of Modern Mormonism Gregory A. Prince
The Fellowship of the Ring J.R.R. Tolkien
Out of the Silent Planet C.S. Lewis
Walking Henry David Thoreau
The Red Badge of Courage Stephen Crane
Pogue’s War Forrest C. Pogue
America, Empire of Liberty David Reynolds
The Battle of Germany: November 1944-May 1945 Lt. Theodore Draper
Crucible of Doubt Teryl & Fiona Givens
So Few Got Through Martin Lindsay
Buffalo Bill’s America Louis S. Warren
Sniper on the Eastern Front Albrecht Wacker
Slaughter on the Somme, 1 July 1916 Martin Mace & John Grehan
13 Hours in Benghazi Mitchell Zuckoff
Walden Henry David Thoreau
The Lemon Tree Sandy Tolan
Things That Are Amy Leach
Black Rain: A Novel Masuji Ibuse
Imagined Communities Benedict Anderson
Nine Wartime Lives James Hinton
Home Memories David O. McKay
Thinking Fast and Slow Daniel Hahneman
Robinson Crusoe Daniel Defoe
Daily Rituals: How Artists Work Mason Currey
American Sniper Chris Kyle
Mud, Sweat, and Tears Bear Grylls
The Way of Wealth Benjamin Franklin
The Art of War Sun Tzu
The Life of Abraham Lincoln Henry Ketcham
Common Sense Thomas Paine
Utopia Sir Saint Thomas More
The Count of Monte Cristo Alexandre Dumas
The Magic Lantern Timothy Garton Ash
The Memorable Thoughts of Socrates Xenophon
The Last Lion William Manchester & Paul Reid