The Books I Read in 2025 #

Starting in 2020, I began keeping track of all of the books I read, a habit I adapted from my brother. Starting in 2023, I jotted down a quick long-paragraph review (with a “grade”) of each book as well. Here’s the list of books I read in 2025, in reverse chronological order. The year ended with a bit of a whimper; I spent November and December partially reading six or so books in parallel (gritting teeth emoji here), which I promise to finish before too long. I still at least hit my rough goal of a book a month, averaged across the year.

On Writing by Stephen King

Tags: book-reviews, writing, craft, memoir
Grade: A-

Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism by Amanda Montell

Tags: book-reviews, language, cults, power
Grade: B+

States of Adventure by Fitz Cahall

Tags: book-reviews, outdoors, adventure, coffee-table-book
Grade: A-

The Uncanny Muse by David Hadju

Tags: book-reviews, art, artificial intelligence, history
Grade: B+

Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica

Tags: book-reviews, science fiction, dystopian, capitalism
Grade: A

Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neal Postman

Tags: book-reviews, public discourse, technology, communication
Grade: B+

Beyond the Mountain by Steve House

Tags: book-reviews, alpinism, climbing, memoir
Grade: B+

The Lost Trees of Willow Avenue by Mike Tidwell

Tags: book-reviews, climate, natural history, memoir
Grade: A-

The Sirens’ Call by Chris Hayes

Tags: book-reviews, attention economy, social media
Grade: B+

Thirty Below by Cassidy Randall

Tags: book-reviews, alpinism, climbing, feminism
Grade: A

Everest, Inc. by Will Cockrell

Tags: book-reviews, alpinism, business, climbing, history
Grade: A-

Uplifted by Sonnie Trotter

Tags: book-reviews, climbing, memoir
Grade: B-

Technopoly by Neil Postman

Tags: book-reviews, technology, history
Grade: B+

The Explorer’s Gene by Alex Hutchinson

Tags: book-reviews, science, neuroscience, adventure
Grade: A-

Endurance by Alfred Lansing

Tags: book-reviews, adventure, arctic, exploration
Grade: A-

The Grasshopper by Bernard Suits

Tags: book-reviews, philosophy, games, meaning-of-life
Grade: A-

The Color of Everything by Cory Richards

Tags: book-reviews, meaning-of-life, climbing, memoir, alpinism, mental health
Grade: B+