Mike Ashley
2016 was a pretty good year for reading. I had long hours at work but found the time to read edited books by reducing the online reading. (You can see this reflected in my linklog this year.) As in 2014 and 2015, I’ll force-rank my lists, and I omitted the stinkers.
I ranked the nonfiction by impact on my day-to-day life. Books that helped me be a better R&D manager topped the list. Skunk Works surprised me by reinforcing some of the management practices I use already but in a different industry and context. I read Private Empire in response to Trump’s nomination of Rex Tillerson for Secretary of State and afterwards found myself agreeing that Tillerson is a good choice. The Buzz About Bees is worth reading for the science and especially the photography. The pictures convey the behavior and the beauty of bees in a way I’ve never seen before. All of the books in this list are quite good.
I surprised myself ranking The Marriage Plot ahead of the The Sun Also Rises. I have college-aged daughters, and Eugenides captures that phase of life where school is ending and the next, unclear steps are ahead of you. I discovered that the movie Fight Club reflects the style of the book, but the book has a few more twists and details. You will like the book if you liked the movie.
