The 16 Best Books I Read in 2021

(Reading Time: 7 minutes)

Welcome to my annual list of the books I read and loved in these last 52 weeks.

This is (mostly) a branding blog, but there’s not a single book on this year’s list that pertains to that field.

(Side note: I find myself increasingly disappointed with business books; lately, most read like blog posts that have been stretched and padded, or thinly-veiled pitches for the author’s products and services, or both. Am I being too harsh?  Was there a branding or business book you read and loved this year?  Please drop me a note and let me know.  I’m always looking for the good stuff.)

Continue reading “The 16 Best Books I Read in 2021”

The 26 Best Books I Read in 2019

(Reading Time: 9 minutes)

2019 was another good year for reading things.  I completed 48 books, 26 of which I recommend to you here.

As either a warning or a selling point, most of them aren’t business books, and most weren’t released in 2019.

Instead of ranking them, I’ve listed them alphabetically by author, a cop-out if there ever was one.  And I’ve provided links to Amazon for each (just click on the title).  This is for your convenience – I’m not an Amazon affiliate and I’m not here to make money off your clicks.

With that, here are the books that made me laugh, cry, think and act in 2019.  Many of these came to me via personal recommendation, and my hope is that you’ll find a few of them intriguing enough to check out.

Continue reading “The 26 Best Books I Read in 2019”

The 20 Best Books I Read in 2018

(Reading Time: 8 minutes)Here are the 20 best books I read in 2018.  These books weren’t necessarily released in 2018.  And they’re not just business books, because there’s more to life than business.

Instead, these are the 20 books, of the 38 I completed in 2018, that I’d recommend to a friend or colleague.  My hope is that you’ll find a few of these intriguing enough to check out.

I read several of these for the third or fourth time.  Given the oppressive awfulness of the daily news, this is one way I sought out “comfort food.”  (Another: Plenty of ambient music.)

They’re listed alphabetically by author.  And I’ve provided links to Amazon for each.  This is for your convenience – I’m not an Amazon affiliate and I’m not here to make money off your clicks.

With that, here are the 20 books that moved me, changed me or comforted me in 2018: Continue reading “The 20 Best Books I Read in 2018”

The 16 Best Books I Read in 2017

Matthew Fenton Best Books I Read in 2017

(Reading Time: 6 minutes)2017 was a good year for reading things.  I completed 49 books, a personal best, and I may be able to squeak one more in before year-end.

For this, I must thank the Kindle, and the in-laws who gifted me with it last Xmas.  For years, I had resisted this modern convenience on sketchy grounds: I like to highlight my books!  And write in their margins!  And dog-ear their pages!  But the Kindle allows me to do an electronic version of all those things.  And what it lacks in tactile satisfaction, it more than makes up for in storage and portability.  It’s a well-traveled Kindle.

Here’s how I compiled this list for you: Continue reading “The 16 Best Books I Read in 2017”