2015 End-of-Year Book Survey Results
Hosted by Perpetual Page Turner
Stats:
- Number of Books Read: 61 (see Book List)
- Number of Re-Reads: 5
- Genre You Read the Most: Business
1. Best book you read in 2015?
The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz
2. Book you were excited about & thought you were going to love, but didn't?
Winning the Story Wars by Jonah Sachs
3. Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read?
Killing Patton by Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard - I've really enjoyed most of the other books in this series, but this one lost its way. It was as if O'Reilly and Dugard forgot that they were supposed to write about General Patton rather than snippets on all of the most powerful men in WWII.
4. Book you "pushed" the most people to read (and they did)?
The ONE Thing by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan
5. Best series you started in 2015?
The Wayward Pines series by Blake Crouch - This story really drew me in. I pounded out all three books in a couple weeks.
Also, I have to throw out an "Honorable Mention" for The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King - I started the series last year, but I read the majority of the books this year. Awesome story from one of my favorite writers of all time!
6. Favorite new author you discovered in 2015?
Blake Crouch, author of the Wayward Pines series mentioned above
7, Best book from a genre you don’t typically read/was out of your comfort zone?
Psych Ward by Stephen Seager - I don't read about the medical world very often, but this book was fascinating. Seager details all of the crazy events that progressed during his year as an intern in a psych ward.
8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?
Pines by Blake Crouch, the first book in the Wayward Pines series
9. Book you read in 2015 which you are most likely to re-read next year?
The Big Short by Michael Lewis - I've already read this book twice, but I just watched the new movie starring Christian Bale, Steve Carell, and Ryan Gosling, which made me want to read the book again. Lewis is one of my favorite story-tellers, and I also love reading about the subprime mortgage crisis.
10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2015?
Made to Stick by Chip and Dan Heath
11. Most memorable character of 2015?
If we're talking about memorable characters from books I read in 2015, I'd say Roland Deschain from The Dark Tower series.
If we're talking about characters from books that came out in 2015, I'd definitely say Mark Watney from The Martian by Andy Weir.
12. Most beautifully written book read in 2015?
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
13. Most thought-provoking/life-changing book of 2015?
The Psychopath Test by Jon Ronson
The Road to Character by David Brooks
14. Book you can’t believe you waited until 2015 to finally read?
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
15. Favorite passage/quote from a book you read in 2015?
“The most difficult subjects can be explained to the most slow-witted man if he has not formed any idea of them already; but the simplest thing cannot be made clear to the most intelligent man if he is firmly persuaded that he knows already, without a shadow of a doubt, what is laid before him.” -Leo Tolstoy, quoted in the book The Big Short by Michael Lewis
“I must explore and experiment. I am never satisfied with my work. I resent the limitations of my own imagination.” -Walt Disney, quoted in the book How to Be Like Walt by Pat Williams
“In any human interaction, the required amount of communication is inversely proportional to the level of trust.” -Ben Horowitz in the book The Hard Thing about Hard Things
16. Shortest and longest book you read in 2015?
Shortest: Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (110 pages)
Longest: The Dark Tower by Stephen King (845 pages)
17. Book which shocked you the most?
Room by Emma Donoghue
18. Favorite book you read in 2015 from an author you've read previously?
Influencer by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, David Maxfield, Ron McMillan, and Al Switzler
19. Best book you read in 2015 which was based SOLELY on a recommendation from somebody else/peer pressure?
The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King, recommended to me by my brother-in-law Mitch
20. Best 2015 debut you read?
The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz
21. Best world-building/most vivid setting you read this year?
The Martian by Andy Weir
22. Book which put a smile on your face/was most FUN to read?
Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll - Weird read, but very entertaining and creative
23. Book which made you cry or nearly cry in 2015?
The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King
24. Hidden gem of the year?
Misbehaving by Richard Thaler
25. Book which crushed your soul?
Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King
26. Most unique book you read in 2015?
Lost at Sea by Jon Ronson
27. Book which made you angry (doesn’t necessarily mean you didn’t like it)?
Missoula: Rape and the Justice System in a College Town by Jon Krakauer
28. One book you didn't read in 2015 but will be a top priority in 2016?
Antifragile by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
You rock! I am glad you felt a little shove from me to do this. It was very difficult for me since it required going back and forth on my Goodreads list of books read in the year and having to think about each one in a new way. The funny thing about doing this activity it made me realize that some of the books I had dismissed were really more important in my oeuvre than I first realized. Even though i haven’t and likely wont’ read most of your business books i did notice we had two books in common: All the Light We Cannot See and The Martian. Fun! Happy New Year!-Anne B.
Thanks Anne! I understand what you mean about recognizing the significance of books after the fact. That happens to me all the time as well. I also realize the opposite sometimes: some books I really enjoyed are quickly forgotten if they don’t contain any insightful, meaningful takeaways.
I noticed that you also put “Missoula” as your most angering book. That book definitely made me upset at the failures of our justice system in regard to rape.
Anyway, thanks again for your inspiration! Happy New Year!
Don and I listened to Missoula together so we processed it together as we listened. That helped. He has had to deal with some of the same issues in the National Guard.