Books Read in 2024

An ongoing list I'm mostly keeping for me, since I don't want to use Goodreads more than is necessary, but also tend to forget things if I don't write them down.

This list won't include books that I start but choose not to finish.

Nonfiction

Crossings: How Road Ecology Is Shaping the Future of Our Planet

By Ben Goldfarb
Nonfiction; hardcover from library read in August
VERY good. I'll be writing a whole post on this one shortly.

Trust Me, I'm Lying: Confessions of a Media Manipulator

By Ryan Holiday
Nonfiction; audiobook; library; listened to in August
I wish I could remember where I saw this book mentioned that prompted me to check it out; I think someone referenced it as an important book for anyone involved in journalism to have read. It outlines how Holiday used the low standards of blogs that rely on page views to make money to push often not-entirely-accurate stories out in to the mainstream on behalf of his PR clients. Although I understand there's a new, updated edition out now, the one I listened to was the original, published in 2012. As such, a lot of the techniques in it are old news, though I imagine Holiday's admission to them was much more novel at the time. There's also a weird vibe running through it of "it wasn't so bad when I did, but now look at what these other awful people are doing!" (I gather Holiday is a philosopher now, so I think he's come a long way?). Anyway, I am glad I gave it a listen, but I think for those who are interested the updated edition would be the way to go.

Telling True Stories (in progress)

Edited by Mark Kramer and Wendy Call
Essay anthology; softcover; bought used; read May to ?
Recommended by my instructor for the UofT Continuing Education course "Freelance Science, Medicine & Public Health Writing." As this is a collection of essays, I've been dipping in and out.

Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are?

By Frans de Waal
Nonfiction; hardcover; library; read in June
Excellent read that gives of an overview of both what we know about animal cognition, and the field itself. This book came out in 2016 which I expect is why I've come across many of the specific examples of research projects and individual animals before (I wouldn't be surprised if de Waal was the first to bring them to popular attention), but there was still a great deal that was new to me. Highly recommended for anyone interested in the topic.

Going Public: A Guide for Social Scientists

By Arlene Stein and Jessie Daniels
Nonfiction; softcover; library; read in June
A book for social scientists at any career stage who are curious about having an impact outside of academia, which also had some nice tips for people who want to write about other people's research.
Reading Notes - Full Post

Beastly Brains: Exploring How Animals Talk, Think, and Feel

By Nancy F. Castaldo
Youth Nonfiction; hardcover; library; read in June
Great book that I hope many young people have access to. It fills an interesting/unusual niche in nonfiction for kids, in that it's a proper read rather than a bunch of fun-facts strung together with big photos and infographics (which are also valuable books!). If you have a 10ish-year-old kid in your life interested in animals, pick them up a copy of this.

Traffication: How Cars Destroy Nature & What We Can Do About It

(not finished, yet)
By Paul F. Donald
Nonfiction; hardcover; library; started April to May, paused
This book was a little too interesting, in that it kept causing me to stare off into space and think about things, or look up something it mentioned. So I was enjoying a nice, slow, thoughtful read, but then it was due back at the library and someone else had a hold. Hoping to finish this one soon!

Supercommunicators: How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection

By Charles Duhigg
Nonfiction; audiobook; library; listened to in April
I had to zip through this as the book is in high demand at the library so the loan period was short. But it was really interesting, especially the first half or so that intersperses information with stories of real people for whom "supercommunication" seems to come naturally.

Atomic Habits

By James Clear
Nonfiction; audiobook; library; listened to in April
This was a re-read. I first read Atomic Habits years ago, but didn't do much to implement the ideas. Which kind of defeats the purpose. Thought I'd give it another go.

The Darkness Manifesto

(not finished, yet)
By Johan Eklof
Nonfiction; ebook; library; partially read in January
I found it really interesting but it was due back at the library and someone else had a hold. I definitely want to go back and finish it.

Fiction / Comics

Sweet Tooth Compendium

By Jeff Lemire
Comics; softcover; library, read in June.
This is all 40 issues of the comic series compiled into one mighty big volume. Even so, I blazed through it in two days. I wanted to see how the comics compared to the Netflix series which I enjoyed, but which I also knew had changed quite a bit from the original. Turns out I like them both, even though they have a very different tone overall.

Poetry

Bright Wings: An Illustrated Anthology of Poems about Birds

(Currently reading)
Hardcover; library; read May to ?
Edited by Billy Collins; Paintings by David Sibley

Children's Books

Brave Baby Hummingbird

By Sy Montgomery; Illustrated by Tiffany Bozic
Picture book; library; read in June
Last year I read my first Sy Montgomery book, The Soul of Octopus, and I can't believe it took me this long to discover her as an author. This sweet story takes the perspective of a male Allen's Hummingbird who, along with his sister, is orphaned in the nest and raised then released by a wildlife rehabber. There's great additional information in the back on hummingbirds and how to help them.

Lost and Found Cat: The True Story of Kunkush's Incredible Journey

By Doug Kuntz and Amy Shrodes; Illustrated by Sue Cornelison
Picture book; library; read in April
Recommended by one of my Humane Education instructors at the University of Denver's Institute for Human-Animal Connection as a good book to share stories of compassion for animals from around the world. She was right! This is a lovely story.

Chipmunk Song

By Joanne Ryder
Picture book; library; read in April
I can't recall how I found this one, but I was looking for stories that seemed like they would help people take the perspective of an animal, and this lovely book does just that. I'll be reading more from Ryder in the future.

The Forgotten Rabbit

By Nancy Furstinger; Illustrated by Nancy Lane
Picture book; purchased; read in March
A purchase and re-read of the book I used to complete my final assignment for the Red Rover Readers program training. Now that George lives with us, this seems much more relevant to my life (and to potential future humane education programming).

A Warbler's Journey

By Scott Weidensaul; Illustrated by Nancy Lane
Picture book; purchased; read in March
Selected from the Red Rover Readers recommended book list; plus I like reading anything from The Gryphon Press.

The Cat Man of Aleppo

By Karim Shamsi-Basha and Irene Latham; Illustrated by Yuko Shimizu
Picture book; ebook; library; read in March
Selected from the Red Rover Readers recommended book list.

(What I read earlier in the year is unknown, as I didn't start this list until late April. See, this is why I need to write things down.)