Books I Will Be Reading In 2023
In the last post we have discussed all of the best books I have read in the year 2022, so I wanted to dedicate this post to all of the books which I am planning on reading for this year, for which I have in mind 15 so far.
As always, I would love to hear your own book recommendations and to hear on what you are aiming on reading for this year.
I hope you enjoy 😊 📚
BENEFITS OF READING MORE
Although I have talked about the benefits of a consistent reading routine before in this blog post, here are the main ones which I wanted to highlight for you to know about:
Reading Prevents Neurodegenerative Diseases: These conditions include dementia such as Alzheimers where reading readily stimulates our brains activity and enhances its synaptic connectivity, helping to keep our brains active and young while preventing cognitive decline. As well as keeping your brain healthy, reading also aids in better memory retention and brain functioning, which also helps slow down the development of dementia by keeping your brains clear of beta amyloid plaques which over time build up an cause memory decay in Alzheimers.
Improves Your Vocabulary and General Knowledge: Reading has for a long time now been shown to steadily improve vocabulary, spelling as well as greatly enhance the general knowledge and understanding of the world around you. This is also why reading is so encouraged, so that you get to learn about the events happening around you, have a deeper understanding of why certain things occur and with that formulate you own well thought out opinions and perspectives. Reading makes you educated and well informed.
Reduces Stress: Have you ever read for a little bit before going to bed and noticed that you suddenly become very tired and calm? Chances are you have. This is because when we read, we are very focused on the words in front of us which allows us to feel calm helping our body to naturally start releasing melatonin which initiates our body for sleep. This happens especially quickly when we are in a quiet environment with dim warm lighting.
Helps With Calmer Sleep: Because reading can be such a relaxing activity, it is also great for making it easier to fall asleep and generally ensuring a calmer night of sleep. It may also be more beneficial to read on a physical paper back book in the evenings instead of electronic readers as bright lights can disrupt our natural sleep cycles.
Heightens Your Empathy Skills: When we read books, especially those which have a story plot line and different characters, we allow ourselves to become immersed in the story and connect with the different characters. In this way we develop emotions and opinions about certain people in the story which in reality allows us to become more empathetical towards others in our everyday.
Lowers Blood Pressure and Heart Rate: Regular reading has been shown to lower blood pressure and resting heart rate almost as effectively as yoga, which can help with longevity (living longer) as well as keeping your cardiovascular system healthy.
Improved Focus and Concentration: Because reading and following a story requires quite a bit of concentration, reading can be a great activity to help improve how long you can focus for, especially in todays time when we are highly distracted by notifications and live by instant gratification. Reading is a great way to calm ourselves and work on our focus abilities which will help us with our personal, school or work lives.
2023 READING LIST
Bellow you can find all of the books which I am to read for this year, some of which are non fiction and some are fiction.
Manifest: 7 Steps to Living Your Best Life (Roxie Nafousi)
You Are A Badass At Making Money (Jen Sincero)
The Only Study Guide You Will Ever Need (Unjaded Jade)
Four Hour Work Week (Tim Ferriss)
Best Self: Be You, Only Better (Mike Bayer)
The Buddha and The Badass (Vishen Lakhiani)
Smarter Living (Karen Barrow, Karron Skog, and Tim Herrera)
The Motivation Myth: How High Achievers Really Set Themselves Up to Win (Jeff Haden)
Think and Grow Rich (Napoleon Hill)
Food for life: The New Science of Eating Well (Spector)
Your Body In Balance: The New Science of Food, Hormones, and Health (Neal Barnard)
Buyology: Truth and Lies About Why We Buy (Martin Lindstrom)
8 Rules of Love: How to Find It, Keep It, and Let It Go (Jay Shetty)
Normal people: A Novel (Sally Rooney)
The Mostly True Story Of Tanner & Louise (Colleen Oakley)
I hope that you were able to find some intereting new information on why it is good for us to read regularly and also that I was able to give you some ideas for books which you could read for yourself in 2023.
Wishing you happy reading :)
Best Books of 2022 That I Have Read
The year 2022 was very productive year for reading for me, because I managed to read 19 complete books in a span of 12 months, which is definitely a personal record for me. For this reason, I wanted to focus this blog post on those books which personally stood out to me and left a big difference after I have read them. I also wanted to share some of my own advice on how to be able to read more, even when we live busy and time-demanding lives.
Here I hope to share with you some books which you too can find transformative, enjoyable and relaxing, which you can of course implement into your own 2023 reading lists. 😄
I would love to find out what books you read in the past year and which ones were your favorites. Share with me and let me know. I have talked on this platform about reading before and how it is beneficial for our brains, so if you are interested in that, feel free to read more about it here
Wishing you happy reading ahead! 📖
HOW TO READ MORE
I often get asked how I am able to read so many books or how do I fit in the time for reading when there is already so many things to do in a day. My simple answer to that is that the key is really to focus on doing a little bit of reading each day and then sticking to that habit constantly.
Below I have included my main pieces of advice if you want to take up reading more seriously in 2023:
Read 10-15 minutes each day consistently
Pick a time of day for when you will do this (For me it was every day during breakfast)
Make a list of books ahead of time which you want to be reading that year or month, so that it keeps you excited and eager to read on
Make sure to pick books which sound genuinely interesting or useful to you and write down this list in a visually visible place so that you don't forget about it (I used digital sticky notes on my computer)
If reading intimidates you, start reading thinner and less intense books and gradually build your way up
If you start reading a book which you do not seem to enjoy and feel like it is not worth your time, simply stop reading it and move on to something else. There is no need to feel guilty about not fully finishing a book. In fact if you decide to move on to something which will be a better use of your time, you are creating a benefit for yourself. No shame here.
Consider wether you prefer to read paper back books or you prefer a digital format such as a e-reader, which is what I prefer. Either option works here, just choose based on what works best for you.
Find small times in your day when you can fit in some reading, such as during your commute to school or work (if using public transport) or instead of mindlessly scrolling on social media, try reading for 10 minutes.
Consider which daily activities which are not beneficial for you, you could replace with a little bit of reading
Try reading before bed for a little, as it can make it easier for you to fall asleep
Try listening to audiobooks if you feel like your days are seriously busy. This can be a great thing to include during your commutes if you drive or during times you spend cleaning
Join a book club (online or in person) where you can discuss the books you have read or want to read with other fellow avid readers - This can be great if you want more accountability to keep your reading more consistent
When on holiday or vacation, focus on reading during your free time spent lounging around
If you want more motivation for keeping up your reading, make note of all the books you have read within a year, which allows you to keep a record of your reading progress
MY FAVORITE BOOKS OF 2022
Ikigai (Francesc Miralles and Hector Garcia)
This was the first book that I had read in 2022 and although its style was simply written and short, it was actually a useful book. The book discusses a Japanese concept termed “Ikigai” which refers to our reason for being or the reason of why we wake up in the morning. Ikigai is compromised of 4 different core questions which together help us find our core purpose and meaning in life, essentially finding out which path is best for us. Our meaning in life is made up of these 4 questions which are 1) What you love doing, 2) What the world needs, 3) What you are good at doing and lastly 4) What you can be paid for doing.
I would recommend this book for anyone who is struggling to find what they want to do in the life, or for anyone who is lacking direction or clarity about their purpose.
Untamed (Glennon Doyle)
This was one of the best books I had read during my summer vacation this year. The book was almost written in the style of a poem yet its writing was very enjoyable, easy to read and fore-mostly had a lasting impact on me.
This book is written as a memoir of the authors life, which revolves around the notion that the author will not be a mother who slowly dies for her children, but will be a mother who shows her children how to truly live authentically. The book discusses notions such as divorce, becoming part of a new family and about how the wholeness of a family depends on each of its members to fully be themselves and live as their true self. The book aims to inspire the reader to become strong individuals who know and respect their boundaries, make peace with our bodies, acknowledge our pains and heartaches and live as the person we really are meant to be.
The subtle art of not giving a fuck (Mark Manson)
I started reading this book because of the huge amount of positive reviews and recognition it had achieved. Mark Manson had taken a rather comedic approach in this book to explain that we should find meaning in our everyday lives by focusing on what is really important and engaging in values which we can control. The book promotes the view that the point to a meaningful life is not to care about a huge amount of things, but instead to concentrate our efforts and energy to the things which truly matter to us.
The unfair advantage (Ash Ali and Hasan Kubba)
Although this book was very business dominated, I still found it to be greatly enlightening and enjoyable to read, simply because it demonstrates a widely applicable concept through a variety of real life business ventures. The book aims to capture the idea of “unfair advantages” which in a business sense is a leverage or simply and advantage which you have compared to other competitors or individuals. Unfair advantages can come in the form of having relevant insider information, personal authority, a net of existing customers or simply aspects such as where you were born and your level of education/ work experience.
The book explains that each of us is born and given a different set of unfair advantages and that it is our role to recognize them and make use of them in the best way possible, in order to succeed - Essentially reinforcing the view that we already have what it takes to succeed in side of us, we just have to play it to our advantage.
Essentialism, The Disciplined Pursuit of Less (Greg McKeown)
I found this book extremely clear in its message and ultimately very useful. The books is based on the premise of essentialism which it reinforces as a lifestyle and way of approaching our work. Essentialism is about choosing to do and focus on the things which are most important to us at a given time so that we can make our highest contribution towards the things which truly matter to us. It is based on eliminating distractions and methods of procrastination which ultimately get us no where and lead us to being stretched too thin with work that is non essential.
Essentialism as a lifestyle, is about consciously choosing to make the most productive and effective contribution towards what really matters to us.
Lessons in chemistry (Bonnie Garmus)
This fictional story was very pleasant and worthwhile to read because the author has an excellent reading style while managing to write a very captivating story line. The story line is based in the 1950’s where Elizabeth, a female chemist who works at a research institute, struggles to be acknowledged for her research work since women's scientific achievements at the time were largely ignored and unappreciated. Throughout the story she falls in love with a fellow researcher who happens to also be very famous and they develop into a stable and loving relationship. The story is grounded in feminism while being coupled with humor and brilliant plot twists along the way.
The island of missing trees (Elif Shafak)
This book blew me away because it was one of the most memorable fiction books that I read in 2022. This story is set in 1974 on the island of Cyprus where two teenagers from opposite sides of the then divided land meet at a tavern in the city they both call home. The teenagers who live in Cyprus are Defne who is Turkish and Kostas who is Greek. The two are in love yet they have to meet in secret as a war was breaking out on the island causing it to be split into two parts (This actually happened). At the core of the story is a fig tree which grows in the middle of the tavern, where this tree witnesses all the conflicts, moments of love and when the capital of Cyrpus (Nicosia) is reduced to rubble.
Decades later the two have a child, Ada, where she lives with her dad in London, England, as sadly her mother had passed away in between. Ada is struggling to understand her families past and history, but the only connection she does have to the island of Cyprus is a fig tree which her father brought from Cyrus and now grows in her back yard.
The story switches between three perspectives: Ada’s perspective who is trying to understand her parents history, the time on the island which Defne and Kostas shared as well as the viewpoint of the fig tree who talks and ponders to itself.
Imperfect: The gifts of imperfection (Brené Brown)
I initially started reading this book because I was struggling with my own perfectionistic tendencies, where the book in a light hearted way really solidified the idea that we are perfect the way we are and that we should genuinely embrace all of our “imperfections” whichever we may have. What is imperfect or perfect is all subjective and depends across individuals, which is why we should starter living for ourselves on our own terms, instead of constantly moulding ourselves to the expectations of others and feeling like we are not enough.
I hope that with this blog post I gave you some more ideas and inspiration about the books which you could potentially read in 2023 and the books which I feel that most people could gain something useful from.
Within the next post, I will be sharing with you the list of books which I will aim to be reading in 2023, so stay tuned for that if that sounds interesting to you.
If you have wanted to make reading a more consistent habit for yourself, I hope that the advice above will be useful for you in helping to establish reading as an enjoyable part of your life. Reading should not be seen as a chose or something that takes time and energy away from us, look into the books which interest you and focus on starting with those.
Thank you again for reading this today 😄
Never Stop Reading: Here's Why
You have very likely heard that reading is good for you and that you should do it more often, but why exactly is it "good" for us, and what is it about reading that still makes it a valuable skill in our society?
Whether reading paper-based literature or digital, both can have impactful and long-lasting positive impacts on our life. If we start young and build a steady reading habit of reading at least a couple of average length books per year, then that just means we will reap even more benefits as the years go on.
Reading is an action so simple and "basic" that it is often neglected, but scientific research is, again and again, proving just how much of a positive effect it has on our life and overall well being.
So if you are interested as to why it is worth to put aside some time each day to read, keep on reading. A long term habit of reading can be one of the best things you can do for your mental, physical, emotional and social health.
LITERATURE FACTS AND STATISTICS
To start off, I want to first bring out a couple of statistics on reading that show how reading has progressed in our society throughout history, how big the global literature industry is and how many of us actually read on a regular basis.
In the year 1820, only about 12% of the world above the age of 15 was literate, meaning that they knew how to read and write, but in 2016, that figure dramatically increased to 86%.
Since the year 2017, more than 1 million books have been self-published in both paper and digital format.
Between the years of 2017 and 21018, the sales of audiobooks in the world increased by almost 25%.
In 2018, 44,500 audiobooks were produced which is 5% more than in 2017.
An American study has shown that "Over 80% of people who read books have at least some college education, if not a degree".
Based on a study done in early 2019 by Pew Research Center, they found that 27% of adults did not read a single book in the previous year, 2018.
It is estimated that there are more than 90 million e-reading devices in the United States
BENEFITS OF READING
DECLINE OF MENTAL CONDITIONS
Mental stimulation, in various forms, has been shown to have a beneficial effect on our brain health and cognition, wherein elderly people it has reduced rates of cognitive decline; ultimately slowing an ageing brain. Mental stimulation can come in many forms, one of them being reading, but generally, it is any time that we use our brain muscle and keep it active. Its either use it or lose it.
In relation to this, it has been scientifically shown that those who regularly read have lower rates of mental conditions such as dementia and Alzheimers that appear in the later years of life.
ENHANCED MEMORY
Memory is something that we often begin loosing with age, but that can be slowed down if we keep our brains mentally active and fit.
In order to understand what you are reading, your brain has to interpret that information and visually represent it. All of these different levels of information processing mean more work for your brain and more time going through that information - both of which make the information more memorable and likely to stick.
MAKES YOU SMARTER
Many times it has been proven that those who read, generally have high er IQ scores and a greater depth of knowledge in various fields. it is not to say that in order to read you have to be nerdy, but it’s actually the opposite; the more you read the smarter you get.
It does not matter what you read on, whether it is fiction, autobiographies, historical accounts, self-help books or travel guides, whatever it is, you will learn from it and your brain will become enriched with new knowledge.
This becomes useful, especially when we read a wide variety of books, ranging both from fiction to non-fiction, which not only raises the quality of our knowledge but also the quanitity.
ENHANCED PROBLEM-SOLVING ABILITIES
Reading allows us to gain new knowledge and more penalty, new ideas about how to tackle and view problems. It enables you to become more open-minded and welcome to new solutions - a skill that is always looked for.
IMPROVED IMAGINATION AND CREATIVITY
With reading, we also develop a more vivid and adventurous imagination, especially if we commonly read fantastical fiction, which is often written ina creative fashion with high levels of description, which makes us immersed in the story and lose track of time.
Being imaginative and creative are again appearing as really valuable skills, where they are useful for the previously mentioned problem solving and any creative work such as writing, painting, playing or writing music etc.
IMPROVES OUR FOCUS AND DISCIPLINE
Reading is an activity that requires consistency as if we want to finish a book from start to end we have to regularly set aside time to read it, which is why a long term reading habit can also help develop discipline and a greater ability to focus - two crucial life skills that are useful to anyone
RAISES YOUR SELF ESTEEM
As we previously said, reading makes you smarter and raises your intelligence since you generally learn more just from the literature that you are reading. And the more knowledge we are able to acquire both about our world and about us, the more self-aware we become, which in turn raises our self-esteem and confidence levels.
BECOME MORE EMPATHETICAL
Seeing a story from the perspective of someone else
Development of feelings and emotions
Empathy: the ability to understand and relate to someone’s feelings is a very important quality and skill, that allows you to make more meaningful social connections and just generally makes you a more compassionate and approachable person.
Through reading, we can develop empathy by reading a narrative through someone else perspective and trying to imagine the story from their shoes, which allows us to develop emotions and feelings towards the storyline and characters in it.
BECOME A BETTER COMMUNICATOR
Better speaker and writer
More knowledge of vocabulary, grammar, intonation and sentence structure
The more we read, the better we become at communicating, both through speaking and though writing.
The reason for that is because when we read, our brain is exposed to new vocabulary, sentence structure, grammar and intonation, all of which your brain is able to remember and use in your writing or speaking. Therefore the more you read, the more you remember and the more efficient you can become at communicating
REDUCED STRESS
You have probably experienced that reading before bed makes you drowsy and your eyelids heavy, that makes it easier for you to drift off to sleep.
The reason why we become sleepy is that usually when we read we are sitting or laying down in a comfortable position and the actual act of reading is a demanding activity for our brain; Having to move our eyes to follow the lines, having to interpret the words, making sense of the paragraph etc. This makes it a perfect combination to fall asleep, especially if we read in the evening when we are at our most tired from the day behind us.
Apart from that, reading also makes us calmer, since we have to focus on what we are reading, which is why it makes us more clear-minded and potentially even rational.
HOW TO READ MORE
Make it part of your morning or evening routine and decide for how long you will read, what you will read and where.
State why you want to start reading
Read about what interests you; Don't force yourself to read something you don't want to read. Reading should not be a chore but an enjoyment
Set realistic reading goals
Listen to audiobooks on your commute to work or school, such as Amazon Audible
Keep a book or e-reader with you in a bag, so you can read it when you have some spare time
Share what you read with others online or in real life
Studies have shown that people who have an e-reader tend to read on average more books
Stock up in an inventory of books you want to read
Make a reading list of books you want to still read and books you have read
Find a place with minimal distractions and a quiet environment
Enrol in a reading challenge or book club
Don't feel forced to finish a book if you don't enjoy it
CONCLUSION
Reading is such a simple exercise that can be done by anyone who can read, but it offers an incredible amount of benefits for various aspects of our health.
Done underestimate the power of reading because a little can go along way. Even just having a habit of 10 minutes of reading per day can stack up to a lot in the long run; A little is always better than nothing, especially since many of us do not necessarily have a couple of spare hours each day to read. Set a target for 10 or 20 minutes each day and that is already a fantastic start.
The sooner you start the better and the more time you have to learn more. Pick up a book you are interested in or start listening to an audiobook on your way to school or work.
Happy reading :)
