I am excited about my 2023 Book of the year. The book of the year tradition started in 2016 with my cousin Maria who lives in Miami. We bonded over words on a cruise to celebrate her mother’s seventy-fifth birthday and have remained close ever since. We have been a source of support and cheerleading for each other. I can share my painful personal stories with her and my wins, and she can do the same.
Choosing my book of the year sometimes starts with the previous year. It may be something I read or something on my TBR list. I shared this tradition for the first time last year, and a few friends have since joined us.
How many books are on my reading list this year?
I have six books on my reading list this year in addition to what I am sharing today. It is the first time I have had a goal of fewer than twenty books to read in any year. However, I am being intentional about my reading this year—I want to read fewer books and take in more from the books I read.
Studies show
According to Lenstore, an average person can read 33 books a year, and 55 books if you are a speed reader who can blast through a passage in 60 seconds—assuming book lengths average out to 90,000 words. There is another study that shows Americans read approximately twelve books a year. I will link it here soon because it is my notes and I can not find it now.
My book[s] of the year.
This year we choose two books to take the journey with us through 2023.
Book 1: The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman
I read and listened to Marcus Aurelius’s Meditation and enjoyed it. And when my cousin suggested The Daily Stoic—I thought it would be a excellent idea.
It is a page a day of daily devotional of Stoic meditations, allowing the opportunity to meditate on the lesson in the morning and carry it through our daily journey. The lessons can also be implemented in daily living or watch how the message/lesson resonates when you encounter others. And it provides a journaling opportunity where you can write about how you feel with this insight.
I am not familiar with the Authors, but I am enjoying this book—we are on Day 4 and it feels like an important practice. So I have weaved it into my morning routine.
Quote from The Daily Stoic
“All you need are these: certainty of judgment in the present moment; action for the common good in the present moment; and an attitude of gratitude in the present moment for anything that comes your way.” —MARCUS AURELIUS, MEDITATIONS.
Book 2: The Courage to Be Disliked by Ichiro Kishinev and Fumitake Koga
I started this book in November of last year and am enjoying it. The Courage to Be Disliked is a conversation-style dialogue between youth and philosophers. I purchased the Hard Cover. And I love reading slowly, always with a highlighter nearby.
What is the book about?
The Courage to Be Disliked: The Japanese Phenomenon That Shows You How to Change Your Life and Achieve Real Happiness.
The book is based on the theories of Alfred Adler, one of the three giants of nineteenth-century psychology alongside Freud and Jung. Throughout five conversations, the philosopher helps his student to understand how each of us can determine the direction of our own life, free from the shackles of past traumas and the expectations of others.
Quote from The Courage to Be Disliked
“A healthy feeling of inferiority is not something that comes from comparing oneself to others; it comes from one’s comparison with one’s ideal self.”
I am enjoying these books, and I believe they are the perfect companion, both life-changing and meditative.
Comment below: have you chosen a book of the year? If did—what book did you choose?
