Below is a log of books I read, chronologically ordered and accompanied by ratings and brief comments. It is just a simple record for myself, so the comments might not be all that useful to you. But maybe you find some of them at least amusing. The few most recent books are also shown in the sidebar of this site.
If you are interesting in looking at more book-related stuff on this site, have a look at my book-related posts.
#1
Neverwhere
by Neil Gaiman 
(read in Apr 2007)
Entertaining fantasy at its best. Though nothing that I will remember in a year from now, probably.
#2
Ender’s Game
by Orson Scott Card 
(read in Apr 2007)
Good, classic sci-fi, where the “sci-fi” is just an excuse to explore the eternal philosophical questions about what being human, right and wrong, etc.
#3
Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything
by Stephen J. Dubner 
(read in Apr 2007)
Thought-provoking.
#4
This Book Will Save Your Life
by A. M. Homes
(read in Apr 2007)
Entertaining and mildly inspiring. Not very memorable, though.
#5
Flow: The Classic Work on How to Achieve Happiness
by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
(read in Apr 2007)
Interesting, but not very content-dense. And not as much scientific evidence as I expected.
#6
Does IT Matter?: Information Technology and the Corrosion of Competitive Advantage
by Nicholas G. Carr
(read in May 2007)
A longer version of the famous article, “IT doesn’t matter”.
#7
Composition (Basics Photography)
by David Prakel
(read in May 2007)
Nice introduction to the basics of composition. With gorgeous photos, too.
#8
I Am Charlotte Simmons
by Tom Wolfe
(read in May 2007)
Wolfe has written better books…
#9
A Long Way Down
by Nick Hornby 
(read in Jun 2007)
Some funny bits, but irregular overall.
#10
Gateway
by Frederik Pohl
(read in Jul 2007)
#11
Hackers and Painters: Essays on the Art of Programming
by Paul Graham
(read in Jul 2007)
One of the best books I’ve read in a long time. Recommended, and not only for hackers or painters.
#12
Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
by Malcolm Gladwell
(read in Aug 2007)
I suppose everything has already been said about this book. Stimulating, thought provoking, etc.
#13
El Corazon Helado
by Almudena Grandes
(read in Aug 2007)
Nice novel exploring the intertwining histories of two Spanish families from the civil war to our days.
#14
Spook Country
by William Gibson
(read in Aug 2007)
Gibson doesn’t disappoint; the man can write.
#15
On Intelligence
by Jeff Hawkins (with Sandra Blakeslee)
(read in Aug 2007)
Full review here.
#16
Revelation Space (Gollancz S.F.)
by Alastair Reynolds
(read in Sep 2007)
Pretty nice sci fi. And nice book cover, too.
#17
The Atrocity Archives
by Charles Stross
(read in Oct 2007)
Funny and entertaining. Some good descriptions of the life of geeks. A quote.
#18
One Good Turn
by Kate Atkinson
(read in Oct 2007)
Excellently constructed characters, entertaining plot, and lots of funny moments.
#19
The Plenitude: Creativity, Innovation and Making Stuff
by R Gold
(read in Oct 2007)
Poor arguments, poor editing (yes, lots of typos…), not much to learn.
#20
Idoru
by William Gibson
(read in Nov 2007)
Excellent. I think The Bridge Trilogy is my favourite Gibson.
#21
Ghost in the Shell
by Masamune Shirow
(read in Nov 2007)
A classic; what else is there to say?
#22
Fell: Feral City v. 1 (Fell): Feral City v. 1 (Fell)
by Warren Ellis
(read in Nov 2007)
Great writing + brilliant artwork = instant favourite!
#23
Flaubert’s Parrot (Picador Books)
by Julian Barnes
(read in Dec 2007)
Nicely written. But the so-called story is probably only truly interesting for Flaubertian initiates.
#24
The Long Tail: How Endless Choice Is Creating Unlimited Demand
by Chris Anderson
(read in Dec 2007)
A simple idea, nicely described and with lots of supporting evidence, history and anecdotes. And a trendy idea, too.
#25
Blood Music (Gollancz S.F.)
by Greg Bear
(read in Dec 2007)
The only reason I don’t give this one top points is because Greg Bear doesn’t write as nicely as William Gibson. But that might be harsh of me.
#26
Desolation Jones
by J.H. Williams
(read in Dec 2007)
Excellent characters, artwork, writing. Another instant favourite from the Ellis factory.
#27
Smart and Gets Things Done: Joel Spolsky’s Concise Guide to Finding the Best Technical Talent
by Joel Spolsky
(read in Dec 2007)
Good summary of Spolsky’s thoughts on the subject of recruiting, hiring and building programmer-friendly work environments. Useful advice no just for employers, but also for those looking to land that dream job.
#28
Watchmen
by Dave Gibbons
(read in Jan 2008)
Very interesting use of different levels of narrative, although I found the story itself a bit too surreal. The style of the artwork is not my favourite, but I understand that it suits the story better.
#29
Hellboy: Seed of Destruction
by John Byrne
(read in Jan 2008)
Very Lovecraftian story, and beautiful artwork. Had to order the next volume…
#30
Akira: Bk. 1
by Katsuhiro Otomo
(read in Jan 2008)
The first book of the classic series. Interesting story, and very cinematographic black-and-white typically-manga type of artwork.
#31
10 Days to Faster Reading
by Abby Marks-Beale
(read in Jan 2008)
Useful advice, though nothing groundbreaking. The only truly novel bit for me: the eye-movement exercises. And you really can read this in 10 days or less.
#32
Strengthsfinder 2.0: A New and Upgraded Edition of the Online Test from Gallup’s Now Discover Your Strengths
by Tom Rath
(read in Jan 2008)
Useful. Not much more to say. The update version of the Gallup poll and some context around it.
#33
Ghost in the Shell: Man-Machine Interface v. 2 (Ghost in the Shell 2)
by Masamune Shirow
(read in Jan 2008)
Mmm, the artwork. Me likes the artwork.
#34
Schismatrix Plus
by Bruce Sterling
(read in Feb 2008)
The short stories are as good as the Schismatrix novel. Specially liked the Twenty Evocations.
#35
The Dip: The Extraordinary Benefits of Knowing When to Quit (and When to Stick)
by Seth Godin
(read in Feb 2008)
Typical Godin writing. Insightful, inspiring. With nice illustrations by Hugh McLeod.
#36
Ghost in the Shell 1.5: Human-error Processor
by Shirow Masamune
(read in Feb 2008)
Collection of shorter stories that fall chronologically between Ghost in the Shell 1 and 2. Nice artwork, nice futuristic ideas. Great fun.
#37
Crooked Little Vein: A Novel
by Warren Ellis
(read in Feb 2008)
A surreal story, written in Ellis’ trademark black-bizarre humor. A must read if you enjoy non-ordinary humor and aren’t easily shocked.
#38
Grammar Snobs Are Great Big Meanies: A Guide to Language for Fun and Spite
by June Casagrande
(read in Feb 2008)
A very funny and unpretentious little book on good English grammar.
#39
Akira: v. 2 (Akira (Dark Horse))
by Katsuhiro Otomo
(read in Feb 2008)
Second volume of the classic manga series. Highly entertaining, but not too memorable.
#40
Free Agent Nation: The Future of Working for Yourself
by Daniel H. Pink
(read in Feb 2008)
Good overview of the subject, and useful pointers to more resources. Not mind-blowing, but good enough.
#41
El Aleph
by Jorge Luis Borges
(read in Mar 2008)
A classic, but it failed to engage me. Very highly intellectualized style and a couple of interesting ideas.
#42
El Sendero De La Mano Izquierda (Practicos)
by Fernando Sanchez Drago
(read in Mar 2008)
Some wise words, some outrageously stupid statements. Fine food for thought. Giving it three stars instead of 4 because of some overly-bilious passages.
#43
Snow Crash
by Neal Stephenson
(read in Mar 2008)
Pretty entertaining, and funny in places. But the writing isn’t outstanding, and contains no dazzlingly provoking ideas. Somehow disappointing, but maybe that’s my fault for expecting this book to be outstanding.
#44
Hellboy: Wake the Devil
by Mike Mignola
(read in Apr 2008)
Beautiful, so beautiful.
#45
The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason
by Sam Harris
(read in Apr 2008)
Interesting discussion of how religious faith is harmful. Well-researched.
#46
Everything is Miscellaneous: The Power of the New Digital Disorder
by David Weinberger
(read in Apr 2008)
A good look at how going digital calls for a whole new way of filtering and selecting information, and the changes that this brings.
#47
Twenty-two Tips on Typography
by Enric Jardi
(read in Apr 2008)
Typography is always nice to learn about. It is also beautiful.
#48
Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations
by Clay Shirky
(read in May 2008)
A well-written, well-researched, well-thought-through look at the dynamics of unorganizations, the motivations of people in them, repercussions on old-skool organizations, etc. Highly recommended.
#49
Consider Phlebas
by Iain M. Banks
(read in May 2008)
Good, entertaining enough, but not impressive. Gets better towards the end of the book, and the ending is a tad better than one would have expected.
