Around this time last year I posted a list of the books I’d read listened to 2023.

I thought I might make it an annual thing, so here’s a list of the books I read listened to in 2024 😁.

In no particular order:

Be Useful - 7 tools for life

Written & read by Arnold Schwarzenegger

My last read (listen) of the year.

Yes, by that Arnold Schwarzenegger.

I wasn’t sure what to expect from a “self help” book written by “the world’s greatest bodybuilder”, “the world’s highest paid movie star” and “the leader of the world’s sixth largest economy” but I was pleasantly surprised.

Read by Arnie himself, it’s an entertaining listen. He’s a talented storyteller.

Peppered - as you’d expect - with numerous bodybuilding analogies the book dives into Arnie’s seven tools for leading a meaningful life.

I was impressed by how curious he is as an individual, always willing to listen to and learn from those around him. I also like how he talks about owning his mistakes and failures.

Ravenous - How to Get Ourselves and Our Planet into Shape

Written & read by Henry Dimbleby with Jemima Lewis

Fascinating exploration of the world of our global food systems, written by the founder of the Leon restaurant chain here in the UK.

As a government advisor and author of the “radical” National Food Strategy, Henry Dimbleby knows his stuff.

Having a keen interest in the food we eat (both personally and professionally having worked at Cookpad) and a keen interest in how we can restore our natural environment, I enjoyed listening to this.

Mr Dimbleby explores the good and the (very) bad of our food systems. Explaining what’s wrong with aspects of them, how things got this way, and how we can do something about it.

The Great Greenwashing: How Brands, Governments and Influencers Are Lying to You

Written by John Pabon, read by Darcy Kent

I came across this title by accident while browsing available audio books on my BorrowBox library account.

It’s an interesting listen, as the author takes us on a tour of examples of government and corporate greenwashing, while explaining how to spot those who are partaking in the activity.

I don’t personally agree that all of the cases cited in the book are quite as black and white as made out, but it’s worth a read / listen if you’re interested in environmentalism and / or communicating around the topic.

I worry that while useful for calling out organisations that are trying to pull the wool over our eyes when it comes to their environmentally friendly credentials, the “greenwashing” label might be too readily used and put some organisations off from even attempting to take steps to reduce their negative impact on the environment and back new initiatives that might have net positive impacts.

I like that this challenged my thinking on the topic.

Screw It, Let’s Do It: Lessons in Life and Business

Written by Sir Richard Branson, read by Adrian Mulraney

Not a book that I’ve been desperate to read, but one that became available on BorrowBox while I was looking for my next listen.

I admire what Sir Branson has achieved with his Virgin empire, but I’m not sure I’d recommend this book to anyone unless they were researching the man and his empire building.

While clearly a driven individual, with a good story to tell, I’m not sure there’s a huge amount to learn from his life lessons. The lessons he shares aren’t bad advice, and are well packaged, but the narrative does date the book somewhat.

There’s a lot more commentary on the physical appearance of the woman in his story than I think any publisher would allow these days in this type of book…

You might like this one, but I’d recommend Arnie’s “Be Useful” over this if you were only going to read one celebrity written self-help book.

The LEGO Story: How a Little Toy Sparked the World’s Imagination

Written by Jens Andersen, read by Peter Cross

I’m a huge fan of LEGO^*. But I didn’t know much about the genesis or evolution of the company and their bricks before reading this. It’s a fascinating read, not just for fans but also for anyone interested in the history of one of the world’s most well known brands.

My favourite LEGO fact is that they are the world’s biggest tire manufacturer.

Never Split the Difference: Negotiating as if Your Life Depended on It

Written by Chris Voss with Tahl Raz, read by Michael Kramer

Negotiating is a skill.

One that I didn’t really start to hone until becoming a parent…

This book is a well-written account of the author’s experience in the FBI as a kidnapping negotiator.

Detailing the nine key principles to successful negotiation that he developed over his career, this is a must-read for anyone with young children.

It may also be useful if you have to negotiate at work too.

The Coming Wave: A.I., Power and the Twenty-First Century’s Greatest Dilemma

Written & read by Mustafa Suleyman with Michael Bhaskar

We’re in the “lots of people think they have this figured out, but no one really knows” stage of the A.I. hype curve.

On the one hand A.I. may be the catalyst for the next big productivity shift, moving humanity into a new age (à la “the Industrial Age”, “the Information Age”, etc).

On the other hand A.I. may lead to the downfall of society as we know it.

History tells us future generations will look back and most likely conclude reality fell somewhere in between the two extremes.

That doesn’t stop folks predicting possible outcomes, and definitely shouldn’t mean we don’t actively try to avoid the potential darker outcomes being predicted.

That’s why I listened to this one this year. Forewarned is forearmed.

Food for Life: Your Guide to the New Science of Eating Well

Written by Tim Spector, read by Leighton Pugh

As a long-time listener of the Zoe podcast, and ex-customer of theirs, I was keen to listen to this to hear a more in depth explanation of the findings of the research their teams have been doing into the science of eating.

If you’ve listened to the podcast there’s not a lot that’s new in the book per se, though it’s nice to have a lot of their research (not all) explained in one place and with some narrative around it.

If you’ve not listened to the Zoe podcast or been a customer of theirs but are interested in how your diet may impact your day-to-day and long-term health, it’s worth a listen / read.

Atomic Habits: Tiny Changes, Remarkable Results

Written & read by James Clear

I was lucky enough to be working at Shopify when James Clear was invited to speak at a company wide meeting one year.

He spoke about the concepts detailed in his book that help you make long term, compound gains by starting with small (atomic) habits.

As a long time fan of BJ Fogg’s Behaviour Change Model, and his “Tiny Habits” book, I was intrigued to listen to Atomic Habits to see how they compared.

Atomic Habits is well written and a great way to learn about the concepts of marginal gains, compounding to out sized progress. Tiny Habits is equally well written and a great way to learn about the concepts too.

If you’ve not read Tiny Habits, I highly recommend Atomic Habits. If you have, I’d suggest you may not get much out of it.

If you’ve not read either, I personally would recommend Tiny Habits over Atomic Habits, but I’m biased as I’ve been evangelising the Fogg Behaviour Model and associated thinking for a very long time…

The Ministry for the Future

Written by Kim Stanley Robinson, read by Jennifer Fitzgerald, Fajer Al-Kaisi, Ramon de Ocampo, Gary Bennett, Raphael Corkhill, Barrie Kreinik, Natasha Soudek, Nikki Massoud, Joniece Abbott-Pratt, Inés del Castillo and Vikas Adam

The sole novel on this year’s listening list, this brilliant book explores the impact of climate change through the lens of one of today’s most acclaimed science-fiction writers.

If you’re even remotely interested in (or worried about) what challenges climate change may present us with in the future, and how we might adapt to and tackle those challenges, I highly recommend reading / listening to this.

If you’re not remotely interested in (or worried about) what challenges climate change may present with in the future, I’d still recommend reading / listening to this…

How to Avoid a Climate Disaster: The Solutions We Have and the Breakthroughs We Need

Written & (partially) read by Bill Gates and (mainly) read by Will Wheaton

If Kim Stanley Robinson’s The Ministry for the Future represents a fictional (though based in reality) vision of our climate change induced future, this book by Bill Gates represents the “what we can do in reality, now” vision for the world.

I liked this more than I thought I would.

There’s a lot - I think - of merit in Mr Gate’s suggested practical approach to meeting the climate change challenge.

It aligns well with our vision for Glad and the practical, impact driven focus we are pursuing as our mission.

Elon Musk

Written by Walter Isaacson, read by Jeremy Bobb

Only time will tell how we end up judging the impact of this man.

This won’t be the last book written about him for sure.

It may be the last by an author with such unrestricted access to him though…

Innovators are disruptive. And while the events that have unfolded since this book was published could easily fill another entire book again, what is in this one provides some interesting insights into the life of arguably one of the most innovative and disruptive people of our time.

If you want to understand the man as he was in 2023, it’s worth a read / listen. I don’t think this book will give you much insight into the man he’s become since then.

Obvious Adams: The Story of a Successful Business Man

Written by Robert Rawls Updegraff, read by Andrew Morantz

I can’t remember where I heard about this book, but I’m glad I did.

Originally published in the Saturday Evening Post in 1916, it’s a concisely written story about a man who succeeds in business by being determined and observing things that others overlook.

A reminder of the power of taking a step back from time to time, and taking the time to think about the challenges in front of you.

Also a reminder to not overlook the simple answers, they’re often the best.

Five Times Faster: Rethinking the Science, Economics, and Diplomacy of Climate Change

Written by Simon Sharpe, read by Michael Langan

Simon Sharpe spent ten years at the forefront of climate change policy and diplomacy.

This book is a great look at the (lack of) progress made in addressing the threats of climate change over those ten years as well as a set of (in my opinion, very sensible) recommendations for how we can accelerate our efforts to do so.

We know that climate change is going to impact the lives of billions of people globally. We know the knock-on effects will be huge. And we know what we should / need to do to address the issues. This book is a rallying cry for doing those things faster and with a greater urgency.

Personally, I think this should be compulsory reading for all policymakers at governments around the world, all business leaders and all students.

What If We Get It Right?: Visions of Climate Futures

Written & read by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson (and contributors)

A series of interviews with various people - all experts in their fields - this book explores a future were we make the right choices as individuals, communities and societies at large and tackle the problems we face thanks to climate change.

While slightly too America-focused for my UK-based ears, it’s a good listen.

I’d recommend listening to over reading this one if you can as the collection of interviews format really lends itself to audio.

I like the positivity of the framing of the conversations and the broad range of environment related topics covered including; science, policy, culture and justice.

It also tries to help answer the question: what climate action can you take. If you’re looking for an answer to that question it would be worth a listen.

Conclusion

As with last year’s reading, there are a few recurring themes in this year’s list, climate change being the main one. Not a surprise given my focus on Glad.

I would like to broaden my reading / listening a bit in 2025 though.

Last year I commented on the fact that I’d discovered the BorrowBox app and wished that more of the books I’d read were available there for borrowing. This year I’m happy to say that all but three of the list above were available via BorrowBox.

If you can join your local library, get access to BorrowBox, and make use of the service I’d recommend doing so. This type of public service is at risk of disappearing and that would be a real shame as it broadens access to knowledge, entertainment and escapism for many. The more people make use of it, the more likely it will survive.

NB

The links to each book above are Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. So if you follow a link and purchase a copy of a book I’ll earn a tiny commission from Amazon. Just so you know…

^*Dear American friends; please note that it is LEGO not LEGOS. To quote the company themselves; “LEGO is always an adjective. So LEGO bricks, LEGO elements, LEGO sets, etc. Never, ever “legos.”