My goal is to read 52 books this year. I have a nice head start because of my vacation (see list here). Some of these are fast reads others…not so much. Regardless I have a goal!

Also; the links below are to Amazon but they are not affiliate links so you can’t make me rich this way.

1. The Last Citadel: Petersburg, June 1864 – April 1865, Author: Noah Andre Trudeau
2. Grant and Sherman: The Friendship That Won the Civil War, Author: Charles Bracelen Flood
3. The Cold Dish (Walt Longmire Mysteries), Author: Craig Johnson
4. Death Without Company (Walt Longmire Mysteries), Author: Craig Johnson
5. Kindness Goes Unpunished (Walt Longmire Mysteries), Author: Craig Johnson
6. Fierce Patriot: The Tangled Lives of William Tecumseh Sherman, Author: Robert L. O’Connell
7. Cibola Burn (The Expanse Book 4), Author: James S. A. Corey
8. Nemesis Games (The Expanse Book 5), Author: James S. A. Corey
9. Babylon’s Ashes (The Expanse Book 6), Author: James S. A. Corey
10. Persepolis Rising (The Expanse Book 7), Author: James S. A. Corey
11. Another Man’s Moccasins (Walt Longmire Mysteries), Author: Craig Johnson
12. Tiamat’s Wrath (The Expanse Book 8), Author: James S. A. Corey – 1/26/2025
13. Leviathan Falls (The Expanse Book 9), Author: James S. A. Corey – 2/16/2025
14. Night of the Grizzlies, Author: Jack Olsen
15. The Storyteller, Author: Dave Grohl – 2/22/2025
16. The Memoirs of W. T. Sherman, Author: William T. Sherman – 3/15/2025
17. General Lee, A biography of Robert E. Lee, Author: Fitzhugh Lee – 5/25/2025
18. The Generalship Of Ulysses S. Grant, Author: J.F.C. Fuller (paperback) – Reading
19. Rampage: MacArthur, Yamashita, and the Battle of Manila, Author: James M. Scott – 3/22/2025
20. Hero of Two Worlds: The Marquis de Lafayette and the Age of Revolution, Author: Mike Duncan – 4/6/2025
21. The Last Founding Father: James Monroe and a Nation’s Call to Greatness, Author: Harlow Giles Unger – 4/15/2025…
22. The Darkest Summer: Pusan and Inchon 1950: The Battles That Saved South Korea–and the Marines–from Extinction , Author: Bill Sloan – 5/5/2025
23. Starship in the Stone, Author: M.R. Forbes, 5/24/2025
24. The Fate of the Day: The War for America, Fort Ticonderoga to Charleston, 1777-1780, Author: Rick Atkinson – 6/5/2025
25. Mark Twain, Author: Ron Chernow – 09/12/2025
26. Artemis, Author: Andy Weir – 09/13/2025
27. The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York, Author Robert A. Caro – 10/9/2025
28. The Dark Horse, Author: Craig Johnson – 09/28/2025
29. Junkyard Dogs, Author: Craig Johnson – 10/5/2025
30. Naples 1944: The Devil’s Paradise at War, Author: Keith Lowe -11/13/2025
31. The Last Days of Budapest: The Destruction of Europe’s Most Cosmopolitan Capital in World War II, Author: Adam LeBor – 12/15/2026
32. Cassino ’44: The Brutal Battle for Rome – Author: James Holland – 12/30/2025

A nice list from Ryan Holiday (the list is from the newsletter but posted here). Sign up of the newsletter here.

A few of these I have read, a few of these are not my ‘style’ but.. that’s the point. Get out of your comfort zone. 

Here is the list + my additions: 

1. Slow Productivity: The lost art of accomplishment with Burnout, Author: Cal Newport
2. Don’t Just March, Run for Something: A real-talk guide to fixing the system yourself
3. The Choice: Embrace the Possible, Author: Dr. Edith Eva Eger
4. Montaigne, Author: Stefan Zweig 
5. A Calendar of Wisdom: Daily thoughts to Nourish the Soul, Written and Selected from the World’s Sacred Texts
6. Bright Shining: How Grace Changes Everything 
7. The Children, Author: David Halberstam, Author Julia Baird
8. Parting the Waters: America in the King years 1954-63, Pillar of Fire: America in the King Years 1963-1965, At Canaan’s Edge: America in the King years 1965-68, Author: Taylor Branch
9. Same as Ever: A guide to what never changes, Author: Morgan Housel
10. The 48 Laws of Power, Author: Robert Greene
11. It Can’t Happen Here, Author: SInclair Lewis
12. Address Unknown, Author: Kathrine Kressman Taylor
13. The Expanding Circle, Author: Peter Singer
14. Atomic Habits, Author: James Clear
15. Bushido: The Samurai Code of Japan, Author: Inazo Nitobe
16. How to Think Like Socrates: Ancient Philosophy as a Way of Life in the Modern World
17. Meditations, Author: Marcus Aurelius
18. Junkyard Dogs (Walt Longmire Mysteries), Author: Craig Johnson
19. The Dark Horse (Walt Longmire Mysteries), Author: Craig Johnson
20. Public Enemies, Author: Bryan Burroughs.

Naturally, I’ll read other books but this is a good starting point.

I went on vacation from 12/30 to 1/14/2025. I read a few books. They are listed below. I set a goal of reading 52 books for 2025 and I think I got a good head start on that goal. I don’t have a affiliate relationship with Amazon but did link to the books. 

1. The Last Citadel: Petersburg, June 1864 – April 1865, Author: Noah Andre Trudeau
2. Grant and Sherman: The Friendship That Won the Civil War, Author: Charles Bracelen Flood
3. The Cold Dish (Walt Longmire Mysteries), Author: Craig Johnson
4. Death Without Company (Walt Longmire Mysteries), Author: Craig Johnson
5. Kindness Goes Unpunished (Walt Longmire Mysteries), Author: Craig Johnson
6. Fierce Patriot: The Tangled Lives of William Tecumseh Sherman, Author: Robert L. O’Connell
7. Cibola Burn (The Expanse Book 4), Author: James S. A. Corey
8. Nemesis Games (The Expanse Book 5), Author: James S. A. Corey
9. Babylon’s Ashes (The Expanse Book 6), Author: James S. A. Corey
10. Persepolis Rising (The Expanse Book 7), Author: James S. A. Corey
11. Another Man’s Moccasins (Walt Longmire Mysteries), Author: Craig Johnson

I’ve been on a Civil War kick of late (which started again with ‘Fighting for the Confederacy, The personal recollections of General Edward Porter Alexander and ‘Longstreet: The Confederate General Who defied the South), started the ‘Walt Longmire’ stories because of the TV Show and wanted to finish the ‘The Expanse’ series after finishing the TV show.