First 10 Books I Read in 2021

Reading Period: January 1 - April 15

1. Mastering Mountain Bike Skills, by Brian Lopes

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8524960-mastering-mountain-bike-skills

    Mountain Biking is my favorite sport. I bought my first mountain bike over a year ago: a full suspension beast that I have spent countless hours with since. However, I never learned much about the basics (cornering, hitting drops, avoiding injuries). This book was very informative, and I'm sure I'll make use of all the valuable lessons!

2. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglass Adams

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/386162.The_Hitchhiker_s_Guide_to_the_Galaxy

    Pretty hilarious book, probably one of the most laugh-out-loud books I've read. I had very high expectations going in, however, and that spoiled it a bit for me. Easy read though, and well worth the minimal amount of effort required.

3. A Universe from Nothing: Why There is Something Rather Than Nothing, by Lawrence Krauss

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11337189-a-universe-from-nothing

    Embarrassing attempt at solving the question poised by the title. I kept reading and reading, hoping to come to a point where there was some genius insight, and then the book ended. Richard Dawkins ends the books with probably the most cringeworthy, yet hilarious takeaway in his afterword:

"Even the last remaining trump card of the theologian, 'Why is there something rather than nothing? ' shrivels up before your eyes as you read these pages."

    Did he read the same book? Krauss's arrogance is the only clear theme, and the cosmology is backed by extremely lame attempts at philosophy. Far from a genius put-down, far from even competent arguments. I admit that the overall discussion in the book is interesting, but the takeaway that Krauss has solved this problem is laughable.

4. The ETF Book, by Richard Ferri

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1805995.The_ETF_Book

    Comprehensive guide to all things ETF. This book was published in 2007, and with any rapidly growing field in finance, that means this book is very obviously outdated. However, the introduction to ETF's, open-end mutual funds, and closed-end mutual funds, is extremely interesting. The later chapters are less useful, as many of the lists provided are decades old at this point. Overall, I seem to really enjoy books with the title The ___ Book. This book is the complete overview I desired, but most people would be better off skipping due to the likely irrelevant details.

5.  The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, by Mark Manson

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28257707-the-subtle-art-of-not-giving-a-f-ck

    Probably worth reading, but less interesting and thought provoking than the title suggests. There are some wise, well-known lessons in this book. However, the popularity of this book is very obviously due to marketing, not content. If Mark went a few feet deeper with some of his thoughts, I think this would have been a lot more enjoyable.

6. The Infinite Machine, by Camila Russo

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/50175330-the-infinite-machine

    Camila documents the origin story of Ethereum, a decentralized, open source blockchain technology. She chronicles the cryptocurrency backdrop that inspired Ethereum, the personalities of the various founders, and the early history of the Ethereum foundation. This is the most interesting and most mind blowing financial technology to emerge since the Internet. As a financial professional, the fact that I had no knowledge of decentralized finance, decentralized exchanges, or smart contracts before 2021 is alarming. After finishing this book, I felt a paralyzing fear. I am an early adopter, a financial professional aware of the potential of this technology. How do I capitalize on this foresight? I've since invested in a market weighted basket of smart contract cryptocurrencies, but I am sure that I need to attach myself to the future of these platforms in a more direct way

7. On Love, by Alain de Botton

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23426.On_Love

    Quite a change of pace from the other books I've read over the past few years. Alain tells a first person love story, with romantic and philosophic lessons woven throughout. Short but interesting read. It is clear Alain is an expert on romanticism and relationships. I've listened to his YouTube lectures, and this book is essentially a short summary of his ideas. Worth the quick read.

8. Waking Up, A Guide to Spirituality Without Religion, by Sam Harris

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18774981-waking-up

    A deep dive into consciousness, meditation, and the brain. The word Spirituality in the title is a misnomer, this book is essentially all about exploring the illusion of consciousness, or at least the illusion that there is a separate "self" behind all of your ideas and actions. I was a bit disappointed by the flow of the book, as there were many detached ideas strung together in a muddled way. However, there is some clear insight, and Sam is extremely direct in how that insight is conveyed. Sam discusses psychedelic drugs, near death experiences, gurus, and the brain through a scientific lens. Since he spent his 20s tripping on LSD and searching for enlightenment in India, he has a lot of very interesting stories to back up his claims.

9. Mastering Ethereum, Building Smart Contracts and Dapps, by Andreas Antonopoulos

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33584554-mastering-ethereum

    After getting a history lesson in The Infinite Machine, I started looking for deep technical guides to Ethereum. This was exactly what I was looking for. A detailed, complex, textbook-style dive into the fundamentals behind the Ethereum Virtual Machine, smart contract programming with Solidity, and defensive programming. I would not recommend this book to anyone lacking a decent grasp of blockchain and cryptocurrency. Andreas skips over any definitions and expects the reader to be well versed in the concepts underlying Ethereum. The more detailed computer science and blockchain parts were incomprehensible to me, but I think I understood around 70% of the book. Andreas's discussion of smart contracts is fascinating, and he walks through many real world examples and asks the reader to try to determine their weak points. Educational read with absolutely no filler content.

10. Effective Python, 59 Specific Ways to Write Better Python, by Brett Slatkin

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23020812-effective-python

    Working through this book opened my eyes to a lot of simple ways to increase efficiency and readability when coding. The first half of the book is easy to understand, easy to implement, and even beginner Python users will find the content useful. After this section, we hit a lot of more technical material, and while I read all of this too, I doubt it will be useful going forward. I'd suggest stopping once the terminology gets over your head, as this book assumes a lot of prior knowledge.

Fourth 10 Books I Read in 2020

Reading Period: July 23 - December 31

1. The Moral Landscape, by Sam Harris

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7785194-the-moral-landscape

    Important conversation for sure, but I am not entirely convinced that science can determine values in the same objective sense Sam speaks of. It is pretty clear that a lot of the fundamental premises are not grounded, but this is a difficult task given that moral philosophy is so speculative in general. A step in the right direction, a important move, but understandably lacking in many senses. Sam says "if the word bad is to mean anything, it is the worst possible misery for everyone." Who says it has to mean anything? Who says consciousness of our sort even matters? Overall, you can play this "why" game of infinite regress with most of Sam's claims. Still, worth the read to see a potential glimpse of hope science may end up presenting between the relativist and the theologian.

2. Crossing the Chasm, by Geoffrey Moore

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61329.Crossing_the_Chasm

    Unfortunately, I am not currently trying to bring cutting edge technology to the mainstream market. If I was, I am sure this book would have been very useful. Probably the most useful takeaway is this: even with an amazing product, you will fail without the right messaging. The best products do not always win out, and getting the right group of genius engineers together in a room is not enough. Without a strong marketing strategy, your product might be picked up by the most innovative and tech-driven individuals, but all that investment will be worthless when it flops with the mainstream market. Important lessons, simply not relevant to me.

3. Tao Te Ching, by Lao Tzu

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/67896.Tao_Te_Ching

    Interesting read, but I didn't particularly enjoy the book. Religious texts like these are simplistic and overhyped most of the time. Most of the teaching can be distilled into two words: be humble. Also, "renouncing learning" and "attaining primitive simplicity" seem like pretty terrible life advice if your goal is to reduce the suffering in the world. I'd point to this teaching of ignorance/simplicity common in Eastern Philosophy as one of the main reasons I avoid books like these.

4. The Emperor's Soul, by Brandon Sanderson

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13578175-the-emperor-s-soul

    I've heard a lot about Brandon's books online, and decided to dip my toes in by reading this novella. Wow, this guy can write a hell of a story. Right after finishing, I bought four of his other books and watched his ten hour lecture series on YouTube about writing fantasy. This book has an intriguing story, compelling characters, and an immensely satisfying ending. All in around 100 pages!

5. Zero to One, by Peter Thiel

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18050143-zero-to-one

    Really compelling business book. Probably one of the best pound-for-pound business books I have read, clocking in at under 200 pages but full of insight. I see a striking similarity between Thiel's thoughts and my own, and a lot of overlap between his writing and my experience. Probably a 9/10 book in general, I would recommend to anyone in the business field.

6. The Bond Book, by Annette Thau

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/851083.The_Bond_Book

    The full title of this book is "The Bond Book: Everything Investors Need to Know about Treasuries, Municipals, GNMAs, Corporates, Zeros, Bond Funds, Money Market Funds, and More." There really couldn't be a more exhaustive title, and this couldn't have been a more exhausting, I mean exhaustive book. If you are not very motivated to learn a lot of detailed information about every nook and cranny of the bond market, this is not the book for you. Very textbook-y, and very long. However, as an introductory book into the world of bonds, this book more than serves its purpose. I felt ignorant before, now I know way too much. Not a bad trade-off! Probably much more relevant for financial professionals than retail investors, despite Annette's wishes.

7. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stephenson

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51496.The_Strange_Case_of_Dr_Jekyll_and_Mr_Hyde

    Good mystery novella, short and captivating. The influence of this book is readily apparent, although I won't go into any detail to avoid spoilers. Impressive that this was written in 1886; I'm adding more of Stephenson's work to my reading list.

8. The Art of War, by Sun Tzu

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10534.The_Art_of_War

    I read half of this book a few years ago. Given the short page count and since I only have two weeks to hit my reading goal (40 books in 2020), I decided to give it another shot. This is a surprisingly insightful book. Some of the lessons are still relevant today. However, if you take these insights as as gospel for how you should act in the business world, you should probably spend more time with your family.

9. The Last Lecture, by Randy Pausch

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40611510-the-last-lecture

    Randy delivers insight into how we can all achieve our childhood dreams, and dies shortly after. Depressing, bittersweet, and useful. However, I would actually recommend watching his actual last lecture on YouTube instead of reading this book. Randy is a better lecturer than a writer, and the content in this book is much better packaged for a video format. Overall, compelling story that changed my perspective on life.

10. Mistborn: The Final Empire, by Brandon Sanderson

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/68428.The_Final_Empire

    My reading goal of 40 books in 2020 is now complete! Brandon is a master at worldbuilding, interesting magic systems and satisfying endings. A  fun fantasy novel, with twists, turns, and happy endings all around. A bit more young-adult than I was expecting, and probably not his best writing. Still, I’m excited to start 2021 with three new Sanderson books on my bookshelf.

Favorite Songs of 15 Genres

I currently have 43 Spotify playlists that I created, all separated by loose-fitting genres. Every year, I listen to about 600-800 hours of music. Below are my favorite songs by genre:

Acoustic: Ocean by John Butler

Alternative: Sweet Disaster by DREAMERS

Classical: Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major by Johann Sebastian Bach

Country: When the Stars Come Out by Chris Stapleton

Electronic: The Drift by Blackmill

Jazz: The Girl From Ipanema by Stan Getz

Metal: The Diary of Jane by Breaking Benjamin

Pop: Mine by Taylor Swift

Punk Rock: Welcome to the Black Parade by My Chemical Romance

R&B: Thinkin Bout You by Frank Ocean

Rap: Hiiipower by Kendrick Lamar

Reggae: Jamming by Bob Marley

Rock: Come Sail Away by Styx

Showtunes: Satisfied by Renee Elise Goldsberry

Soul: Lean on Me by Bill Withers

Third 10 books I read in 2020

Reading Period: June 15th - July 23

1. Art and Fear, by David Bayles

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/187633.Art_and_Fear

    This book is extremely well written, insightful, and motivating. This book is about making art, but at the same time it is not about art at all. It is about the struggle to produce, the anxiety of competition, and the destructive ways of thinking that tear us down. It is a book about life, and a book about getting shit done. The sheer amount of good advice David manages to pack in 120 pages is almost frighting. I would say that this is the most motivating book I have ever read, and one of the best.

2. Forex Trading, by Jim Brown
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27263125-forex-trading

    I'm not going to waste much time writing about this book, it was pretty bad. Very short introduction to forex but poorly written, not helpful, and overall a waste of time.

3. Black Edge, by Sheelah Kolhatkar
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32284263-black-edge

    God damn is this book amazing. 10/10. One of the few books I've stayed up until 3:00 AM to finish. This book chronicles the rise of Steven A. Cohen, and the famous insider trading investigations surrounding his firm, SAC Capital. It is Cohen vs the FBI, SEC, and the Department of Justice. Extremely well researched, hilarious, and frustrating. I would say that the word that describes this book the best is "pleasure." It was a pleasure to read, and I am going to recommend this book to every person I know.

4. The Art of Currency Trading, by Brent Donnelly
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/46218999-the-art-of-currency-trading

    This books is absolutely phenomenal. As far as technical guides go, this is probably the most comprehensive, down to earth, and useful book about trading. This book is not simply about FX, it is really a life lesson about decision making and risk management. Brent is an expert who gives advice that seems specific, but is actually extremely applicable in every area of finance. Probably the best "hard finance" book I've ever read.

5. The Complete Whiskey Course, by Robin Robinson
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44443016-the-complete-whiskey-course

    Extremely informative, probably the most "complete course" you could ask for. Robin breaks down how whiskey is made, how to taste whiskey, and the different types of whiskey. He splits whiskey into different geographies (American, Canadian, Irish, Scottish, Japanese, and World) and even gives suggested tastings! I kept a bottle of Jim Beam beside me during the reading, which definitely increased the enjoyment. If you are looking for a comprehensive guide to all things whiskey, this is your stop.

6. Wine Folly: Magnum Edition: The Master Guide, by Madeline Puckette
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/39402952-wine-folly

    I would say this book is probably best in hardcover format, something to read on and off when bored or pouring a glass of wine. The first 80 pages were a easy introduction to wine, but the learning really stops there. The majority of the book is essentially an atlas that lists type of wine, basic characteristics, and taste profile. I was hoping for something much more similar to The Complete Whiskey Course (which was super in-depth and informative) but I ended up with a book you'd put on your coffee table and never read.

7. Lying, by Sam Harris
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18869177-lying

    Labeled as a book but essentially an essay. Sam expands on the idea that in 99.99% of situations, we should not lie. Pretty much in every regard, this point is thought through and defended. The more time you spend living life, the harder it is to disagree with this central theme. Your life will be easier, happier, and deeper if you simply decide to not lie under almost any circumstance.

8. Letter to a Christian Nation, by Sam Harris

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51299.Letter_to_a_Christian_Nation

    Another long form essay, this one a sort of sequel to The End of Faith, but probably written in the course of a weekend. Sam seems to simplify or dumb-down many of his attacks in the book, with the intended audience being a bible belt Christian who likely lacks a college education. This letter would likely be insightful to them, but as a standalone work read by an agnostic there is really nothing novel (though some quips are pretty funny).

9. Free Will, by Sam Harris
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13259270-free-will

    Yet another "book" by Sam Harris, this one focusing on the idea of determinism and the illusion of free will. Of the essays I've read by Sam I think this is probably the least fleshed out, with much to be wished for. For example, I could have used another 10 pages describing compatibilism. It seemed as if the reader was expected to have prior knowledge of Sam's disagreement with Dennett. To be honest, Sam's lectures on free will on Youtube seem to be better structured and more understandable. However, this is still an interesting discussion topic and a good "pop philosophy" introduction.

10. Godel, Escher, Bach: an Eternal Golden Braid, by Douglas Hofstadter
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24113.G_del_Escher_Bach

    Simply marvelous. The most intellectually challenging/stimulating book I have ever read. Douglas weaves Godel's incompleteness theorem, Escher's mind-bending artwork, and Bach's musical brilliance in a thread through computer science, artificial intelligence, neuroscience, and a host of other subjects. Chapters switch between in-depth discussion of a particular topic (number theory) and fun fictional interactions between a cast of characters (Achilles, Tortoise, Crab) that provide a ground to the scientific figure. Looking across my life so far, with this being the 185th book I have ever read, I can say with certainty that is was the theoretical best. The amount of effort, cleverness, and insight provided by the 777 pages is truly remarkable. Even without agreeing with Hofstadter's underlying assumption of strange loops/tangled hierarchies and their role, even conceding that a book about machine intelligence written in 1979 is bound to be outdated by modern technology, I can firmly say that I have never been more impressed by a book. 

Second 10 books I read in 2020

Reading Period: May 9th - June 15th
1. When Genius Failed, by Roger Lowenstein
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10669.When_Genius_Failed

    This is probably my favorite finance book. Roger chronicles the rise and fall of LTCM, a story with important lessons about risk, leverage, and hubris. The overconfidence displayed by LTCM's partners is honestly astounding, and it is very hard to have any sympathy for any of the parties involved. Two quotes I found particularly insightful:

"No investment can be judged on the basis of half a cycle alone"
"As Keynes noted, one bet soundly considered is preferable to many poorly understood"

    Diversification is not everything. Markets have fatty tails. Overall, a Nobel Prize pales in comparison to proper risk management.

2. Storm Front, by Jim Butcher
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/47212.Storm_Front

    I needed a break from non-fiction, and this was a good escape. I read it in one day, fun fantasy story about a wizard detective who solves crimes. Not the best writing, but accomplishes what it set out to do. Overall a fun and fast read. I read that this series gets better as it goes on, and I might save the next few books for a rainy day.

3. Python Crash Course, by Eric Matthes
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23241059-python-crash-course

    I probably shouldn't have read this book, I'm already pretty familiar with the language already, and it is more for beginners. Still, there were some parts that I found useful, and it would have been very useful to read as a beginner. I didn't delve too much into the side projects at the end, I have done more complicated ones for work. Overall good enough starter book.

4. The C Programming Language, by Kernighan and Ritchie
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/515601.The_C_Programming_Language

    I really only read this book because my parents had it laying around. They both programmed in C in the late 1980s. Easy read, less than 200 pages, but I am not familiar with direct memory management so the entire discussion about pointers was lost on me. Also I am not familiar with Unix, so that part was lost on me too. Understanding the rest was pretty easy, the structure is similar to most other languages and it seems clear that Python was heavily influenced by the syntax. This book demystified C, and was worth the short read.

5. Code Complete, by Steve McConnell
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4845.Code_Complete

    At over 850 pages, this book is very intimidating. However, it was extremely informative, and I now know more about software development than I ever expected to know. I am curious to see how useful this book will be for my current job, and I am guessing that it was mostly benefit me in ways not at all related to programming.

"Nobody is really smart enough to program computers. Fully understanding an average program requires an almost limitless capacity to absorb details and an equal capacity to comprehend them all at the same time. The way you focus your intelligence is more important than how much intelligence you have."

    It is very weird how insightful this book was in every way, but mostly in ways not related to coding. Project management, time management, teamwork, and many other important business skills are emphasized. I'm sure a lot of the technical information was lost on me, but the overall message and emphasis on reducing complexity is now buried in my brain.

6. The Things They Carried, by Tim O'Brien
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/133518.The_Things_They_Carried

    This book is really a collection of essays. The problem with books formatted in this way (see Hackers & Painters) is for some reason only around half of the essays are usually good. The first essay is very well written and insightful, while the rest vary wildly in merit. Overall, I wasn't too impressed by the book, it seemed that the narrator's unreliability did not have the desired effect. Also, Tim seemed to be trying too hard to be profound, when other war books more grounded in reality have been much more impactful.

7. Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software, by Charles Petzold
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21948821-code

    Before I picked this book, I asked myself, "what topic do you know the least amount about?" I decided that I really, fundamentally do not understand how computers work. I doubt many people understand the entire stack of inter-workings, but I decided to learn the basics. The first 100 pages were honestly jaw-dropping. Over the course of the whole book you build an entire computer from scratch, and learn important electrical engineering and mathematical concepts along the way. This book ended up being hard to get through, but it was well worth it.

    This is probably the most informative book I have read in a while. I have newfound respect for the giants on whose shoulders we now stand.

8. Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies, by Nick Bostrom
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20527133-superintelligence

    Probably the most interesting book I have ever read, at least in terms of tangible outcomes that will directly impact humans in the centuries to come. Nick is probably the most intelligent writer there is, and an obvious expert in his field. One of the most creative thinkers shares his warnings and potential solutions for near-term groundbreaking technology. It really does not get any better than this. Parts of the book are extremely dry, but if you look past the verbose language and boil the book down to core concepts, this really is one of the most interesting books out there. This very well might be my favorite non-fiction book.

9. Man's Search for Meaning, by Viktor Frankl
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4069.Man_s_Search_for_Meaning

    An extremely popular first-hand account of the Holocaust from a survivor, accompanied by the author's conclusions about the true meaning of life. The first part is very informative, and I support at least some of his initial conclusions. I did not like the second half of this book, which is essentially a sales pitch for Viktor's new therapeutic approach called "logotherapy." In my opinion, this discussion detracted from the overall story. Still, I would say this is worth the read, as long as you are prepared for some very heavy, depressing material.

10. Ways of Seeing, by John Berger
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2784.Ways_of_Seeing

   I know essentially nothing about art, despite being to dozens of art museums and working in an office that is also classified as an art gallery (owner of the company I work for loves art). This is one of the most famous books on art, and it was certainly eye-opening in some respects. John shows you how to look at paintings, and he cuts through the unnecessary "mystification" surrounding art pieces in order to show the reader how to decode these pieces by themselves. I still feel way out of my depth, but I understood the key concepts. Overall it was an interesting detour from my regular programming and I am looking forward to learning more.

The 10 Best Films Since 1990

1. A Serious Man
2. Schindler's List
3. Life is Beautiful
4. The Departed
5. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
6. Whiplash
7. Manchester by the Sea
8. The Florida Project
9. The Social Network
10: City of God

Best Movies of 18 Genres

Action: Mad Max: Fury Road

Adventure: Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Animated: Grave of the Fireflies

Comedy: Monty Python’s Life of Brian

Crime: The Departed

Documentary: Searching for Sugar Man

Drama: 12 Angry Men

Film Noir: The Third Man

Gangster: The Godfather

Horror: Sinister

Musical: La La Land

Mystery: Enemy

Romance: About Time

Science Fiction: Blade Runner 2049

Superhero: Avengers: Infinity War

Thriller: Silence of the Lambs

War: Full Metal Jacket

Western: The Searchers