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2020 Reading Challenge

2020 was a year unlike any other, with unprecedented global events and a dramatic shift in daily life. Despite the challenges of the year, one goal I set for myself was to read 40 books cover-to-cover by the end of the year. With a mix of audiobooks, re-reads, and new titles.

The rules of my reading challenge were simple: to be counted, each book had to be read cover-to-cover with no partial credit given. Re-reads were allowed, as were audiobooks and books read for class, work, or pleasure. I was also allowed to read multiple books simultaneously, which allowed me to tackle several titles at once.

2020 Reading challenge and the rules

To be listed, the books must be read cover to cover to count. No partial credit.

  • Re-reads count.

  • Audiobooks count.

  • Books read for class, work, or pleasure count.

  • Books may, of course, be read simultaneously.

  • Goal 40 Books

Here are some of my notable favorites:

  1. "21 Lessons for the 21st Century" by Yuval Noah Harari: This thought-provoking book offers insights into some of the most pressing issues facing our world today, such as the rise of artificial intelligence, the future of work, and the role of religion in modern society.

  2. "Can't Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds" by David Goggins: This inspiring memoir tells the story of David Goggins, a former Navy SEAL and ultra-endurance athlete who overcame incredible obstacles to become one of the world's fittest men.

  3. "Red Sparrow Trilogy" by Jason Matthews: This thrilling spy novel series follows the story of a young Russian intelligence officer who is sent to seduce a CIA agent in order to uncover a mole within the Russian government.

  4. "The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women" by Kate Moore: This fascinating and heartbreaking book tells the true story of a group of young women who were employed as radium dial painters in the early 20th century, and who suffered horrific health consequences as a result of their work.

  5. "Magicians of the Gods: The Forgotten Wisdom of Earth's Lost Civilization" by Graham Hancock: This book explores the idea that there may have been advanced civilizations on Earth in the distant past, and that their knowledge and wisdom may have been lost over time.

  6. "America Before: The Key to Earth's Lost Civilization" by Graham Hancock: In this book, Graham Hancock continues his exploration of the idea of lost civilizations, focusing specifically on the pre-Columbian history of North America.

  7. Robert Langdon series by Dan Brown: This series of fast-paced thrillers follows the adventures of Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon as he solves a variety of mysteries and uncovers hidden secrets.

  8. Millennium series by Stieg Larsson: This gripping series of crime novels follows journalist Mikael Blomkvist and hacker Lisbeth Salander as they investigate a variety of cases, from financial fraud to serial murder.

  9. "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, #1 and 2" by Douglas Adams: This classic science fiction series is a must-read for any fan of the genre, offering a humorous and satirical take on the universe and our place in it.

Another standout was "Reality Transurfing Steps I-V" by Vadim Zeland, which offered a unique and eye-opening perspective on personal reality and the ways in which we can take control of our lives and shape our own destiny. On the fiction front, I was hooked on "The Witcher" series by Andrzej Sapkowski, with each book drawing me deeper into the rich and immersive world of Geralt of Rivia. I also loved "Ready Player One" by Ernest Cline, which was a fun and nostalgic tribute to 80s pop culture and video games.

Books Read in 2020

1. Tribe of Mentors: Short Life Advice from the Best in the World By Timothy Ferriss

2. Reality Transurfing Steps I-V By Vadim Zeland

3. Love Me, Don't Leave Me: Overcoming Fear of Abandonment and Building Lasting, Loving Relationships By Michelle Skeen

4. Altered Carbon (Takeshi Kovacs, #1) By Richard K. Morgan

5. You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life By Jen Sincero

6. A King’s Way: All Thoughts Lead to Success By James Derrickson Jr.

7. 21 Lessons for the 21st Century By Yuval Noah Harari

8. Can't Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds By David Goggins

9. Red Sparrow (Red Sparrow Trilogy #1) By Jason  Matthews

10. Radical Acceptance: Embracing Your Life with the Heart of a Buddha By Tara Brach

11. The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women By Kate  Moore

12. Magicians of the Gods: The Forgotten Wisdom of Earth's Lost Civilization By Graham Hancock

13. America Before: The Key to Earth's Lost Civilization By Graham Hancock

14. The Last Wish (The Witcher, #0.5) By Andrzej Sapkowski

15. Sword of Destiny (The Witcher, #0.7) By Andrzej Sapkowski

16. Season of Storms (The Witcher, #0.6) By Andrzej Sapkowski

17. Blood of Elves (The Witcher, #1) By Andrzej Sapkowski

18. Summer Knight (The Dresden Files, #4) By Jim Butcher

19. The Time of Contempt (The Witcher, #2) By Andrzej Sapkowski

20. Baptism of Fire (The Witcher, #3) By Andrzej Sapkowski

21. The Tower of the Swallow (The Witcher, #4) By Andrzej Sapkowski

22. Lady of the Lake (The Witcher, #5) By Andrzej Sapkowski

23. Ready Player One (Ready Player One, #1) By Ernest Cline

24. The Aeronaut's Windlass (The Cinder Spires, #1) By Jim Butcher

25. The Magicians (The Magicians, #1) By Lev Grossman

26. Norse Mythology By Neil Gaiman

27. Everything Is F*cked: A Book About Hope By Mark Manson

28. The Magician King (The Magicians, #2) By Lev Grossman

29. The Magician's Land (The Magicians, #3) By Lev Grossman

30. The Secret History of Wonder Woman By Jill Lepore

31. The Romanov Sisters: The Lost Lives of the Daughters of Nicholas and Alexandra By Helen Rappaport

32. The Testaments By Margaret Atwood

33. Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones By James Clear

34. Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch By Terry Pratchett

35. The Shape of Water By Guillermo del Toro

36. The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon By David Grann

37. Tinseltown: Murder, Morphine, and Madness at the Dawn of Hollywood By William J. Mann

38. Scar Tissue By Anthony Kiedis

39. Wildflower By Drew Barrymore

40. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil By John Berendt

41. Death Masks (The Dresden Files, #5) By Jim Butcher

42. The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves, and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History By Robert M. Edsel

43. Midnight Rising: John Brown and the Raid That Sparked the Civil War By Tony Horwitz

44. Open By Andre Agassi

45. Wild Bill: The True Story of the American Frontier's First Gunfighter By Tom Clavin

46. City of Bones (The Mortal Instruments, #1) By Cassandra Clare

47. The Lost City of the Monkey God By Douglas Preston

48. Madame Fourcade's Secret War: The Daring Young Woman Who Led France's Largest Spy Network Against Hitler By Lynne Olson

49. Lafayette in the Somewhat United States By Sarah Vowell

50. Tribe: On Homecoming and Belonging By Sebastian Junger

51. Astrophysics for People in a Hurry By Neil deGrasse Tyson

52. Angels & Demons (Robert Langdon, #1) By Dan Brown

53. Operation Paperclip: The Secret Intelligence Program that Brought Nazi Scientists to America By Annie Jacobsen

54. Origins: Fourteen Billion Years of Cosmic Evolution By Neil deGrasse Tyson

55. Armada By Ernest Cline

56. 1493: Uncovering the New World Columbus Created By Charles C. Mann

57. Man's Search for Meaning By Viktor E. Frankl

58. Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike By Phil Knight

59. 1924: The Year That Made Hitler By Peter Ross Range

60. Empire of Sin: A Story of Sex, Jazz, Murder, and the Battle for Modern New Orleans By Gary Krist

61. Palace of Treason (Red Sparrow Trilogy, #2) By Jason  Matthews

62. Martin Luther: The Man Who Rediscovered God and Changed the World By Eric Metaxas

63. The Da Vinci Code  (Robert Langdon, #2) By Dan Brown

64. My Week With Marilyn By Colin Clark

65. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Millennium, #1) By Stieg Larsson

66. Our Lady of Guadalupe: Mother of the Civilization of Love By Carl A. Anderson

67. Valkyrie: The Story of the Plot to Kill Hitler, by Its Last Member By Philipp Freiherr von Boeselager

68. Love Hurts: Buddhist Advice for the Heartbroken By Lodro Rinzler

69. Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art By James Nestor

70. The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love that Lasts By Gary Chapman

71. The Girl Who Played with Fire (Millennium, #2) By Stieg Larsson

72. The Lost Symbol (Robert Langdon, #3) By Dan Brown

73. Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly By Anthony Bourdain

74. Inferno (Robert Langdon, #4) By Dan Brown

75. The Zookeeper's Wife By Diane Ackerman

76. Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress By Steven Pinker

77. Circe By Madeline Miller

78. The Spy By Paulo Coelho

79. The Alchemist By Paulo Coelho

80. Origin (Robert Langdon, #5) By Dan Brown

81. The Basque History of the World: The Story of a Nation By Mark Kurlansky

82. The Girl in the Spider's Web (Millennium, #4) By David Lagercrantz

83. A Clash of Kings  (A Song of Ice and Fire, #2) By George R.R. Martin

84. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest (Millennium, #3) By Stieg Larsson

85. A Call for Revolution: A Vision for the Future By Dalai Lama XIV

86. A Storm of Swords (A Song of Ice and Fire, #3) By George R.R. Martin

87. The Three-Body Problem (Remembrance of Earth’s Past #1) By Liu Cixin

88. Mexican Gothic By Silvia Moreno-Garcia

89. Acid for the Children By Flea

90. The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye (Millennium, #5) By David Lagercrantz

91. Outlander (Outlander, #1) By Diana Gabaldon

92. Gideon the Ninth (The Locked Tomb, #1) By Tamsyn Muir

93. The Dark Forest (Remembrance of Earth’s Past, #2) By Liu Cixin

94. The Year of the Witching By Alexis Henderson

95. A Feast for Crows (A Song of Ice and Fire, #4) By George R.R. Martin

96. Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams By Matthew Walker

97. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, #1) By Douglas Adams

98. Water for Elephants By Sara Gruen

99. The Three Questions: How to Discover and Master the Power Within You By Miguel Ruiz

100. Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI By David Grann

101. Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics: A 10% Happier How-To Book By Dan   Harris

102. Black Klansman: Race, Hate, and the Undercover Investigation of a Lifetime By Ron Stallworth

103. The Maze Runner (The Maze Runner, #1) By James Dashner

104. A Dance with Dragons (A Song of Ice and Fire, #5) By George R.R. Martin

105. The Restaurant at the End of the Universe (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, #2) By Douglas Adams

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