When I started running and training for triathlons I started listening to audiobooks. Here are a few books I've read and listened to recently. I typically listen to audio versions of books while running or biking, though I also like to get the hard copy of the book to read at night as well. Many of these books have been both read and listened to, some only read, some only listened to. I only listen to unabridged versions, and refer to books I’m listening to as books I am reading, since in my mind these are one and the same, only the listening takes longer, but can be accomplished while doing other things, like the dishes or exercising.  My ratings are 1-5, 1 indicating a book I wouldn’t read again, 5 being one that I would recommend to everyone and the rest a fairly inconsistent, nonlinear mapping of my response to the book.  I tend to like most books I read, your mileage may vary.  If you have read any of these and disagree with my nonlinear, arbitrary rating, I’d be interested in hearing your thoughts.  I tend to discuss books, more than write about them, so I have not put any form of review, other than a few cursory reactions.  If you have a book to recommend, I’m always looking for the next great read – drop me a note.

Strategy, Economics and Innovation:

• The Ten Faces of Innovation, Tom Kelley with Jonathan Littman. All entrepreneurs should read this book. 3
• Made to Stick, Chip Heath and Dan Heath. Everyone should read this book. 4
• The Long Tail, Chris Anderson. New Market economics. 4
• The Black Swan, Nassim Taleb. Welcome to Extremistan - how life in a non-ergodic world is distorted by the human need to explain what we cannot know. If you invest your own money, you should read this. 4
• Getting to Yes, Roger Fisher and Bruce Patton. Excellent negotiation book. 4
• The First Billion is the Hardest, T. Boone Pickens. 4

Non Fiction:

• Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell. 5. Excellent. Compelling arguments that challenge the way we account for success.
• Charlie Wilson’s War, George Crile. 5. Excellent read.
• Born To Run, Christopher McDougall, 5. Excellent book for the endurance athlete.

Epic Fiction: Must-reads.

• Against the Day, Thomas Pynchon. A modern-day War and Peace. 5
• Gravity’s Rainbow, Thomas Pynchon. Fascinating, Funny, Fierce. 5
• War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy. 5
• The Brothers Karamazov, Fyodor Dostoevsky 5

Good General Fiction:

• Inherent Vice, Thomas Pynchon. 5. More accessible Pynchon, but still good.
• Ulysses, James Joyce. Probably a 5, but I’m still mulling it over (and probably will for a long time). Interesting, challenging, funny.
• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Stieg Larsson, 5.  Interesting mystery.
• American Pastoral, Philip Roth, 5.
• Sacred Games, Vikram Chrandra, (in progress)
• That Old Cape Magic, Richard Russo. 4
• Empire Falls, Richard Russo, 4.
• The Bridge of Sighs, Richard Russo, 4.
• Straight Man, Richard Russo, hysterical academic satire, 5
• Nobody’s Fool, Richard Russo, 5
• Lucky Jim, Kingsley Amis, hysterical academic satire, 4
• Shantaram, Gregory David Roberts, 5
• Running with Scissors, Augusten Burroughs. 4 Strange, rich characters, fairly linear plot lines.
• The Time Traveler's Wife, Audrey Niffenegger. 4 Fun novel. Well told story. This could also go under Fantasy.
• Until I Find You, John Irving. 5 I've read most of John Irving's other works (My favorites were A Prayer for Owen Meany and The Cider House Rules)
• Last Night in Twisted River, John Irving. 5
• The Crying of Lot 49, Thomas Pynchon. This is Hilarious! 5
• Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy. 5
• Snow Crash, Neal Stephenson. 5 A must read for anyone working in VR or HCI. Cyber Punk.
• Lolita, Vladimir Nabokov. 5 Interesting psychological novel. Amazing prose.
• As I Lay Dying, William Faulkner 5 A family of interesting characters dealing with death and last wishes of the mother. Stream of consciousness style, existential angst, colorful characters, family, determination, and a chapter consisting only of "My mother is a fish.".
• The Fountainhead, Ayn Rand 5 Individualism in a world of second-handers. An excellent philosophical discourse woven into an interesting tale. The mingling of plot and philosophy reminded me of War and Peace, though the story line was considerably less involved.
• Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand, 5
• The Painted Veil, W.  Somerset Maugham, 5.
• Interpreter of Maladies, Jhumpa Lahiri, 5.
• Lonesome Dove, Larry McMurtry, 5.
• Tree of Smoke: A Novel, Denis Johnson, 4. Interesting story line, nonlinear. Style has a bit of Pynchon.

General Fiction:

• A Thousand Splendid Suns, Khaled Hosseini.4  Linear plot, interesting story, uncomplex.
• Angels and Demons, Dan Brown. 4  A page turner, but not overly complex plot lines and very linear.
• The Davinci Code, Dan Brown. 4  A page turner.
• My Sister's Keeper, Jodi Picoult, 4. Predictable storyline, but compelling and thought provoking.
• Bel Canto, Ann Patchett 4.
• The Lost Symbol, Dan Brown. Page-turning, predictable. 3.
• Life of Pi, Yann Martel. 3

Fantasy:

• Coraline, Neil Gaiman, 5
• Eragon Trilogy by Christopher Paolini:
  • A Brief History of Alagaësia (short prequel),
  • Eragon, 3
  • Eldest.2
  • Brinsingr, 3
• Tales of the Otori Series by Lian Hearn:
  • Across the Nightingale Floor.4
  • Grass for His Pillow .4
  • Brilliance of the Moon.4
  • The Harsh Cry of the Heron.4
• Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, Susanna Clarke, 4
• Orson Scott Card:
  • Ender's Game, 5 (one of the best sci-fi stories of all time, some say)
  • Speaker for the Dead, 5 (I liked this better than EG, but both were great fun)
  • Xenocide, 4
  • Children of the Mind, 3
  • Ender's Shadow, 5
  • Shadow of the Hegemon, 4
  • Shadow Puppets, 4
  • Shadow of the Giant, 4
  • Ender in Exile, 3
  • War of Gifts, 3
  • The Crystal City, 4
  • Enchantment, 4
  • Hart's Hope. 4
• Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time Series: (JRR Tolkien style fantast, with additional political intrigue, magic, complex plot lines, interwoven stories in the style of War and Peace.  Great fun to read)
  • New Spring: The Novel,4
  • The Eye of the World, 5
  • The Great Hunt, 4
  • The Dragon Reborn,5
  • The Shadow Rising, 4
  • The Fires of Heaven, 4
  • Lord of Chaos, 4
  • A Crown of Swords, 4
  • The Path of Daggers,4
  • Winter's Heart, 4
  • Crossroads of Twilight, 4
  • Knife of Dreams, 4
  • The Gathering Storm, Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson, 5
• J. R. R. Tolkien:
  • The Hobbit, 5
  • The Fellowship of the Ring, 5
  • The Two Towers, 4
  • The Return of the King. 5
• Terry Goodkind
  • Wizard's First Rule,5. Great start to the Sword of Truth series... and I like the first rule...
  • Stone of Tears, 3 ,
  • Blood of the Fold, 3, seems like these books borrow many characters/topics from the WOT series. ,
  • Temple of the Winds, 4 ,
  • Soul of the Fire, 4
  • Faith of the Fallen, 4, Goodkind was a fan of Ayn Rand. Many allusions to Rand’s world from the Fountainhead or Atlas Shrugged.
  • Pillars of Creation, 4
  • Naked Empire, 4
  • Chainfire, 4
  • Phantom, 3
  • Confessor, 3  I realize it’s difficult to end a series, but although a page-turner, this was an underwhelming conclusion. Overall, this series is a much better told story than Atlas Shrugged, but the philosophy is the same.
• Lois McMaster Bujold
  • The Curse of Chalion,4. Interesting exploration of theology and free will
  • Paladin of Souls ,5,
  • The Hallowed Hunt, 5.