# About the List [[reading-list|what I have read]] | [[Books I Read Before 1996|before 1996]] | [[current reading|current]] My reading life can be divided into two parts: before my reading list, and after. Prior to 1996, I didn't keep a list of what I read. But beginning in 1996, perhaps after seeing [a list by Eric W. Leuliette](http://www.whatihaveread.net/) sometime in late 1995, I decided to start my own. I started it with the goal of reading a book a week, or 52 books each year. It wasn't until 2013 or so that I actually hit my goal, but my list has continued, capturing nearly 30 years of my reading. ## Rules for My List 1. To get on the list, I have to *finish* the book. 2. Each finished book gets a number. 3. If I re-read a book and finish it, it gets on the list again with another number. 4. Format does not matter. Finishing matters. ## Frequently-Asked Questions ### How do you manage to read so much? My default "idle" is reading. If I am not doing anything else, I've always got a book in my hand, or an audiobook on my phone. I frequently read while waiting to do something else, like see the doctor or standing in line. Audiobook have helped as well. I can listen to an audiobook while working out, commuting, doing chores around the house. I started listening to audiobooks in 2013 and have steadily increased my listening speed to 1.75x today (occasionally 2x depending on the narrator). Admittedly, I don't watch much television. I don't go to the movies often. I've mostly given up on social media. I frequently fill that time with reading as well. ### But is listening to audiobooks really reading? Is reading bumps on a page with your fingers reading? Of course it is! I'm simply using another sense to absorb the text. ### Do you remember everything you read? No. Which is why I take notes. Even when listening to audiobooks, I'll frequently have the paper edition as well so that I can scribble notes in the margins. I even have Shortcuts setup that allow me to capture notes if I am out walking. Oddly, I *can* usually remember exactly where I was when I read a book. And I have a Composition Notebook in which I jot down everything I've read and often scribble little biographical notes in the margins. ![[paper_list.jpeg]] ### How do you choose what to read next? I rely heavily on what I [the butterfly effect of reading](https://jamierubin.net/2018/10/09/the-butterfly-effect-of-reading/). Friend and colleagues frequently suggest books, and I thank them graciously, but rarely commit to a recommended title *because* of how the butterfly effect of reading works. In one instance, a friend recommended Edward O. Wilson's Consilience to me and [it took me about 20 years](https://jamierubin.net/2019/03/12/ill-get-to-it-someday/) before I finally read it. If I find myself struggling to decide what to read next, I do have some sources of inspiration that I return to: - [Modern Library 100 Best Nonfiction](https://notes.jtrwriter.com/reading/lists/Modern+Library+100+Best+Nonfiction) - [Modern Library 100 Best Novels](https://notes.jtrwriter.com/reading/lists/Modern+Library+100+Best+Novels) - [Sports Illustrated Top 100 Books](https://notes.jtrwriter.com/reading/lists/Sports+Illustrated+Top+100+Books) - [1,000 Books to Read Before You Die](https://www.amazon.com/000-Books-Read-Before-Life-Changing/dp/1523504455/) by James Mustich ### Do you belong to a book club? I am a member of the *Iliterati*, a private bookclub made up of incredibly smart and talented friends, including my wife and even my youngest daughter from time-to-time. We meet monthly and since I generally read 9-10 books in a month, I try to reserve one of those for the bookclub. ### Do you read more than one book at a time? Yes, but not at the *same* time. Typically, I'm listening to an audiobook. Before bed, or when I go out into the world, I'll frequently take a paper book with me that I am also reading. I take perverse pleasure in being the only person in a large waiting room not reading off a screen. ### Have you read (fill-in-the-blank)? 1. Navigate to the [[reading-list|my reading list]]. 2. Press ⌘-F (CTRL-F on Windows) and start typing the title. 3. Have I read it? ### How do you rate the books you've read? I don't. [5-star ratings](https://jamierubin.net/2021/02/05/5-star-rating-systems/) are not particularly useful to me. Indeed, when I have used them in places like Goodreads or Amazon, I don't use them they way people want me to use them. ### What is your desert island book? WIll and Ariel Durant's [11-volume _Story of Civilization_](https://jamierubin.net/2022/03/09/my-desert-island-bookshelf/). Updated on August 30, 2025.