What I'm reading

One in an occasional series

I have a bit more time on my hands than I did a year ago — and I am trying to use that time well.

One of the ways I spend my time these days is by reading. I try — emphasis on try — to read for at least an hour a day.

Which means I get through a LOT of books.

Below my list of books I have either just read, am reading or plan to read some time soon. I’d love to hear what you are or have been reading and liking.

STUFF I’VE READ

• “The Ferryman” by Justin Cronin. I loved Cronin’s Passage Trilogy (you MUST read if you haven’t). This new novel is WILD — a book within a book. I better not say more because I don’t want to spoil it!

• “The Emotional Lives of Teenagers” by Lisa Damour. As the dad of a 14 year old, I need all the help I can get. Nothing has spoken more directly to me — and helped me feel like I am cracking the code — than Damour’s book.

• “The Secret Speech” by Tom Rob Smith. I have been on a Tom Rob Smith kick since his excellent “Cold People.” This book is the middle of a trilogy about Russian intelligence agencies both during and after Stalin. An amazing accomplishment.

• “The Well of Ascension” by Brandon Sanderson: I took a break from Brandon Sanderson’s “Mistborn” books for a few weeks but am jumping back in now. I love the world-building in these books. The world feels totally real to me. And I love watching it.

• “Traffic” by Ben Smith. I was alive and writing during the days of virality that Ben documents. But, I didn’t know so much of what’s in this book. This is a must read for anyone on the Internet between 2010 and 2020. Which is all of us.

STUFF I PLAN TO READ NEXT

• “Pineapple Street” by Jenny Jackson

• “The Overstory” by Richard Powers

• “A Swim in a Pond in the Rain” by George Saunders

• “Soccer in Sun and Shadow” by Eduardo Galeano