2025 Books

My book pace this year slowed down a bit due to the volume of schoolwork and related readings ramped up considerably. I did finish quite a few things -- here are some of the notable ones from 2025. None were incredible stand-outs, and I don't know what I would say was "the best".

Orbital by Samantha Harvey

A beautiful and short novel set in the present about life on a space station. I kept expecting bad (or big) things to happen, but that's not what this book is about. Much like her astronauts, this is about observing life with distance and perspective. Hopeful, in its own way.

"We matter greatly and not at all. To reach some pinnacle of human achievement only to discover that your achievements are next to nothing and that to understand this is the greatest achievement of any life, which itself is nothing, and also much more than everything."

People Like Us by Jason Mott

Our Book Club read this right before Thomas Pynchon's Shadow Ticket, and they make for an interesting double-header. Set in similar time frames, Mott jumps back and forth between perspectives in slangy, easy prose. He captures a feeling of being an outsider, and knows a lot about being a musician. Dreamlike and surreal, I enjoyed it much more than Pynchon's book!

"One thing I’ve learned is that sometimes it’s just easier to say that you’re like everyone. Easier to smile and blend in with the crowd rather than to go it on your own and really let people know who you are and how you really live in the world. I think the trick is to save up the parts of yourself that are really important."

Sky Daddy by Kate Folk

Kate Folk writes a strange, funny, sad book about life in contemporary San Francisco, focusing on a young woman barely staying afloat while she indulges in her erotic fascination with airplanes and flying. I think it is ultimately a story about grief, growing up, friendship, and love. Evocative and creative. There seem to be several books out right now focused on young women making bad relationship choices. Folk rises above the pack through her prose, creativity, and characters.

"Total freedom is overrated, especially when you get to a certain age. If you aren’t tied down to anything, you’re a loser, you’re fucked. You drift out to sea.”

Earth to Moon: A Memoir by Moon Unit Zappa

Moon Zappa delivers a great memoir about growing up in a difficult, narcissistic, neglectful family environment, with a father who happens to be a well-known (if not "rich and famous") and eccentric musician. Moon manages to humanize Frank, in a portrait that is neither flattering nor surprising if you know anything about him. 

But this is Moon's book, and her journey is filled with ups and downs, pain, and setbacks before she begins to find a peace and authenticity at the end. If you're part of Generation X, you might like this one. Heartbreaking and uplifting.

"I hope you can embrace my big takeaways: Love yourself, love yourself, love yourself. Growing up doesn’t end when you become an adult. Outrage is the appropriate response to deception and betrayal. The way out is through. Make peace with what hurts and head toward joy. Run with the people who love you, lift you, and make you laugh. Write your future with the ink of today."

Death Valley by Melissa Broder

A trippy, dreamlike novel about a woman who goes on a hike in the desert. A reminder of the hostility of nature, the fragility of life, and what it means to live. 

"If ever I attempt to make the inside of my skull a softer place to live (i.e., by saying kind and gentle words to myself), a counter-alert pops up inside my head that says, This is dangerous. Do not tread here. Also, you’re wrong."

We Do Not Part by Han Kang

Book Club chose this one. A heavy, ponderous, dour novel, chilly and hallucinatory. Originally written in Korean, the translation is great (the author works closely with the translator). But this was not an enjoyable read. It moves slowly and tells an unpleasant story about unpleasant events. The long first sections of the book then suddenly give way to a historical recounting of atrocities in Korea. A bit of a bait-and-switch. I found it unsatisfying.

"I had not reconciled with life, but I had to resume living."

Service Model by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Science fiction, slightly absurd. The main character is a robot, and the book starts with an interesting premise and hook. Tchaikovsky is a clever writer, but he doesn't trust his audience to get his references or sophistication, so he resorts to telling the reader exactly what he is trying to do. As the book rolls on, he changes his texts of reference. I think he was reaching for literary heaviness and gravitas, and instead it feels a bit too self-important.

The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen

This book was released 25 years ago, but only read it for the first time this year. It's great. Franzen is a stellar writer, and it is easy to see why this book was so highly regarded at the time. A snapshot of a type of early 21st century family life and people. Perhaps a bit too forced at times, but great all the way through. 

"What you discovered about yourself in raising children wasn’t always agreeable or attractive."

The Hard Crowd: Essays 2000 - 2020 by Rachel Kushner

I think Kushner is an exceptionally good writer. I have read all of her novels and found them compelling. This collection of essays is a bit more hit-and-miss. Always well-written, but sometimes that skill was not enough to keep me engaged when she wasn't writing about things in which I had an interest.

Her descriptions of early 21st-century Bay Area motorcycle culture were spot-on. I enjoyed the read, and was able to dip in and out as I worked through other books.