Favorite Non-Tech Books Read in 2011

Paul Randal (Blog|Twitter) recently blogged about the books he read in 2011, which reminded me of my list from last New Year’s Day of favorite non-tech books read in the prior year. That post also mentioned the books I had queued up and ready to read. So let’s hit the bookshelves for a repeat exercise.

Favorite Non-tech Books Read in 2011

I started off reading the queued-up books mentioned previously, then added some as the year progressed. Here are the favorites.

Zero History by William Gibson – I started 2011 by reading the final book in Gibson’s latest trilogy. Lots of hiding and running around being chased for the characters in this one. While I appreciate Gibson shifting his writing from the future to current day, this book left me wanting some futuristic fiction. Thus, my next choice.

The Jump 225 Trilogy by David Louis Edelman – This trilogy starts off with Infoquake. Once I began reading it, I immediately ordered the remaining novels, Multireal and Geosynchron so that I could read all three without interruption. The main character is an entrepreneur and programmer dealing with bureaucrats, clients and competitors in a world shaped by bio-technology and terrorism.

The Great Shark Hunt by Hunter S. Thompson – Little did I know that the shark hunt took place in Cozumel, the destination of SQLCruise 2010!

Kingdom of Fear by Hunter S. Thompson – After reading the above book I was ready for more of Hunter’s work. This book starts with Thompson’s first run-in with the law at age nine, and ends with a strangely romantic scene where Anita diagnoses his problems in life while he speeds his Cadillac along a Pacific coast highway under a full moon.

Invisible Monsters by Chuck Palahniuk – The third of this author’s books I’ve read (the others being Fight Club and Survivor). A wonderful read but not for everyone.

When I Grow up: A Memoir by Juliana Hatfield – As I mentioned in last year’s review, I gave up on this book during a previous attempt at reading it. It was just too exhausting and depressing. But with Claire’s encouragement I finally picked it up again this year. The book’s mood did change, plus the chapter on the Telecommunications Act of 1996 and how it changed the music industry was fascinating.

Non-tech Books Queued for Reading in 2012

There are lots of non-technical books ready for my attention this year. So many that they won’t fit on my nightstand, so I had to find room for a bookshelf next to my bed! I’m not going to list all of them, but here are the ones at the top of the stack.

Fear and Loathing in America by Hunter S. Thompson – Okay, I cheated and have already started this one. So far, a truly amazing collection of Hunter’s letters.

The Proud Highway by Hunter S. Thompson

Songs of the Doomed by Hunter S. Thompson

The Informationist by Taylor Stevens

The Russian Debutante’s Handbook by Gary Shteyngart

By the way, I am painfully aware that I dropped out on my SQLCruise2011 book list commitments. After that first review where I announced that I was joining The President’s re-election campaign headquarters staff, things changed for me on many dimensions. Perhaps if I go third SQLCruise someday, I can get another chance to try keeping up with the book list commitments!