My top 10 reads of 2024
This year was eventful to say the least. Here's a list of my favourite books I enjoyed to escape the chaos.
As the year approaches its end, our inboxes have been bombarded by Top Reads, Top Watches, Top Trends, or Top Choices of the year. And for good reason: This holiday period is a nice time to reflect on what we’ve learned or experienced as we prepare for the year ahead.
And 2025 is sure to have plenty of top moments, too. But for now, let’s look at some of my favorite reads this year while I share specifics on what made them great. I will start with my absolute favourite and the rest will be posted in no particular order.
“Chip War: The Fight For The World’s Most Critical Technology” by Chris Miller
When was the last time you changed your mind on something?
Having read Chris Miller's "Chip War" this year, I can safely say that it is my interest in the world’s semiconductor industry.
I used to think it was boring. Anytime someone asked me what I liked reporting on, I would scoff and say ‘Anything but microchips!’
How embarrassing…
The semiconductor industry is full of innovation, with economic and social developments that started with military warfare post WWII and continued into today's private high-tech sector. This has wide-reaching geopolitical ramifications for all countries and their citizens.
America led the way, but history saw challenges from Japan and copycats from the Soviet Union. Now everyone is looking at Taiwan… especially China.
This book really opened my mind to how the world is fighting a new Cold War, far from the olden days of oil and ammo.
"Pegasus: The Secret Technology that Threatens the End of Privacy and Democracy" by Laurent Richard and Sandrine Rigaud.
It tells the story of how a network of international journalists exposed how Israel's NSO Group developed a tool that spied on journalists, kings, politicians, and drug lords. I remember when the news broke here in Israel and the story went viral in 2021/2022. We at CTech by Calcalist made sure the public knew what had happened.
The book is written as a spy-thriller and details how these investigative journalists managed to track down the truth. No one was safe from its use and, hopefully, trust and privacy can be restored.
I hope it is developed into different forms of media in the future - the story deserves to be shared as widely as possible!
"The Almanack of Naval Ravikant" by Eric Jorgenson.
Like other books I've read recently, this one was always among the top of several recommendation lists I've seen. It operates as a collection of thoughts and ideas that focus on three main things:
- Building Wealth
- Building Judgement
- Learning Happiness
Not only does Ravikant offer invaluable insights into these core ideas through his experiences, but Jorgenson manages to curate a decade of wisdom from a variety of writing, appearances, and interviews into a digestible piece of work.
To say it is an achievement is an understatement.
Anyone interested in learning more about themselves and life can purchase the book or download it for free via the site
"Surrounded by Idiots" by Thomas Erikson.
As the Jewish holiday period came to an end, I spent some time reading "Surrounded by Idiots" by Thomas Erikson.
I was inspired to choose it because I couldn't look at book recommendations online without seeing it among the top of the list. And for good reason.
The book examines the DISC [Dominance, Influence, Stability and Compliance] Method to determine four different types of human behavior. From there, we can learn them to help us understand ourselves and others.
You are not surrounded by idiots - you just need to learn how to understand people around you!
Most people are a blend of two colors and I consider myself Red/Blue, but I welcome suggestions.
[Audiobook] "Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis" read by author JD Vance.
Many people first became familiar with Vance when he was announced as a VP candidate in this year's election. I first learned his story in 2021 when I saw the film adaptation of his memoir on Netflix.
In 2022 I watched his race for the US Senate closely and was pleased to see him win - I knew he had an interesting career ahead of him.
His story embodies the struggles felt by everyday Americans and how values like family, community, religion, and hard work can lead to success. It's hard not to feel tremendous respect for where he is today given everything he had to overcome. Regardless of politics, he really does represent the traditional American Dream.
The fact that the 'elite media' continues to mock him only confirms what he writes in his book: that there is a whole class of American citizens who feel misunderstood and forgotten. Perhaps it's how we got to where we are.
[Audiobook] “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley
It addresses themes like knowledge, revenge, and isolation, which I found compelling. But given my work and how I am surrounded by techies in the startup space, I couldn’t help but notice the parallel between Frankenstein’s manipulation of nature and how we may be playing the same games with modern-day AI.
Its allegory can be broken down in a few ways:
- Ethical Responsibility
- Creation and Consequences
- Fear and Unknown
- Alienation
I explore this and much more in another Substack post which you can read here:
"The Algebra of Wealth: A Simple Formula For Success" by Scott Galloway
We don't always have it figured out all the time. And that's ok.
One of the things I enjoyed most is how he draws on the expertise of other writers. He highlights the work of Jonathan Haidt, James Clear, Morgan Housel, and Ryan Holiday, among others - I was surprised to see how much I've already read of the work he cites. All these folks have written recent classics and deserve the praise they get both from Galloway and in posts like this.
For me, this latest book has become a representation of the 'network of ideas' I have been reading over the years. It is rewarding to see the work of others you read cited in different books exploring different.
"Right Thing, Right Now" by Ryan Holiday
Holiday has long been one of my favourite writers and I read everything he publishes. In this instance, his work on stoicism has helped me be a better worker, partner, and community member. I'm aware these traits don't come naturally to me: I make an active effort each day to learn more about Courage, Temperance, and now Justice.
I strongly recommend that everyone explore Holiday's other titles as well.
“The Future of Geography: How Power and Politics in Space Will Change Our World” by Tim Marshall
“The Future of Geography” is the third entry in Tim Marshall’s geopolitics series.
After covering geography, history, and conflicts between countries, Marshall now outlines how astropolitics over the next 50 years will shape human history the same way our rivers and mountains did here on Earth.
I can’t recommend this series enough.
“Expecting Better: Why the Conventional Pregnancy Wisdom Is Wrong- and What You Really Need to Know” by Emily Oster
My final read of 2024 was considered the modern holy grail of pregnancy books for expecting parents. Here, Oster addresses Old Wives’ Tales and examines the conception and pregnancy journeys with data, studies, and some endearing personal anecdotes.
As my household prepares for a baby boy in June, we are so excited for the journey and I am happy to help my wife in any way I can during this time.
This was a curated list of some of my top reads this year. I already have a stack of books on my shelf ready to tackle in 2025 and I look forward to sharing them with you.