RK's all-time favorite books, updated 2024 edition

RK -

Let's talk about literature for a change. It seems that lately, I've only listed the books I've been reading this year. But what about genuine reviews, opinions, and bigoted judgements? What about my all-time favorite books, instead of just the ones I've read lately?

First of all, my traditional fall reading list has been glaringly absent from this site this year. This is because it only includes The Phantom of the Opera, which I already read and talked about. The other books I'm reading right now are ones I've been reading all year, not just during the fall, like the Koran, Pattern Language, You Are the Placebo, Faust Part Two, and so on.

But! Butt! What about my all-time favorite books? Surely that's a topic worth writing about! I don't think I've written about it for years now! It's about time!

RK's all-time favorite books, first five fiction ones in no particular order, then three non-fiction ones in no particular order:

  1. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. There's nothing better than a glorious, epic revenge story that includes a prison break. I would pay good money to be able to read this for the first time again.
  2. The Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut. It's so funny, I can't take it. So whimsical. So entertaining. So original. So philosophical. I just can't even with this book.
  3. Either Brothers Karamazov or Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky, I'm no longer sure which one. This is so confusing. The latter has a better plot. But the former is so psychological. But if we consider psychology as a factor, I should prefer Notes from Underground. Also, nothing, absolutely nothing, beats the suicide scene in Devils. Oh my God. I guess I have to reread all of them and then review my preferences. (Also, how good is White Nights?!)
  4. Stoner by John Williams. Beautiful, sad, elegant, bitter - everything at the same time. It shakes your sense of priorities.
  5. The Complete Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson. All I can say is that the world is an infinitely better place with this work of art in it. For me, Watterson's work culminates in my life motto, which, audaciously, I stole from one of the strips: My only regret is blowing the best day of my life while I'm so young.
  6. The Timeless Way of Building by Christopher Alexander. It opened my eyes and gave a clear explanation to why I can't help but hate certain buildings and fall in love with others.
  7. Unscripted by MJ DeMarco. Perhaps the single most uplifting and encouraging read about wealth and creating the life you dare to want.
  8. Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself by Joe Dispenza. If there's something unbearable in your life, the solution is within you, and this book will help you find that solution - literally, regardless of what that unbearable challenge is.

Ahh... Just thinking about these books warms my heart.

RK out.