Summer Reading 2024

Do you have your summer books stacked and ready for the beach or that trip to the mountains? I do. I typically go into the summer with an ambitious pile of books that usually slide into the fall and the end of the year. For my entire adult life, I have kept a three-subject stack going at the same time: business related, theologically relevant (faith based), and a mindless fiction suspense novel. I often travel with all three and have one book in each category going at the same time.

And yes, I am still a paper guy. I just like the feel of a book and I like writing in them.

This summer most of my books have 2 caveats – it is the summer for fun reading – not too much that is heavy and thick (both literal and metaphorically). Secondly, a bunch of the books in this stack came from the author who happened to be a friend and sent the book to me asking me to read it, which of course I was thrilled to do.

It is a noisy, busy, crowded globe we live in and filtering (i.e., discerning) has become one of the greatest attributes any leader can possess. Time and attention are among our most prized resources. Be wise with those expenditures. We will become what we love and give our attention to. Without exception.

Back to the books.

I recognize that reading is not everyone’s primary learning style. It actually isn’t mine. Some people learn best by listening (this is mine) and others learn by doing. Your primary learning style is the one you default to and have the best cognition and recall. Regardless of your hard-wired style, make sure you are learning and implementing fresh thinking and insights every year of your life. Otherwise, life just repeats itself until the end.

Back to the books.

Here are some considerations for your summer stack (remember mine is mainly fun this year):

1. Die With Zero: Getting All You Can from Your Money and Your Life, Bill Perkins
2. The Book of Charlie: Wisdom from the Remarkable American Life of a 109-Year-Old Man, David Von Drehle
3. The Believer: A Year in the Fly Fishing Life, David Coggins
4. The Seven Primal Questions: Take Control of the Hidden Forces That Drive You, Mike Foster
5. The Spirit of Our Politics: Spiritual Formation and the Renovation of Public Life, Michael Wear
6. Swing: Elite Leadership for High Performance Teams, Sigval M. Berg
7. Fighting Shadows: Overcoming 7 Lies That Keep Men From Becoming Fully Alive, Jon Tyson and Jefferson Bethke
8. Three-Inch Teeth (A Joe Pickett Novel Book 24), C.J. Box
9. A Burning in My Bones: The Authorized Biography of Eugene H. Peterson, Translator of The Message, Winn Collier
10. Timothy Keller: His Spiritual and Intellectual Formation, Collin Hansen
11. Joseph: A Man of Integrity and Forgiveness, Charles R. Swindoll
12. The 6 Types of Working Genius: A Better Way to Understand Your Gifts, Your Frustrations, and Your Team, Patrick Lencioni
13. The Founder's Mentality: How to Overcome the Predictable Crises of Growth, Chris Zook and James Allen
14. Conformed to His Image: Biblical, Practical Approaches to Spiritual Formation, Kenneth Boa
15. Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity, Peter Attia with Bill Gifford

Some of the books I have already read, and some I haven’t. Some are books that I need to read but they’re not thrilling page turners—just more hard work. Some of them I don’t fully agree with, but they help sharpen my thinking with an alternative view. Some are just fun and don’t require a lot of in-the-moment thinking but later creep back into my thinking with surprising deep reflection.

Perhaps you have a better list that fits your taste. Again, go for it, and if you have a minute, send your list to me. I would love to see it.  

“It is what you read when you don’t have to that determines what you will be when you can’t help it.” –Oscar Wilde