This is already the fourth instalment of my annual book round-up – find all the previous ones here. In 2023, I read 21 fiction books and 11 non-fiction books, and 2 memoirs.

That’s a total of 11,805 pages across 34 books! 

This means that I’ve opted for slightly longer books than in the previous years. Incidentally, it was also some of those longer books that I rated highest. There were also more fantasy to be found on my reading list this year. All in all, scores were high with only one book rated below 5 – find the complete list including ratings below. Now, without further ado, here are the winners for fiction and non-fiction books. 

The Very Best

Best Fiction: Babel – An Arcane History (R. F. Kuang)

A young, innocent hero thrust into impossible situations, where he must mature quickly, find friends, and ultimately decide between good and evil. So far so good, we have seen these themes before. However, this book is so much more. It is a masterpiece of fantasy that somehow manages to successfully explore both linguistics and colonialism – it sounds odd, but it works oh so well. It remains gripping throughout, being breathtakingly clever and entertaining at the very same time. Being set in Oxford was just a cherry on top for me personally.

If you have loved Harry Potter when you were younger, but haven’t read (a lot of) fantasy recently, this book is for you. 

Best Non-Fiction: Never Split the Difference (Christopher Voss and Tahl Raz)

Yes, there are many negotiation books out there. However, I found this one both applicable and fun to read. It is written by a former hostage negotiator with lots of cool stories to share, which make a salary negotiation look blissfully mundane in comparison. There is a fine line between negotiation and manipulation and the techniques in this book thread it more or less carefully. However, I am not advocating for everyone to use all of these techniques at all times. Instead, I consider it useful to be aware of them, so you are not caught by surprise when someone uses them on you. Instead, they can give you the confidence to enter any negotiation scenario (though I’d like to steer clear of the hostage one). 

This book casts negotiating into a positive light, highlights its importance in decision making, and gives you permission to maybe, just maybe, even enjoy it a little. 

Honourable Mentions

There are also some books that were just shy of snagging one of the top spots, but still deserve a mention. I recommend any of them in a heartbeat!

Strong Female Character (Fern Brady)

A memoir at the age of 36? Well, in the case of Scottish comedian Fern Brady it seems as if hers was already overdue. I loved both her live show at the Fringe 2022 and her appearance on Taskmaster, hence I was looking forward to this book. This being said, this book would be a great read for someone who has never heard of her (please do yourself a favour and watch some of her performances though). A central theme of her life and her book is her autism. She was only diagnosed in her adulthood, as, like many women, her symptoms differed from those typically associated with autism in young boys. Fern Brady gives us an unfiltered glimpse into her world of comedy and we should be thankful for it.

Eye-wateringly funny and yet educational, this memoir has it all.

She Who Became the Sun (Shelley Parker-Chan)

This debut novel was quite a step outside of my comfort zone. Having found my way back into fantasy thanks to R. F Kuang, I discovered this book at the trusted Highland Bookshop in Fort William. It is set in ancient China and contains an above average amount of battles for me. At the same time, it offers a careful discussion of gender, feminism, and what it means to be a woman. Above all it is an entertaining read. Together with He Who Drowned the World this book forms a duology, for which I commend Parker-Chan. I wish more authors would focus their story as neatly as them, while still filling over 900 gripping pages across two books.

A journey into a world completely new to me – as any good fantasy book should be.

Carrie Soto is Back (Taylor Jenkins Reid)

Roland Garros, tie break, WTA. If you know what those things are, then you are probably into tennis and probably into this book. My tennis-avid dad, not the typical audience of Taylor Jenkins Reid, thoroughly enjoyed this entertaining book as much as I did. A story of endurance, love, and, of course, tennis. 

If you love tennis this is the book for your summer holidays.

Industrial Strength Denial (Barbara Freese)

Sometimes it is collectively easier to ignore the truth than to accept it. Climate change is just the most recent of those instances, but by far not the only one. As an environmental attorney Freese describes how large corporations have led us astray in eight case studies, starting with slave trade and ending with climate change. She approaches these topics not just from a forensic perspective, but takes psychological and societal forces into account. What unites the first seven of her topics is the fact that humanity has (mostly) been able to resolve them, like banning lead from petrol. On climate change, the jury is still out.

Eight cautionary tales about what happens when large corporations and greed take over.

Complete List

Title	Author	Pages	Rating	Language	F/NF/M
Was man von hier aus sehen kann	Mariana Leky	319	8	GER	F
The World We Make	N.K. Jemisin	357	6	ENG	F
Allerdings	Klaus Eckel	232	6.5	GER	F
Malibu Rising	Taylor Jenkins Reid	369	8	ENG	F
Spare	Prince Harry	410	6.5	ENG	M
Carrie Soto is Back	Taylor Jenkins Reid	384	9	ENG	F
Monocle Companion 2	mixed	200	7	ENG	NF
The Joy of Science	Jim Al-Khalili	224	6	ENG	NF
Strong Female Character	Fern Brady	288	8.5	ENG	M
Nero Corleone	Elke Heidenreich	157	8	GER	F
The Man Who Solved The Market	Gregory Zuckermann	326	5.5	ENG	NF
Daisy Jones & The Six	Taylor Jenkins Reid	381	8	ENG	F
Never Split the Difference	Chris Voss, Tahl Raz	285	9	ENG	NF
Superforecasting	Philip Tedlock, Tan Gardner	352	7	ENG	NF
Family Trust	Kathy Wang	544	5	ENG	F
Beartown	Fredrik Bachmann	488	8.5	ENG	F
Mein Leben Meine Regeln	Carina Berry	232	5	GER	NF
My Oxford Year	Julia Whelan	362	4	ENG	F
Industrial Strength Denial	Barbara Freese	352	8	ENG	NF
Babel: An Arcane History	R. F. Kuang	544	9	ENG	F
Powermood	Sam DeMase	208	5.5	ENG	NF
Mindset	Sebastian Hotz	288	6	GER	F
Yellowface	A. F. Kuang	323	8	ENG	F
Pineapple Street	Jenny Jackson	304	6.5	ENG	F
She Who Became The Sun	Shelley Parker-Chan	414	8	ENG	F
One True Loves	Taylor Jenkins Reid	327	6.5	ENG	F
Monocle Companion 3	mixed	206	7	ENG	NF
Flying Blind: The 737 MAX Tragedy and the Fall of Boeing	Peter Robinson	336	7.5	ENG	NF
The Last Devil to Die	Richard Osman	432	7.5	ENG	F
More Money Than God	Sebastian Mallaby	379	6.5	ENG	NF
He Who Drowned The World	Shelley Parker Chan	484	8.5	ENG	F
Tales of the City	Armistead Maupin	225	8.5	ENG	F
Fairy Tale	Stephen King	599	8.5	ENG	F
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow	Gabrielle Zevin	474	8	ENG	F