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Sometimes you have to give up. Sometimes knowing when to give up, when to try something else, is genius.

Giving up doesn't mean stopping. Don't ever stop.

Phil Knight, Shoe Dog

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Books of 2023 - A Retrospective

With 2023 having finally ended, here's a list of the books of 2023 that left an impression on me:

The Psychology of Money. The book seems to follow the mantra of "keep it simple, stupid". A lot of the insights the book provides seems to be simple, borderline obvious. But that's the appeal of the book and a major reason why it makes for such good reading. Morgan Housel is able to translate seemingly obvious financial truths in such a digestible manner that it makes reading the book a joy. With a lot of books floating around purporting financial freedom, Psychology of Money provides a good entry point for sound financial advice.

Pachinko. There's little that needs to be said about this book that hasn't been said already on BookTok or elsewhere. If you haven't read this book already, do yourself a favour and pick it up immediately. Min Jin Lee's intergenerational story of Korean immigrants moving to Japan set during Japan's colonial era in the early 20th century, the novel not only highlights the lasting discrimination Koreans faced and continue to face within Japanese society, but shows how the threads of family and legacy stretch across time and space. Would recommend this to anyone with a pair of eyes.

Shoe Dog. For all the bootstrap entrepreneurs out there, this book should already be on your shelves. And if you aren't looking to kickstart your own billion dollar shoe company, give it a read regardless. An energising memoir about the founder of Nike and his Herculean task to create the ultimate running shoe, Mark Knight makes you feel like you're in the trenches with him as he and his band of misfits take on the sporting apparel world. For anyone wanting to read a David & Goliath story as the underdog claws their way to claim their own space within an already dominated market, pick it up.

Sapiens. I know I'm a little late to the party with this one, but given its size and heft, you'll have to forgive me. Honestly, it's such a sweeping book that's able to condense history, anthropology, and sociology into a forgiving format. For anyone wanting to learn more about the world we live in, and how we came to be as a species, Yuval Noah Harari makes learning about the history of humanity less of a chore and more of a well made documentary. Also, it does boost your cool literary points by at least 10 anytime you mentioned that you read a book on Obama's reading list.

Confessions of an Economic Hitman. For anyone wanting further confirmation of America's deeply self serving agenda in the pursuit of global dominance, John Perkins' memoir as an economic hitman might be worth the read. With settings and characters akin to a 007 movie, Perkins takes you into the shadowy world of foreign aid as a thinly veiled disguise of neo-colonialism. The memoir dives deep into a setting filled with handlers, joint government partnerships, and coups. Honestly, reads similar to Manufacturing Consent, but with less statistics and graphs which makes it very easy to read.

1000 Years of Joy and Sorrow. Ai Weiwei is truely a singular artist in his own right. From defacing and destroying centuries old Chinese artefacts to make a statement on global consumerism, to investigating the Chinese government's ineptitude in the face of the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, Weiwei has never shied away from his most hard held beliefs of bring voice to the people. 1000 Years of Joy and Sorrow serves a mirror, reflecting not only his own youth and rise to artistic stardom and subsequent imprisonment by the Chinese government, but the life of his father, a young struggling artist in Paris who becomes a political pariah during Maoist China. For anyone wanting to understand the inherent political power art has, or wanting to read a son's ode to a father's sacrifice, this is a must read.