Some of my favorite books of 2024
The Calvin and Hobbes Portable Compendium
by Bill Watterson
I grew up on the Calvin and Hobbes comic, and its premise of Calvin’s stuffed tiger coming to life made me wish my stuffed animal dog, which I’ve had since I was born, came to life so we could go outside on amazing adventures. The movie Toy Story did it as well.
They previously released a hardback box set of Bill Watterson’s entire Calvin and Hobbes works, everything from the newspapers to his books. The only problem with this box set was that it was MASSIVE, both in size and weight. The dimensions being 5.51 x 13.07 x 14.41 inches and weighing in at 17.75 pounds. It’s a workout just lugging it out to enjoy, haha.
They managed to shrink this entire collection into three portable volumes consisting of two books per volume(the 4th volume coming out in March of 2025). Each volume’s dimensions being 6.1 x 0.9 x 9.1 inches and weighing in at 1.31 pounds! Talk about a downsizing! This great collection makes it way more accessible for people to enjoy these amazing characters and stories.
If you’re a fan and don’t want to lug around a 17.75-pound box set, this is the perfect buy.
Off to be the Wizard
by Scott Meyer
I stumbled upon this book at a bookstore, and after reading the summary on the back of the book, I was hooked with the concept it presented. Think The Matrix meets the world and legend of King Arthur. I’ll just copy the exact summary:
“Martin Banks is just a normal guy who has made an abnormal discovery: he can manipulate reality, thanks to reality being nothing more than a computer program. With every use of this ability, though, Martin finds his little “tweaks” have not escaped notice. Rather than face prosecution, he decides instead to travel back in time to the Middle Ages and pose as a wizard.
What could possibly go wrong?
An American hacker in King Arthur’s court, Martin must now train to become a full-fledged master of his powers, discover the truth behind the ancient wizard Merlin…and not, y’know, die or anything.”
I’ve actually owned the book for a few years but never got around to reading it until after a major surgery I had right at the end of 2023 and needing to stock up on things to keep me occupied during the month of recovery. I didn’t want to lug a bunch of books on the trip, so I looked it up on my Kindle and noticed he expanded on this book into a series of six books!
With all the free time, I read the first 4 books in the series: Off to Be the Wizard, Spell or High Water, An Unwelcome Quest, and Fight and Flight.
I couldn’t recommend the first book more if you’re a fan of The Matrix, fantasy, the Middle Ages, etc. Books 2 and 3 are fantastic! The 4th one, Fight and Flight, was probably the weakest so far. I’m looking forward to the last two books of the series at some point.
The Ends of the World
by Peter Brannen
I subscribe to PBS Eons on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/@eons), a channel I highly recommend if you’re a nerd about the history of Earth. They have a series called Eons: Surviving Deep Time. The videos are about you going back in time to each time period, for example: Could you survive the Ordovician or Devonian period? It’s a truly fascinating video series and podcast.
Anyway, in one of their videos, they name-dropped this book, and since I’m always curious about what the Earth was like millions and millions of years ago, I had to check it out.
The book explores Earth’s past five extinctions, drawing parallels to modern climate shifts. Through fossil records and scientific research, the book unravels the mysteries of these events, offering insights into our planet’s resilience and potential future.
I haven’t finished the book yet, but it’s hooked me and I’m learning so much about these time periods. It’s crazy just thinking about what they’re talking about in this book. Highly recommend this one if you’re into this kind of stuff.
Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow
by Gabrielle Zevin
I came across this book on a website’s “must-read books”. You wouldn’t think these kinds of lists would actually amount to anything, but they kind of work. This was another book I was hesitant about. I’m a type of person that if a book doesn’t grab me in the first couple of chapters, I tend to set it aside for the days I’m desperate for something to do. I’m glad I came back to it for another shot. It’s kind of a slow build at the start, but once it gets going, you won’t be able to put the book down.
I will admit, the ending was a bit of a disappointment, at least for me personally. I was so invested in these characters’ lives that I wanted more closure.
It’s about two people, Sam and Sadie, childhood friends, who reunite and collaborate on a blockbuster video game, Ichigo, launching them to stardom. Their success is tested by creative ambitions and heartbreak over thirty years.
The one thing I loved the most was the friendship arc of the story felt so real and grounded. Like how real-life friendships tend to pan out. The ups and downs, conflicts, love, etc…
It’s such a unique book that you can’t necessarily put it in a single genre. It’s nerdy, game dev-ie, romance, love story, a touch of political (in a good way), heartbreak. There’s truly something for everyone. I can’t recommend this book enough. It’s kind of hard to really describe it.