42 Books Read in 2025

I read 42 books this year, which is 20 less than last year.

A couple of months ago, I had some distractions in my personal life, which prevented me from reading. I took 40 days to read a 300-page novel, Kristin Bair’s Clementine Crane Prefers Not To. I read less poetry books this year, but I did read the 960-page A Century of Poetry in The New Yorker 1925 – 2025. I read less Vietnamese book, but I read an 800-page fiction, Hân Như’s Điều Bí Mật.

In this digital age, it is hard to compete for your attention against your smartphones and tablets. My oldest son used to read lots of books. Now he’s constantly glued to his phone. My three other children are not fond of reading either. I understand the distraction of digital devices; therefore, I still prefer to read paper books, unless the books I want to read are only available in digital formats.

Back in September of this year, I subscribed to The New Yorker. Reading articles takes away my book reading time, but I am OK with that. I need to keep up with the latest cultural news and events, but I have completely refused to read anything related to politics. I even turned to Spotify for new music instead of listening to the latest podcasts I subscribed to, which were mostly about politics.

In 2026, I will be picking up more books again after the skiing and snowboarding season. I enjoyed reading thick books; therefore, I will try to continue in that direction. In contrast, I might pick up books of poetry again.