Michelle Obama is a meticulous planner. From her wonderful upbringing in South Side of Chicago to her beautiful relationship with Barack to her challenging role as a parent in the White House, Michelle has not skipped a beat in structuring the events in her memoir. Although she did not set out to be a public figure, she has adapted herself to it. She used her role as a First Lady to champion education, promote healthy lifestyle for children, and give voice to young girls and minorities. Her writing is honest, personal, and approachable, but the details could benefit from a bit of trimming.

I just finished the longest book I have ever read. Through 789 unwasted pages, Jill Lepore, a staff writer at The New Yorker and a professor of American History at Harvard University, has written a compelling and comprehensive history of America spanning over five centuries. Beginning in 1492 with Christopher Columbus first discovered the Indians and ending in 2018 with the current Trump administration, Ms. Lepore told the naked truth of our great yet flawed nation through the concoction of illuminating politics, fascinating biographies, arresting journalism, and sprawling technology.

What I appreciate most is Ms. Lepore’s fearless approach. She isn’t shy away from our painful past, in particular the way America treated Native American, African American, Japanese American, Chinese, and Mexican. When I first set my foot on the “land of opportunity” as an eleven-year-old immigrant, all I knew was that I was about to embark on a journey to find the “American Dream.” I had white teachers who not only taught me English, but also welcomed me with their open arms. I had African-American, Hispanic-American, and Asian-American mentors who made sure I had the best education I could get for my future. I also had co-workers from different backgrounds and we collaborated together as a team. Even though I have been aware of racism, I always felt integrated until the rise of Donald Trump. Having read this book, I see why the references of “Make America Great Again” and “America First” appealed to the white nationalist.

Although Vietnam was my birthplace and I will never forget the first decade of my life, I have lived in the United States for almost three decades. I am a U.S. citizen and America is my home. Despite the current political divisiveness, I strongly believe in the resiliency of democracy of this nation. Not only it will not die, it will become stronger in the next few years or decades as showed through the history of our nation in this book.

Many thanks to my wife for buying me this book for Christmas. I am glad that I had taken the time to read it. If you want to learn about the unique story of America, I highly recommend this book. Even though it might seem long, Ms. Lepore’s clear, concise, and engaging prose will keep you turning the pages. Trust me, I was never interested in reading any form of history. Then again, I would read any book written by any staff writer from The New Yorker.

Nas once rhymed, “I never sleep, ’cause sleep is the cousin of death.” In his excellent book, Why We Sleep, Matthew Walker, professor of neuroscience and psychology, offers the counterargument based on scientific researches. Hi studies show that sleep is more like the cousin of life than death because sleep deprivation can cause serious health risks including cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetic, cardiovascular disease, stroke, congestive heart failure, depression, anxiety, and suicidality. With his approachable, engaging writing, Walker takes readers into the fascinating and wonder world of sleep. It is a must-read and required-practice. Sorry Nas, but I am rolling with the sleep expert on this one.

In her beautiful, poignant memoir, Brennan-Jobs recounts her experiences of living with a caring, depressing mother and a cold, cruel father who happened to be Steve Jobs. Despite all the turmoils between the two parents, Brennan-Jobs turned out to be a resilient individual. Even in her young age, she was smart and compassionate. She can also write. Although the book is almost 400 pages, it is such a breezy read. Not only we get to know Steve through the intimate lens of his daughter, but we also get to know his wife Laurene. Small Fry is a page-turner. I definitely recommend it. In addition, the book is set in Adobe Caslon Pro, by Carol Twombly. It is georgous and highly readable.

In his gut-wrenching memoir, Laymon reveals the painful truth of his childhood. Through his raw-yet-refined prose, he reflects on the struggle with his weight, the complicated relationship with his mama, and the racism growing up black in Jackson, Mississippi. This is indeed a heavy read, but I love it.

In hindsight, I picked up this book because it was designed by Michael Bierut and Britt Cob. The layout and the typography are superb. From white space to large type treatment, the design has Bierut’s signature style all over it. The actual writing, however, is quite shallow. Timberlake only gives super short highlights of his life. Yes, he’s a superstar. Yes, he has super connection. Yes, he is super privileged. Even though I am not a fan of his, I already know the power of a white male celebrity. He has Sandra Bark ghostwrite his book and Pentagram design it. I am not knocking on his accomplishment. I just want to hear the real story that has not already displayed in public.

Even though I still have a week left in 2018, I know for sure that I won’t be able to finish Jill Lepore’s These Truths: a History of the United States before the New Year. The book is almost 1000 pages and I only just got started.

Still, 2018 sets a new record for the number of books I have read. This year I read 92 books—two more than last year, according to my reading history.

This year, I continued to switch between English and Vietnamese. In English, I read mostly non-fiction. I only read a few books on design, typography, and technical. In Vietnamese, I read mostly collection of essays because those are the ones that are available in the new-release section at the libraries. I was getting weary of them.

I also had an issue with too many books and too little time. I was overwhelmed with the number of books and started to lose my concentration. At some points, I simply just returned all the books and only kept one or two I really want to read.

In 2019, my goal is to focus on what I read. I will choose books that are at least 400 pages. I will read slowly to soak in rather than to speed through the content. I will give myself as much time as I need to read them; therefore, I won’t pay attention to the number of books.

With the lightning speed in this new digital age we are living in, reading thicker books will train me to be more patience. I will spend less time reading online and checking social media. At least that is my hope for 2019.

Of course I have heard of Bruce Lee, but I didn’t exactly know about his life. I am so glad I picked up Polly’s book, which is an impressive, definitive, 500-page biography of Bruce Lee. With deep research and thorough interviews, Polly sheds a light on Lee’s short, accomplished life and the cause of his death. As a kung fu practitioner himself, Polly explains Lee’s contemporary techniques, which combined kung fu with street fighting, with engaging details. If you want to learn the comprehensive story of Lee’s life, this book is the one to read.

From historical background to character detail, this book focuses on every aspect of the letterforms. With clear visual illustrations and concise explanations, Samara provides insights into the process of type design. If you are interested in type study, this book is for you.

An inspiring resource for grid-based design, Layout Now is uniquely bounded into four sections. Each section is divided up by different paper size. The first three parts provide basic principles for making a solid layout. The last part shows real examples with deconstructions to demonstrate how the layouts are built. Even though I wish it has more text explaining the concept behind each layout, the book is good to flip through for layout ideas.