My Books of 2022 — Tosin Adeoti
I have to say that I have been pleasantly surprised that I met my 40-book mark this year. At a point during the year, I was so consumed with work, starting another academic program, studying for a certification, trying to keep a business running, attempting to publish a book, and then finishing up another one that my head felt like exploding. It’s been such an intense year that even writing this gives me palpitations.
But you know what? We mooove! That’s what champs do. Naija Book Club’s audiobook service saved my life. I am delighted that I got through to 43 books. Here is my list for 2021, 2020 and 2019. I also have the habit of announcing the books I plan to read in the year even though I always end up not reading all the books I put on the list because I get recommendations along the way, but people have told me how useful they find them, so why not. The list for 2023 will be out in a few days, but here are my lists for 2022, 2021, and 2020.
My Best Books of the Year
These two books are my favourites for the year.
A Whatsapp contact had told me about When Breath Becomes Air since 2019 but the mountain of books in front of me did not allow me get to it until our book club, Naija Book Club, through members vote made it the book of the month for the month of November. It is a profoundly moving memoir of a 36-year-old surgeon, who was diagnosed with stage IV metastatic lung cancer just as he was about to finish his last year of neurosurgical residency at Stanford University. What was he to do? How was he supposed to navigate this? Should he get married and have that baby with a girlfriend he was devoted to, who was fortunately, also still devoted to him? What is the meaning of life? Paul, now deceased, has so many things to tell us from his own experiences. It is philosophical, beautiful, and moving.
It seems like years ago that I read Born a Crime. It could be because it was the first book I read this year. Most of you already know that Trevor Noah is an incredibly humorous and smart guy and this memoir takes us through the behind-the-scenes of how he ended up this way. One of the things that shook me as I read the book was how the life trajectory of Trevor could easily have been the exact opposite had the incident with Teddy gone the other way. Even though I am not a big fan of his politics, this book is written in a funny enjoyable narrative style.
Memoirs / Autobiography / Biography
With the polarizing nature of American politics, there are certainly many people who would distance themselves from reading this book, but that would be a mistake. Susan Rice in Tough Love takes us behind the scenes “in the middle of things” information while working in the Obama Administration as the UN Ambassador and later National Security Advisor. It helped me better understand why things fell out the way they did. It occurred to me that getting countries to agree is rather like herding cats. If Fela by Carlos Moore wanted us to admire Fela like the reader did Susan Rice, then it failed in its objective. A musical legend from Nigeria, Fela lived a larger-than-life existence and is still revered across Africa for his activist and rebellious approach to music. Moore revealed disturbing attribute of this superstar that would make you cringe. Fela’s lack of restraint and misogynism are appalling. As a stickler to time, his disregard for time troubled me even if he tried to couch his lack of awareness in philosophy:
“How can you say I’m late? Just because of the watch you’re wearing on your wrist?” Then I explained. “For instance, let’s say you’re expecting me at 5 o’clock and I’m coming from Abeokuta to Ibadan for this lecture. At 5 o’clock you don’t see me. At 6 o’clock you don’t see me. You’re annoyed. You say, ’Fela is late.’ The next morning you hear I’m dead in an accident. Now, how about that annoyance you felt about my being late? How do you forgive yourself?” So don’t get annoyed when I’m late. Time is not the wristwatch, man.
But you can’t help but feel for the man. He was clearly troubled. Here was a child of privilege turning his back on that privilege. He was beaten and imprisoned so many times by the Nigerian military government. Olusegun Obasanjo’s soldiers throwing his mother down from a storey building led to her death, and the reader would guess that Fela never fully recovered from that incident. A Very Punchable Face was disappointing. Colin Jolt, an accomplished writer for the Saturday Night Live wrote series of essays about his life and career. I read so many great reviews but could simply not get into it no matter how much I tried. It must be the cultural difference because Jost’s jokes kept going over my head. Around 80%, I stopped reading. I recommend the chapter on the incident of 9/11 and how it unfolded with his mum in the thick of action.
I can’t point out why Empire of Pain is not one of my best books of the year. The efforts that went into producing that book has to be applauded. This book tells the story of three generations of the Sackler family, and how their wealth was ultimately overshadowed by the destructive effects of OxyContin. The Sackler family, known for their charitable donations, experienced both fame and infamy due to the success of their pharmaceutical companies, which produced both Valium and OxyContin. It is a powerful indictment of American corruption and greed, compromised regulation, and the fruit of a corrupted seed. Riveting and sickening. Investigative journalism at its best. Read this book.
The marketing of OxyContin relied on an empirical circularity: the company convinced doctors of the drug’s safety with literature that had been produced by doctors who were paid, or funded, by the company.
The depth of research of The Kings of Shanghai by Jonathan Kaufman is masterful. It is a thoroughly researched and highly engaging tale of family dynamics, political maneuvering, and the impact of global economic systems on the lives of the wealthy. From the colonial period to communism to modern capitalism, this book paints a vivid picture of the interplay between these forces. For those seeking to gain a deeper understanding of the economic forces that have shaped modern Chinese history, particularly in Shanghai and Hong Kong, this book is a must-read. There are several unknown information I got from the book. One of them I wrote in my review is:
In an alternate universe, Jews may have set up the Jewish nation in Latin America if the Brazilian government had accepted the proposal made by the Sassoon family to give them land for the Jews. But instead, President Vargas said he wanted no dealings with the Jews. Instead, he wanted “a race like Danes and Scandinavians with no imagination, no brains, but with a great capacity for tilling the ground”. Think about that.
I read The Blind Side because Malcolm Gladwell said Michael Lewis is the greatest storyteller he knows. Even though the subject is a American football star, I was not disappointed. It is the story of Michae Oher, one of thirteen siblings whose mother was addicted to crack cocaine, without no knowledge of his real name, father, birthdate, or how to read or write. He is taken in by a wealthy, white, Evangelical family and begins to play football and attend school. After reading, I wish Lewis would write on football which Americans erroneously call soccer. Brilliant book.
Rockets and People by Boris Chertok, I read it as part of my course materials. Largely Soviet propaganda, the merit is that it provided firsthand accounts from the individuals who were responsible for Russia’s numerous achievements in space exploration. Gosh… the Soviets spent so much on their military. There were 1770 enterprises or factories under nine main industrial ministries, 450 scientific research organizations, and 250 experimental design organizations. A total of 10.45 million people were employed in these organizations. Massive stuff. Goodbye Soldier is sad and so funny at the same time. In this sixth volume of his humorous memoirs, Spike Milligan reflects on the end of his military career after World War II and his return to civilian life and the entertainment industry. If you’re looking for a book that will make you laugh out loud, this is it. Despite his serious views on war, Milligan’s wit and humor shine through on every page.”
Business / Finance and Economics
A fellow crypto enthusiast recommended DeFi and the Future of Finance to me last year and I took up the challenge this year oblivious of the whirlwind this year will experience. I still believe that their proposition is relevant, may be now more than ever. The authors explore the emerging world of Decentralized Finance (DeFi). They argue that the current financial system is ripe for disruption and present a clear case for how DeFi can address many of its flaws. DeFi relies on peer-to-peer interactions, bypassing the need for physical infrastructure and the costs associated with it. The authors demonstrate how DeFi is revolutionizing savings, lending, and trading through the use of algorithms that differ from traditional brokerage systems. When the dust settles, the beauty of DeFi will shine more than ever. Blessed are you if you are ahead of the curve. This books helps with the foundation. I reread Bad Blood after the protagonist, Elizabeth Holmes, was finally sentenced to prison for defrauding investors of billions of dollars on a non-existent product. John Carreyrou gave his all for this one and he deserves the accolades and awards.
The Rookie Entrepreneur was written by someone I consider dear, Ms. Funke Medun. The book is a helpful resource for those looking to start or grow their own business. In a country where the rate of business failure is high, she provided practical guidance on the systems and strategies needed for success, using the relatable story of Nneka Badejo, a fictional character who was laid off during the global economic downturn after previously working in the banking sector. Still on the topic of business, one of my favourite economists, Tyler Cowen, argues for us to embrace big corporations in Big Business. Cowen makes a compelling argument in support of corporations and their important role in a thriving, productive, and forward-thinking society. People are flawed, and so the people that make up business naturally make the businesses flawed too, but capitalism is an amazing idea that is the source of all the privilege, prosperity, and freedom America and the world have. And in Basic Business Communication, another of the materials I read for my program, by Raymond Lesikar, the reader is given practical skills for effectively communicating in all aspects of business. Outdated, of course. It was written in 1979. How To Sell To Nigerians by Akin Alabi is different. An internet marketer turned polarizing politician, Alabi lays bare his blueprint for understanding how the mind of the Nigerian buyer works. If you can overcome the poor structure of the book and the typos (he boasts that he didn’t give the book to an editor), you will appreciate how he used a lot of relatable and funny stories to drive home his points.
Lastly on this section is Morgan Housel’s classic, The Psychology of Money. Not a year passes that I don’t want to read this book.
Getting money, and being able to keep that money are two vastly different skills. Getting money requires action, taking risks, being positive. Keeping money requires just the opposite skills — playing safe, being fearful, and a lot of inaction.
You might think you want a big house, a fancy car, and an expensive watch. But this is not the inner truth. The fact is that you want respect and admiration. You might think that the expensive stuff may help you get respect and admiration, but it rarely does, especially from the people you want to admire or respect you.
Subject Books
Seven Brief Lessons on Physics by Carlo Rovelli was the shortest book I read this year. The 56-page book provides an overview of what he considers the most fascinating aspects of the great revolution that has occurred in post-Newtonian physics in the twentieth and twenty-first century. He claims it’s for everyone interested in science, but I am not so sure most people without a physics background would relate easily. I loved it. We live in a remarkable world. Lectures on the Philosophy of Mathematics by Joel David Hamkins is worse. It should come with a warning that anyone without a good background in advanced mathematics should not bother. But if you have this, then Hamkins’ take on the philosophy of math from a mathematician’s point of view is very refreshing. It is a book on what mathematics is and where it came from. Why Buildings Fall Down is my favourite in this category. Matthys Levy & Mario Salvadori took us on a journey of several building structures that failed prior to the 1980s and dissected why they collapsed. Folks often ask why we don’t build like the ancients if theirs is so durable. However, while their structures may have stood for thousands of years, scientific calculations can make us build more efficient ones. And that is why we do what we do.
Personal Development
Do you have a problem with distraction? Then I recommend Cal Newport’s Deep Work. There is something about Cal’s ability to tackle complex social issues headlong. He criticizes our cultural norms, provides practical advice, but most importantly inspires us through memorable stories on how to seek focused success in a distracted world.
Human beings, it seems, are at their best when immersed deeply in something challenging.
Nir Eyal’s Indistractable is along the same line. How do we stop technology from getting the best out of us? This simple line struck me like a clap of thunder out of the blue sky:
The antidote to impulsiveness is forethought. Planning ahead ensures you will follow through.
I am generally wary of compilation of advice from successful people because more often than not what you are served are a bunch of survival bias anecdotes that are wishy washy, at best. I turned the last page of Tribe Of Mentors by Tim Ferriss justified but it is entertaining and sometimes thought-provoking. He got answers to 11 questions from more than 100 successful people and turned it into a book. I liked Backable. I didn’t like that I read the book thinking it’s about getting people to back you in any situation, like in a career. Instead it’s a handbook on getting people to back your idea or business with their hard cash. It’s a short and precise book with good stories.
Too many of us try to convince others about our ideas without taking time to convince ourselves. As the reader will see in the sub-steps of this first step, the best way to have people back you is to take time to build conviction in your new idea.
This touched a nerve in me.
Don’t Trust Your Gut by Seth Stephens-Davidowitz is a spectacular book. A well-presented and thoughtful presentation of data. Full of valuable insights. The author effectively summarizes the idea that spending time in nature with loved ones is key to happiness, and that data alone cannot predict the success of relationships. Surprising stuff about parenting, career, and money. I will read the book again next year. Mark Bertolin’s story in Mission-Driven Leadership is captivating and aligns with his efforts to bring about change to a flawed and fragmented system of leadership we are unfortunately getting comfortable with. The personal anecdotes and business experiences are well-described and sometimes evocative. I finished it wanting to shake his hands for his bravery and self-awareness. Eat That Frog by Brian Tracy was read again because I was asked to write a review by a dear friend. The joy of rereading books is that there are insights every time you read them. It’s a book about overcoming procrastinating and get more of the important things done in your life. Despite the knocks that Robert Kiyosaki gets with Rich Dad Poor Dad, I cannot overstate how much this book changed my life as a kid. A delight to reread it again. Considered the #1 Personal Finance book of all time, the greatest benefit is how much it opens your mind to life’s possibilities. Another year, another rereading of Atomic Habits by James Clear. The book offers a proven framework for improving — every day. I often find myself recommending the book as my first option to anyone seeking a book recommendation.
You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.
Becoming by Michelle Obama is the rave of the moment and I had to take a stab at it. I was not disappointed. You may know her as the wife of Barack Obama but Michelle, from her stories, is more than that. She wrote about the experiences in her life that made her what she is. You can expect her to take about her successes, but she also bravely talks of her failures. She did not have a privileged childhood. She struggled to balance work and motherhood. Life as the First Lady isn’t all you think it is. If you have not read the book, endeavor to read it next year. A second book by Funke Medun in 40 Lessons on Our Journeys to 40 with her friend Olujoke Aliu is filled with encouraging words about what they have learnt so far on earth. Whether you are below or above 40, you will be inspired by the lessons they shared about family, career, business, and personal development. More people should read this book.
Politics
Adam Harris is a brilliant storyteller. In The State Must Provide, he makes a compelling case for the pervasiveness of racial inequality in American higher education. While I have facts to counter his narrative, I could not but be moved by the organization and lucidity in this stirring exposé. People like Harris, willing to dig into issues, is why America will continue to be a great country. A colleague, Omodara, gave me Solved! by Andrew Wear, and as Nigerians elect their next leaders next year, I consider it a compulsory reading by those looking to vote, and those who seek office, if they read at all. Wear investigates ten of the most pressing global issues and highlights one country that is making significant progress in addressing each issue.
Continuing my theme on reading a book on China every year, On China by Henry Kissinger helped me deliver on that. Kissinger is qualified to write on China after leading America’s 1971 opening to Beijing. You may know it but one of the most known diplomats in human history would reinforce the fact that the concept of “China’s rise” is a misnomer and that China has always considered itself at the pinnacle of civilization, with the period from 1800 to 2000 being an exception. The Cold War is another book I read on my program. Bradley Lightbody writes about how confrontation between the West (led by America) and the East (Soviet Union) was inevitable due to the ideological requirement of socialist states to expand. My description should show you that it has a likelihood to be biased towards the West. Don’t let that dissuade you though. It’s an easy and interesting read.
Fiction
I am glad I am confounding my critics by reading more fiction. 😊 But if Nearly All Men in Lagos Are Mad by Damilare Kuku was not the last book I read this year, I would have been discouraged to read any more fiction. I was not told it used its sexual graphic/descriptive content to mask a lack of depth in the short stories about the many silent injustices Lagos men inflict on women, and a few women on men. What jarred me even more is that it could encourage impressionable minds to attempt the forced and unrealistic characterization of the sexual plays. A driver hitting on her madam and ferrying her past her street into a lonely alley to steal a kiss? Oh please! Land Of Big Numbers by Te-Ping Chen on the other hand was manageable. Not all the ten stories about people who live in, or have emigrated from, present-day China are created equally though. I read it via an audiobook but I had to pause and go through the book when I heard the way this was worded:
Then they thwacked her on the back and her cries joined mine, and they laid us side by side, boy and girl, two underwater creatures suddenly forced to fill our lungs with cold, dry air.
Just like the last book, Klara and the Sun by the Nobel winning Kazuo Ishiguro was also recommended by Barack Obama on his 2021 list. The book, set in the future, is about the relationship between AI and children. I got thinking about it again after ChatGPT was released. How should we approach companionship in the future? It is a disturbing book that would make you pause. Black Leopard, Red Wolf, one of TIME’s 100 best fantasy books of all time was sold to me by a Facebook friend. It is the first novel in Marlon James’s Dark Star trilogy and it is action-packed. It is an African tale, deeply influenced by African folklore, beliefs, and folk tales. People have called it African Game of Thrones. You may just discover that they are right. And then there is the rereading of The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, the allegorical novel featuring a young shepherd in his journey to the pyramids of Egypt. A classic, any day.
Others
I helped review Coming to Canada for The Nation newspaper. Chidi Iwuchukwu is a Canadian citizen who moved to Canada from Nigeria almost 6 years ago. Unlike other books about Canada, this one is not about the process of migrating. It is a book you would need when you have the go-ahead from the Canadian authorities to go over. He will not tell you how to apply or what documents you need to be accepted. It has a very specific audience: those set to go to Canada. It is a straightforward practical book on what to do and not to do. Sermons I would Have Preached If I Were a Pastor was given to me by Dayo Adeola when I went to his office on an official assignment. As is my custom, the child inside me jumps on the sight of a bookshelf. When I sighted his shelf and started checking the books out, he engaged me about books. Thereafter, he handpicked three books and volunteered them to me. I have only read this one and it is about what he would tell Christians if he got ordained as a pastor. I wondered why he needed that title to preach, but as you will see if you read the book, it is a play on words to get you curious.
So there you have it. My books of 2022.
In the next few days, I hope to provide a list of the books I have penned down to read in 2022.
You can join us to read at the Naija Book Club. With all I had to grapple with this year, I would never have read half of it had I not access to audiobooks from the club’s subscription book service. It provides access to all kinds of books and audiobooks you would need. Try it out in 2023.
Let’s read together, people!
