The Best Books of 2022
The list below, which I have labeled as the Best Books of 2022, is a bit of a misnomer. They aren’t necessarily the best books of 2022. They are, rather, the best books I read in 2022. Big difference.
I rarely read new books. I’ve adopted a practice espoused by Tim Ferriss, in that I mostly read books a few years after they’ve been published, when the social proofing is in and others have weeded out the best for me. Aside from my own book, Kings of Summer, which I wrote this year with Kent Steffes, the newest book on this list is Morgan Housel’s Psychology of Money, which came out in 2020. So if you’re looking for new books, or the best books of 2022 that were actually published in 2022, this isn’t your list.
But if you’re just looking for good books, the best I read in 2022, this will do just fine.
I can’t believe I hadn’t read Into the Wild prior to just a few weeks ago, but holy cow, it’s worth every five-star and glowing review it has. Krakauer is the best writer on all things outdoors there is, and Into the Wild is, in my mind, his finest work (he also wrote Into Thin Air, which I highly recommend). His reporting on Chris McCandless, and his audacious live-off-the-land backpacking jaunt through the Alaskan wilderness, is downright amazing, and his writing is so sharp. If you like nature, a good story, and excellent writing, this is it.
Breath had been sitting on my Goodreads To Read bookshelf for two years before I finally pulled the trigger on it. I did so after spending a week with Ali Denney’s parents in Jupiter, Fla., in the leadup to the AVP Pro Series in Fort Lauderdale. Her dad, John, is something of a sports psychologist, and a mastermind on all things breathwork. He’s worked with elite athletes, and we stayed up late one night, me hooked up to his computer, watching my heart rate rise and fall as we changed the cadence of my breaths. It was awesome to see it visually, and it left me wanting to learn a little more about breath, and the science behind it. When I arrived home, James Nestor’s Breath was sitting on my doorstep, and I dove into it, learning about a practice I’d consider a legal performance enhancing drug. I reaped the benefits of Breath for the remainder of the season, and will continue to do so throughout the rest of my life. I’d put this up there with How to Win Friends and Influence People, and The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck, as one of the three most lifechanging books I’ve read.
The Molecule of More, Daniel Z Lieberman, Michael E. Long
We hear about dopamine ad nauseam, how social media companies have harnessed it to get us wildly addicted to their products. The Molecule of More dove deep into dopamine, its benefits, drawbacks, why we crave it, the whole nine. It’s a good, informative read on one of the most important molecules in our brains, and one of the most manipulated aspects of our biology.
How to get filthy rich in Rising Asia, Mohsin Hamid
This book has one of the worst titles I’ve ever seen on a book. But don’t let the horrendous title fool you: It was one of my favorite reads this year, hugely recommended by Tim Ferriss and my good friend Jon Mesko. I flew through this one, sucked in by the brilliant writing (I am a sucker for such things) and the second-person perspective, a viewpoint I’m not sure I’ve ever seen in a book. If you’re looking for a fun fiction read, one in which you can learn a great deal from as well, I’d ignore the title and pick this one up.
Kings of Summer: The Rise of Beach Volleyball, Kent Steffes, Travis Mewhirter
Shameless plug! Yes, I wrote this book, with my good friend and mentor, Kent Steffes. But I do think it’s a damn good book, and really the only one of its kind, digging deep into the Golden Era of beach volleyball and its many enormous – but lovable – personalities. If you like beach volleyball, or just fun sports stories, I really do think you’ll enjoy this.
The Psychology of Money, Morgan Housel
In 2020, my new year’s resolution was to read one finance book a month. I’ve continued that resolution through 2021 and 2022, and Housel’s Psychology of Money is one of the best finance books I’ve read in the past three years (also on the podium are Ramit Sethi’s I Will Teach You To Be Rich and Robert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad Poor Dad). He uses simple language on complex topics, and covers financial fundamentals in a creative manner, using narratives and stories, which is exactly the type of writing I enjoy most. I’d say this was a top-five read for me this year.
Empire of the Summer Moon, S.C. Gwynne
Holy hell this book is good. Joe Rogan has talked about it dozens of times on his podcast, and when Tri Bourne’s father in law, Mr. Jeff, passed this along to me, it sat on my shelf for a year or so before I finally opened it. I’m glad I did. This book is spectacular, an honest, riveting look at the Comanche Indians, one of the most badass and terrifying people to ever walk the Earth. It’s one part American history, two parts war stories, one part a really cool glimpse into the Comanches, and Native Americans in general.
Lacking motivation? Feeling sorry for yourself? Need a little something to kick yourself into high gear? David Goggins’ Can’t Hurt Me, the first of his now two books – his second, Never Finished, was recently released, and I am stoked to read it – is an absolute must. Even if you’re feeling pretty good about your life, and you’re motivated, and you don’t need a kick into high gear, I’d still label this one a must-read, because it’s just so damn real. It’s a testament to what a powerful mind, a staggering amount of discipline, and a high pain tolerance can do.
The Four Agreements, Don Miguel Ruiz
I read this in a single sitting, on a flight from LAX to Fiji, then Fiji to Sydney, then Sydney to Coolangatta, Australia (if you can call that a single sitting). This book is one of the cliched greats, up there with The Alchemist, for a reason. It’s beautiful in its simplicity, and it’ll make you a better person for having read it.
Meat Eater: Adventures from the life of an American hunter, Steven Rinella
Delaney and I discovered the Netflix show, Meat Eater, when Steven Rinella, the show’s founder, appeared on the Joe Rogan Experience on a drive up to Yosemite. So impressed were we with Rinella, and both how well he spoke and his obvious reverence for nature, that when we returned to Hermosa Beach – listening to Rinella on Tim Ferriss’ podcast on the way back – we immediately began binging Meat Eater. That, of course, led me to Rinella’s memoir, Meat Eater: Adventures from the life of an American hunter. It’s an excellent read, both for how well-written it is – Rinella received his MFA from the University of Montana – and for his sheer depth of knowledge about nature and hunting. Read the book, watch the show. Eat meat.
Most weekends during the beach volleyball off-season, I’ll surf on Saturday and Sunday morning. And every Saturday and Sunday morning, I’d get out of the water feeling as if my brain had been supercharged. I was more creative. Happier. Didn’t need coffee to wake up – I was already alive and pulsing with energy. Despite being an objectively terrible surfer, the sport, and its effect on me, fascinated me. Laird Hamilton, one of the best big wave surfers of all time, recommended this one, and I dove in, learning about the science of water and, as the title suggests, why human beings are “happier, healthier, more connected, and better at what you do” when you’re in, on, or under water. I loved it, and have recommended it to every surfer and waterman I know.
Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller Sr., Ron Chernow
Wow. Just…wow. This book, and the staggering volume of reporting done by Chernow, is beyond words good. It’s long, and took me a few months to finish, but good heavens is this an incredible book. Chernow goes deep into the life of John D. Rockefeller, one of the most successful, and polarizing, businessmen in American history. At some point, I’ll find the courage to pick it up and read it again, because it’s just that good.
Barbarian Days, William Finnegan
This is a re-read for me, and what I’d label as the best sports book of all-time, right up there with Andre Agassi’s Open. It’s a memoir about surfing, but I read this before I ever popped up on a board or attempted to paddle into a wave. The writing is mesmerizing, and the way Finnegan, a reporter for the New Yorker, describes surfing is akin to the way most would describe religion. His passion for the sport is infectious, and his journeys around the world, using a surfboard as his compass, are delicious. This will be on my shelf to read and re-read and read again and again and again.
The Personal MBA, Josh Kaufman
This one came recommended by Tim Ferriss (as many of my books are). I’ve long been interested in business, but don’t really want to dig myself six figures into debt to learn about it, so I did the next best thing, picking up as many books on it as I can, Kaufman’s Personal MBA being one of them. Do I feel like I received the equivalent of an MBA after reading this? No. But did I learn a hell of a lot, and get a solid base foundation of business fundamentals? Absolutely. Kaufman breaks down complex topics very well, into short, digestible sections that make it easy to flip through.
