20 Reads in 2020

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One of my life goals is to be a well-read person. A couple of years ago, I had noticed that the majority of my reads had come from one genre, and I wanted to change this. They say readers are leaders, so in 2019, I started my journey of tracking what I chose to read and how many books I wanted to read. In both my current professions, I’m in the people business, and reading more enhances my ability to connect, relate and empathise with others and help me understand better their point of view when it conflicts with my own.

My reads vary in genre between personal development, leadership, Christian growth and theology, politics, autobiographies and business. I also set out to read more fiction to further stimulate me in my creative thinking - and personally, I want to be that guy who’s read a few of the “greats”.

I’ve done this on Instagram already earlier in 2021, but I thought I’d share my 20 Reads in 2020 here on my blog - because, well, why not!

This list may seem large or small to you - and feel free to send me a DM if you have any questions about any of the books! Hope this blog inspires you to pick up a tome, and if you need any other suggestions, hit up my friend Emily at @bookmenagerie___ on Instagram! (That’s 3 underscores!)

20 Reads in 2020

I have bolded the ones I think would be a great read for anybody!

  • The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry - John Mark Comer (Spiritual/Personal Development)

  • The Emotionally Healthy Leader - Peter Scazzero (Spiritual/Personal Development/Leadership)

  • The Alchemist - Paulo Coehlo (Fiction/Personal Development)

  • The Way of the Warrior - Erwin Raphael McManus (Spiritual/Personal Development)

  • The Never, Um, Ever Ending Story - Ian “Molly” Meldrum with Jeff Jenkins (Australian Autobiography)

  • Right People, Right Place, RIght Plan - Jentezen Franklin (Spiritual/Personal Development)

  • Venom: Vendettas, Betrayals and the Price of Power - David Crowe (Politics - Australian/History)

  • A Bigger Picture - Malcolm Turnbull (Politics - Australian/Autobiography)

  • The Art of War - Sun Tzu (History/Leadership/Business)

  • Ulysses - James Joyce (Fiction - 1900s Literature)

  • The Screwtape Letters - C.S. Lewis (Fiction/Spiritual)

  • Uncommon Type - Tom Hanks (Fiction - Short Stories)

  • Preaching - Tim Keller (Christian Leadership)

  • Real Estate Riches - Dolf de Roos (Business/Real Estate)

  • The Little Paris Bookshop - Nina George (Fiction)

  • Clark Taylor: Just a Bloke from the Bush - Linda Taylor (Biography)

  • The Audacity of Hope - Barack Obama (Politics - USA)

  • Letters to a Young Pastor: Timothy Conversations between Father and Son - Eric E. Peterson & Eugene H. Peterson (Christian Leadership/Letters)

  • Athelwell’s “This Desirable Plot” - Norman Athelwell (Fiction/Comics)

  • Heretics - G.K. Chesterton (Essays/Christianity & Theology/1900s Literature)


Most Enjoyable:

  • Uncommon Type - Tom Hanks

  • Ulysses - James Joyce

  • The Little Paris Bookshop - Nina George

  • The Never, Um, Ever Ending Story - Ian “Molly” Meldrum with Jeff Jenkins

Books that Influenced Me the Most:

  • The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry - John Mark Comer

  • A Bigger Picture - Malcolm Turnbull

  • The Art of War - Sun Tzu

  • Letters to a Young Pastor - Eric & Eugene Peterson

  • Real Estate Riches - Dolf de Roos

  • Clark Taylor: A Bloke from the Bush - Linda Taylor

Most Difficult To Read:

  • Ulysses - James Joyce (you try reading some 1900s streams-of-consciousness! lol)

A Notable Mention:

“Uncommon Type” and “The Screwtape Letters” were large inspirations in helping myself and Elliott and Emily Hynes concept the idea of “Hope is Here” - the Christmas show that Suncoast Creative put together last year.

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I did get something out of each one of these books. Art inspires art and some of these books genuinely made an impact on me and the decisions I made.

Happy reading! 📚😎

Mark Dunlop