Friday, December 29, 2023

My Favorites in 2023

As another year comes to a close, I'm here again doing one of my favorite things: compiling a list of my favorite books and other media I enjoyed during the year and sharing it with others. See below for my favorites in 2023.

Favorite Album of the Year

I didn't listen to a lot of new music this year. The only stand-out album for me was Jon Guerra's Ordinary Ways. While I didn't love at as much as his album Keeper of Days from 2020, it was still excellent. 

Favorite TV of the Year

I also didn't watch a lot of TV this year, but I thoroughly enjoyed the latest seasons of The Bear and The Crown.

Favorite Movies I Watched This Year (from the last two years)

I was able to watch a few more movies this year than I typically do, including playing catch up on some great movies from last year. Here are my favorites:

  1. Living (2023)
  2. Past Lives (2023)
  3. Oppenheimer (2023)
  4. Tar (2022)
  5. The Banshees of Inisherin (2022)
  6. The Holdovers (2023)
  7. Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)
  8. Glass Onion (2022)

Favorite Books I Read This Year

I was not as diligent at keeping up with book reviews this year, so I'll be abstaining from having a dedicated post for my favorite books. However, I was still able to get to 46 books and enjoyed quite a few. Here are my favorite books that I read this year: 

  1. The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel Van Der Kolk (2014) - brief review
  2. The Genesis of Gender by Abigail Favale (2022) - brief review
  3. Living Into Focus by Arthur Boers (2012) - brief review
  4. Remembering by Wendell Berry (1988)
  5. Shadow Divers by Robert Kurson (2004)
  6. Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck (1962)
  7. Surrender by Bono (2022)
  8. The Other Half of Church by Jim Wilder & Michel Hendricks (2020) - brief review
  9. A Testament of Devotion by Thomas Kelly (1941) - brief review
  10. How to Stay Married by Harrison Scott Key (2023)
  11. A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman (2014)
  12. Timothy Keller by Colin Hansen (2023)
  13. Where the Light Fell by Philip Yancey (2021)
  14. Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese (2009)
  15. Under the Unpredictable Plant by Eugene Peterson (1992)
  16. A Fever in the Heartland by Timothy Egan (2023)
  17. The Second Mountain by David Brooks (2019)
  18. Anam Cara by John O’Donohue (1997)
  19. Mansions of the Heart by Thomas Ashbrook (2009) - brief review
  20. The Complete Stories by Flannery O’Connor (1971)
Favorite Books from 2022
Favorite Content from 2021
Favorite Content from 2020