This year, I’m even more committed to learning about the changes to global media and what could be coming around the bend. What will be the effect of AI on social media as well as traditional media? Are we tired of talking about AI yet, and we’ll lean into our creativity and imperfections to counterbalance this technology? I’m aware that I need my critical thinking cap on for everything I read. I’m asking, “What is being said? What isn’t being said? Why did they choose that particular word?”

I find it difficult to balance open-mindedness and critical thinking while reading, both online and in books. Sometimes, looking deeper is fun and stimulating. Other times, it’s tiring because I also read for relaxation. But it’s this practice of gathering information and other perspectives, refracting through my own experience and looking for commonalities and differences, that is where I have the best chance of sense-making.

History being Helpful

Overall, I’m thankful for the foundation of my history degree, as it feels like history is looping around and we’re seeing present-day versions of challenges that humanity has seen before. What I’ve learned as a student of history is that we’ve been at flashpoints of change before, and it will certainly happen again. We are facing multiple challenges at scale right now; challenges like combating climate change will require innovative thinking, but there is wisdom in history from other eras that have witnessed and overcome environmental challenges. And upholding democracy for the future needs our attention once again.

I’m asking myself what I can do; I have more experience than I did when I was younger, and I have energy to take action. I want to see the world progress and eliminate challenges so we can all live in peace, health, and prosperity. There is so much impressive knowledge out there, from past and present thinkers, artists, and writers. I hope to soak up as much of that as I can for hope and actionable wisdom.

Reading Goals Review

All that to say, my reading vibes for 2026 are:

• Combatting Climate Change and transitioning to green energy
• Media, ethics, and democracy (again)
• Civic engagement, resistance, and resilience.
• History of countries I hope to visit, as well as past environmental challenges.
• Literary translations – I’m yearning to experience “culture shock” in 2026, and I think the ideas shared from writers in other cultures, not close to North America, will get me there.

My reading life in 2025 was focused on:

• Reimagined Futures
• Science & Technology
• Media, ethics, and information systems
• Democracy and civic involvement
• Translations

As I perused the book titles, I managed to read at least one book on each of these topics. My most-read was science fiction with themes of reimagined futures and science & technology. I leaned heavily on Ursula K. Le Guin’s wisdom and read 4 of her works in 2025.

Diversity Report

This year, I read quite similarly to last year in terms of diversity. Many of my titles covered multiple regions or topics, which I feel reflects our interconnected world. 

• North America – 17
• Russia & Central Asia – 1
• Europe – 10
• South & Central America – 1
• Middle East & North Africa – 1
• Sub-Saharan Africa – 0
• East Africa – 0 
• East Asia – 1 
• South Asia – 0
• Southeast Asia & Australia – 2
• Indigenous Peoples – 2
• 2SLGTBQI+ – 2
• Equity-denied Peoples – 10
• Environmental Issues – 2
• Space – 3

I’m embarrassed that I have again not read any works from Africa, which would undoubtedly provide the cultural learnings that I want in 2026. North American publishing does not make it easy to discover authors from African countries. However, there are publishers who are undertaking translation projects, and I’m pleased to see this article about African author translations in The Conversation from August 2025.

What Did I Learn

Well, four Ursula K. Le Guin books probably have more knowledge in them than I’ve gained in my lifetime. I have always held on to the idea that the books you read 5 years ago inform who you are today. It’s going to take me a while to grasp everything she shared in “Dancing at the Edge of the World: Thoughts on Words, Women, Places” – but it was so, so wonderful.

My favourite essays were:

• The Fisherwoman’s Daughter
• Where Do You Get Your Ideas From?
• The Carrier Bag Theory of Fiction

I learned a lot about the politics and systems in Silicon Valley and the tech world from Cory Doctorow. I read a couple of the books in his “Martin Hench novels” series. Both were fast-paced, and I learned a ton about cryptocurrency and the history of Silicon Valley’s beginnings. A fun way to learn, as these novels are financial crime mysteries. I recommend the podcast series he did with CBC’s Understood. In Canada, we are at a point where we should be protecting ourselves with our own digital laws. Check out his podcast and then consider writing to your MP about what you think our nation should do to protect our digital sovereignty.

CBC’s Understood – Season 5 – Who Broke the Internet? The internet sucks now, and it happened on purpose.
CBC’s Understood – Season 1 – The Naked Emperor: the rise and fall of bitcoin king Sam Bankman-Fried. (this is also really good if you are curious about the origins of crypto)

I read a lot about resistance against injustice and abusive power – both in this world and science-fictional ones. I re-read Timothy Snyder’s “On Tyranny”; there is an incredible graphic novel version he did with Nora Krug that I can’t recommend enough. Ursula K. Le Guin has a lot to say about resistance and the abuse of power in her work. This year, I read “The Dispossessed” and “Five Ways to Forgiveness.” 

One topic I did not expect to delve into further was dreams. First, I read the “Lathe of Heaven” by Le Guin – a book about a man whose dreams can change reality. We learn that the desire to change the world for the better can have unintended consequences. For Christmas, I was given “An Alphabet for Dreamers: How to see the world with eyes closed” by Sharon Sliwinski. I intend to journal my dreams in 2026 and see what happens – perhaps, I will see some wisdom in my subconscious.

I also read “Is a River Alive” by Robert MacFarlane. I love his writing, and I’m obsessed with rivers, so this was a must-read. This non-fiction account was a global journey of how different nations have treated their rivers and how they are moving forward after much damage from extraction and disregard for the river’s life force. In Quebec, the Innu Council of Ekuanitshit and the regional municipality of Minganie passed resolutions to give personhood to the Muteshekau-shipu (Magpie) River and set a new legal precedent. This protects the river’s right to flow and be free from pollution. Wouldn’t that be a dream to declare personhood to our great rivers in Alberta – the North Saskatchewan, the Bow, and the Oldman River? 

The book I’ve recommended the most is “How to Stand Up to a Dictator” by Maria Ressa. This book is absolutely incredible in its analysis of social media, how it can be manipulated, and how it can take down a democracy. It shares how political autocrats use bots and online techniques to flood the system with disinformation to make it feel like there is popular support. There are so many vital lessons from this book and what happened in the Philippines for those of us in North America.

“What happened in the Philippines in 2016 is a microcosm of every information operation launched in democratic countries around the world. The combination of bots, fake accounts, and content creators (real people like Mocha Uson) infected real people like a virus…”

“This is how information operations work everywhere. Lies that are repeated over and over exponentially change the public’s perception of an issue, something that world powers have always known about propaganda but that gained new mean and pitch in the age of social media.” – Maria Ressa, How to Stand Up to a Dictator

Ressa is a genius, and this book is a gift to the world. I’m so pleased that she was awarded the novel Peace Prize in 2021.

Putting 2023 Learning into Action in 2024

While reviewing my reading, I saw that I took multiple learnings from my 2023 reading and put them into action in my day-to-day life.

The Long View by Richard Fisher – I had the opportunity to present the idea of “taking the long view” while discussing strategic priorities for a local board I sit on. It was empowering to share this outlook with others and to explore opportunities to create the environment for something to outlast ourselves for the community. This “long view” concept also illuminated that I prefer to work for organizations with a long history. There is something special about an organization or institution that has been around for over 100 years: a solid identity, purpose, and a solid foundation of principles and values to continue to build upon for the future.

Wasteland by Oliver Franklin-Wallis – I continued to learn about waste management in my local area and connected those insights into the waste system in my home. I even went on a tour of the Banff Waste Facility site for work and learned about the local challenges and where we can improve. Our plastic waste at home has drastically reduced, and the last step we have to take to improve our waste output is to start composting. I haven’t quite figured out how to best do this for condo living, but hopefully, we can address that in 2025.

My reading level increased from 36 titles in 2023 to 44 in 2024. I read for comfort, learning, and community. The book club I’m a part of in Canmore is very special, and we have wonderful conversations. We also push each other to read different books and share new parts of ourselves and our interests.

Leaving GoodReads

I also left GoodReads to join Storygraph. Storygraph is such a fantastic app:

• Powerful search – I can now search my curated “to-read” for any theme I want: mystery, geographic regions, informative, fiction, etc. It’s AMAZING. Look at the screenshot below of the list that pops up when I search my “to-read” list for Science as a genre.

• Amazon doesn’t get my reading data anymore
• Better stats and includes the “moods” of my titles.
• Reviews aren’t front and centre and thus don’t sway my reading decisions.
• Content Warnings – crowdsourced by readers.
• Stronger tracking system for books owned, DNF, paused (for when the library loan is due), read, or to-read.
• More nuanced rating system by including 0.25 increments.

Diversity Report

I continue to be fascinated by geopolitical topics and the impact of place on our identities. I learned in university one of the best ways to learn about a culture is to read their fictional literature. While I didn’t read many titles we translated in 2024, I hope to read more in 2025.

• North America (my home culture) – 17 titles
• Russia & Central Asia – 2 titles
• Europe – 9 titles
• South & Central America – 3 titles
• Middle East & North Africa – 1 title
• Sub-Saharan Africa – 0 titles
• East Asia – 4 titles
• South Asia -0 titles
• South-East Asia and Australia – 1 title
• Indigenous Peoples – 2 titles
• 2SLGBTQI+ – 2 titles
• Equity-Denied population topics – 2 titles
• Environmental Issues – 2 titles

Overall, I’m pleased with the diversity of this list, and I learned a lot this year.

Top Titles

Here’s a very brief list of the titles that stood out to me and some keywords to see if I can grip you into reading one.

• The Mighty Red by Louise Erdrich- Prairies, environment, community, grief.
• The Lost Tarot by Sarah Henstra – mystery, cults, history, art.
• Not the End of the World by Hannah Richie – hopeful, re-examined facts, informative, environment, sustainable futures.
• Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld – feminism, politics, democracy, reimagined histories and futures.
• The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern – moody, mysterious, magical, enchanting. Great world building, plot, and characters.
• What You Are Looking For is in the Library by Michiko Aoyama – cozy, hopeful, community, the power of art and freedom of information. People finding their purpose. Soft. Also, a Japanese translation.
• The Sentence by Louise Erdrich – community, empowerment, past/present, redemption.

Reading Vibes for 2025

• Reimagined Futures
• Science & Technology
• Media, ethics, and information systems
• Democracy & civic involvement
• Translations

What were your favourite reads last year? I would love to hear your recommendations. I wish you a year ahead of cozy reading that brings you joy!

This was a strange reading year for me. I was alarmed in August to discover there was no way I wasn’t going to hit my goal of 50 books. Day to day life has returned to its former “go-go-go” post pandemic speed for me and I had to decrease my goal to 35 books. Regardless of reading less books, I still think there are some really impactful titles in my favourite books of 2023 list.

The last time I read 35 books in a year was in 2015. At first, I was quite blue about this but my partner reminded me that I’m probably reading more challenging books and more pages. He has a point. But I also feel like I lost some valuable personal learning in 2023. When I look back at 2022, what a fabulous reading year that was. But all was not lost in 2023. I still have a list of FABULOUS reads to recommend and an update to diversity challenge.

Favourite Books I read in 2023

• Good for a Girl by Lauren Fleshman

I learned so much about women’s sports from this book. We read it for Book Club (with a lot of former competitive runners) as well as my workplace that focuses on increasing access to sports for youth. I wish I had known about the physical plateau as well as the reasons that young women find themselves leaving sports in their teenage years. There are many ways that we can fix sport and make it more inclusive for all and Fleshman offers some ideas and context to how we got here in her book.

Podcast Episode – Revisionist History – The Crisis in Girls’ Sports with Lauren Fleshman and Linda Flanagan

• The Creative Way by Rick Rubin

A really inspiring book for anyone wishing to get in touch and awaken their creative side. Everyone is creative and this book by Rick Rubin might actually convince you to believe it about yourself.

Podcast Episode – On Being – Rick Rubin Magic, Everyday Mystery, and Getting Creative

• The Long View by Richard Fisher

I’ve been wanting to explore how to think about time differently and how to more accurately plan for the the future. This books is a lovely read on how to redefine our relationship and definitions of time. In my reading of Buddhism, the importance of the present and being in the moment is encouraged. But I also feel thinking and planning for the future need not be full of anxiety and what ifs. Thinking long-term will be the way we create a future we want to live in.

• Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

Worth the hype for sure – engaging characters, great plot, CLEVER commentary about women’s rights in the workplace, home, and society.

• Wasteland by Oliver Franklin-Wallis

I could not stop talking about this book for WEEKS. The waste economy is fascinating and I feel much more aware of the world system of waste and the impacts of my own waste on a global scale. My biggest takeaway was the realization of the sheer amount of waste for everything – pre-production, product creation, and the afterlife of a a product. Read it, please! I should note that I didn’t find it a depressing read, although the sheer impact of waste is heavy, it’s fascinating and the knowledge gained will stay with you for a long time.

• The Running Grave by Robert Galbraith

I love this series. I know people have issues with JK Rowling’s opinions on gender. But I’ve decided that I can separate those from her artistic work. This series is fabulous and keeps getting better. This book is absolutely massive in size and yet it flew by. I could barely put it down.

• The Woman in Me by Britney Spears

So, I did not expect to like this and I think Roxanne Gay’s review said it best:

Spears’ memoir had me reflecting a lot on the experience of womanhood from teenage to midlife. First, the sexualization of young women in the early 00’s was insanity and I was too young and naïve as a teenager at the time to see it for what it was. When she described what is freedom to her, including posing and dancing on Instagram, I was moved and dropped my judgement – if she feels in control of how she shares her image and body after living through intense sexualization at a young age in front of a global audience – then go for it. That’s freedom for her and she deserves it.

I have also been reflecting a lot on the gift of aging. Britney was robbed of her 30s while she was in her conservatorship. It’s a decade that I feel brings much confidence, wisdom, and big decisions. I hadn’t really reflected on how I’ve changed in my 30s and hearing how she is recovering from her isolation in conservatorship… my heart just breaks for her. There are a lot of hard-won lessons in this book.

Diversity Report

PEN America published a report in 2022 and diversity has not improved in the publishing industry.

“Reading Between the Lines: Race, Equity, and Book Publishing, exposes a broad range of systemic shortcomings in fostering a diverse and inclusive approach to publishing. Ingrained biases, preconceptions, and ossified thinking affect every stage of the publishing process and together work against expanding the ranks of racially and ethnically diverse authors.”

Link to Pen America – October 21, 2022 – DEEP AND PERSISTENT OBSTACLES IN PUBLISHING HOUSES IMPEDE GREATER DIVERSITY IN TERMS OF AUTHORS AND STORIES TOLD

So, fellow readers, keep buying diverse authors. Read out of your comfort zone. Be loud about it and share the joy of reading from all different perspectives.

I’m changing up how I’m monitoring my diversity reading to prioritize my own intercultural competency and acknowledging the different life experiences that come with geopolitical zones. All so I can be more globally minded and not get stuck in the North American way of thinking.

Here is my tally which I wasn’t monitoring for this new shift to geopolitical zones. Looks like I have some diversifying to do!

• Europe – 6
• Russian/Central Asia – 1
• North America – 17
• South & Central America – 0
• Middle East/ North Africa – 0
• Sub-Saharan Africa – 0
• East Asia – 7
• South Asia – 2
• South East Asia & Australia – 0
• Indigenous Peoples – 1
• LGTBQ2S+ – 1
• Equity-denied population topics – 4
• Environmental issues – 3

When Reading for Pleasure Won over Reading to Learn

I really took on some heavy-hitters this year – looking to stretch my mind and learn things I really had little knowledge of. IT WAS HARD. So these books are still on my to-read pile but it is going to take another year.

• Value(s) by Mark Carney
• The Song of the Cell by Siddhartha Mukherjee
• Design for a Better World by Don Norman
• The Company by Stephen R. Bown

When I needed a distraction, I went to a mystery. Some of my favourites mystery novels are the Ava Lee series by Ian Hamilton and there is a new one coming! I also found my favourite romance writer: Curtis Sittenfeld.

Happy reading to you in 2024! I would love to hear any recommended reads you have from 2023 in the comments below.

Favourite Books of 2022

• Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands by Kate Beaton
  • To use the common refrain, “this hit close to home” would be understatement. I’m pleased that there is a intelligent, nuanced, and feminine perspective of oilfield culture in Alberta, the boom years in the early 2000s, and transient work. I grew up in another oilfield heavy area in rural Alberta and related with much of the content in her graphic memoir.
• Women I Think About at Night: Traveling the Paths of My Heroes by Mia Kankimäki, Douglas Robinson (Translator)
  • A historical and personal journey of women, art, and travel including Karen Blixen, Yayoi Kusama, and Italian Renaissance painters Sofonisba Anguissola, Lavinia Fontana, and Artemisia Gentileschi. It also explores what path these women took that veered off the historical societal expectations of women.
• East: 120 Vegan and Vegetarian recipes from Bangalore to Beijing by Meera Sodha
  • Amazing cookbook – vegetarian and vegan – it got me excited to make a meal. I found out I love and feel empowered in the kitchen with vegetarian cooking.
• Secrets of the Spakkar: Iceland’s Extraordinary Women and How They Are Changing the World by Eliza Reid
  • In my humble opinion, Canada could look to Iceland for inspiration to increase its equity goals in societal systems.
• How to be a Climate Optimist: Blueprints for a Better World by Chris Turner
  • Turns out, I’ve been holding on to some climate anxiety for at least 5 years. This book helped me out of that hole and has prompted my interest in generational time.
• Square Haunting: Five Writers in London Between the Wars by Francesca Wade
  • Reading about artistic women who lived outside of society’s norms in the early 20th Century England was fascinating and refreshing. You will learn about the lives of and how their lives intersected with each other during pivotal times of their creative pursuits.
• River of the Gods: Genius, Courage and Betrayal in the Search for the Source of the Nile by Candice Millard
  • Millard is my new favourite historian and this book was a triad of exploration, rivers and geography, and colonialism. Excellent read and it show the arrogance of colonialism in both personal and societal history without telling.
• Intuitive Eating Workbook by Evelyn Tribole & Elyse Resch
  • Two years into my “get healthy” journey, I bought this workbook and I found it incredibly helpful. There were some really helpful exercises to tap back into awareness of my body and and personal hunger cues. There are also useful journaling exercising about body image and past habits. Worthwhile if you are interested in lifelong health.
• Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization by Edward Slingerland
  • Excellent blend of anthropology, history, philosophy, and science behind why we drink and what it does for and against us as a species. I’ve been waiting a long time for a book to approach the topic in this way and it didn’t disappoint.
• Geneviève Castrée: The Complete Works
  • I waited a long time to have this in my library. Castrée’s only published book, Susceptible, is a special book to me. This book of her unpublished work is a treasure and her work is incredibly inspiring to me.
• Pandora’s Jar: Women in the Greek Myths by Natalie Haynes
  • I never could have predicted that I would delve into classics in my reading life. It’s been really fascinating and rewarding. I discovered Natalie Haynes on a podcast, she is a super speaker and I recommend this book to any feminist looking to learn about Greek mythology. It will elevate your intellectual life.

History and Connecting the Dots

Since studying history in university, every year I keep learning the importance of our past. I believe the common statement is true: how can you understand who you are if you don’t understand where you came from?

Each new generation will approach the stories of the past with a new lens stemming from their challenges and dreams for the future. And there is something new to learn each time. Truth and fact becomes richer and more complex. It becomes clear that our challenges are not binary and need to be approached from as many angles as we can.

History is the common thread throughout everything I read this year – both macro and micro. I’m fascinated by the books examining moments of great change – the people and politics of 1890s-1920s. Greek myth. Colonial exploration of the world. The invention and history of alcohol. Personal histories of childhood and healing.

History guides my hope and bewilderment as to where we are heading in the future – it’s complex and it’s all connected.

Diversity Report

I’m really happy with the diversity of my reading this year! It’s among the most diverse since 2016. Back then, I found reading outside of my experience was sometimes mentally tiring. But now, it’s not at all. In fact, I seek it out.

One pleasant surprise is a mystery series with Ava Lee, a Chinese-Canadian forensic accountant and debt collector, written by Ian Hamilton. I was almost convinced that Ian Hamilton was a pseudonym because of his success in writing from a female perspective that doesn’t feel contrived and stereotypical. I’ve read two books and I’m learning a lot about China as well as international accounting crime. The series is fabulous and I highly recommend it. I would love to sit down with Ian Hamilton over some Chinese food and tea and hear all about how he developed Ava Lee as she’s a very compelling character.

I also discovered Val MacDermid this year, her mysteries are EXCELLENT.

Examining authors, topics, and geographic regions I read about this year, I feel that I got to “see” many different perspectives and experiences from around the world. For that, I’m grateful for every author I read this year. I think if I added diversity in topics and characters, it would be even higher.

• Black – 2
• Indigenous – 5
• Latinx – 0
• Middle Eastern – 0
• Asian – 5
• LGTBQ2S+ – 6
• White European – 27
• Total – 20/50

Reading Diversity Percentages

• 2022 – 40%
• 2021 – 36%
• 2020 – 37%
• 2019 – 25%
• 2018 – 22%
• 2017 – 65%
• 2016 – 22%

Reading Vibes for 2023

• Histories of Medicine and Health
• Reimagining the Future – Looking for hope and new possibilities among our biggest challenges for climate, human rights, and misinformation.
• Women and Art
• Learning New Pottery Skills – my creative life is shifting a bit – over the past year, it shifted away from drawing and over to pottery. I’m not going to try to force drawing over the next year but follow my pottery practice and where it intersects with drawing and story.

Reading Themes – Science, Mystery, Equity

My hunger for science is bigger than ever before. Nature! Health Science! Space! I’ve always been interested in the effect of place on our identities and I’m seeking books that have elements of geography, people, and history in them.

Around spring 2020, my interest in active and healthy living got a reboot and I purposely looked for science-based guidance. I’m more aware of the effects of diet culture has on me but I also want to feel and look good. So, I did some reflecting, tracking and analyzing my behaviours, and then changing some habits based on some science. I’m learning to give myself a break and accepting that doing it right means doing it sloooooow.

Self-Help Doesn’t Help

THEN, I got on the self-help rollercoaster and it threw me for a loop (and not in a fun “whooo” way). During my health reboot, I learned that dealing with changing habits and creating new routines also means accepting and moving through your emotions. So, this lead me down a path of reading more self-help books, geared towards emotion, in the summer and fall. I took their messages, internalized them, and proceeded to interpret them as “must-fixes” instead of suggestions and fell down a hole of self-doubt in my own pre-existing emotional skills.

In the end, I had to quit reading self-help books and I quickly felt better a week later after my epiphany of “Self help doesn’t help.” In fact, I think it can do more harm than good sometimes. And, a month later, I’m still not reading self-help or listening to any podcasts along that vein. Life is better.

Mysteries and Spy Thrillers

Mystery has been my cozy blanket of reading. I’ve read 15 books that are either mystery or spy-related! I’m still digging on Agatha Christie. I’m loving John Le Carré’s commentary on colonialism and class. And don’t get me started on the Dreadfulwater series by Thomas King. What a pure delight to read a mystery set in an area so similar to mine and his dry humour.

Diversity

I’m down 2% from last year but from analyzing my reading topics I think I know the reason. And guess what, my theory is that it is scholars from diverse backgrounds in academia are not published as much in natural sciences and health sciences. So when my reading turned quite science heavy, the authors I was reading were mostly of a traditional academic background.

• Black – 5
• Indigenous – 5
• Latinx – 3
• Middle Eastern – 1
• Asian – 3
• LGTBQ2S+ – 1
• White European/N. American – 32

Total – 18/50 books were written by diverse populations which is 36% of my overall reading.

This is not to say that those authors aren’t knowledgeable. But it would be helpful to have new perspectives on science so we can continue to improve all of our lives. Yes, we have more in common than we have different AND we live in a wide variety of ways and experiences. Both of these can be true and all those experiences in between. The desperate need for diversity in our research was abundantly clear to me when reading “Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men” by Caroline Criado Pérez.

I would also be thrilled to see more diverse authors published in the mystery and spy genres. I did read American Spy by Lauren Wilkinson which was unique and riveting. I would like to read more like that and in different settings than western Europe. There must be more and perhaps this could be addressed with more translations or world rights for publishing contacts?

I was pleased to see that in 2021, BookNet has done a Diversity Report for the Canadian Readers and their interest in diverse literature. 85%+ of people surveyed agreed that libraries, booksellers, and publishers should have books by a wider variety of authors.

Reading Diversely Percentages Since 2016

• 2021 – 36%
• 2020 – 37%
• 2019 – 25%
• 2018 – 22%
• 2017 – 65%
• 2016 – 22%

2022 Intellectual Vibes

From the books I’ve read this year, I’m going into 2022 with the following intellectual goals:

1. Joy – leaning into joy also as a form of resistance.
2. Inclusion & Diversity – Celebrating! Exploring! Learning about others’ experiences.
3. Open-minded + intellectual humility + discernment = Intellectual triple threat

My Fave Books of 2021

• Magdalena by Wade Davis
• The Diet Fix by Dr. Yoni Freedhoff
• Relax, Dammit by Timothy Caulfield
• Lookout: Love, Solitude, and Searching for Wildfire in the Boreal Forest by Trina Moyles
• Emotional Agility by Dr. Susan David
• Invisible Women by Caroline Criado Pérez
• Factfulness by Hans Rosling, Ola Rosling, Anna Rosling Rönnlund
• Hickory Dickory Dock by Agatha Christie
• The Dreadfulwater series by Thomas King
• The Future of Humanity: Terraforming Mars, Interstellar Travel, Immortality and Our Destiny Beyond Earth by Michio Kaku

I created a HUGE recommended reading list based on this conversation in GoodReads. It’s 30+ books and covers everything from creativity, to health, to science, to adventure.

I have a lot of gratitude for Morgan and this podcast project. She’s sought out women to have vulnerable conversations with about what what we want out of life and how each woman approaches finding and living by their own values. The interviews display a variety of personal experience and perspectives. It’s great to see chats like these out in the world, especially focused on women living in Alberta. I’m not sure if the Alberta part was intentional but I saw it and I dig it.

Check out her website and keep an eye on it! Morgan is sharing her beautiful art with the world and she often takes on new exciting projects that you’ll want to see.

If you like history, science, geology, geography, art, philosophy, nature, adventure … It’s all here. 

Robert MacFarlane’s book Underland: A Deep Time Journey is great introduction to incorporating geology and nature to your big picture thinking. The beauty of this book is that MacFarlane equally values the science and the arts while exploring exploring the mysteries of the planet and our place in it.

I also found this book to be a good read that didn’t leave me depressed and overwhelmed about climate change. Rather, it taught me new ways to appreciate Earth.

Below I’m sharing some of my favourite quotes from the book that I think I will carry with me for a long time. These quotes are in my sketchnotes but I’m also sharing here in case its hard to read and for accessibility.

We have proved to be good historians but poor futurologists. We have “BP” for Before Present and we have “MYA” for Millions Years Ago. We have no abbreviations for marking deep time in the future. No one speaks of “AP” for After Presents or “MYA” for Millions Years Ahead.

Robert MacFarlane, Underland: A Deep Time Journey.

I also did not know the debate among scientists around marking a new epoch – the Anthropocene. Humans current relationship with the planet has brought about some dark (and quite upsetting) concepts that highlight the imbalance that we are experiencing now that began in 1950 with the start of the Atomic Age.

Words are world makers and language is one of the great geological forces. This has generated some hopeless words for the epoch: geotraumatics, planetary dysphoria, apex-guilt.

Robert MacFarlane, Underland: A Deep Time Journey

And it taught me about the term Solastaligia, which is a form of psychic or existential distress from environmental change. I can identify with this term on a range of intensity. Level 10 when I read “On Fire: The Burning Case for a Green New Deal” by Naomi Klein… level 5 when I’m experiencing +4C in January during an Edmonton winter.

Despite what I just wrote, this book ‘keeps it real’ without overwhelming. MacFarlane writes beautiful passages of his travels in search of geological wonders and intertwines societal history with planetary history. It is completely engrossing and fascinating – I highly recommend it!

I learned all about:

• History of WWII and how it intertwined with geography in present-day Slovenia.
• Disposal plans for nuclear waste.
• Why particle research happens deep in mining caves in England.
• Melting of glaciers in Greenland and the scientific information found in ice that tells the story of deep time.
• The mycorrhizal network (or otherwise known as the “wood wide web”) in forests.
• Prehistoric Cave Art in France and Norway (PS – new cave art was just discovered in the Indonesia!)

Let’s end on a hopeful quote…

What might save us is a focus on collaboration: “symbiosis”, “mutualism”, and inclusive human work of collective decision making extended to more-than-human communities.

Robert MacFarlane, Underland: A Deep Time Journey.

Well, I hope you are curled up and cozy, with a cup of coffee, because this is the most significant reading year I’ve ever had.

All in all, I read 54 books. I bested my all-time high by 6 books. How? COVID-19 isolation. My happy place has always been with my nose in a book and I went for it this year with no guilt.

My reading life reflects my curiosities and challenges in 2020. There’s self-help, motivation, racial and indigenous justice… then March came… and I leaned heavily into graphic novels, classics, science fiction, advocacy, Buddhism, outdoor adventure, history, environmental science, and murder mysteries.

Reading Diversely

In June, I wrote a piece about the trajectory of my reading diverse project that I began in 2016. It is clear that there is still a problem with diversity in publishing. Yes, part of the problem rests with me but I also think the “micro stats” of my reading also display there is a systemic problem with who is being published and how they are marketed to the public. There was recently a big opinion piece in the New York Times, “Just How White Is the Book Industry?”, outlining the problem and the current statistics of who’s getting published and what they are being paid. Hopefully, now that this issue is getting more in the mainstream media, we will start to see some changes in the large publishing houses that dominate the market.

If there is anyone is the publishing business reading this – I sincerely long to read new stories and diverse perspectives. Please make this happen and I will spend money. Also, please hire even more diverse graphics designers for appropriate book covers.

Here’s how my diversity statistics came out this year:

• Black – 10
• Indigenous – 2
• Latinx – 1
• Middle Eastern – 1
• Asian – 3
• LGTBQ2S+ – 4
• White – 37

This number likely isn’t exact as I didn’t deep dive the author’s history, mostly just googled their name to check photos. And I only counted the LGTBQ2S+ if the author mentioned it in their work.

So, for diverse authors, I read 21 out of 54, which is 38%. Whomp, whomp :(

But, sadly, this is an OK number when put in context to what the book industry is publishing. The article in the NYT has an alarming chart that shows from their data collection that only 11% of books written in 2018 were written by people of colour. In 2018, I only managed to read 22% diversely.

The good news is that half of interns at major publishing houses this year are of diverse backgrounds and hopefully they will continue to climb and find success. Also, the books of diverse writers sell like crazy – the people are hungry for these stories. Let’s keep our foot on the gas.

New Discoveries

The big world of environmental science, non-fiction. I emotionally can not read books about climate change. I have tried in the years before and it always turns into a personal anxiety crisis.

If this sounds like a problem you have run into as well, but like myself, you wish to read more about the environment and contribute to positive change well, I have good news! There are alternatives out there. This genre will arm you with environment and natural science know-how and give you deep appreciation for our natural world. With that gained knowledge, I’m hopeful that I will be able to make personal changes and advocate for changes to address our climate crisis. I hope to share some reviews of the gems I’ve read this year and in 2021.

Murder mysteries! I’m really into Agatha Christie and enjoy how she explores both the light and the dark of human existence.

My introduction to Indigenous fiction, Indians on Vacation by Thomas King, really rocked my socks off. It was unnerving and comforting to read the experiences of the characters that reflected parts of my lived experience in rural Alberta. There was a section of the book that referenced Indigenous history that I researched this year, ranging from residential schools to the meeting place of Wetaskiwin, which is the region I grew up in (Battle River Valley). I’m still grappling with my growing understanding of the similarities of rural culture and Indigenous culture. I’m more supportive than ever of Canada’s goal of Truth and Reconciliation.

My Top Picks of Books Read in 2020

• Underland by Robert MacFarlane
  • Mysteries of the underground!
  • Historical exploration, rooted in geography, of places I’ve visited in my travels (such as Slovenia).
  • Exploration of the impact of words and our species relationship with nature.
• She Said by Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey
  • Systemic issues of sexual harassment and assault.
  • The power of collective action.
  • Behind-the-scenes of journalistic rigour.
• War: How Conflict Shapes Us by Margaret MacMillan
  • Exploration of why we go to war as a species.
  • History of militaries and impact on civilizations.
  • Insights into the impact of militaries on a global scale.
• Lands of Lost Borders by Kate Harris
  • Nature and philosophy
  • Self-reflection on a long trek
• Tracks by Robyn Davidson
  • On being tough as nails. (link to illustrated book review)
  • Indigenous history in Australia.
  • Solo trekking.
  • Camels.
• Rivers of Power by Laurence C. Smith
  • So much science on rivers!
  • Learned about people settling near rivers and why.
  • A great accompaniment to our road trip of northern AB and BC this spring, especially regarding dams.
• The Broken Earth Trilogy by N.K Jemisin
  • Amazing world building by N.K Jemisin
  • Metaphors and analogies of contemporary racial injustice
  • Introduced me to the world of geology
• Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
  • It’s OK to be cozy. (link to illustrated book review)
  • Family life meditation.
  • Importance of creating a cozy and inclusive home.
• Indians on Vacation by Thomas King
  • Indigenous joy.
  • History of Indigenous people in Alberta.
  • Intergenerational trauma and resiliency.
• You Belong: A Call for Connection by Sebene Selassie
  • Basics of Buddhism.
  • Creating community connection within yourself and with others.
  • Resilience and coping.

One of my favourite pastimes during COVID social distancing has been reading. I especially love reading in the summer, hanging on my patio, but this year reading gave me more than just a relaxing evening. Just like in my childhood, reading is now my travel and gateway to put myself in someone else’s shoes.

I’ve been working my way through a reading list I created for Book Club – Women and Great Outdoors. I bought an eReader recently and it has revamped my reading life in a big way. I’m just ripping through books. So many fantastic tales and stories since March.

Tracks by Robyn Davidson

This is a thoroughly enjoyale book of an intrepid woman who went off exploring in the outback of Australia. She doesn’t delve deep into her past – unlike recent adventure memoirs that play into the ‘damaged person who needs to go reinvent herself’. I found this really refreshing. From how she shares her tale, she wanted to go out, experience the desert, train camels, and be solitary. I looked up Robyn Davidson’s entry on Wikipedia and it turns out she had a tough childhood, but she decides not to share that side of her in this memoir and I respect that choice.

Her story is dramatic and her challenges are numerous in Alice Springs, deep the outback where toxic masculinity rules and where she learns to train wild camels. Once she learns how to train, manage, and care for camels, Davidson embarks on a journey to cross the outback through Western Australia on her way to finish at the shore of the Indian Ocean.

Davidson also writes about her desire to connect and create meaningful relationships with the Indigenous people of Australia. She outlines the issues and injustices endured by Indigenous Australians as she has seen and experienced them. I found it interesting to read about her insights into the devastating outcomes of colonial powers against Indigenous peoples in Australia.

The part of the journey I found most fascinating were her observations regarding the experience of a solitary journey. It outlined her focusing on the basics of survival which then turns into deep meditative state and introspection into her journey up to that moment.

Davidson’s descriptions of the land in Northern and Western Australia are stunning. Her knowledge and respect for the camels is illuminating.

I would suggest reading this story if you like:

• Visually descriptive writing
• History
• Nomadic cultures
• Environment/Wilderness
• Overcoming challenges
• Introspection
• Book to Movie
  • Tracks is available on Amazon Prime – by the producers of The King’s Speech and starring Adam Driver and Mia Wasikowska.

In this post, I’m going to outline where I was and then dig into my reading stats since 2016 to see if there has been improvement.

If you are on the start of your journey of unlearning racism and realizing white privilege – I’ve shared some books that I’ve read and learned from over the past couple of years (found at the bottom of the post). I’d love to hear your suggestions in the comments below too.

TL;DR (too long; didn’t read)

• The publishing industry is hella white and that prevents true visibility of diverse writers.
• When not actively aware of reading diversely, I can not seem to break my trend of only reaching 22% books read in a year by diverse writers.
• This is weirdly reflective of the diversity percentages of who is working in publishing.
• Moving forward, there are tactics we can employ to support writers and push for equity in publishing.
• Everyone deserves to see themselves reflected in books (and popular culture overall). We need to reflect on the damage of the dominance of the white perspective in publishing and encourage moving forward to honour everyone’s experience.

2016 – Reading White Ladies

So ya, I was starting from square one. When I reread my blog post from 2016, I remember how nervous I felt just breaking this into categories in a respectful way (and did an evening of research to figure it out). Now that I reflect back, I don’t think I thought, “I don’t see colour” but I definitely did not feel equipped to discuss race in a frank and open manner. I was starting to realize I didn’t know much about diversity… and I had no idea how much I needed and was about to learn over the next 4ish years.

Even so, this list is still embarrassing… why didn’t I say White Cis Female and White Cis Male? I’m pretty sure I listed this in terms of most read to least read but I’m not digging it. I’m upending this list for the rest of the post.

Here’s the stats:

• Cis Female: 30/45
• Cis Male: 12/45
• LGBTQ+: 3/45
• Brown: 3/45
• Asian: 2/45
• Indigenous: 1/45
• Black: 0/45

22% of my book reading was written by a diverse author.

2017 – Actively Trying to Read Diversely

In 2017, I was avidly trying to read diversely and it was illuminating. However, when I tallied up how I did over the course of the year, I was dismayed. I only read 65% diversely that year. My partner sent me the Lee & Low Baseline Survey (2015), which monitors the publishing industry for diversity and what’s being published. I was shocked at the numbers and I’m really appreciative of this study to show the pervasiveness of the white perspective in the industry.

According to the survey, just under 80 percent of publishing staff and review journal staff are white. The rest are comprised of Asians/Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders (7.2 percent), Hispanics/Latinos/Mexicans (5.5 percent), Black/African Americans (3.5 percent), and biracial/multiracial people (2.7 percent). Native Americans (0.5 percent), and Middle Easterners (0.8 percent) of publishing staff.

Diversity Baseline Study 2015, Lee & Low

What was most curious to me was how I felt throughout the year. Sometimes, I felt tired by the challenging reading and new perspectives that I would fall back to my comfortable ‘white lady’ books for ‘a break’. Then, I clued in and thought, “holy shit, people from other backgrounds must get so tired of reading about the white perspective.”

There is something calming about reading another person’s work whose perspective is similar to your own – it helps you feel not alone and I think EVERYONE should have that chance. Other ethnicities have been denied that to this day due to barriers in publishing and society at large.

2018 – Fallen off the Wagon

In 2018, I didn’t consciously focus on reading diversely and it shows. Ugh. Here are the numbers:

• Black – 3/48
• Indigenous – 2/48
• Brown – 1/48
• Asian – 4/48
• LGTBQ2S+ – 1/48
• White – 37/48

22% of my book reading was written by a diverse author.

Yikes. This is a shame as its shows not being aware took me right back to where I started.

With access to other learning opportunities, I was waking up to the atrocities towards Indigenous peoples that Canada is guilty of. I went to work events that were informative and difficult. Reflecting back, I made mistakes while I was learning – I was on the cusp of realizing my own white privilege and fragility but not quite there yet.

2019 – Learning and Unlearning

This year, I leaned more into attending more EDI events at my workplace. I thought I was making good strides in my learning. But upon analysis of my reading again… the numbers are not better.

• Black – 1/44
• Indigenous – 0/44
• Brown – 1/44
• Asian – 7/44
• LGTBQ2S+ – 2/44
• White – 33/44

25% of my book reading was written by a diverse author. HOW DO I BREAK OUT OF THIS CYCLE?! WHY IS THIS DIFFICULT!? There are so many incredible diverse writers. Arrrrggggghhhhh!

I want to read interesting and different stories. It looks like I need to be more aggressive; do more research and keep making a concentrated effort to seek them out. Wouldn’t it be amazing if diverse writers and stories were as easy to find as the current “mainstream” ones? Is it weird that my numbers are in line with diversity of staff in publishing houses in the U.S? YES.

LET’S FIX THIS PUBLISHING WORLD!

2020 – Digging Deeper (Personally and Professionally)

In 2019, Lee & Low did another survey to see where we are after 2015’s results. Recent years have been a historic moment in history; powerful shifts like the #MeToo movment, more visibility for diverse writers, and most recently, the Anti-Racism movement that’s happening right now.

Has the publishing industry changed? I’m willing to wager not much by analyzing my simplistic reading statistics, which is both my fault as well as systemic problems in society.

Let’s find out…

“The 2015 survey reported that overall, 79 percent of people who work in publishing self-report as White. Given the sample size difference, this 3 percent change in White employees does not meet the bar for statistically significant change. There is no discernible change to any of the other racial categories. In other words, the field is just as White today as it was four years ago.“

Diversity in Publishing (2019), Lee & Low

I’m closely watching #PublishingPaidMe as authors push for more transparency and better payment for Black authors. I think there are clear connections to the dominance of White people in publishing to issues of access to diversity. Writer Michael W. Twitty laid out some of the issues (screenshot below).

It is important that if we want to see more diversity in books that we support authors by purchasing and/or reviewing their work to increase their visibility.

Moving Forward – Foot on the Gas

By writing this post, I’ve learned that I consciously have to seek out diverse writers and be mindful of the systems in place that prevent me from discovering these authors when I’m not vigilant about it. Here’s how I’m doing so far.

• Black – 8/54
• Indigenous – 3/54
• Latinx – 0/54
• Middle Eastern – 1/54
• Asian – 4/54
• LGTBS2S+ – 4/54
• White – 26/54

In 2020, 37% books read this year were written by diverse authors. Time to get researching and purchasing (especially Indigenous, Latinx and Middle Eastern writers).

Books on Equity that are a Good Place to Start

These are books that I’ve read in the past year. They cover different aspects of inequality in our world.

White Fragility: Why it’s so hard for white people to talk about racism by Robin DiAngelo

Read this for tools on how to identify your white fragility and learn how to approach how you come to the work of anti-racism. It’s self-reflective, educational, and important.

21 Things You May Not Know About the Indian Act: Helping Canadians Make Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples a Reality by Bob Joseph

Bob Joseph explains the effects of the Indian Act of Canada. It’s shameful. This will impart a need to stand up for First Nations people and support them how THEY want to move forward in the future.

Born a Crime by Trevor Noah

Trevor Noah’s memoir about growing up in South Africa is remarkable. I had so many “ah ha!” moments while reading it and it has stayed with me since reading it in 2018.

“People love to say, “Give a man a fish, and he’ll eat for a day. Teach a man to fish, and he’ll eat for a lifetime.” What they don’t say is, “And it would be nice if you gave him a fishing rod.” That’s the part of the analogy that’s missing.”
― Trevor Noah, Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood

Good Company: The Community Issue (Issue 1) by Grace Bonney

This issue (a short-lived magazine that was AMAZING) features many stories of diversity and creating an inclusive community. I especially enjoyed the pieces sharing perspectives of those living with disability.