The Great Blizzard of 2026 only grazed us, with less than a foot of snow falling, but between the other snowstorms and a brutal cold snap, it was still a good month to curl up in a warm house with some good books.

Last year’s reading pace shows no signs of abating, and in January I happened to pick some great books from my long list. The three award-winning novels I read were all excellent, in completely different ways, and the nonfiction book that accompanied me through most of my January workouts was a solid piece of reporting with only a few minor flaws. Laura and I also finished the third co-operative game in a fun series.

December arrived cold and snowy, perfect weather for sitting indoors with a cup of hot tea and a good book. I finished a trilogy I’d started a couple of months ago, read two books about food, and enjoyed a well-crafted memoir.

In November, I read three books and listened to a fourth, which I count as reading. The selection included an interesting historical biography, a somewhat informative book on corporate innovation, and two pretty good novels. Laura and I also played a couple of excellent co-operative iPad games.

My October reading included a fantasy trilogy, the first volume of another trilogy, and a fun book about the joys of poetry.

Another editor allowed my fiction into their publication, this time a very short story (under 1,000 words) in Nature: Futures, the prestigious scientific journal’s flash fiction column.

In September I read a hilarious satire, a pretty good continuation of a fun series, and a work of speculative fiction that could also qualify as serious literature. After that, I played a few good games my wife recommended.

In August, I went through three fantasy novels, then read a bunch of short stories, and ended the month enjoying the first few novellas of a highly-regarded sci-fi series.

In the Fall 2025 issue of the online speculative fiction magazine ‘Electric Spec,’ there’s a short story called ‘Half Lives.’ It’s my first published fiction, and I think I might do some more of this.

Here’s the start of what may become a monthly post: books I read in July 2025. It’s an eclectic mix of fiction and nonfiction.

At the beginning of 2025, I resolved to read more, especially fiction. Here are brief reviews of the more than two dozen books I’ve read in the past six months.

Most of us can’t do anything about the horrible stuff that’s happening in the world right now. But when the news is intolerable, we don’t have to immerse ourselves in it first thing in the morning.