Book Haul 2010

Now that my luggage has finally arrived – a week and a half since we got back from the US – I’ll be able to dig into my annual book haul.

Here are my new reads:

The Year of Living Like Jesus...by Ed Dobson

First off the bat, I finally managed to get a hold of a book that I’ve been looking forward to since last year, and have mentioned here numerous times: Ed Dobson’s The Year of Living Like Jesus. Already it’s proving to be an inspirational read.

Clearly, for someone who tries to be a Jesus follower, there’s going to be a lot in there to grab the attention, (Ed starts a book with the words

“I don’t like the word Christian”)

but I think it would be a good read for anyone. As you’d expect from a Pastor, Ed is a great story teller, and he conveys the journey through his year with wit and grace. The guy’s got some smarts too! So far, I’m loving it!

HT too to Brian Kelly for the excellent cover shoots. Brian is a quality photographer!

Then, three titles which explore an area that’s really floating my boat at the moment – blogging, social media tools and how they are affecting the world we inhabit.

Crush It! ...by Gary Vaynerchuk

Only today, I discovered that both Steve Knight & Jason Clarke had given Crush It! - which I bought on the basis of a shout out in the Inc magazine I’d picked up along the way – a thumbs up, so check out what Steve & Jason have to say. I respect their opinion.

Socialnomics – How social media transforms the way we live and do business...by Erik Qualman

I picked this up on the basis of a tip off from Krish Kandiah at last year’s Digimission event. I’ve not had the chance to dip into it, yet, but I’ve got a feeling it’s going to be a goodie. Erik was kind enough to reply directly to a Tweet I sent when I bought the book, so he gets props for that if nothing else.

Viral Loop..by Adam L Penenberg

I’ve skimmed through Viral Loop already, having been drawn in by the cover (I know, I know....you can’t judge a book....), but I did start to wonder if this one was a little behind the beat in terms of the corporate examples it cites, but I’ll hold that in reserve until I’ve read it properly. Penenberg certainly has the credentials, as a Professor at New York University. I’m kinda hoping my reservations will be blown away, but we shall see.

The essential

Obviously, I had to get myself a new Moleskine diary for 2010, and a stash of mags to read – Fast Company, Inc, Trailrunner, and couple of editions of DWELL.

Let’s see how long it takes me to get through this lot.

What are you reading at the beginning of 2010?


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