My favorite reads of 2023

At the end of each year, I share a list of books I enjoyed reading during the calendar year. There is usually a combination of theology, cultural analysis, biography, and fiction. Hopefully some of this year’s favorite reads will make their way onto your Christmas wish list or make good gift ideas.

Here are my picks for 2023.

#1. Lincoln Highway

One of the best novels I’ve read in years, with unforgettable characters, a page-turning story, and some unforgettable scenes, including a chilling finale that vividly paints the teachings of the Bible on your heart after your treasure. The Duchess is one of the most vivid and memorable fictional characters I have encountered in literature. This is a coming-of-age story, where your understanding of the significance of the book’s events advances alongside the protagonist.

#2. Escape artist
The man who came out of Auschwitz to warn the world
By Jonathan Friedland

In a time like ours—when, despite decades of saying “never forget,” many in the world, even in the West, seem content not only to forget the horrors of the past, but to repeat them—we need books like this one. . Jonathan Friedland tells the incredible story of a man who escaped Auschwitz and shared the truth with the world, only to discover passivity and, in many cases, indifference. The story is true, which prevents Rudolf Vrba from becoming a one-dimensional hero. We see him later in life, with all his sins and mistakes, and the resentment eating away at his relationships. A harrowing account of heroism that highlights human frailty. I gave this book to my teenage daughter after she read it, and she couldn’t put it down either.

#3. Tim Keller
His spiritual and intellectual formation
By Colleen Hansen

I lost a hero in late May when Tim Keller died of cancer [read my reflections]. Colin Hansen has done us a great service by writing our first biographical treatment of Tim, which focuses less on Keller himself and more on the influences that shaped the man he became and the legacy he left. Colin takes us through the key moments in Tim’s life, but always with an emphasis on the experiences, writers and thinkers who shaped Tim spiritually and intellectually. This is the only book on my list this year that I’ve read twice.

#4. Children of the night
The strange and epic story of modern Romania
By Paul Kenyon

In the space of a single century – from 1900 to 2000 – Romania went from celebrating the monarchy, to sliding into a nationalist dictatorship, to fighting in World War II on the side of Germany before turning to fighting on the side of the Allies, to overthrowing the king. The installation of a communist regime, and ended in a revolution that brought the birth pains of freedom. From monarchy to fascism to the Axis to the Allies to communism to free markets. All this in one century. Paul Kenyon gives us a poignant history of the turbulent century of the country where my wife comes from, and where I once made my home. This book traces the course of Romania’s history while presenting the personal stories and testimonies of ordinary people. In this way, it never becomes a dry historical recitation of facts, but rather helps the reader feel the promise and danger of this moment. Read my full review.

#5. Why are we restless?
Written by Benjamin and Gina Silber Storey

The highest-rated book of philosophical reflection on my list this year, Why are we restless? This book provides an in-depth look at four French thinkers – Montaigne, Pascal, Rousseau, and Tocqueville – giving us an outline of their ideas, the ways in which their philosophies interact with each other, and telling a story about their influence on society today. The Storeys know how to distill elements of these thinkers to their essence in an impressively short span of pages. A profound and relevant book, I recommend it to anyone who wants to delve into some of the most influential men of all time. (On another note, the Story family joined me for an interview for an episode of the show Rebuilding faith This season to talk about Pascal, who incidentally took first place on this list in 2019.)

#6. pax
War and Peace in the Golden Age of Rome
By Tom Holland

Tom Holland is one of the best history writers on the planet, and his new book does not disappoint. in paxIt takes us through the ups and downs, ups and downs of the Caesars who vied for power and prestige during the Golden Age of the Roman Empire. His account of the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70 and the eruption of Vesuvius and its aftermath should not be missed. A history at once strange and fascinating, Holland’s book draws us into a world at once grotesque (Nero’s brutal treatment of a man he sought to turn into a woman) and glorious (the exploits of Hadrian).

#7. The Lord’s Prayer, the BeatitudesWritten by Gregory of Nyssa