My 2009 Favorites

Wow, I can't believe I only read 13 books in 2009. The good thing was that most of them were pretty good reads. Here are my Top 5 from 2009:


1. Biofuels, Solar and Wind as Renewable Energy Systems: Benefits and Risks. Edited by David Pimentel, with a chapter by yours truly. Was it my favorite because of my own contribution? Probably. Still a good book, though, if dry in places. Reviewed here.

2. Crude World: The Violent Twilight of Oil by Peter Maass. Reviewed here.

3. Oil 101 by Morgan Downey. Reviewed here.

4. Why Your World Is About to Get a Whole Lot Smaller: Oil and the End of Globalization by Jeff Rubin. Reviewed here.

5. Oil on the Brain by Lisa Margonelli. Reviewed here.

However, I would add one more that has probably had the biggest impact on me personally by changed my eating habits for life. I have become a semi-vegetarian (probably 80% of my meals are now vegetarian, and I cut most sugar out of my diet) after reading this book:

Dr. Neal Barnard's Program for Reversing Diabetes: The Scientifically Proven System for Reversing Diabetes without Drugs by Neal Barnard. Reviewed here (see the 2nd book in the list).

I hope to do a bit better than 13 books in 2010. On the other hand, that may mean that I am spending too much time on airplanes, which is when I find the most time for reading.