Recommended Books to Read from one Middle-Aged Man to Another

Welcome to my list of the recommended books to read from one middle-aged man to another. To give you some background, I am the typical middle-aged dad of two amazing boys. I run, I cycle, I am divorced, I have a passion for technology and learning, and survive life with two chronic illnesses.

For me, reading is an escape, a way to pass the time and drift away to a new place. This page is a list of some of the recent books I have enjoyed. If you are looking for book recommendations for yourself, your dad, or any other man in your life check them out.

Jump to:

• What am I currently reading?
• List of recommended books to read from one middle-aged man to another

What are my reading and book interests as a middle-aged dad?

As you skim through my list of recent book reads, what does it tell you about me and my reading interests? For starters, my reading choices can be categorized into three buckets: action, survival, and mystical. Although I do question, what is it about my end of the world story and global pandemic stories in the novels that I seem to migrate towards? I suppose it should make me well prepared for a global pandemic like COVID-19?

Favourite Pandemic Novels

From Peter Cline's Ex-Hero’s series to , Extinction Files series (Pandemic and Genome), or Dan Brown's Inferno have become all too real in 2020. Although all of these stories are about survival, evolving to a new normal, and moving on with life no matter what. Which is a critical lesson that we can take from our recent COVID-19 experiences.

Favourite Might and Magic Novels

Don’t worry, my recommended reading list and books isn’t all about doom and survival. Bring on the mystical world of magic, might and wonder. From modern-day Wizzardary with a cross of a crime novel with the Jim Butcher's Dresden Files to worlds of wonder and illusion that Stephanie Garner brings to the pages with her Caraval series.

My books are rounded out with some non-fiction, action, adventure, crime and legal stories and more. Take a look at the list and let me know your thoughts below.

What motivated me to create a list of recommended books to read from one middle-aged man to another.

Truth be told, I have the memory of a sieve. The big ideas stick around, I am brilliant with concepts and remembering decisions we made at work and shy 10 or 20 years later, but the smaller details like names or titles of books literally go in one ear and out the other. I keep on asking myself what books and movies have I recently enjoyed or not enjoyed as much. So why not use my “Making You Think” to keep a list. I can’t see this list being a critique or recommendations but at the same time a really cool list of what reading list may interest a middle-aged guy in his late forties. Drop me a message in the comments below and let me know what you are reading? What should I add to my list of the next books to read?

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My List of recommended books to read from one middle-aged man to another

I am sure I have missed a book here and there, however, here is my list of recent novels and books that have lived on my bedside table, in my Kindle, or as an audio book in the car or on my iPhone.

My 2020 Reading Recommendations

• The Long Winter
  • Winter World – A.G. Riddle
  • The Solar War – A.G. Riddle
  • The Lost Colony – A.G. Riddle

My 2019 Reading Recommendations

• The Institute – Stephen King
• The Guardians – John Grisham
• The Rise of Magics – Nora Roberts
• The Passengers – John Marrs
• Of Blood and Bones – Nora Roberts
• Arternis – Andy Weir
• A Caraval Novel
  • Caraval – Stephanie Garner
  • Legend – Stephanie Garner
  • Finale – Stephanie Garner
• The Cabin at the End of the World – Paul Tremblay (Finished from last year)

My 2018 Reading Recommendations

• Origins – Dan Brown
• The Chemist – Stephanie Meyer
• The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo – Amy Schumer
• The Cuckoo’s Calling – Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling)
• The Silkworm – Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling)
• The Whistler – John Grisham
• Behind Closed Doors – B.A. Paris
• The Cabin at the End of the World – Paul Tremblay (paused)
• Station Eleven – Emily St. John Mendel

My 2017 Reading Recommendations

• Camino Island – John Grisham
• Pandemic – A.G. Riddle
• Dark Matter – Blake Crouch
• Three Day Road – Ruth Ann Rhimister
• Year One – Nora Roberts
• EX Hero’s – Peter Clines
  • Ex- Hero’s
  • Ex-Patriots
  • Ex-Communication
• The Fold – Peter Clines

My 2016 Reading Recommendations

• All The Light we Cannot See – Anthony Doerr
• Water for Elephants – Sara Gruen
• Rogue Lawyer – John Grisham
• Harry Potter Series
  • Book 1: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone – J.K Rowling
  • Book 2: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets – J.K Rowling
  • Book 3: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban – J.K Rowling
  • Book 4: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire – J.K Rowling
  • Book 5: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix – J.K Rowling
  • Book 6: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – J.K Rowling
  • Book 7: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – J.K Rowling
• The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy
  • The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams
  • The Restaurant at the End of the Universe – Douglas Adams
  • Life, the Universe and Everything – Douglas Adams
  • So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish – Douglas Adams
  • Mostly Harmless – Douglas Adams

My 2015 Reading Recommendations

• Armada – Ernest Cline
• Ready Player One – Ernest Cline
• The Dresden Files
  • Fool Moon – Jim Butcher
  • Storm Front – Jim Butcher
  • Grave Peril – Jim Butcher
  • Summer Knight – Jim Butcher
  • Death Masks – Jim Butcher
  • Blood Rites – Jim Butcher
  • Dead Beat – Jim Butcher
  • Proven Guilty – Jim Butcher
  • White Night – Jim Butcher
  • Small Favour – Jim Butcher
  • Turn Coat – Jim Butcher
  • Changes – Jim Butcher
  • Ghost Story – Jim Butcher
  • Cold Days – Jim Butcher
  • Skin Game – Jim Butcher
• 14 – Peter Clines
• The Girl on the Train – Paula Hawkins
• Departure – A.G. Riddle
• The Martian – Andy Weir
• Rules of Supervillany – C.T. phipps

My 2014 Reading Recommendations

• The Origin Series
• The Atlantis World – A.G. Riddle
  • The Atlantis Plague – A.G. Riddle
  • The Atlantis Gene – A.G. Riddle
• Inferno: A novel – Dan Brown
• The Diverget Series
  • Allegiant – Veronica Roth
  • Insurgent – Veronica Roth
  • Divergent – Veronica Roth
• The Husbands Secret – Liane Moriarty
• Dark Places – Gillian Flynn
• The Maze Runner Series
  • The Maze Runner  – James Dashner
  • The Scorch Trials  – James Dashner
  • The Death Cure  – James Dashner
  • The Kill Order  – James Dashner

Some of my favorite books from earlier reads

• Sycamore Row – John Grisham
• Gone Girl – Gillian Flynn
• Enders Game – Orson Card
• Detroit: An American Autopsy  – Charlie LeDuff

• Hunger Games Series
  • The Hunger Games – Suzanne Collins
  • Catching Fire – Suzanne Collins
  • Mocking Jay – Suzanne Collins
• Treasure Island – Robert Louis Stevenson
• The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window And Disappeared – Jonas Jonasson
• Fifty Shades Trilogy
  • Fifty Shades of Grey – E L James
  • Fifty Shades Darker – E L James
  • Fifty Shades Freed – E L James
• The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn – Mark Twain
• Oliver Twist – Charles Dickens
• Animal Farm – George Orwell
• 1984 – George Orwell
• Worst Person Ever – Douglas Coupland
• J Pod – Douglas Coupland

Embracing Technology to continue of love of reading

With the exception of the 100 Year Old Man, most of these books have been enjoyed on my Kindle, or as an unabridged audiobook driving to and from work.  Although it is tough to beat the feel and smell of a soft covered book. No matter how you enjoy reading, I trust you enjoy the journey our favourite authors take us on.

My favouite ways to enjoy a good book in 2020 are as follows:

• My Kindle
• My Audible Subscription
• A softcover read

Final Thoughts

What was surprising as I sit back and look at the list is that if I was to compile a list of books I had read since I graduated university circa 2000, I probably would be hard set to find more then a handful.  Between being able to read on a digital medium, and more importantly being able to buy / download a book on the fly compared to intentionally going to purchase the next read, both attribute to the rekindled love for reading.

What book would you recommend? Leave some suggestions in the comment section below.