2025 Reading List
January 01 2025This is the reading list for 2025.
- The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
- Happy City by Charles Montgomery
- Welcome to Pawnee by Jim O'Heir
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
Perhaps with Trump coming in, I was in the mood for a post-Totalitarian story. It’s pretty amazing that this book was written in the 80’s, and how prescient it is on many of the new-conservative topics now. This book is very well written, maximizes on mood and mystery, and is ultimately satisfying to read.
Happy City by Charles Montgomery
This is a nice, nerdy read about urban design, and specifically about moving away from car dependence. Montgomery gives a few examples of cities and communities that have successfully emphasized more bike paths and walking. While it was nice to learn, the book doesn’t actually take a stand on HOW cities can transform, or what citizens can do.
Welcome to Pawnee by Jim O'Heir
Parks and Recreation is quite possibly my favorite TV show ever, and it is also probably the one that I have rewatched the most times. Jim O’Heir plays Jerry (Garry, Berry, Larry, Terry) Gergich on the show, one of the side characters but nevertheless a member of the core cast. Since the show ended up more than 10 years ago, O’Heir has become somewhat of a mascot for the show. He hosts a rewatch podcast for the show. And he has recently written this book, which is a combination of his memoirs and his stories from the show.
The book is a short and breezy read. The role of Jerry Gergich is probably the one that Jim O’Heir is most known for. Throughout the book, O’Heir talks about his good fortune but especially about his imposter syndrome. As a working actor in Hollywood, he is always wary of either his part being written out or the show being cancelled. It really shows that even some people that we would find to be traditionally successful still have their own internal struggles.
O’Heir tells wonderful stories about his fellow cast mates, but really the book is one long love letter to the show. The show is relentlessly positive and uplifting, which is probably the main reason why I’ve rewatched it so many times.
There is a wonderful quote from the show runner Mike Schur that sums up the show well:
The message of the show that Amy and I used to talk about all the time was that optimism beats pessimism. As tempting as it is to give in to pessimism or denialism, and to throw up your hands and say "None of this matters; it’s all bullshit. The world is screwed up, we’re all going to die, and climate change is going to ruin the planet." Yes, that is an option and if you do that, congratulations. Now what? Or you can be Leslie Knope and you can say, “I’m going to keep fighting. I don’t know, maybe it won’t work, but I’m going to keep fighting. I’m going to keep trying.”
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