I wanted to do this post at the end of last year and then ended up procrastinating on it. It’s somewhat late … but here it is: my favourites from last year.
Books
I did not finish any of the fiction books that I started last year. Some were not great and got abandoned. Others, I still plan to finish. I did not read enough last year—something I plan to remedy this year. That said, I did finish quite a few non-fiction books. This was my favourite: Lucid Dreaming – Plain and Simple by Caroline McCready and Robert Waggoner.
I’ve read a bunch of books on lucid dreaming and most of them are not great. Most books don’t go beyond induction techniques. Same old, same old. Waggoner’s books are different. He explores lucid dreaming on a deeper level. He makes interesting observations about the dreamscape and how to interact with it. I’ve recommended his first book countless times for people interested not only in lucid dreaming but dreaming in general.
Music
I discovered Hania Rani last year. Not my typical genre but hauntingly beautiful. If you like Nils Frahm and Olafur Arnalds, you’ll like this.
Podcast
Yes, I will single out one podcast (episode) from (probably) hundreds that I listened to last year. It’s this one. Andrew Huberman’s interview with Dr James Hollis on creating your best life.
Series
Most things on TV are terrible. I always end up re-watching old favourites. Battlestar Galactica or The Office. This happens more often than not. HBO programs are (nearly) the only exception.
My favourite for 2024 was House of the Dragon. Extremely violent, but head and shoulders above the rest.
Movies
None.
Some sci-fi fans might be surprised that I did not mention Dune Part 2 here. Why? Well, amazing world building (or detailed setting creation) cannot make up for a profound lack in character depth. No doubt that statement will ruffle some feathers, but this has always been my problem with Dune—stale and stark characters. This goes for the book too.