My 2025 Reading List Was a Mirror

I read 46 books in 2025.

I didn't plan a theme. I just followed what pulled me. But when I looked at the list at the end of the year, patterns emerged. Turns out your reading list is a mirror. It shows you what you're trying to figure out.

Here's what mine told me.

Theme 1: Women Fighting for Space

The books that hit hardest this year were about women navigating worlds that weren't built for them.

Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams:  a searing account of her time inside Meta, watching the gap between the company's stated values and its actual behaviour. It's uncomfortable reading if you've ever worked in tech.

Brotopia by Emily Chang: Silicon Valley's sexism laid bare. Not news to anyone who's been paying attention, but seeing it documented so thoroughly is something else.

Drive by Susie Wolff:  the F1 trailblazer's memoir about being almost always the only woman on the grid, and what she built after the racing stopped.

More Than Enough by Elaine Welterot: her journey through media as a young Black woman, and the constant negotiation between fitting in and standing out.

Brave Not Perfect by Reshma Saujani:  on how girls are raised to be perfect while boys are raised to be brave, and what that costs us as adults.

Why was I drawn to these? Probably because I'm writing a book about the same thing. The Flamingo Factor is about women who dim themselves to fit in, and these books were research, validation, and fuel.

Theme 2: The Search for Joy (and Permission to Want It)

A surprising amount of my reading was about happiness. 

Happiness by Heather Harpham: my number one book of the year. A memoir about her daughter's illness that somehow becomes a meditation on what it means to choose joy in the face of impossible circumstances.

Joy Chose You by Donna Ashworth: poetry that feels like permission slips for exhausted women.

The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubi: yes, I finally read it. A systematic approach to being happier.

Let Them by Mel Robbins:  the viral concept turned book. Let them think what they think. Let them do what they do. Stop trying to control what you can't.

I think I was tired in 2025. These books reminded me that joy isn't a reward for achievement. It's available now, if you let it in.

Theme 3: The Astrology Rabbit Hole

I read a couple of astrology books this year after meeting the wonderful Ophira Edut.

I read The Astrology Advantage by the AstroTwins and The AstroTwins 2025 Horoscope.

Judge if you want. But here's what I've found: astrology is a language for self-reflection. It gives you a framework to think about your patterns, your tendencies, your shadows. Is it "real"? I don't know. Is it useful? For me, yes.

Theme 4: True Stories of Extreme Lives

I couldn't get enough of memoirs and narrative non-fiction this year. The more intense, the better.

Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe: about the Troubles in Northern Ireland, told through the disappearance of a mother of ten. Absolutely devastating and brilliantly constructed. One of the best non-fiction books I've ever read.

When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi: a neurosurgeon faces his own terminal diagnosis. Truly gripping.

Hidden Valley Road by Robert Kolker: one family, twelve children, six of whom developed schizophrenia. A study in genetics, mental illness, and what families endure.

All That Matters by Sir Chris Hoy: the Olympic cyclist's memoir, written after his terminal cancer diagnosis.

So You've Been Publicly Shamed by Jon Ronson: what happens when the internet turns on you. More relevant every year.

What's the thread? I think I was looking for perspective. Reading about people facing the hardest things life can throw at them puts your own problems in context.

Theme 5: Thrillers for When My Brain Needed a Break

Sometimes you need a book that's just for fun.

The Club by Ellery Lloyd: a celebrity-filled members' club, a launch party, and bodies. Delicious.

We Were Never Here by Andrea Bartz: two best friends, two dead men, two countries. Twisty.

The Wrong Sister by Claire Douglas:  exactly what it sounds like.

Counterfeit by Kirstin Chen: a designer handbag scam that's smarter than it has any right to be.

Theme 6: Building Things

I'm always reading about business, but this year had a specific flavour: building personal brands and getting ideas into the world.

Build by Tony Fadell: the creator of the iPod and Nest on what it actually takes to make something.

Get Signed by Lucinda Halpern:  a literary agent's guide to landing a book deal. (Research for obvious reasons.)

Wealthy and Well Known by Rory & AJ Vaden:  on building a personal brand that creates real leverage.

I'm in building mode. These books were a big source of inspiration.

What It All Means

Looking at these themes together, I see a woman that was:

• Researching her own obsessions (women, worth, workplaces)
• Seeking permission to prioritise joy
• Open to unconventional frameworks for self-understanding
• Craving perspective through other people's extreme experiences
• Needing escape valves
• Actively building something

Here's to 46 more in 2026.