I am utterly convinced that reading makes me a better writer, thus Niko Reads is a quintessential part of Niko Writes.
This list formerly started in 2014 in graduate school, though I have been making these lists on and off since I won the summer reading competition in 1st grade. I think what someone reads is a huge window into who they are, so here is my *official* list of every book I’ve read (cover to cover—no unfinished books listed, though there are many) by year. This collection includes fiction (classic and contemporary), as well as nonfiction books that explore philosophy, spirituality, memoir, the art of writing and more. Enjoy this map of my journey as a reader, writer and a human being.
You can also follow me on GoodReads.
*indicates a re-read, not a first read
2021
- Crying in H Mart Michelle Zauner
- The Incendiaries R.O. Kwan
- Wired for Love Stan Tatkin
- Real Life Brandon Taylor
- I Might Regret This Abbi Jacobson
- Nightbitch Rachel Yoder
- Cultish Amanda Montell
- Ayurveda for Beginners Lakshmi Vemuri
- Awakening Fertility Heng Ou
- Daddy Emma Cline
- The Five Invitations Frank Ostaseski
- The Body Keeps the Score Bessel van der Kolk
- Stray Stephanie Danler
- Niksen Olga Mecking
- Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World Haruki Murakami
- Without Her Patsy Creedy
- Luster Raven Leilani
- It Didn’t Start With You Mark Wolynn
- Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents Lindsay C. Gibson
- The Fifth Vital Sign Lisa Hendrickson-Jack
- Milk Blood Heat Dantiel W. Moniz
- Let Me Tell You What I Mean Joan Didion
- Intimacy in Alcoholic Relationships Alanon Family Groups
- How to Slowly Kill Yourself and Others in America Kiese Laymon
- Un-Wifeable Many Stadmiller
2020
- Exit West Mohsin Hamid
- Wow, No Thank You. Samantha Irby
- Wild Cheryl Strayed
- Godshot Chelsea Bieker
- Your Brain on Love Dr. Stan Tatkin
- Loving What Is Byron Katie
- Very Nice Marcy Dermansky
- All This Could Be Yours Jami Attenberg
- Say What You Mean Oren Jay Sofer
- The Art of Leaving Ayelet Tsabari
- Capricorn, A Love Letter Heidi Rose Robbins
2019
- The Goldfinch Donna Tartt
- Nine Perfect Strangers Liane Moriarty
- The Comedown Rebecca Frumkin
- Cherry Nico Walker
- No Exit Jean Paul-Sartre
- How To Write An Autobiographical Novel Alexander Chee
- Long Live The Tribe of Fatherless Girls T. Kira Madden
- Lizard Banana Yoshimoto
- Slow Days Fast Company Eve Babitz
- There There Tommy Orange
- They Can’t Kill Us Until They Kill Us Hanif Abdurraqib
- Sugar Run Mesha Maren
- Junk Tommy Pico
- IRL Tommy Pico
- On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous Ocean Vuong
- What My Mother & I Don’t Talk About (various contributors)
- Drama of the Gifted Child Alice Miller
- Someone Who Will Love You In All Your Damaged Glory Raphael Bob-Waksberg
- Costalegre Courtney Maum
- I’m the One Who Got Away Andrea Jarrell
- Heavy Kiese Laymon
- All About Love bell hooks
- Trick Mirror Jia Tolentino
- The Highly Sensitive Person Elaine N. Aron
- My Year of Rest and Relaxation Ottessa Moshfegh
2018
- The Artist’s Way Julia Cameron
- The White Album Joan Didion
- Valencia Michelle Tea
- The Duke in His Domain Truman Capote
- LA Woman Eve Babitz
- I’ll Tell You In Person Chloe Caldwell
- So Sad Today Melissa Broder
- Literally Show Me A Healthy Person Darcie Wilder
- The Blood of Others Simone de Beauvoir
- Slouching Towards Bethlehem Joan Didion
- Field Guide to Getting Lost Rebecca Solnit
- Call Me By Your Name Andre Aciman
- The Situation and the Story Vivian Gornick
- Meaty Samantha Irby
- Tonight I’m Someone Else Chelsea Hodson
- Good Old Neon David Foster Wallace
- The Easy Way to Stop Smoking Allan Carr
- Against Memoir Michelle Tea
- We Are Never Meeting In Real Life Samantha Irby
- In Cold Blood Truman Capote
- Codependent No More Melody Beattie
- Calling A Wolf A Wolf Kaveh Akbar
- What If This Were Enough Heather Havrilesky
- Too Much and Not The Mood Durga Chew Bose
- Dead Girls Alice Bolin
- Nobody Cares Anne T. Donahue
2017
- Zen in the Art of Writing Ray Bradbury
- Veronica Mary Gaitskill
- Money Rules Jean Chatzky
- We Should All Be Feminists Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
- Ernest Hemingway On Writing
- *The Giver Lois Lowry
- Second Sex (a reader) Simone de Beauvoir
- How To Grow Up Michelle Tea
- On Booze F. Scott Fitzgerald
- Answered Prayers Truman Capote
- , said the shotgun to the head Saul Williams
- Teaching My Mother How To Give Birth Warsan Shire
- *The Malady of Death Marguerite Duras
- Black Wave Michelle Tea
- The Agony of Eros Byung-Chul Han
- Existentialism is Humanism Jean Paul Sartre
- A Return to Love Marianne Williamson
- Men Without Women Haruki Murakami
- Between the World And Me Ta-Nehisi Coates
- Drop The Rock Removing Character Defects Step 6 & 7
- Sex and Rage Eve Babitz
- Comradely Greetings: The Prison Letters of Nadya & Slavoj
- Nicotine Nell Zink
- Best of Bill
- The Faraway Nearby Rebecca Solnit
2016
- Confessions of a Sociopath: A Life Hiding In Plain Sight M.E. Thomas
- In Praise of Love Alain Badiou
- The 6 Pillars of Self Esteem Nathaniel Branden
- Discovering Your Soul Signature Panache Desai
- Birth Work As Care Work Alana Afpel
- Worst Person Ever Douglas Coupland
- Narcisa Jonathan Shaw
- The Art of War Steven Pressfield
- I Hate You Don’t Leave Me Jerold Kreisman & Hal Straus
- The Buddha And The Borderline Keira Van Gelder
- Milk and Honey Rupi Kaur
- When the Body Says No Dr. Gabor Mate, MD
- Bone Yrsa Daley-Ward
- Many Lives Many Masters Brian Weiss
- Portrait of Doom Marie Buck
- Black: The Brilliance of a Non-Color Alain Badiou
2015
- 1Q84 Haruki Murakami
- Nausea Jean Paul Sartre
- *The Revolution of Everyday Life Raoul Vaneigem
- My Favorite Things Maira Kalman
- Dragon’s Breath MariNaomi
- The Event Slavoj Zizek
- Aya Love in Yop City Clement Oubrerie & Marguerite Abouet
- Sex Drugs and Cocoa Puffs Chuck Klosterman
- Death Blossoms Mumia Abu-Jamal
- The Malady of Death Marguerite Duras
- Alain Badiou: A Graphic Guide Michale J Kelly & Piero
- The Story of the Eye George Bataille
- Writing Marguerite Duras
- Story of O Pauline Reage
- After Dark Haruki Murakami
- Norwegian Wood Haruki Murakami
- Hey Nostradamus Douglas Coupland
- The Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage Haruki Murakami
- South of the Border, West of the Sun Haruki Murakami
- What I Talk About When I Talk About Running Haruki Murakami
- Warrior Goddess Training: Become the woman you are meant to be Heatherash Amara
2014
- The Grundrisse Karl Marx
- Fresh Fruit Broken Bodies Seth Holmes
- Anti-Systemic Movements Immanuel Wallerstein
- Discipline and Punish Michel Foucault
- After Leaving Mr. McKenzie Jean Rhys
- The Production of Space Henri Lefebvre
- Value of Nothing Raj Patel
- Stuffed and Starved Raj Patel
- Eleanor Rigby Douglas Coupland
- We are the Poors Ashwin Desai
- The Urban Revolution Henri Lefebvre
- Wide Sargasso Sea Jean Rhys
- The Beautiful and Damned F. Scott Fitzgerald
- *The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald
- Disordered Anhvu Buchanan
- Metamorphosis Franz Kafka
- Killing Yourself to Live Chuck Klosterman
- Theory of a Subject Alain Badiou
- Being and Event Alain Badiou
- A Subject to Truth Peter Hallward
- Badiou & Politics Bruce Bosteels
- Kafka on the Shore Haruki Marukami
- Microfinancing and its Discontents Lamia Karim
- Philosophy for Militants Alain Badiou
- The Picture of Dorian Gray Oscar Wilde
- Hi, I’m a Social Disease Anderson Prunty