2024 was a good year. I started working for a new client at work and have made some new friends and have had a lot of fun challenges along the way. My family and I ran away from a hurricane, which is never fun. But we came out of it fine and we are very thankful.

Here are some of the books I read this year.

Observability Engineering, Majors, Fong-Jones and Miranda, 2022
I found this book, quite by accident. I was researching OpenTelemetry as a possible way of incorporating distributed tracing into .NET. I found a YouTube video of the authors’ discussing their new book. I really enjoyed their discussion and decided to pick up a copy. It was incredible. The book should be a must-read for anyone supporting applications in this day and age.

Distributed Tracing in Practice, Parker, Spoonhower, Mace and Isaacs, 2020
Our inability to use distributed tracing was the one thing that I regret about the set of microservices I helped build and maintain. This book helped me really understand what it takes to achieve this level of observability. It has a lot of great advice for anyone wanting to get distributed tracing up and running.

Cloud Observability in Action, Michael Hausenblas, 2024
I was fortunate to work with a team for awhile that practiced observability. They used tools I had never heard of before and wasn’t too clear on how they worked. This book helped fill in some of that missing knowledge. It goes into a good amount of detail on a suite of tools you may want to explore for observing your applications. An excellent reference.

Restoring Your Soil, Dale Strickler, 2021
Mr. Strickler holds no punches back. He lays out his arguments for why the world cannot sustain itself without changing how it manages the soil under its feet. Restoring the soil is an important part of repairing the damage we have done and how to become more self-reliant in the future. As a gardener, I struggle to apply some of the advice the author gives. But it is practical and inspiring. The world would be better off with more people like Dale Strickler in it.

Structured Design, Edward Yourdon and Larry L. Constantine, 1979
I read this book in the mid-nineties when I was first learning how to be a software developer. It was important for me to learn the concepts of structured programming, as it was the primary paradigm used by most developers. Object-oriented (and functional) programming techniques weren’t mainstream yet. I learned about coupling and cohesion from this book, and its lessons have stayed with me my entire career. Re-reading these chapters 30 years later brought back a lot of memories. Still some good advice to be had in these pages.

How Not to Be Wrong- the Power of Mathematical Thinking, Jordan Ellenberg, 2014
I heard the author speaking on a radio program one afternoon and decided to give one of his books a try. Overall I enjoyed this book. My only criticism is the examples mostly skewed to politics and the law, neither of which have been very interesting to me. But it was interesting to me to read a mathematician’s view of the world and how to use math every day.

The Scientific Attitude, Lee McIntyre, 2019
I spent a lot of time this year exploring the use of science in my work. I was thinking that the scientific method was all I needed. But McIntyre puts forth a good case for what he calls the “scientific attitude”, caring about evidence and being willing to change theories on the basis of new evidence. It opened my eyes to the reality that not all scientists have this attitude and we (the general public) must be careful when consuming anything that claims to be true.

The Lady Tasting Tea, Dave Salsburg, 2001
I was lent this book a long time ago and returned it after only reading a couple of chapters. I saw it pop up on sale and decided to give it another go. I was well rewarded for my time. As someone who has a degree in statistics, it was a wonderful exploration of the people that built the 20th century through statistics. Maybe it was the geek in me, but learning the history behind the advances of statistics was fascinating. The stories of the people, their lives and families was wonderfully presented by the author. I doubt this will be the last time I give this one a read.

Questioning the Millennium, Stephen Jay Gould, 1997
I read this book when it was first released and enjoyed it very much. The last chapter left an impression on me. It discusses the upcoming change in the millennium, why it is somewhat arbitrary and doesn’t really happen when we think it does. I fun read but a good perspective on how to view things that seem to have a lot of importance (but probably don’t).

The Demon-Haunted World, Carl Sagan, 1996
I have read a couple of Sagan’s books but not this one. I enjoyed the earlier chapters. I have spent a good amount of time thinking about science this year and what it means to be a scientist. I found no easy answers. This book helped me understand the challenges of keeping one step ahead of those who do not think scientifically and how to think critically about the world I live in.

The Beginning of Infinity, David Deutsch, 2011
I’m afraid I didn’t finish this one. It came highly recommended by many people. But it felt like the central ideas of the book could have been presented in much fewer words and wouldn’t have lost any of their impact. Not for me I guess.

Proving Ground, Kathy Kleiman, 2022
This was my favorite book I read this year. It shed light on the forgotten contributions that women made to the early days of computers. It explores the lives of 6 women that worked on the ENIAC computer. It wasn’t only their work that was important to remember, but the impact they all had on the industry, inspiring more women to have careers in the computer industry.

Looks Good To Me, Adrienne Braganza, 2024
Working with a new team meant we had to establish new procedures and practices, one of which is code reviews. Braganza’s book is brand new and is a fantastic reference for understanding the power of good code reviews, and what it takes to create a safe and positive place to have these reviews. Well done!

Observer’s Handbook 2025, The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, Editor: James S. Edgar, 2024
Although they are published each year, I have failed to include copies of the Observer’s Handbook in my annual reading list. But each year I read the Handbook to see what is new, what has changed. For the past 9 years, my father has been the editor of the Handbook. The thankless hours (all volunteer I might add) of coordinating the updated material, and getting it published, are ones that he does gladly for the hobby he has enjoyed for as long as I can remember. His many presentations to school children in his local community always bring him joy. Observing the night sky is awe-inspiring and frightening at times. But my Dad always makes it seem wonderful.

The Books I Read in 2023