My 10 Favorite Books from the 70 Books I Read in 2025
Glasp’s note: At Glasp, we value the close personal relationships we’ve built with thinkers, creators, and doers who fuel curiosity and growth. This week, we spotlight Bobby Powers —a lifelong learner passionate about leadership development and continuous improvement. With more than a decade of experience leading teams and developing learning and development at startups, Bobby understands the transformative power of curiosity and mentorship. You might remember him from his Glasp Talk appearance, where he shared insights on leadership and personal growth, inspiring thousands. We’re honored to continue learning from Bobby and are thrilled to share his thoughtful reflections with our community.
If you want to reread or highlight this newsletter, save it to Glasp.
Hi Glasp Community!
I’m Bobby Powers, and I run the Leader & Learner publication on Substack. I write two posts per week that will help you become a more curious leader and learner.
For the past decade, I’ve been reading at least 70 books per year. I love learning new things, so I read a lot of nonfiction, but I also enjoy fast-paced novels and literature.
Here were my 10 favorites from what I read in 2025. (Note: My list is based on what I read this year, not what was published this year.)
#10: A Mystery of Mysteries by Mark Dawidziak
Genre: Nonfiction → Selective Biography of Edgar Allan Poe
I had no idea how much mystery surrounded Edgar Allan Poe’s death.
On October 3, 1849, Poe was found semiconscious in Baltimore. He was wearing someone else’s cheap, shabby clothes (no one knows whose). His hat was soiled (and also belonged to someone else). He was raving and incoherent (some witnesses thought from alcohol but others disagreed). And no one knew where he had been for the past week (the last time someone saw him was September 26 in Richmond).
A friend came and tried to nurse Poe back to health, but he was dead within the week. He died the morning of October 7th, and the day before his death, he supposedly called out for someone named “Reynolds” (but scholars still don’t know who that was). Historians still debate Poe’s cause of death.
Crazy.
Poe’s death seems like a story that came from his pen, but he also led a pretty crazy life. He had massive public feuds with multiple friends and authors. He fabricated much of his life’s story and fed fictional morsels about himself to the press. And he also fell in love with his 13-year-old first cousin Virginia and married her, but scholars still question the nature of their relationship.
You’re probably familiar with some of Poe’s poems like “The Raven” and short stories like “The Tell-Tale Heart” and “The Fall of the House of Usher.” But I’m guessing you’re less familiar with the fact that he was also an esteemed (and controversial) literary critic who enjoyed blasting his peers’ work in magazines.
Poe led an interesting life, and this book covers the highlights without getting lost in uninteresting details. Unlike many biographies, A Mystery of Mysteries is less than 300 pages, so even if you’re not a big biography person, you’ll enjoy it.
#9: A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
Genre: Fiction → Classic Literature, Holidays, Heart-Warming
Before this year, I had seen multiple versions of the movie but never read the book. (Btw, if you haven’t seen it before, go watch the 1992 Disney classic The Muppet Christmas Carol. It holds up.)
I debated whether I wanted to read the book because I already knew the story, but I’m glad I did. It’s a quick read (~100 pages), well worth an hour or two of your time. Dickens’s visceral storytelling will induce you to hate Scrooge before his conversion and make you want to hug him afterward.
A Christmas Carol is so iconic because it captures the power of gratitude, selflessness, and kindness—all qualities we could use more of in the world today.
#8: The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins
Genre: Nonfiction → Personal Development, Psychology
I don’t know how many copies this book sold, but I saw it everywhere in 2025. I’m often skeptical of mega-bestsellers, but I’m glad I picked up a copy because I got a lot out of this book.
The Let Them Theory is definitely not a perfect book: It’s repetitive. It could have been a bit shorter without losing the message. And it’s basically a modern-day repackaging of ancient Stoic wisdom like “Only focus on what you can control and forget about everything else.”
But strangely enough, those are the same reasons why I enjoyed this book.
Robbins’s repetition of the core themes helped me understand the problem from various perspectives. By articulating the same point with stories from various realms of life, she pounded the idea into my head. Plus, this book is much easier to read than most works of philosophy and wisdom, which makes it a great gateway book for anyone who wants to dabble in philosophy.
The Let Them Theory doesn’t have the depth of Seneca or Epictetus, but that’s why a lot of people love it. It’s a manual for living life on your own terms and ignoring the haters.
#7: 11/22/63 by Stephen King
Genre: Fiction → Mystery, Thriller, Time Travel, Popular Fiction
I don’t enjoy many time travel stories because they tend to be confusing and overly sentimental, so when a couple of my friends recommended Stephen King’s time travel book 11/22/63, I was skeptical. King is my favorite novelist, but I still didn’t know if the book would be my thing.
Thankfully, I was wrong. I’ve read 30 of King’s books, and this one quickly became one of my favorites. In typical fashion, King crafts a brilliant story, paints compelling characters, and also gives you a couple of hateable villains.
The story swirls around English teacher Jake Epping, who learns of a portal to the past from his dying friend Al. Al has spent years researching the lives of John F. Kennedy and Lee Harvey Oswald to figure out how to go back in time to prevent JFK’s assassination. Just before Al dies, he enlists Jake in his cause.
What made me love this book is that it’s so much more than a “go back in time to prevent a bad thing” story. It’s a story about love, loss, sacrifice, and more. Read this book if you’re looking for a great, suspenseful story—but buckle up for a long ride because the book is nearly 900 pages. ;-)
#6: Book and Dagger by Elyse Graham
Genre: Nonfiction → History, World War II, Spycraft
Did you know that in WWII, the U.S. recruited librarians and college professors as spies against Germany and the Axis powers? Pretty crazy! They chose bookish nerds for the task because they tended to be smart, well-read, and unassuming.
I loved this book because it not only taught me about WWII but also about spycraft: how countries research their enemies, trap them into believing false information, and find helpful war intel in everyday publications like newspapers and magazines.
Book and Dagger is one of the most fun historical books I’ve ever read. If you’re a nerd (like me) who wants to feel like James Bond, read this book.
#5: Dark Squares by Danny Rensch
Genre: Nonfiction → Memoir, Chess, Cults, Entrepreneurship
If your eyes skimmed past the line in italics above, re-read it. Yep, all of those topics are covered in this book.
I grew up playing in chess tournaments, so this book hit hard for me. But it’ll also hit hard for you if you’re interested in learning more about cult psychology or trauma.
Rensch grew up in a cult in Arizona. When he was nine years old, he learned how to play chess and got really good, really fast. Once cult leader Steven Kamp noticed Rensch’s aptitude for chess, he took Rensch away from his mom and organized his entire life around the game.
Although it covers some dismal ground, Dark Squares is ultimately a hopeful book. Rensch worked through much of his brainwashing, family trauma, and alcoholism to become a capable, functioning adult, and he later co-founded Chess.com, the largest chess site on the planet.
#4: Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
Genre: Fiction → Fantasy, Gaming, Light-Hearted
I don’t read much fantasy, but this one blew me away. Dungeon Crawler Carl is a fun, rollicking ride through a dystopian Earth that’s been conquered by aliens. Carl and his ex-girlfriend’s cat Princess Donut struggle to survive while the universe watches on intergalactic TV.
This book appeals to gamers because it references a bunch of video game lingo and archetypes. But I’m not even a gamer, and I loved it because the characters are hilarious and the writing is cheekily brilliant.
If you check out this book, I highly recommend the audiobook. Jeff Hays is the best narrator I’ve ever heard.
#3: Six Thinking Hats by Edward de Bono
Genre: Nonfiction → Business, Leadership, Decision-Making, Meetings
Six Thinking Hats ended up being so good that I instantly added it to my list of the books I’d require company leaders to read if I start a business someday (along with modern classics like Patrick Lencioni’s Death by Meeting, Cal Newport’s Deep Work, and Erin Meyer’s The Culture Map).
de Bono says we have a problem in Western culture: we focus too much on debate when making decisions. Rather than digging in our heels and arguing for “our side,” he encourages leaders to evaluate any important decision from six different angles, as explained in the image below.
I don’t expect you to get as nerdily excited about decision-making models as I do. But this book’s principles can help you evaluate choices in your own life, like deciding whether to leave your job, move to a different state, or start your own business.
#2: Building a Story Brand by Donald Miller
Genre: Nonfiction → Business, Marketing, Storytelling, Positioning
Building a Story Brand is essentially “The Hero’s Journey” for marketers. Miller shows that the story structure behind blockbuster movies and award-winning TV series can also be harnessed by anyone trying to sell a product or service.
From Star Wars to It’s a Wonderful Life, this seven-part framework reigns supreme:
“Here is nearly every story you see or hear in a nutshell: A CHARACTER who wants something encounters a PROBLEM before they can get it. At the peak of their despair, a GUIDE steps into their lives, gives them a PLAN, and CALLS THEM TO ACTION. That action helps them avoid FAILURE and ends in a SUCCESS.” -Donald Miller
This book helped me revamp my website, change how I’m pitching my public speaking services, and rethink how I position myself on social media.
I’ve read a ton of marketing books, but this one is the best. There’s a good reason it’s sold over one million copies.
#1: Die With Zero by Bill Perkins
Genre: Nonfiction → Personal Finance, Retirement, Living a Good Life
Die With Zero is one of the most practical yet countercultural books I’ve ever read. It’s the personal finance book I didn’t realize I needed.
For years, I’ve read about the power of compounding interest and the importance of saving while you’re young. Perkins agrees with those concepts (he is a hedge fund manager, after all), but he also poses some fascinating contrary questions:
What happens if you save a bunch of money but die early?
Or what if you aren’t healthy enough later in life to gallivant around and spend the money you’ve hoarded?
In short, what if you’re saving too much?
I loved this book because it flies in the face of most personal finance advice, yet I found myself nodding along as I read the core principles of every chapter. Perkins tells emotional stories, brings relevant data, and logically explains each point.
By the end of the book, I was so convinced by his arguments that I immediately made a couple of big financial changes in my life.
What were your favorite reads this year? I’m always looking for recommendations (and I know other readers are too), so drop a comment below!
Btw, if you’re interested in receiving two posts per week with book recs and personal development tips, I’d be honored for you to subscribe to Leader & Learner.
📣 Community Updates by Glasp
🟥 Glasp Talk with Bobby Powers:
Glasp Talk features intimate interviews with luminaries, revealing their emotions, experiences, and stories. The guest, Bobby Powers, is a dedicated learner passionate about leadership and personal development. With over a decade of experience managing teams, leading onboarding, and Learning and Development programs at various startups and SMBs, Bobby is also an avid reader, having read over a thousand books in the last 15 years.
✨ Want a concise summary before diving in? Install the YouTube Summary with ChatGPT extension by Glasp for instant video summaries!
Would you like to take Glasp on the go?
With the Glasp mobile app, you can highlight and organize your favorite content anytime, anywhere. Stay productive on the move and never miss an insightful quote.
Partner With Glasp
We currently offer newsletter sponsorships. If you have a product, event, or service you’d like to share with our community of learning enthusiasts, sponsor an edition of our newsletter to reach engaged readers.
Share Glasp Newsletter
 | A guest post by
|
Loved this list, Bobby! I always enjoy how you don’t just share what you read, but what each book gave you. The range here is awesome!