Reading Log and Book Architecture

The Record

I wanted a single place to track every book I read so I built this running log. This is a living post. I append a new entry each time I finish a book and add a new year section when the calendar rolls over. I keep it factual and short. Each entry lists the title, the author, the status, and a star score.

I am currently reading The Four Agreements. The pending titles follow once that one is finished.

How I Score

I score every book on one axis, which is whether it was worth the time and whether I would recommend it. I keep it to a five star scale with no half stars, because the point is to force a clean call rather than agonise over fractions. I score right after finishing while the impression is fresh, and I never re-score on a re-read. A re-read gets logged as a new dated entry instead.

A book only gets a score once I finish it. If I start one and set it aside, it stays in the log marked Paused with no score, so the record stays honest about what I actually read through.

Stars	Meaning
★★★★★	Changed how I think or act, would push it on people
★★★★☆	Solid, real value, would recommend
★★★☆☆	Fine, a few good ideas, no strong push
★★☆☆☆	Weak, mostly filler, skimmed value
★☆☆☆☆	Waste of time

2025

Title	Author	Status	Score
Rich Dad Poor Dad	Robert Kiyosaki	Finished	★★★★☆
The Alchemist	Paulo Coelho	Finished	★★★☆☆
Jung: A Very Short Introduction	Anthony Stevens	Finished	★★☆☆☆

2026

Title	Author	Status	Score
Dopamine Nation	Anna Lembke	Finished	★★★★★
Models	Mark Manson	Finished	★★★★★
Bounce	Matthew Syed	Finished	★★☆☆☆
ADHD 2.0	Edward Hallowell and John Ratey	Finished	★★★★☆
50 AI Ideas You Really Need to Know	Various	Paused	-
Four Thousand Weeks	Oliver Burkeman	Finished	★★★☆☆
The Four Agreements	Don Miguel Ruiz	Reading	-

The Thread

The scores say whether a book was worth it. This says why I reached for it in the first place. Read top to bottom it paints a picture of where my head was at each point.

Rich Dad Poor Dad

A friend gave me this back in 2020. I picked it up to finally kick start my reading with something.

The Alchemist

Another friend recommended it to me.

Jung: A Very Short Introduction

I heard his name come up a few times and it seemed interesting, and a friend recommended it.

Dopamine Nation

Based on the journaling I was doing, AI recommended this book off the back of my writing.

Models

Same here. AI recommended it based on the interior work I was doing in my journaling.

Bounce

I found a copy I already had from back in 2020. A friend must have recommended it at some point.

ADHD 2.0

Came from some journaling writing I was doing.

50 AI Ideas You Really Need to Know

I picked this one up randomly at the Serpentine Gallery. I work with AI a lot so thought it would be interesting, and it was a small book to carry.

Four Thousand Weeks

I strolled into Waterstones one lunchtime and came across a table full of books I was either interested in or had already read, like The Alchemist and Dopamine Nation. I asked a worker why I was drawn to all of them and he said it was the self development section, all best sellers. I asked what he would recommend and he pointed me to Four Thousand Weeks and spoke highly of it.

The Four Agreements

I met a girl named Sevgi in Bodrum, at the beach, completely spontaneously. We took a stroll down the shore and spoke for an afternoon. Based on our conversation she recommended this, said it reflected the journey I had been on and that she had been on a similar one years earlier.

On The List

Books recommended to me that I have not started yet. I am carrying these forward.

Your Body’s Telling You: Love Yourself by Lise Bourbeau. Recommended by Sevgi alongside The Four Agreements.

The Road Less Traveled by M. Scott Peck. Recommended by Golnaz, who warned it is a difficult read that could make or break you.

The Untethered Soul by Michael Singer. Also recommended by Golnaz.

Reading Flow

This diagram tracks the chronological progression downward. The year sits inline as a marker where each one starts, then the books follow under it. I extend it as the log grows.

graph TD
    Y1[2025] --> A[Rich Dad Poor Dad]
    A --> B[The Alchemist]
    B --> C[Jung A Very Short Introduction]
    C --> Y2[2026]
    Y2 --> D[Dopamine Nation]
    D --> H[Models]
    H --> E[Bounce]
    E --> F[ADHD 2.0]
    F --> G[Four Thousand Weeks]
    G --> I[The Four Agreements Reading Now]
    F -.-> P[50 AI Ideas Paused]

    classDef year fill:#D4A017,stroke:#8A6A0F,color:#1A1205,font-weight:bold;
    classDef current fill:#1F6F54,stroke:#0F3D2E,color:#FFFFFF;
    classDef paused fill:#E5E5E5,stroke:#9A9A9A,color:#555555;
    class Y1,Y2 year;
    class I current;
    class P paused;

Summary

This log captures the order I have worked through each book and how each one scored. I append new titles, update the status and score fields, and add a fresh year section as the reading continues. The flow diagram extends downward with each new entry.