EEDA Newsletter Vol 5: Best Books I Read in 2024
This is a public issue of Enthusiastic Encouragement & Dubious Advice. Feel free to share it!
Hi friends! December means we are constantly exhausted, but not necessarily in a bad way. Last weekend we made another ~400 marshmallows and we also went on a photo walk up at Point Reyes Station. The photo walk was only for women and non-binary folks and it was so great to be out with the cameras and not have multiple dudes try to mansplain how to use my camera equipment or frame my shots etc.
We don’t yet have any of our holiday decor up, we have a lot of cleaning to do, and still have hundreds of marshmallows to make (we can only make so many at a time). Of course, there’s also work and work-related holiday things. We have officially had one year of podcast episodes and we look forward to what the new year brings us. If anyone has marketing ideas, I’d love to hear them!
New episode of the EEDA Pod this week: “Wrapping Up the Year: Marshmallows, Musicals, and Memories.” In this reflective year-end episode of Enthusiastic Encouragement and Dubious Advice, hosts Patricia and Nicole look back on their achievements and lessons learned from 2024, sharing highlights like their marshmallow-making traditions and their social escapades, including the Wicked movie and a Ren Faire visit. They discuss the challenges and successes of maintaining their podcast and personal goals amid a busy year, while emphasizing the importance of accountability and self-compassion. As they look forward to 2025, they encourage listeners to cherish their wins and remain kind to themselves.
You can find our show, Enthusiastic Encouragement & Dubious Advice on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, and wherever else you get your podcasts. You can also support the show on Patreon.
Reminder: there is always a full transcript of each episode on the podcast website, for folks who don’t or are unable to listen to the show you can always read the transcript. I know that not everyone is a podcast listener and we respect that!
Another reminder: You can find a list of ways to support Enthusiastic Encouragement & Dubious Advice here (lots of free options!)
Best Books I Read in 2024
I have created a new shelf in the Bookshop storefront that includes the 28 best books I read this year. I’ve read 134 so far and it was hard to get it down to even that number. You can go straight to the shelf by clicking this link and you can always browse the whole shop here: https://bookshop.org/shop/theinfophile
If you would like to hear me actually talk about a few of these books on my list (and hear Nicole mention some of hers), you can listen to the EEDA Pod Best Books We Read in 2024 episode. And a bonus: I talk about ten of the 2025 releases I’m most excited about on this week’s episode of All the Books!
Recent & Current Reads
Inclusion of a book in this section is not necessarily a recommendation and these books won’t necessarily be added to my Bookshop. Links are affiliate links.
Recently Read:
I haven’t finished anything since last week. I got sidetracked by too much stuff to do and also listening to a couple podcasts instead of audiobooks.
Currently Reading:
Let This Radicalize You: Organizing and the Revolution of Reciprocal Care by Kelly Hayes & Mariame Kaba
African American Folktales: Stories from Black Traditions in the New World by Roger D. Abrahams (sorry, can’t find it on Bookshop. My copy is from 1985. Found some on Thriftbooks, though not my exact copy)
Emergent Strategy: Shaping Change, Changing Worlds by Adrienne Maree Brown
That’s it for this week! You can shop many books I’ve mentioned in this newsletter at my affiliate shop, The Infophile’s Bookshop, and support independent bookstores. In fact, any Bookshop, Amazon, or Etsy links in this newsletter are affiliate links so if you shop through those, it helps support my work. Or you can leave me a tip on Ko-fi, Paypal, or Venmo.
If you want to send me some snail mail, you can find me at P.O. Box 21481, Oakland, CA 94620-1481.
You can find our podcast, Enthusiastic Encouragement & Dubious Advice on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, and wherever else you get your podcasts.