YEAR END: My Most Disappointing Books of 2023

Back in May, when I listed my best, most disappointing, most surprising and thinkiest books I had read to that point, I had no idea what I was in for. Since that time I have averaged a bit more than one book a day. That translates to, well, a lot of books. And they weren’t all winners. I was able to derive some benefit from everything I read. However, some of my choices did not deliver nearly as much as I had hoped. These are those books. Enjoy. 

10. The Map that Changed the World, Simon Winchester.

9. Live to Tell, Brad J. Kellenberg

8. Walt Disney: An American Original, Bob Thomas

    Dragon Hunter, Charles Gallenkamp

    Treasure in a Cornfield, Greg Hawley

    The Denver Mint, Lisa Ray Turner and Kimberly Field

7. Come Fly the World, Julia Cooke

6. Out on the Cutting Edge, Lawrence Block

5. Simfonia Eroica, James Hamilton-Paterson

    Mr. Beethoven, Paul Griffiths

4. War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy

3. The Autobiography of Davy Crockett

2. Kings of the Grail, Margarita Torres Sevilla and Jose Mieuel Ortega del Rio

1. Moby Dick, Herman Melville

Hal Hammons serves as preacher and shepherd for the Lakewoods Drive church of Christ in Georgetown, Texas. He is the host of the Citizen of Heaven podcast. You are encouraged to seek him and the Lakewoods Drive church through Facebook and other social media. Lakewoods Drive is an autonomous group of Christians dedicated to praising God, teaching the gospel to all who will hear, training Christians in righteousness, and serving our God and one another faithfully. We believe the Bible is God's word, that Jesus died on the cross for our sins, that heaven is our home, and that we have work to do here while we wait. Regular topics of discussion and conversation include: Christians, Jesus, obedience, faith, grace, baptism, New Testament, Old Testament, authority, gospel, fellowship, justice, mercy, faithfulness, forgiveness, Twenty Pages a Week, Bible reading, heaven, hell, virtues, character, denominations, submission, service, character, COVID-19, assembly, Lord's Supper, online, social media, YouTube, Facebook.