In 2018, my friend Claire challenged me to read 100 books in a year. In general, I’m not really big on reading challenges. I don’t want to get so focused on hitting goals that I’m not enjoying my books anymore. But 100 books was exactly the right challenge for me. I could still read whatever I wanted, and that number was only a little higher than what I have read in previous years. If I eliminated just a couple of my bad habits, I had enough time to increase my reading time. (That said, if the goal were much higher, it would be totally unattainable, and I wouldn’t bother. Reading is my favorite thing ever, but I do have other hobbies.)
I had a great reading year, because I won’t finish a book I don’t like. There is just no time, my friends. I have no problem setting a book aside if it’s boring. In fact, I think I set more books aside this year than I ever have in the past.
In addition to the 100 books in 2018 goal, I had three more specific goals: I haven’t read a Jane Austen in a few years, I wanted to re-read Howard’s End (my all time favorite book; it’s been a couple of years since I read it) and I wanted to read the entire Inspector Gamache series by Louise Penny. I didn’t do ANY of those things! That just means I will add them to my goals for 2019.
Otherwise, I had my usual 50/50 fiction and nonfiction. I don’t do that on purpose, but I do tend to alternate between them throughout the year. In the fiction, I stuck to most of my favorite genres: literary fiction, historical, romance, YA. I did branch out this year into the Cormoran Strike thrillers, and I’m SO glad I did. They are much darker than I’m used to (the second one, especially, is very gruesome) but gaaaaah they are so good.
Here is the overall list, with links to buy if you are interested. And, if you are in the mood for a deep dive, you can also check out my 2017 and 2016 book lists.
Can’t wait to hear what you think, and what suggestions you have for me to read next!
Fiction
Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty
Surrender the Pink by Carrie Fisher
Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows by Balli Kaur Jaswal
The Memory Keeper’s Daughter by Kim Edwards
The Book of Essie by Megan MacLean Weir
No Day Like Today by Amy Teegan
This is How It Always Is by Laurie Frankel
The Story of Alfred Truluv by Elizabeth Berg
That Kind of Mother by Rumaan Alam
Ghosted: A Novel by Rosie Walsh
We the Animals by Justin Torres
Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown
The Animators by Kayla Rae Whitaker
Goodbye Paris by Anstey Harris
The Clothes They Stood Up In by Alan Bennett
Him, Her, Him Again, The End of Him by Patricia Marx
At the Water’s Edge by Sara Gruen
Alternative Remedies for Loss by Joanna Cantor
One Day in December by Josie Silver
Historical Fiction
My Dear Hamilton by Stephanie Dray
The Ragged Edge of Night by Olivia Hawker
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
Mr. Dickens and His Carol by Samantha Silva
Romance
Cocky Author by Fettucine Holliday
Thirsty: An Eastside Brewery Novel by Mia Hopkins
Holly Freakin’ Hughes by Kelsey Kingsley
The Duchess Deal by Tessa Dare
Tikka Chance On Me by Suleikha Snyder
The Proposal by Jasmine Guillory
Thriller/Mystery/Horror
The Wife Between us by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen
The Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager
The Cuckoo’s Calling by Robert Galbraith
The Silkworm by Robert Galbraith
Career of Evil by Robert Galbraith
Something in the Water by Catherine Steadman
Children’s/Young Adult
The War That Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
What Does Consent Really Mean? by Pete Wallis
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
One of Us is Lying by Karen McManus
This is Not the End by Chandler Baker
What I Saw and How I Lied by Judy Blundell
Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
Memoir/Biography
Strangers Tend to Tell Me Things by Amy Dickinson
Obama: An Intimate Portrait by Pete Souza
Shade: A Tale of Two Presidents by Pete Souza
France is a Feast: The Photographic Journey of Paul and Julia Child
Promise Me, Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship, and Purpose by Joe Biden
Matched by Denise Massar
Wishful Drinking by Carrie Fisher
Graphic Novels
Love is Love: A Graphic Novel by Marc Andreyko and Sarah Gaydos
The Museum of Broken Relationships by Olinka Vistica and Drazen Grubisic
The Bridge: How the Roeblings Connected Brooklyn to New York by Peter Tomasi
Nonfiction
Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex by Mary Roach
Happiness Lessons from the Dalai Lama for Busy Adults by Shannon Berry
Hamilton: The Revolution by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Jeremy McCarter
Gmorning, Gnight: Little Pep Talks for Me & You by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Johnny Sun
The Lady in the Van by Alan Bennett
Cookbooks/Food & Drink (Yes, I Read These Cover to Cover, Like a Novel)
Eat, Memory: Great Writers at the Table edited by Amanda Hesser
Dining In: Highly Cookable Recipes by Alison Roman
Eat Like Walt: The Wonderful World of Disney Food by Marcy Carriker Smothers
Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving by Judi Kingry and Laren Devine
Tequila Mockingbird: Cocktails with a Literary Twist by Tim Federle
Home/Garden
Designing with Succulents by Debra Lee Baldwin
The New Bohemians: Cool and Collected Homes by Justina Blakeney
Moth Orchid Mastery by Raffaele di Lallo
Historical Research for an Upcoming Book, You Will Never Guess Where It’s Set
Jay’s Journal of Anomalies by Ricky Jay
Forgotten New York: Views of a Lost Metropolis by Kevin Walsh
When Did the Statue of Liberty Turn Green? by Staff of the New-York Historical Society Library
America’s Boardwalks from Coney Island to California by James Lillefors
Coney Island and Astroland by Charles Denson
Brooklyn: A Personal Memoir by Truman Capote and David Attie
Writing/Craft
Making it in Historical Fiction by Libbie Hawker
The 7Ps of Publishing Success by Mark Leslie Lefebvre
Killing it on Kobo by Mark Leslie Lefebvre
Author Business
Learn Amazon Ads by Mark Dawson
Amazon Decoded: A Marketing Guide to the Kindle by David Gaughran
Market Like a Boss by Honoree Corder and Ben Hale
Strangers to Superfans: A Marketing Guide to the Reader Journey by David Gaughran
Mastering Amazon Ads: An Author’s Guide by Brian Meeks
Stop Trying So Fucking Hard by Honoree Corder
i’m still in awe of you, and proud to call you my wife.