In these unprece-
Naaah never mind. We ain’t doing that. I’m sick of that phrase. I want things to be precedented again. I admire the brave people trying to get their heads around the cluster-cuss that was this year. Real understanding takes time and perspective, though, and I don’t have either of those things yet.
What I do have is a list. Y’all know how I love a list. I kept track of what I read this year. I’m frankly surprised at the numbers. At the beginning of the pandemic, I was totally unable to read, and lost a solid month. Then, at the end of the year, I kept starting books and setting them aside because I couldn’t get into them. And yet when it is all said and done, I read a whole lot of books.
I’ll say the same thing I say to you every year: don’t read books you don’t like. Just don’t. It says nothing about you if you dislike a classic, or the popular thriller your best friend loved, or the self-help book everyone else swears by. Life is short, the book will always be there, and you can always come back to it someday if you want to. For now, read what you love.
These are the books I finished this year. (The list of books I started and set aside is easily twice as long.) By definition, I liked all of them. That’s why I finished them. The ones with the asterisks would most likely go on my Best of the Year.
FICTION
One of the Boys by Daniel Magariel
Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan
If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin *
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
The Princess Bride by William Goldman
Enchantment by Orson Scott Card
Earth Abides by George R. Stewart
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett *
Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield *
The Water Method Man by John Irving
Stay With Me by Ayobami Adebayo *
The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne *
Upright Women Wanted by Sarah Gailey
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen
The Remains of the Day by Kasuo Ishiguro
Behind the Scenes at the Museum by Kate Atkinson *
The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers
The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George
Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore *
So the Path Does Not Die by Pede Hollist
A Child’s Christmas in Wales by Dylan Thomas
BOOKS ABOUT THE ROYAL FAMILY
(I finished “The Crown” on Netflix and then went on a royal tear.)
The Day Diana Died by Christopher Andersen
The Diana Chronicles by Tina Brown
Working for the Royals by Brian Hoey
HRH: So Many Thoughts on Royal Style by Elizabeth Holmes *
Elizabeth the Queen: The Life of a Modern Monarch by Sally Bedell Smith
The Secret Guests by Benjamin Black (Fiction, but fits here) *
ROMANCE
Snow in April by Rosamunde Pilcher
His Bride for the Taking by Tessa Dare
Pumpkin: A BBW Thanksgiving Romance by Megan Wade
Lessons in French by Laura Kinsale
The Understatement of the Year by Sarina Bowen
Rapper’s Delight: The Mogul Series Book One by Kenya Goree Bell
Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake by Sarah MacLean *
THE INSPECTOR GAMACHE SERIES BY LOUISE PENNY
The Beautiful Mystery (Book 8) *
How the Light Gets In (Book 9)
The Nature of the Beast (Book 11)
THRILLER/MYSTERY/HORROR
Dead to Her by Sarah Pinborough
Never Have I Ever by Joshilyn Jackson
Our Kind of Cruelty by Araminta Hall
After I’m Gone by Laura Lippman
The Night Sister by Jennifer McMahon
The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine
And When She Was Good by Laura Lippman
The Lady in the Lake by Laura Lippman
Obsessions: An Anthology of Original Fiction, Ed. By Mark Leslie
Shift Work: Kilhaven Police Book 1 by H. Claire Taylor and Brock Bloodworth
Same Old Shift: Kilhaven Police Book 2 by H. Claire Taylor and Brock Bloodworth
Shift Out of Luck: Kilhaven Police Book 3 by H. Claire Taylor and Brock Bloodworth
Deep Shift: Kilhaven Police Book 4 by H. Claire Taylor and Brock Bloodworth *
When No One is Watching by Alyssa Cole
CHILDREN’S/YOUNG ADULT
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
To Night Owl from Dog Fish by Holly Goldberg Sloan and Meg Wolitzer
The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo *
The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare
The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon *
The Neverending Story by Michael Ende
Look Both Ways: A Tale Told in Ten Blocks by Jason Reynolds *
Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
MEMOIR/BIOGRAPHY
On Earth, We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong *
Mothers of Sparta by Dawn Davies *
Homer’s Odyssey by Gwen Cooper
Over the Top: A Raw Journey to Self-Love by Johnathan Van Ness *
Heavy: An American Memoir by Kiese Laymon *
The Magical Language of Others by E.J. Koh
SCIENCE FICTION
FANTASY
Memory & Dream by Charles De Lint
NONFICTION
Hikes in Southern California by
The Hot Zone: The Terrifying True Story of the Origins of the Ebola Virus by Richard Preston (This should count as a thriller; it was straight up the scariest book I’ve ever read.)
SELF HELP/BOOKS TO BE A BADASS
The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick) by Seth Godin
The Essential Enneagram by David Daniels and Virginia Price
Playing Big: Practical Wisdom for Women Who Want to Speak Up, Create, and Lead by Tara Mohr
Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert
COOKBOOKS
The Hot Sauce Cookbook by Rockridge Press
Tartine Bread by Chad Robertson
BOOKS ABOUT BOOKS
Marion’s 25, Part II by Marion Hill
CANNABIS
The Cannabis Spa at Home by Sandra Hinchcliffe
The Cannabis Pharmacy by Michael Backes
The Essential Cannabis Book: A Field Guide for the Curious by Rob Mejia
WRITING/AUTHOR BUSINESS
How to Write Nonfiction by Joanna Penn
The Nonfiction Book Publishing Plan by Stephanie Chandler
Public Speaking for Authors, Creatives, and Other Introverts by Joanna Penn
Your Author Business Plan by Joanna Penn
PODCASTING
Podcasting for Dummies by Tee Morris
Make Noise: A Creator’s Guide to Podcasting by Eric Nuzum
So You Want to Start a Podcast by Kristen Meinzer
Audio for Authors by Joanna Penn
Most of these links lead to BookShop, where my storefront includes all of the books we discussed on the Best Book Ever Podcast, as well as my Top Ten books for the last several years. Bookshop is a great way to support your favorite Indie Bookstore, and if you use my link, I will make a few pennies at no extra cost to you. Same set up for Amazon – please consider using my affiliate link there, not only for books but any shopping you do there. Thank you so much for supporting my work!