I read a whole lot of books over many different genres. This year I’ve read 155 old books and new releases so far. This is my list of the best among the best. We’ll do this countdown style.
Number 10
The War that Saved My Life, by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley. The story follows Jamie and Ada Smith, who run away from their cruel mother in the middle of World War II, when cities were getting bombed by the Germans. They find a new home but don’t know if they’ll be able to stay. They are damaged and wounded and scared, and the story is their coming to grips with what being a family means. It was superbly written, with aching emotion and beautiful language.
Number 9
The Argonauts, by Maggie Nelson. This narrative nonfiction book is a love story. It’s a meditation on what it means to be a family, what it means to be male and female. It’s a candid look at gender biases, motherhood, parenthood, the daily moments of life and what it means to be human. Nelson has a very poetic, beautiful style, and though it’s a shortish read, it’s in no way light material. I enjoyed every bit of it.
Number 8
I’m Thinking of Ending Things, by Iain Reid, which is one of the best literary thrillers I’ve ever read. It was a short read, but it was fantastic. I don’t want to give too much away in my summary, so I’ll just say that the book is about a woman taking a trip with her boyfriend, considering the entire drive whether or not she should end things with him. The significance of all her conversations and ruminations will come crashing in once you reach the end of the story. And you won’t be able to reach it fast enough.
Number 7
Mary Karr’s The Liars’ Club. This is a memoir about Karr’s tyrannical grandmother, her mothers’ Nervous condition, the split-up of her parents, their getting back together and on to her father’s death when she was a young woman. It is written honestly and poetically, and one of the things I enjoyed most was Karr’s willingness to admit that her memory might not be entirely perfect, which is true for all of us. She tells the story as she remembers it.
Number 6
Salman Rushdie’s Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights. It’s hard to describe Rushdie’s style. He’s a masterful storyteller. Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights tells the story of the djinn, which were like genies in Arabian and Islamic mythology. But the way that Rushdie told this story was like a history of sorts. You had the feeling that you were reading a true account of how djinnis tried once to overtake the world and failed. It was strange and fantastic.
Number 5
All the Broken Pieces, a young adult novel by Ann E. Burg. This book is about a boy named Matt Pin who comes to live in the states after suffering some of the horrors of the Vietnam War. He carries around scars that he keeps hidden, because they’re shameful and frightening and too horrible to speak aloud. It’s a story full of emotion, beauty and redemption, written in verse.
Number 4
Doll Bones, by Holly Black—one of the creepiest middle grade books I’ve read. Doll Bones follows the story of Zach, Poppy and Alice, who are the kind of friends who play pretend and build elaborate worlds together. When Poppy comes to school claiming that the bone china doll in her mother’s cabinet is made from the bones of an actual little girl who needs to be buried, Zach and Alice grudgingly go on a quest with her. This is an engaging entertaining story with a creepy doll. Enough said.
And here I have to let you know that these next three are pretty much tied in my mind. But for the sake of continuity, I’ve separated them out and assigned them numbers. Just know that they are equally fantastic.
Number 3
Sophie Quire and the Last Storyguard, by Jonathan Auxier, which is the second Peter Nimble adventure from Auxier, is a wonderfully entertaining middle grade book. Sophie Quire is a bookbinder in the city of Bustleburgh, working at her father’s shop, Quire and Quire. She comes upon a mysterious book and sets out on a quest to find the others like it, joined by Peter Nimble, the greatest thief in the history of time, and his sidekick, Sir Tode. It’s written with great description, humor, wisdom and imagination.
Number 2
Kill ‘Em and Leave: Searching for James Brown and the American Soul, by James McBride, a narrative nonfiction book that examines James Brown’s often-fabled life. McBride digs down to the truth of the funk legend and the book is by turns humorous, truthful, smart and probing. McBride nails the prejudice of the south, the life of musicians, and the realities of poverty, and conducts interview with people who best knew Brown and can shed the most light on his vices and victories. It was fascinating and lovely.
Number 1
Leigh Bardugo’s Six of Crows and I’ll give you a bonus—the sequel, Crooked Kingdom. Both of these young adult books follow six renegades in the city of Ketterdam who attempt heists unlike anything the world has ever seen. Everything about these two books was fantastic. They had the feel of a teenage Oceans 11, set in a fictional world. They were smart, complex and highly entertaining.
I hope you enjoyed these book recommendations. Be sure to pick up a free book from my starter library and visit my recommends page to see some of my favorite books. If you have any books you recently read that you think I’d enjoy, contact me. I always enjoy adding to my list. Even if I never get through it all.
*The above are affiliate links. I only recommend books that I personally enjoy. I actually don’t even talk about the books I don’t enjoy, because I’d rather forget I ever wasted time reading them.
