2020 In Review
A Very Bookish Year for Me
I did it! I read over 100 books this year and here are my Bookish Superlatives for 2020:
Favorite Reads - The Stationary Shop by Marjan Kamalie (discussed in January’s Newsletter) Other loves: Dear Edward, This Tender Land, Lager Queen of Minnesota, An Elderly Lady Is Up To No Good, All the Devils are here.
Favorite Memoir – House Lessons by Erica Baurmeister. This story of renovating a dilapidated home while reflecting on family, and the role of homes in our lives was wise, honest, and touching.
A Book I Couldn’t Put Down – Nothing To See Hear by Kevin Wilson. This quirky story has a unique premise, where a troubled nanny is tasked with caring for siblings that catch on fire. Strange but compelling with complex characters and a lot well paced plot.
Favorite Audio Book -Never Have I Ever by Joshilyn Jackson. Amy’s simple but perfect life unravels after a mysterious new neighbor shows up for book club one night. I don’t love suspense thrillers but I love this one. Lots of twists and turns and a great narrator.
Favorite Nonfiction Book - The Book of Delights by Ross Gay. Gay writes a short essay about a specific delight for an entire year. This was not a great non-fiction year for me, but this little book, filled with insights and observations, made me look at every day life more closely.
Favorite Mystery Author - Anthony Horwitz is killing it in the mystery genre (pun unintended). Magpie Murders and The Sentence is Murder are both cleverly constructed novels that harken to classic British mysteries yet with added levels of complexity and deviousness. Both are parts of multi-book series.
Favorite Backlist Book: Take Me With You by Catherine Ryan Hyde. I had no idea what to expect when I picked up this novel, which I now realize is a great way to approach books. I love this story of overcoming grief and found family.
A Book I Didn’t Love - Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner. Four charachters - all pretentious and unlikeable, oh and very little happens. Why…why should I care?
A Book I am Looking Forward to Reading in 2021 – Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrel. I love O’Farrels writing and heard so many good things about this historical fiction book.
“Best of” Lists
There are really too many best of lists: the NYT Times, Washington Post & USA Today all have lists, as well as the morning shows, Oprah and many other publications. I don’t want to duplicate what you can easily google. Here are a few links that offer a different perspective:
Composed of over 2,500 book recommendations, the NPR Book Concierge is an all around great resource for books published this year. It tags books by categories and has an amazing sort and search function allowing you to easily find your next read. Also, it goes back to 2013!
The Washington Post’s Best Cookbooks List includes an amazing looking recipe with each book recommendation. I think I need to order “One Tin Bakes” by the inagural winner of the Great British Bake-off, Edd Kimber.
Here are two podcasts about books you may have missed this year: Sorta Awesome: Episode 271 & From The Front Porch: Episode 301.
True Confessions: A Glimpse at My DNF List This Year.
As much as I love reading, I have grown increasingly impatient with books that I don’t enjoy. As I write this, I have now finished my best reading year ever! Hello escape reading. Yet, I would never have hit this mark if I stuck with books that were not great reads for me. Here are a few books that I picked up this year but did not finish (DNF):
1. March by Geraldine Brooks brings to life the absent father from Little Women. I loved Brook’s Year of Wonders, but not this one. It was slow and March was insufferable as an Army Chaplain that was spiritually lost.
2. H is For Hawk by Helen McDonald is beloved and award nominated but I found it just so slow. Whatever lessons the Hawks were supposed to show me, I guess I will have to continue on without them.
3. The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan. I started this right as the Pandemic hit. I found this non-fiction book about the Dust Bowl just too much of a downer at the time. Note: I have had no problem with apocalyptic books but this hit a little too close to home those early quarantine days.
A final note: I do not put down every book I do not like; I sometimes read books I dislike just to find out what happens or if I am reading for book club and want to discuss. It is just much harder to get into and finish books I don’t enjoy.
Recent Reads
Remember how great watching Knives Out was in a movie theater last Christmas Season? Hercule Poirot’s Christmas hits many of the same notes: classic country house mystery with an over bearing patriarch and lots of disgruntled family. I borrowed this on Hoopla and listened to the audio version. It is short but classic Christie.
I so enjoyed Remains of the Day by Katzuo Ishiguro. As Mr. Stephens, a career butler, looks back at his life in service, things suddenly do not seem as certain as they once did. This short but dense novel is charming and insightful. Though written 30 years ago, it holds up perfectly. As a fan of Downton Abbey, and it was hard for me not to visualize Mr. Stephens as Downton’s Mr. Carson.
Trace Elements is the most recent Donna Leon mystery. I have been reading & loving this series forever (this is book 29!) This a comfort reading for me - the lovely setting in Venice, along with a likeable set of recurring characters. But I appreciate that Leon has kept up with current events and the more recent books deal with the environmental crimes and cover-ups.
The Lazy Genius Way by Kendra Adachi focuses on “being a genius about the things that matter and lazy about the things that don't.” This is a great book for rethinking systems in your life that might not be working. The book is organzized around guiding principals, including “Choose Once” and “Batch It,” that have really made a diffence in how I approach things.
Okay, I know, I have probably completely overwhelmed you with books this month. Thank you for staying with me to the end. I wish you a wonderful Christmas and holiday season and many hours curled up with a book. And remember, please share with friends!