I have read 55 books this year. That is less than previous years, because a six month lockdown with three kids and a job meant that any time I had to myself was spent sleeping, or walking around in circles with an eye twitch.
I made a conscious effort this year to decolonise my reading so there is more diversity than previous years, but I’ve still got a long way to go on this. I read a lot of lighter stuff too, plus finally revisited the big feminist classics: Freidan, Greer, Lessing, de Beauvoir, Adichie. I also read a LOT of Harry Potter out loud, plus Dear Zoo about 500 times.
During a period of being trolled by an angry teething baby I also attempted to read Save Our Sleep, then remembered that it is a book best placed gently in the pit of a burning trash fire.
Here are some faves - I’ve grouped them roughly by my own made-up genres and added a few notes where relevant.
Thoughtful, female-focussed fiction about identity and relationships
Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason (main character is unlikeable but fascinating)
Kokomo by Victoria Hannan
I Give My Marriage a Year by Holly Wainwright (Funny and tender; a modern love story)
This is the Story of a Happy Marriage by Anne Patchett (AP is the OG)
The Vanishing Half by Britt Bennett (Light-coloured Black twins, one ‘passes’ for white)
Olive, Again by Elizabeth Strout (I LOVE Olive Kitteridge so this was excellent as always)
The Incendiaries by R.O Kwon
Girl, Woman, Other by Bernadine Evaristo (Won the Booker. Dense and thought-provoking but very excellent)
A Lonely Girl is a Dangerous thing by Jessie Tu (Unlikeable character but very very readable)
Bruny by Heather Rose
Gripping and suspenseful (but not scary) fast reads
American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins (Problematic depictions of Latinx but gripping story)
Monday’s Not Coming by Tiffany D Jackson (YA, crimey, fun read)
An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green (Didn’t expect to love this so much)
A Beautifully Foolish Endeavour by Hank Green (Sequel to the above!)
Historical, political-ish fiction or narrative non-fiction
Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld (No idea how this managed to get published. It’s about Hillary if she never married Bill, so kinda half of a biography.)
American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld (As above, but about Laura Bush!)
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi (Wonderful. One of the best for the year.)
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
Say Nothing by Patrick Keefe (About the Troubles in Ireland)
Non-fiction (if you like that Esther Perel podcast or are fascinated by cults and religions like me)
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottleib (Fascinating insight into being a therapist!)
Strange Situation: A Mother's Journey Into the Science of Attachment by Bethany Saltman
Unorthodox: The Scandalous Rejection of My Hasidic Roots by Deborah Feldman (The Netflix series was based on this book)
Phosphorescence: On Awe, Wonder and Things That Sustain You When the World Goes Dark by Julia Baird
Essays and poetry
All about love by bell hooks
The Black Unicorn by Audre Lorde
What Kind of Woman by Kate Baer (Best poetry I read all year)
A Burst of Light by Audre Lorde
The Details by Tegan Bennett Daylight (A love story for readers)
Up next:
I’m currently reading The Yield by Tara June Winch, Big Friendship by Ann Friedman and Aminatou Sow, and Lucky by Andrew Pippos.
My wonderful book club has subscribed to Well Read, which is a book curation/subscription service where they send you a book a month. The books have all been great so far so I highly recommend it if you struggle for something to read!