Children's: 16
Teen: 15
Adult: 15
Longest book read: Vanity Fair, 967 pages
And here are my faves:
1. Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik
It's been a long time since I've loved a book as much as I loved this one. The intertwining stories focus on three women who must face terrible circumstances relying purely on their intelligence and strength of character. Complex, layered, and brilliantly crafted in every way, real world wisdom emerges through the stories. It's a stand alone (hallelujah!) with a slow build to one of the most satisfying endings I have ever read.
2. Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray
It was a 29-hour listen, and it was worth every minute. Filled with wit and clever writing, spot-on social commentary, interesting characters that jump off the page, and some genuine surprises in the plot, Vanity Fair has the appeal of Jane Austen, but with more bite. (Side note: I watched 3 adaptations of the book this year, and while none is perfect, the one that best captures the story and spirit of the book is the 1998 Andrew Davies BBC miniseries.)
3. Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb
I was hooked once I read about the bombshell her boyfriend dropped on her, leading to the break up of a relationship she thought would end in marriage. I kept reading because I thought it was so interesting to read a book about therapy itself and therapists, rather than self help or theory. I finished it with a warm, hopeful feeling because of the stories of her patients. Psychological theory and practice are woven seamlessly into the human stories of herself and her patients to create a book that is greater than the sum of its parts.
4. Best Friends by Shannon Hale, Illustrated by LeUyen Pham
Best Friends is a nuanced portrayal of the author's 6th grade experience, but it’s also about the challenges of navigating the social landscape and emotions of 11-year-old girls. You might think that these challenges are limited to middle school, but I was surprised by how much Shannon's challenges spoke to me in other times in my life as well.
5. Red Scarf Girl by Ji Li Jiang
This is one of those books where I think, who needs Hunger Games when there are real dystopias out there? This one is age appropriate and simple enough for a young audience, but still captures the disturbing complexities of authoritarian communist China, where nothing is quite what it seems. And it also has those moments where something she encountered is freakishly comparable to things in the world now.
6. Bloom by Kevin Panetta, illustrated by Savanna Ganucheau
Just the sweetest. A feel good (lgbt) romance that's sweet but not sentimental.
7. A Night Divided by Jennifer A. Nielsen
Interesting, timely, and quite a page turner! Not to mention that the Berlin Wall is a fascinating subject.
8. Pumpkinheads! by Rainbow Rowell, illustrated by Faith Erin Hicks
Pumpkin spice + carpe diem = this charming, heart-warming read.
9. Fountains of Silence by Ruta Sepetys
It shined a light on pieces of history I was ignorant of. It took time developing characters and relationships. It had a compelling mystery. It included real primary resource material. It was enjoyable to read, and those 500+ pages went by in no time!
10. Not If I Can Help It by Carolyn Mackler
I couldn’t wait to get back to this one every time I put it down, not because it was action-packed, but because I cared about the characters and empathized with them so much. Feel good and engaging.
Honorable Mention
Guts by Raina Telgemeier
Candide by Voltaire
The Okay Witch by Emma Steinkellner
Circe by Madeline Miller
New Kid by Jerry Craft
Queen of the Sea by Dylan Meconis
Peter and Ernesto: The Lost Sloths by Peter Annable
All books read in 2019:
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley • Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik • Red Scarf Girl by Ji-li Jiang • Braving the Wilderness by Brene Brown • Cave of Bones by Anne Hillerman • Zeroboxer by Fonda Lee • Crush by Svetlana Chmakova • Turtles All the Way Down by John Green • New Kid by Jerry Craft • Educated by Tara Westover • Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray • Junior High Drama by Louise Simonson and Sumin Cho • Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northrup • Candide by Voltaire • Far from the Tree by Robin Benway • Samurai Rising: The Epic Life of Minamoto Yoshitsune by Pamela S. Turner • A Night Divided by Jennifer A. Nielsen • Front Desk by Kelly Yang • Pilu of the Woods by Mai K. Nguyen* • Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me by Mariko Tamaki, illustrated by Rosemary Valero-O’Connell* • Bloom by Kevin Panetta, illustrated by Savanna Ganucheau* • Naturally Tan by Tan France* • On Gold Mountain: The One-Hundred-Year Odyssey of My Chinese-American Family by Lisa See • An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir • The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield • Queen of the Sea by Dylan Meconis* • Caraval by Stephanie Garber • Click by Kayla Miller* • Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff* • Not if I Can Help It by Carolyn Mackler* • Best Friends by Shannon Hale* • Guts by Raina Telgemeier* • Stargazing by Jen Wang* • The Downstairs Girl by Stacey Lee* • My Antonia by Willa Cather • This Time Will Be Different by Misa Sugiura* • Pumpkinheads! by Rainbow Rowell and Faith Erin Hicks* • Circe by Madeline Miller • I Was Their American Dream by Malaka Gharib* • Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb* • Peter and Ernesto: The Lost SLoths by Peter Annable* • The Opposite of Always by Justin A. Reynolds* • Island Book by Justin Dahm* • The Fountains of Silence by Ruta Sepetys* • The Okay Witch by Emma Steinkellner*
* indicates published in 2019
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