2024 Books

I read (I think) 68 books this year. All were audio, except ten on Kindle, and a whopping one on paper. My top 10%  in no particular order:

• Life is So Good by Richard Dawson
• Romney: A Reckoning by McKay Coppins
• My Real Name is Hanna by Tara Lynn Masih
• Outlive by Peter Attia
• The Small and the Mighty by Sharon McMahon
• The Unknown Beloved by Amy Harmon
• Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney

 See my note after March.

January:

1. Romney: A Reckoning* by McKay Coppins - Very honest. I've never voted for Mitt Romney, but I have a lot of respect for him.

2. Dear Emmie Blue* by Lia Louis - Sweet.

3. The Terrible Two Get Worse* by Mac Barnett - Enjoyable, but not as good as the first one.

4. Zero Days* by Ruth Ware - I called this one pretty early on. It was good, but not my favorite.

5. My Real Name is Hanna* by Tara Lynn Masih - Such a truly beautiful and hopeful book. Everyone in book group loved this one.

6. The Terrible Two Go Wild* by Mac Barnett - This one was better than the second. The family really enjoyed it.

7. Gone Tonight* by Sarah Pekkanen - Fine but a little forgettable.

February:

8. Thank You for Listening* by Julia Whelan - A very fun listen. Way more depth than I expected (but still pretty light.)

9. Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know About the People We Don't Know* by Malcolm Gladwell - Not his best. The audio production is top-notch, but this book left me wondering how it all connected and what we can do about these problems.

10. The Book of Forgiving: The Fourfold Path for Healing Ourselves and Our World by Desmond Tutu - Meaningful, but a bit of a slog. This was supposed to be for book group a few months back, and nobody read it. I felt the need to finish it (as I do).

11. Station Eleven* by Emily St. John Mandel - I remembered loving this one before the Covid-19 pandemic and wondered if it would hold up for me. It did.

12. Laughing Without an Accent: Adventures of an American Iranian at Home and Abroad by Firoozeh Dumas - Not as delightful as the first, but still worth a read. Includes touching and funny moments.

Look, somewhere along the way I stopped tracking my books dutifully. I wasn't keeping up on Goodreads and I neglected my personal spreadsheet. Historically, I could use Goodreads to figure out what months I read my books, but without Goodreads, I'm a little lost. I went through the history of my Libby app and looked through my Kindle, as well as Eric's Libby app for any books we listened to as a family. I think my list is complete.

Also, I didn't keep this post-dated blog post updated (I usually add to it throughout the year), so some of my thoughts about these books are completely lost. I'd beg for your forgiveness, but I'm confident nobody reads this.

13. Cultish: The Language of Fanatacism* by Amanda Montell - I remember not a lot about this one. Interesting while I listened.

14. The Women by Kristin Hannah - I know people adored this one, but I didn't think it was her best. I did like it, but not as much as everyone else seems to.

15. To Say Nothing of the Dog* by Connie Willis - I wanted to love this one, but it lasted too long.

16. Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents by Lindsay C. Gibson - I think most people should read this book.

17. Chasing Lincoln's Killer* by James L. Swanson - Worth reading.

18. The Terrible Two's Last Laugh* by Mac Barnett & Jory John - This audio series is delightful.

19. We Begin at the End* by Chris Whitaker - I felt like this one was a slow.

20. City Spies* by James Ponti - The family enjoyed this one.

21. The Bomber Mafia* by Malcolm Gladwell - I thought I'd like this better than I did. I just found it slow.

22. Framed! by James Ponti - This is a fun series for the family.

23. Vanished! by James Ponti - A bit more of the same, but overall, the family really likes this author.

24. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone* by J. K. Rowling - I love to relisten to this series. I don't do it every year, but sometimes for long runs, it's nice to listen to something I've heard/read several times before.

25. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets* by J. K. Rowling - Ditto.

26. I Was Here* by Gayle Foreman - This one was hard to listen to, but I appreciated it. Having lost a friend to suicide a year ago, I felt like it grappled with some of those emotions really well.

27. The Thief Lord* by Cornelia Funke - Eric picked this one, and the family liked it decently well.

28. Empire of Pain* by Patrick Radden Keefe - Look, I'm more skeptical than ever about the healthcare industry and pharmaceutical companies. This family was terrible and deserves to be raked through he mud.

29. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban* by J. K. Rowling - Comfort book.

30. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire* by J. K. Rowling - That cemetery scene will always get me.

31. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix* by J. K. Rowling - 

32. The Hotel Nantucket* by Elin Hilderbrand - This was my second one of hers, and I found it delightful.

33. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince* by J. K. Rowling - Let's stop pretending Snape was some kind of hero.

34. The Younger Wife* by Sally Hepworth - I don't remember this at all. Like, at all. I'm pretty sure it was a modern Jane Eyre.

35. All Good People Here* by Ashley Flowers - Not the best.

36. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows* by J. K. Rowling - I will always think this one was a little longer than it needed to be.

37. Intertwine* by Nichole Van -  A really delightful time-travel book.

38. I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy - Woof. What dumpster fire her childhood was. I'm glad she's been able to start to recover from that. I think most adults who were in the child entertainment industry are probably liable for some level of abuse. It was bad on so many fronts.

39. Nothing Like it in the World* by Stephen E. Ambrose - We listened to this as a family, and even though it's definitely for adults, my girls understood it and followed along. We stopped often to explain different concepts. I loved learning about the Chinese who worked on the railroads.

40. Outlive by Peter Attia - Have I talked to you about Healthcare 2.0? Because it's here, and we need to pay attention to it. There is so much we can do to be healthier and have better lives!

41. The Left-Handed Twin* by Thomas Perry - I enjoy this author while I'm on long runs. I like this series, but it may have run its course.

42. A Small Town* by Thomas Perry - Not his best, but it was adequately engaging.

43. The Song of the Cell* by Siddhartha Mukherjee - We started listening to this as a family, and it immediately kicks off with a discussion of a fast-growing skin cancer. I had, within a day or two prior to starting this book, told Eric to go to a dermatologist about a weird sore/scar on his arm. Eric only listened to the first hour or so of this book, but it was enough to convince him to see a dermatologist. (And thank goodness he did, because his skin issue was serious enough to be need removal, but no need for alarm.) This book was long and a little hard to keep up with, but I will talk your ear off about the two types of depression if you ever want to talk about that.

44. The Death of Mrs. Westaway* by Ruth Ware - Do I remember the ending of this? No. But I remember enjoying it. It's probably based on another book, but I don't know which one.

45. The Mysterious Affair at Styles* by Agatha Christie - Not my favorite. It was fine.

46. Landline* by Rainbow Rowell - Just as good as people say. Nurture your dang relationships, folks.

47. Nightwatching* by Tracy Sierra - This was some excellent psychological suspense. I started it, and then it expired. I'm glad I made it back.

48. The Paris Apartment* by Lucy Folley - Engaging, and I'm always interested in stories with lots of characters. But this one was pretty unbelievable (and I say that as someone who reads a lot of unbelievable things.)

49. The Heiress* by Rachel Hawkins - I already don't remember a thing about this book. Oh wait, I just looked it up. Very engaging, but clearly I forgot about it as soon as it was over.

50. Hello Stranger* by Katherine Center - I need to read more by this lady. She is very good.

51. After I Do* by Taylor Jenkins Reid - I love this author, and this was my least favorite of hers.

52. Four Thousand Weeks* by Oliver Burkeman - This book gave me a lot to think about. I don't think it's great in terms of learning about time management. It's more about how to change your thinking about time and how you spend it. Definitely more philosophical than practical.

53. Attachments* by Rainbow Rowell - I liked this one a lot. Not as much as Landline, but still very enjoyable.

54. The Unknown Beloved by Amy Harmon - Excellent. It's such a downer of a topic (a serial killer), but Amy infused it with hope and light and goodness.

55. Undaunted Courage* by Stephen E. Ambrose - I loved learning about Lewis and Clark.

56. Daisy Darker* by Alice Feeney - I didn't know this would be perfect for Halloween, but it definitely was. This was just such a good take on And Then There Were None.

57. Think Again* by Adam Grant - I probably need a paper copy of this one. It was just so full of good stuff.

58. The Vacation Rental by Katie Sise - I frequently wanted to quit this one, but I hung in there and appreciated the twists.

59. Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo - Apparently, she has a duology that I should read. This one was fine.

60. The Five-Star Weekend* by Elin Hilderbrand - Again, I love the way this author pokes fun of herself. I really loved the variety of characters and the pacing of this book.

61. The Lost Apothecary* by Sarah Penner - I loved the old story and hated the modern one.

62. The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek* by Kim Michele Richardson - I read another book about the packhorse librarians sometimes back. I liked this one as well. It had some interesting elements with the blue people.

63. The Small and the Mighty* by Sharon McMahon - The conversational nature of the narration is certainly different for a history book. I generally appreciated it, but I'm kind of a history book snob, and sometimes it felt patronizing. Despite that, I think Sharon did an excellent job drawing out stories of regular folks who did important things. I've been following Sharon since 2020 (and even saw her live in October 2023), and her book did not let me down.

64. Life is So Good by Richard Dawson - When we talk about books that I won't stop talking about, this is it. I loved hearing about history from somebody who lived through it, and to hear a Black man's perspective on things. I also loved the East Texas and Dallas connections. (He lived near where some of my ancestors lived, and then spent his adulthood in Dallas.) Despite all the hardships and challenges of his life, he remained hopeful and grateful.

65. Grave Talk by Nick Spalding - A little bit twee, but it was fine.

66. Finnikin of the Rock* by Melina Marchetta - I'd read it before. I bought the audible version because I had a credit, and I remembered really liking it. I still really like it.

67. Jacob Marley* by R. William Bennett - An excellent Christmas read. This is such a good take on the first ghost who visits Ebeneezer Scrooge.

68. The Law of Love by Steve Young - I love the concept. The application is the challenge. The book was a bit repetitive.

*Denotes an audiobook.

2023 Books

 This year I read 63 books: 12 on Kindle, 3 on paper, and 48 audio. (Technically one was a mix between audio and Kindle, but I credited to audio since that is where the bulk of it was consumed.) One of my goals this year was to consume some amount of book every single day. I think I ended up forgetting to read or listen fewer than 10 times over the entire year. Since I've been running a lot less, I've needed to find other times to listen to books. 

My top 10% of books this year:

• Everyone Brave is Forgiven by Chris Cleave
• Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang
• The Last Slave Ship by Ben Raines
• Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou
• I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys
• Die With Zero by Bill Perkins

I always find it interesting to compare how my top 10% aligns with my overall total. This year I read a total of 18 non-fiction books and 45 fiction books, so about 28% of my total books were non-fiction. But among the six books in the top 10%, four of them are non-fiction!

January:

1. Light to the Hills by Bonnie Blaylock - Sweet story about the WPA project to deliver books to rural areas during the Depression.

2. The Joy of Sweat by Sarah Evers* - Who knew sweat was so interesting?

3. The Guest List by Lisa Foley* - Dark and disturbing, and I couldn't stop listening.

4. Other Words for Home by Jasmin Warga* - Loved this so much in so many ways.

5. Reputation by Sarah Vaughan* - Definitely has some tough topics, but man, this was a good one.

6. Happier Hour: How to Beat Distraction, Expand Your Time, and Focus on What Matters Most by Cassie Holmes - This book had so many good things to think about when considering how to use your time in ways that actually bring about happiness.

7. Hello Molly! by Molly Shannon* -  I loved Molly's candor about hard topics, and I loved her optimism. I laughed out loud throughout this book and shed a few tears too.

February:

8. The Last Slave Ship by Ben Raines* - Everyone, go read this book right now. I cannot stop talking about it.

9. The Bird and the Sword by Amy Harmon - I think I prefer her historical fiction, but this one was pretty good.

10. Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou - Man. What a dumpster-fire Theranos was, and nobody seemed to notice. Those who did were bullied into silence.

March:

11. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens* - I read this right after my freshman year of college (nearly 20 years ago!), and I really loved it. It definitely held up for me in this audio version.

12. Mom Life Versus the Everday Apocalypse by Megan Whitmer* - A fun little book about the adventures and hilarity of mom life.

13. Things You Save in a Fire by Katherine Center* - I was surprised by how much I liked this one.

14. Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng* - I find her books engaging, but then I just feel frustrated by the characters.

April:

15. Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle by Betty MacDonald* - What a delightfully fun one to listen to on our road trip.

16. Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery* - Always a delight. Even better to share it with my children, most of whom loved it.

17. Ten Thousand Tries by Amy Makechnie* - This was for book group, and I wasn't expecting much, but I really liked it. It was a hit with everyone in the group. I'll definitely recommend it to my children.

May:

18. Les Misérables by Victor Hugo* - There is just no need to read the unabridged version of this book. So much of this book is amazing, but then there is so much nothingness. Jean Valjean is amazing. Marius and Cosette's love story is ridiculous. (Marked as audio, but I also read some of it (maybe 20%) on Kindle.)

19. Good for a Girl: A Woman Running in a Man's World by Lauren Fleshman* - So good. I want all my running friends to read it. And all parents.

20. Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool* - This is a sweet and fun one. Read it once before, and read it again for book group.

21. American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins* - A good book, written well, but it seemed a little like grief-porn.

22. Beyond the Wand by Tom Felton* - Such a delightful listen. I listened to most of it while on a long run, and I'm sure some people thought I looked like a weirdo, smiling from ear to ear as I listened to some of Tom's stories.

23. A Girl Called Samson by Amy Harmon - This was my least favorite of any I've read by Amy Harmon so far. I didn't love the romantic slant of this story based on a real person.

June:

24. White Trash: The 400-Year Untold History of Class in America by Nancy Isenberg* - Intereting, but I didn't think she proved her points as a historian as well as others have.

25. I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys* - The scene with Christian watching the video that Daniel's friends in America sent to him was so amazing. I have told countless people about that scene.

26. The Running Girls by Matt Brolly - A decent suspense/thriller.

27. The Terrible Two by Mac Barnett and Jory John* - Our family loved listening to this one on our road trip.

28. The Princess Academy by Shannon Hale* - Even the kids who didn't want to listen to a book about princesses were surprised by how good this was. It wasn't my first time reading it, so I knew that the title doesn't do the book justice.

29. Out of the Ashes by Kara Thoams - I really liked this suspense book, far more than I expected.

30. The Half-Life of Ruby Fielding by Lydia Kang* - Ugh. Should have quit this one early on, but I wanted to know what would happen. And then it was just so ridiculous.

July:

31. Elantris by Brandon Sanderson* - I read this several years ago, but there were many details I couldn't quite remember. It was fun to listen to it this time.

32. A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson* - I called a few of the surprises at the ending, but not all of them.

33. The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale* - It was fun to share this with the entire family on a road trip.

34. The Johnstown Flood by David McCullough* - Probably not my favorite of his, but it was interesting to learn about this time in history that I knew nothing about.

35. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir* - Such a delight. There were a few times when the science went on a little too long, but I loved this story so much.

36. Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Muderers* by Jesse Q. Sutanto - What a fun one! I loved listening to this one. The characters were delightful, and I laughed out loud many times.

37. The Passion of Dolssa by Julie Berry* - Another huge winner for me. I couldn't stop thinking about it, and I want to read more about this time period.

August:

38. The Davenports by Krystal Marquis* - I wanted to love this one, but I felt like it dragged on too long.

39. The Accomplice by Liza Lutz* - I really loved the back-and-forth in the timelines for this one. The characters didn't do a lot for me, though.

40. Through a Darkening Glassby R. S. Maxwell* - This was another one where I really wanted to love it, so I kept reading it, but ultimately I was disappointed.

41. Fed Up: Emotional Labor, Women, and the Way Forward by Gemma Hartley* - I allowed myself to give up on this one. It felt like a big whine-fest with no offered solutions.

42. Everyone Brave Is Forgiven by Chris Cleave* - I loved this book so much. The writing was beautiful, and loved the themes. I wanted to listen again as soon as I finished.

43. Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney* - This one deserves all the hype.

44. Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking by Samin Nosrat - We chose this for book group, and I ended up buying a copy. I'll be happy to have it around for reference.

September:

45. The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth* - This was such a good one. I loved so much about it.

46. Animal Farm by George Orwell* - It was interesting to listen to this with my kids and explain all the underlying messages.

47. The Magician's Nephew by C. S. Lewis* - Another good listen with the kiddos.

48. Little Bee by Chris Cleave* - Coming off Everyone Brave is Forgiven, which I loved with my whole heart, I thought I would like this one. I did not. At all. The main characters (besides Bee) are terrible. It was just so ugh.

49. Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang - Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I'd love a graphic novel as much as I loved this one. It was so good.

50. The Good Daughter by Karin Slaughter - I stayed up way too late too many nights in a row reading this one. It took some turns I did not expect.

October:

51. The In-Between: Unforgettable Encounters During Life's Final Moments by Hadley Vlahos* - The writing isn't stellar, but I appreciated the stories in this volume.

52. The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson* - This is funny, but it's a bit long and ultimately felt like more of the same by the end.

53. Friends, Lovers, and the Terrible Big Thing by Matthew Perry* - I read this right before he died. It turns out, I like Chandler Bing far more than Matthew Perry. His addictions made his life hard, which also made this book hard to read. Another thing that made this book hard to read were the jumps in timelines and the repetitiveness.

54. Several People Are Typing by Calvin Kasulke* - I chuckled throughout this modern-day Metamorphosis, but it's definitely not for everyone.

November:

55. Good Inside: A Guide to Becoming the Parent You Want to Be by Becky Kennedy* - If you follow Dr. Becky on Instagram, you'll learn what you need to know. This book has a lot of good content, but by the end, I was skipping to the relevant sections.

56. The Half Has Never Been Told: Slavery and the Making of American Capitalism by Edward E. Baptist* - This is a good, important topic, but it was really long. It's not a history book I'd readily recommend.

57. Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret by Judy Blume* - I do not get why this is such a classic. It felt really out of touch to me.

58. Die with Zero: Getting All You Can from Your Money and Your Life by Bill Perkins* - I have not stopped talking about this book with anyone who will listen. It really challenged some of my thoughts on money and how I spend it.

59. False Witness by Karin Slaughter* - Really dark, but I couldn't stop listening.

60. Broadway Butterfly by Sara DiVello - Nothing at all happened in this book. Yet another Kindle FirstReads, where I hung on to the bitter end, expecting something to happen, but nothing did.

61. The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton* - Billed as a mix of Station Eleven and Where the Crawdads Sing, I expected to love this one. I agree with the description, but the plot fell flat for me, especially at the end. I wouldn't say nothing in happens in this book, but when big things happen, it was as if they were small blips. 

December:

62. Girl, Forgotten by Karin Slaughter* - I'm to a point where everything from this author feels the same. Her books are highly engaging (if rather sweary and violent), but in the end they all blur together.

63. Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus* - I get why this one has gotten a lot of hype. It was funny and tender and deals with important topics. I thought it wrapped up too quickly and cleanly in the end.

64. Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin* - I get why this one was wildly popular, but it didn't do a ton for me.