So excited to finally get this post up! I actually skipped Jamie’s End of Year Book Survey last year because 2018 wasn’t a huge reading year for me but I’m back with the survey again to round up my 2019 reads. As usual, I’m only answering the questions here that I’m excited about and that don’t conflict with an upcoming post.
reading stats
Number of Books Read // 50
Number of Re-Reads // I had six re-reads this year ( The Great Gatsby, Unearthly, The Goose Girl, The Oddyssey, One True Loves, and Anna and the French Kiss).
Genre Breakdown // YA was 9/50, Adult Fiction/Classics was 24/50, Middle Grade was 2/50, Nonfiction was 13/50, Poetry was 1/50, and Graphic Novels were 1/50.
best in books
best book read in 2019 // Educated by Tara Westover // I listened to Educated with my mom on my road trip from St. Louis up to Vermont at the end of the summer; we were completely engrossed.
book I was excited about and expected to love but didn’t // Literally by Lucy Keating // This was my last read of the year and is one that I’ve had sitting on my shelves for ages; I’ve always loved the premise of this but the execution wasn’t my favorite. I didn’t feel as though there was a ton of depth in the characters and I wasn’t invested in their motivations. This novel would fit best in readers transitioning from Middle Grade into YA I think.
book I pushed the most people to read in 2019 // After listing to Educated I was certainly pushing that, specifically the audiobook. However, I think my most pushed book of 2019 is probably what is always is, which is Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng. Everything I Never Told You is one of my favorite books of all time and one I always recommend for it’s character driven drama and multi-generational family plot. Some things never change.
favorite new author(s) discovered in 2019 // I think this is a tie between Sally Rooney and Tayari Jones. I read both of Rooney’s books this fall and just finished Jones’ American Marriage a few days ago and am excited to read more from both of them! Very different styles but equally impressed by both.
book from a genre I don’t typically read // Small Spaces by Katherine Arden // This book fell into my lap at BookExpo 2018 and became particularly special when I got to meet Arden and find out that I’m attending her alma matter college. Even MORE special is that I returned to Middle Grade for the first time since my senior year of high school (when, upon graduating and heading on my gap semester I had to say good bye to the Middle Grade book club I had been running at The Novel Neighbor). This book was absolutely SPECTACULAR and was such a perfect dose of spookiness that the Scorpio in me needed in the middle of March (when I read this lol). Now I just need to read the sequel.
most unputdownable book of the year // How the García Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez // Technically I had to read this book quickly to write a report on it last semester during finals BUT I had so much fun reading this interconnected short stories. Though I was reading the text mainly to analyze for instances in which bilingualism in the text could be useful in a classroom setting, I fell in love with the characters and Alvarez’s writing style. I’m a sucker for a multi-generational family story (it’s my favorite type of book!), and this one was so delightful to read.
favorite cover of a book read in 2019 // The Care and Feeding Of Ravenously Hungry Girls by Anisa Gray. An extremely emotional novel but what a GORGEOUS cover.
most beautifully written book read in 2019 // Migritude by Shailja Patel // this was the only poetry I got to read in 2019 but it was absolutely glorious! Patel’s poetry was infused with history in a way that I had never encountered before but found to be very special.
most thought provoking book of 2019 // White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo // This book helped me understand so many different perspectives and interactions; it also helped me be more critical of myself as an ally. I recommend this for people who want to understand the white perspective, but more seriously for white people who are ready to become more self aware.
book I can’t believe I waited until 2019 to read // I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson // This is a YA favorite of one of my friends at college who insisted that I read it. I typically am pretty slow to get to people’s recommendations, but for some reason this one joined me last spring break and I couldn’t have been more pleased. Such gripping characters and what a FANTASTIC plot. And it’s a beloved YA I probably should have read a lot sooner…but I’m glad I got to it eventually.
shortest and longest books read in 2019 // Jealousy by Alain Robbe-Grillet and The Iliad of Homer // Both of these were books I read for classes in my first year of college. Jealousy was actually very interesting to discuss in class and write about; The Iliad was a bit more difficult than I expected. I think I would have enjoyed it more if I had taken Greek at some point and was able to understand the significance of all the character’s names!
favorite book from 2019 from an author read previously // Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo // I had the pleasure of reading an ARC of Ninth House while on vacation this summer; it was a lot slower paced than I expected, though I makes sense when I reflected on Barudgo’s style. I found that the plot plateaued a bit but I was so engrossed in the character arcs that it helped keep me interested until the plot picked back up again. Bardugo set this novel in SUCH a fascinating world–with definitely more adult themes than her YA books (I think this has been appropriately marketed). Overall I totally recommend.
best book from 2019 that I read SOLEY because of someone else // Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston // This book was ALL OVER my twitter feed this summer. Because of all the hype and the adorable premise, I completely caved…and finished this in one day. Red, White, and Royal Blue is ADDICTIVE in the best way. You love the characters, you love the plot, you love everything about it–at least I did. So…I would say thank you bookTwitter for bringing this one into my life.
hidden gem of the year // My Life on the Road by Gloria Steinem // Not sure this quite counts due to the fame of the author, but My Life On the Road was one of my most favorite books I read all year and I have barely anyone to talk to about it. I read this one off the recommendation of a friend (thank you Pauline <3) and hope to pass the recommendation off to someone else. Steinem’s role in the feminist and various other social movements is admirable and her writing style completely brings you into the stories of her travels. Go out and read this one!
And that’s a wrap. This isn’t a complete list of my 2019 reads, but feel free to hop over to my GoodReads profile for the complete list. Otherwise, Happy New Year! I’ve got some exciting 2019 roundups planned and some new 2020 posts coming your way soon.
