Moira: Top Reads of 2019
What an amazing year for reading! While the general consensus among people I know (and my co-bloggers) is that 2019 has been easy on few of us, there were many reading-related highlights. So many of them were with Shannon and Elizabeth, whom I am so grateful to be on this journey with.
My original goal for the year was a lofty 250, but I lost count around March. I estimate that I’ve read close to 200, however! I have an absolutely awful time remembering what I’ve read, but this blog is also a great prompt for what I loved (and detested—I’m picky).
Unless otherwise noted, these are in no particular order.
The absolute best read of the year came in January for me. I spent a solid month mourning having finished The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai (see Shannon’s review here). The main character, Yale, reminded me so much of myself (age, profession, general naïveté), and while, like Elizabeth, I wasn’t as enamored of the Paris portion of the plot, I was so desperately in love with this tale of how AIDS impacted the gay community in Chicago.
Fleishman is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner gets a close second (see my review here). This unsettling but extremely readable look at a modern marriage, and the difference in perception between people in a relationship, got a great deal of critical buzz. It is so well-deserved.
In at the Deep End by Kate Davies (my review here) had me in stitches on the subway. A lesbian Bridget Jones’s Diary for our time, this smutty romp is also an affecting look at coming into one’s identity later than most.
Little Panic by Amanda Stern (my neighbor!) ((see my review here)) was a wonderful memoir about growing up with anxiety, and how it isolates and shapes your experience. It is super engaging and I recommend it to anyone who is anxious or loves an anxious person.
I was lucky enough to read Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid in advance of its 12/31 release, and have a feeling that this one will blow up. The premise had me from the start—a Black nanny for a wealthy white family visits a supermarket late at night with her charge and is accosted by security. The resultant friction between the nanny and her employer are a deep dive into race and class politics, while still being a fast-paced read.
Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston (see my review here), a gay romance between the Prince of England and POTUS’ son, was a delightful diversion. While conforming to romance novel conventions, it is legitimately very funny and super sexy. While the course of true love never did run smooth, you’ll enjoy a wild ride as Alex and Henry meet the many obstacles in their way head-on. Come for the excellent writing, stay for the smut. Come for the smut (heh heh), stay for the excellent writing.
Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane (see my review here and Elizabeth’s here) is a story of two families in the recent past whose lives collide tragically. The exploration of addiction and mental illness, as well as familial trauma, is delicate and nuanced. While it is a bit slow to start, you’ll be absorbed by 50 pages in. It becomes a truly lovely meditation on forgiveness and starting over.
Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes is an excellent first novel (see my review here). Any book that largely centers around baseball and can keep my interest is definitely doing something right. A lovely, and loving, story about a widow who rebuilds her life after her husband’s untimely death with the help of dear friends and a romantic partner with demons of his own, this is truly a sweet and uplifting book.
Lady in the Lake by Laura Lippman (my review here). It would be shocking if a Lippman release weren’t on my top ten—I adore her. This mystery, of a young divorcee becoming entrenched in the crime and racial politics of 1960s Baltimore, is a dark psychological tale. While unintentionally becoming involved in solving the murder of a young Black woman, Maddie sees parts of her city, and blind parts within herself, that lead her to a fuller understanding of race and inequity.
Like a Love Story by Abdi Nazemian (my review here) is another look at the destructive path of AIDS in the 80s, this time in New York. Told through a YA lens, this heartbreaking and heartwarming story of a teen love triangle is compelling. With a few really touching relationships with adults and a healthy dose of Madonna, you won’t be able to put this one down.
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