I love to read…now. When I was a kid, I could never find a book or series that kept me interested enough. I used to try to find the “funny” books at the school library, but I don’t believe librarians use classifications for shelving like “makes you laugh out loud” and “isn’t too sad or scary.”
It wasn’t until college that I found you could enjoy reading a book, regardless if it was funny or not. After I graduated, I was bummed I didn’t have a curated book list to read, so I began the adventure of diving into the local library, book lists and friends’ recommendations to whet my appetite.
Throughout the past 10 years, I’ve learned I enjoy memoirs, novels either funny ones or ones with a cast of quirky characters, and christian spirituality books. I don’t know what that last category really means (maybe christian self-help?), but a lot of the books I enjoy reading tend to have that written on the back. Also, essay style books are my jam, like Blue Like Jazz, For the Love and Present over Perfect.
In 2019, I read almost 40 books. I think for 2020 my goal is to read 50 books. I could get into the list I have on my phone with hundreds of books I hope to read someday or the bookshelves full of books I picked up at garage sales and thrift stores that I have yet to start. But that’s not why we’re here. Without further ado, here are some of my favorites from 2019:
Autobiographies/Memoirs:
I truly enjoyed learning about a woman who’s work I love. This memoir follows her from birth through moving to LA to start filming Mary Poppins. She lived in London during World War II, performed vaudeville acts with her parents from a very young age, and took on a lot of responsibility as a child. After you read this one, grab Home Work, her latest autobiography describing her life during her Hollywood years. It’s high on my book list for 2020.
Austin Channing Brown is a truth teller of the best sort; she holds nothing back. Here’s a description I found on her website about the book: “Austin writes in breathtaking detail about her journey to self-worth and the pitfalls that kill our attempts at racial justice, in stories that bear witness to the complexity of America’s social fabric–from Black Cleveland neighborhoods to private schools in the middle-class suburbs, from prison walls to the boardrooms at majority-white organizations.”
I love learning about French culture. It’s probably the only thing that kept me going as I trudged through getting a French minor in college. (Not one of my finest moments.) Peter Mayle is a Brit who moves to the South of France and chronicles his experiences. I laughed out loud many times, partly from the craziness that Peter encounters and partly because of his writing style. This was a perfect summertime read.
Christian Spirituality:
This book was truly fascinating. I loved hearing Justin Lee’s story about his own journey. I think the best part for me was his encouragement to have dialogue instead of debate with someone from a differing opinion. No matter your stance on homosexuality, this is a must read.
“Blessed are the wonderers with the courage to live into the questions” (Sarah Bessey, Out of Sorts, p. 125)
Have you ever read a book where the author is able to put into words the way you felt but couldn’t explain? That’s what this book and Sarah Bessey did for me. It was one of my top reads of 2019. Here’s one of the many quotes I wrote down in my journal:
“When we are sorting things out, when we dare to ask questions, sometimes someone will pat us on the head and say, ‘Well, you know, you need to have faith like a child…’ You’re supposed to be like a child and accept what you’ve been taught and stop asking questions. […] To which I now, respectfully ask, ‘I’m sorry, but have you ever been around a child for any amount of time?’ […] Now that I have a house full of small humanity, I think I’m beginning to understand why Jesus would encourage us to have faith like a child. They don’t know. And so they ask. We don’t know. And so we ask.” (Out of Sorts, p.48)
Poetry:
While waiting in line to check out my library books, this one caught my eye. I don’t usually look for poetry books, but the title intrigued me. This book is like scrolling through your favorite inspirational Instagram or Twitter feed. But better. This book makes me want to read more poetry.
Laugh Out Loud Fiction:
Jen Dixon is a wife and mother of two college kids and a kindergartner and she has just been asked to be the class mom after years off. I know it’s a novel, but I want to be Jen Dixon’s best friend. Her emails to the other parents are reason enough to read this book. Laurie Gelman writes all the things we are thinking and (sometimes) don’t dare say. Once in a while I’d forgot I was reading a novel and thought “I can’t believe this happened! Oh, that’s right, it didn’t.” I read this in a day, that’s how much I loved this book and don’t care about my kids. (Just kidding, about the book part.) And once you read the first book, you instantly need to pick up the follow up: You’ve Been Volunteered. It might even be funnier than the first book. (And of course I care about my kids! Geez! I just ignore them when I am reading…)
Anne Shirley is one of the most unforgettable characters you’ll ever read. She grows from a silly eleven year old girl into a beautiful mother over the course of the series. I love seeing her character development throughout the series. If you ever get lost in a daydream, think that the anticipation is the best part, put your foot in your mouth or suffer from stubbornness, you’ll be able to relate to Anne. This series will always be my favorite. If I had to pick a favorite book, it would probably be Anne’s House of Dreams or Anne of Ingleside.
Feel Good Fiction:
The Hygge Holiday by Rosie Blake
Despite having quilting in the name, you don’t have to be a quilter to appreciate Jennifer Chiaverini’s Elm Creek Quilts series. The Elm Creek Quilts books are the kind of book that you curl up under a blanket (or quilt) with a warm cuppa and enjoy. There are so many characters in this series, each book focuses on a couple of them or introduces new characters who meet the old ones. You can read them in order or out of order. I just read through all of The Christmas Quilt on Christmas day. And yes, these books make me want to learn to quilt. I even went as far as asking my grandmother to teach me. After her initial guffaw, she told me to go find a quilt shop if I really wanted to learn that bad. Apparently the idea of teaching me is a waste of her time. I have no idea why she thinks I wouldn’t stick with it…
Novels with Interesting Characters:
I’m putting this book under cast of characters, but it really could go under laugh out loud. The story is told through letters written back and forth between the characters. Although it’s not a typical format, I think reading about events through the character’s eyes is what makes the book so interesting. This story takes place during post WW2 England, so it’s not all laughs, but it is interesting to think about what life was like on the island of Guernsey during the Nazi occupation.
One of my best sources for new novels, my grandmother, put this in my hands this summer. She assured me I would love it. My grandmother reads more than I do and always has a stack of books to pass on to me. Looking at the summary, I wasn’t sure if I would love it, but I did. I’m not going to tell you much more about it because there is a bit of mystery to the story. Just do yourself a favor and go pick it up, you’re not going to want to put it down.
I LOVED this book. Even though it is fiction, I remember taking pictures of passages I wanted to remember. Here’s a brief intro to the story: Monsieur Perdu owns a bookshop on an old barge docked on the Seine. He thinks of books like medicine and always knows just what to prescribe to whoever walks on board. The only person he hasn’t been able to help is himself. Until…you go read the book and find out for yourself!
House of Dreams 