november: 39, 40 & 41

black woods blue sky, by eowyn ivey (this was an odd book, creepy and mysterious, that i think i really enjoyed.  great to read in the winter, as it's set in alaska...if you're up for a little mysticism, i would highly recommend this!  but i don't think i can give it a wholehearted recommendation for everyone.)

little town on the prairie, by laura ingalls wilder (book 7 of 9!  i don't think i'd ever read this one...the blackface scene, which i knew was coming, was interesting to encounter.  as with all the little house books, we take the bad alongside the nostalgia...)

lightbreakers, by aja gabel (this was a book of the month club pick that i don't imagine i would have picked up without that recommendation.  a main character had a child die at age 3...he joins a time travel experimental project with the promise that he can go back and relive moments with his kid.  can he change the past?  we find out the answer to that in the book.  again, hard to know who to recommend this to: i can't imagine i would recommend it to anyone with young kids.  i'm glad i read it - it's well written - but it's in my free little library right now ready for someone out there to grab it.)

october: 35, 36, 37 & 38

the river is waiting, by wally lamb (there are a few wally lamb books that i LOVED and had a big impact on me, but some of his newer books haven't made the same impression on me.  this was a tough read (father goes to jail for accidentally killing his child - you find that out in the first chapter) and didn't ever reach a super uplifting place.  lamb is a great writer, but this was a tough one.)

how to be perfect, by michael shur (this is a tour through philosophy and different takes on how to live a good life.  i listened to this audiobook, which was a great listen (and had some celeb appearances) and enjoyed this book - and learned a bunch! - though i'm not sure i have retained much of what i learned...)

everything is tuberculosis, by john green (i loved this book, the nonfiction telling of what tuberculosis is and its history as a disease, interspersed with the contemporary story of a boy in sierra leone who is fighting TB. there is so much here about public health and what we prioritize or don't as a society.  i was really moved by this book and would highly recommend it!)

slow dance, by rainbow rowell (i like rowell as an author and this was in line with other books of hers that i've read - relatively light but well written.  i can't imagine this will stick with me long term, but i enjoyed reading it!)

september: 33 & 34

september's reading!

so far gone, by jess walter (i really liked this book, the second i've read by this author.  it's got cool character development where the first part focuses on one character, we get introduced a few others and one of them becomes the focus of the second part, etc.  the story is continuous but we see it play out through different character's perspectives.  it feels au courant, with the 2016 election the backdrop for a falling out of characters that propels the plot, but it's not so mired in that as to be depressing.  i'd definitely recommend this one!)

all the way to the river, by elizabeth gilbert (i read this because a friend invited me to see her speak in pittsburgh; having read it, this is one of those books that i'm not sure who to recommend it to.  the author falls in love with her best friend who is dying of cancer.  the book is about the friend/lover's decline and death.  but it's also a really interesting take on friendship and addiction and it's beautifully written...but the whole time i thought, there's no way this book would have gotten published had the author not already been super famous.  but i read it quickly and was definitely interested...this one needs the right audience, for sure.)

august: 30, 31, & 32

now we move to august's reading!

calypso, by david sedaris (this was a re-read, but i love david sedaris's books so much that i could probably re-read all of them and be joyful.  they're amazing both as audiobooks and traditional reads!)

in the heart of the sea, by nathaniel philbrick (i tore through this audiobook about the whaleship essex's sinking at the hands (fins?) of a whale in 1820.  an incredibly well told story, great narrative nonfiction - i learned a lot and had a lot to report out to arron along the way.  highly recommend!)

a court of mist and fury, by sarah j. maas (this is the second book in the series of five...but the last one that i will be reading.  i liked but didn't love this series and the books are long and my reading list is also long and i don't think i'll derive enough joy out of continuing to read them.  glad i got a glimpse into the world of romantasy, but this book was just okay for me. hot take!)

july: 26, 27, 28 & 29

oh boy - terribly behind on logging my reading!  here we go to catch back up...in july i read:

wild dark shore, by charlotte mcconaghy (loved this book - this is the third book by this author that i've read, and while all are stand alone books with separate characters and plots and settings, they have this in common: an admiration of the natural world and a strong female protagonist.  and they're gorgeously written!  if you don't know this author you should.)

supercommunicators, by charles duhigg (i read this as a little professional development over the summer.  i folded some pages back and made some notes but ultimately this was not life changing.)

brave new worlds, by salman khan (another professional development read - this was pretty interesting in terms of talking about AI and education and so i'm glad i read it...but it was also an unabashed advertisement for khan academy and sal khan's other ventures and that got pretty distasteful by the end.  i don't think this is a necessary read in book form - these ideas are ones you can grab onto from shorter articles.)

the names, by florence knapp (i liked this book - three parallel stories of the same woman taking the same baby to record his name - and picking three different names.  does she pick the name her husband wants, she wants, or her older daughter wants?  we see her make different choices from here and the life of the new baby change based on what name he's given.  i liked the premise a lot and was eager to see how the storylines would play out.  this would be a great read to take on a vacation with you!)

june: 22, 23, 24 & 25

a tale for the time being, by ruth ozeki (this was a great premise - a diary washes ashore on the west coast of canada, written by a teenager in japan.  we go back and forth between the life of the woman who finds it and the diary entries as we try to unravel the mystery of who the author is and how the diary got across the ocean.  there's some dark undertones that emerge - suicide, bullying, sex work - and ultimately i was glad the book was over.  it's well written and was interesting to read, but it isn't one that i will be rushing out to recommend.)

the long winter, by laura ingalls wilder (book 6 in the little house series, taking us through a real winter in dakota territory when it started blizzarding in october and didn't end until april.  i was startled as an adult to realize how close the ingalls family came to starving to death, and i don't actually remember reading this one as a child.  this was a quick read, and i'm glad to be continuing through this series.  3 more books to go!)

my friends, by fredrik backman (oh, this one disappointed me.  i loved a man called ove and a few others and was eagerly anticipating this book's release.  while a lot of what i like about backman was still there, this book was sadder than the others and there is a lot of foreshadowing of bad things to come later in the book.  I DO NOT NEED THIS ANXIETY IN MY LIFE.  it didn't make me want to keep reading.  so yes, i liked the characters and i was moved by the story, but it felt emotionally manipulative and i wasn't in the mood for that right now.)

travels with charley in search of america, by john steinbeck (this had been on my to be read list for a long time and i understood (correctly) the premise that Steinbeck drives around the country in a truck with his dog and documents it.  but whomever told me that this was the premise really undersold it.  it's September 1960.  Steinbeck is 58 and he's going to die at 66 (thanks, wikipedia).  the JFK-eisenhower election is upon us, and by the time Steinbeck finishes with the trip JFK will have won.  so yes, he does travel around the country and tell us about the people he meets and the places he sees, but it's so much deeper than that.  he talks with people about the election and muses on his own beliefs about which is the better candidate.  the threat of the atomic bomb is present in many chapters - it's clear he's ruminating on that.  He goes to new orleans where ruby bridges is desegregating an elementary school and he watches her walk into school one day while people spew hate at her.  he muses on masculinity.  he muses on the soul of his dog.  it's really beautifully written and there is SO MUCH TO UNPACK.  i loved it and would highly recommend it to you.)

may: 20 & 21

the ministry of time, by kaliane bradley (i enjoyed this sci-fi-ish romance-ish book about time travelers and their "bridges" to the modern world.  it helped that i had a little obsession a few years ago with the HMS erebus and the terror expeditions to find the northwest passage in 1845 - this plays a role in the plot.  i felt like this book was doing something different with its plot and the author had the chops to fill out the whole story line.  i enjoyed this!)

margo's got money troubles, by rufi thorpe (i read this over memorial day weekend while we were camping - i don't think i ever would have picked it up on my own (the plot revolves around a single mother getting on only fans to make money while building a relationship with her former-WWE-wrestler father) but a friend gave it to me and spoke highly of it.  i really enjoyed this and sped through it!  a well written beach read - the best kind.)

april: 17, 18 & 19

in april i read:

the life cycle of the common octopus, by emma knight (this was a read with jenna book recommendation and i've already almost forgotten what this book was about.  spoiler alert: it's not about octopi.  not rushing out to recommend this one to you, though i didn't dislike it.)

the heaven & earth grocery store, by james mcbride (i read this because we were considering it as a summer reading choice for the students at our school, and i liked it much more than i expected to - deacon king kong is the only other book by this author that i've read and i didn't love it.  this one was really compelling, the interwoven stories of a jewish community and a black community outside of philadelphia in the 1920s and 30s.  we did put it on the summer reading list, and i'm also going to lead a faculty book club on it now!  definitely recommend this one.)

the frozen river, by ariel lawhon (this was a book of the month club pick that i really enjoyed - historical fiction based on the real life story of a midwife (martha ballard) in maine in the 1700s.  i wrote a paper on birthing practices in an american history class in college and knew a lot about martha ballard already - she's a big deal because she wrote daily in a diary that survived her.  loved this fictionalized retelling of parts of her life, revolving around a murder.  would recommend this one!)

march: 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 & 16

i read 8 books in january and february combined and another 8 books in march alone.  2 were short and 3 were audiobooks...and i had spring break in there, as well...but it was a productive month of reading for me!  in march i read:

by the shores of silver lake, by laura ingalls wilder (continuing the series - this is the fifth book and i actually don't have a lot of memories of reading this one as a child.  i assume i did, but it seems like one that i didn't re-read often.)

h is for hope, by elizabeth kolbert (this was a short book with one essay per letter of the alphabet, all on climate change.  beautifully illustrated and easily digestible, i'm glad i read this one.)

revenge of the tipping point, by malcolm gladwell (i continue to love gladwell's writing and i listened to this audiobook.  he revisits the tipping point 25 years after it was published, but what comes out if it is an entirely new book.  i really enjoyed this and would recommend it!)

lonesome dove, by larry mcmurtry (making my nerd dreams come true, arron and i read this book at the same time from early january through mid-march, 100 pages per week and had book club each weekend to talk about what we read.  arron put up with me googling book club questions when we were all done and we went through those, too.  i loved this book, and i loved reading and discussing it with him.  this summer we plan to do the same with travels with charley and we have designs on war and peace next winter. <3)

prairie fires: the american dreams of laura ingalls wilder, by caroline fraser (cannot say enough good things about this book.  an incredible biography or laura, her family, her daughter, and america as they lived in it - and as it changed throughout their lives.  one of the best researched but most readable books i've ever read.  listened to it on audiobook and loved this as a companion to re-reading the little house books.  highly recommend!)

everything we never had, by randy ribay (this was a decent but not exceptional YA book.  i appreciated that it introduced me to the filipino-american experience in much greater detail than i understood previously!)

james, by percival everett (this book was getting so much attention - and now has won the pulitzer prize - that i had to read it...and i had to refresh my memory of huck finn on wikipedia first, as you're meant to have an understanding of that book before reading james.  i think this book is beautifully written, has a great concept, and gives a dignity and humanity to the main character that is necessary - and i sort of can't believe hasn't been done already.  i liked but didn't love this book, but am definitely glad i read it and i've passed on my copy to a friend.)

the indifferent stars above, by daniel james brown (i listened to this one and was fascinated by the story behind the donner party expedition.  highly recommend for people interested in american history, though parts of it are really gruesome to read/listen to.  i love this author and was really moved by this story - i talked about it to anyone who would listen for a few weeks there.)

february: 6, 7 & 8

one of our kind, by nicola yoon (i had read this author's YA fiction before and really enjoyed it - this is her first adult fiction and it was creepy and interesting.  the main character is a black woman who moves into an all-black country club community with her husband and child.  and then weird stuff happens.  i would recommend it!  but her YA stuff is the tip top so you should read that first.)

all-american boys, by jason reynolds and brendan kiely (i read this as we were contemplating whether to give it as a summer reading option at school - spoiler alert, we decided not to - and i don't think i would have picked it up otherwise.  two YA authors, one black and one white, write two teenage boy characters in this novel, one black and one white.  the plot centers around police violence from a white police officer towards the black teen.  it was a pretty heavy topic and revisited the same scenes multiple times as the characters reckon with it.  i'm glad this book exists, but i'm not rushing out to recommend it.)

the wide wide sea, by hampton sides (i listened to this audiobook that the nytimes called one of the 10 best books of the year, and i was so glad that i did.  it follows captain james cook's third (and final) voyage around the world as he attempts to find the northwest passage from west to east.  this is impeccably researched narrative nonfiction at its best and i loved it.  highly recommend!)

january: 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5

the mighty red, by louise erdrich (this is the first louise erdrich book that i've read and it definitely made me want to read more of her books.  compelling story but with a lot of characters and i finished kind of feeling like i didn't know any of them well.  this won't be a favorite book of the year, but was a good start.)

definitely better now, by ava robinson (this was a book of the month club pick that i really enjoyed - the story of a one-year-sober woman's first relationship post-sobriety, as well as the story of her relationship with her estranged father.  very readable but hard to know who to recommend this to - don't read if you've had a parent with a serious illness.  it surprised me by making me cry at the end.  was glad i read it!)

hidden potential, by adam grant (i listened to this one and really enjoyed it, as i did grant's previous book think again.  my favorite pop sociologist right now.  is that such a thing - to be a pop sociologist?)

entitlement, by rumaan alam (i eagerly awaited this book from the library, as i loved his previous book, leave the world behind...but this one didn't hit me in quite the same way.  i'd still recommend the previous book, if you haven't read it.  this one did hit some interesting themes of race and, per the title, entitlement and i did enjoy reading it but i won't be rushing out to recommend this to anyone.)

eve, by cat bohannon (i listened to this book and loved it, the story of how different parts of human women's biology evolved.  from breast milk (was first sweated through pores and licked by early rat-like mammals) to the use of tools by female mammals in history to menopause (humans and whales are the only species to experience this), i found it super interesting and the author was able to condense a ton of research into a really readable book.  would highly recommend this for all women and all non-women interested in biology!)

2024 in books

this year i read 46 books, 7 more than last year.  13 of those books meet some sort of diversity standard (as in, the main character or author is not white).  and 36 (wow - all but 10!) of those books were from the library. 

my favorite books of 2024:

tom lake, by ann patchett 

the best minds: a story of friendship, madness, and the tragedy of good intentions, by jonathan rosen

rough sleepers, by tracy kidder 

shark heart, by emily habeck

the god of the woods, by liz moore

gather, by kenneth m. cadow

brooklyn and long island, by colm toibin

december: 44, 45 & 46

i finished up the year with:

help wanted, by adelle waldman (ultimately, i didn't love this book, the story of an overnight crew at a target-like store and social dynamics between them.  i found it not terribly uplifting and the drama between the characters wasn't fun, it was sort of like being at my own job and navigating group dynamics.  i'd pass on this one, though it does have a very fun cover.)

anita de monte laughs last, by xochitl gonzalez (i started this book of the month book in the spring and kept putting it down, but i'd think about it occasionally and when i picked it back up to finish it in december it was easy to continue right where i left off.  i ended up really liking this book, even though i got stuck halfway through.  it's the story of two famous artists who are married and one dies by falling out a window...and then it flashed forward 20 years to an art history major who is rediscovering the female artist.  i found the main character very relatable and well-crafted - she came alive on the page.  there was definitely enough here to keep me interested, and i'd recommend this one!)

long island, by colm toibin (i loved this, the second book in the series.  just as much tension as the first book, and the author strings you out over a believable story that is super intriguing and keeps you wanting to find out how it will play out.  i highly recommend this, but read brooklyn first!)

november: 40, 41, 42 & 43

in november i read:

the thursday murder club, by richard osman (i had heard good things about this book, about a group of senior citizens who solve a murder.  while there was nothing wrong with this book and it was a relatively easy read, i didn't love it and i'm not rushing out to read the others in the series.  mystery isn't my go-to genre, which might have something to do with it, but i also found it hard to distinguish the characters early in the book (wait, who's this?), which didn't make it the most fun to read.)

the berry pickers, by amanda peters (i really liked this book, the story of a family of seasonal fruit pickers in maine and nova scotia whose daughter goes missing one season.  you flash back and forth between the season it happened and the present day, where one of the siblings is an old man and dying.  i won't say more because i don't want to spoil it, but i really liked this book and was intrigued by the story and the characters and the vivid setting.  i'd definitely recommend!)

the loneliest americans, by jay caspian kang (we read this for our faculty book club at school and i'm glad we did - it is part memoir, part history that explores what it means to be asian-american and what it means to "belong" in america.  definitely thought provoking and we had a good discussion.  i'm not rushing out to buy it for other people because i think it's imperfect but if this topic interests you it's absolutely worth a read.)

on the banks of plum creek, by laura ingalls wilder (book 4 in the series, a fast read while i was home with my parents over thanksgiving break.  i'm continuing to enjoy revisiting this series and learning more about wilder and the time period when her books were set.)

october: 37, 38 & 39

still catching up!  october's reading:

a court of thorns and roses, by sarah j. maas (yes, i got sucked into this series and yes i will absolutely be reading the next book in the series.  fairies.  romance.  what can i say.  i think it's worth giving this a whirl!)

the demon of unrest, by erik larson (i always like erik larson's books - this one is about fort sumter and the start of the civil war.  i listened to this - the audiobook narrator is great - and would recommend it if you're into narrative nonfiction!)

brooklyn, by colm toibin (this author came out with a sequel to this book, which i had never read but had seen and really enjoyed the movie.  so i decided to read the book, and found his writing style different from most books i read but really really lovely and easy to get into.  his narrator, eilis, is matter of fact and makes interesting choices (and has interesting choices thrust upon her).  i really enjoyed reading this and would highly recommend it!)

september: 35 & 36

all the colors of the dark, by chris whitaker (this was a read with jenna book club pick and i read it for that reason...but i found it really weird and hard to figure out what was real and what was happening in a character's mind - which i think was sort of the point but i didn't love that element of the book.  the middle of the book kind of dragged for me and i guess ultimately i wouldn't recommend this one.)

the wedding people, by alison espach (also a read with jenna pick, but one that i liked a lot more.  a few improbable elements but ultimately i was charmed by this book - vivid setting, interesting and likable characters, quick read.  this would be a great book to take on vacation! i should also mention that it just won the goodreads best fiction book of the year, and while i don't *always* agree with goodreads, this is a good choice.)

august: 30, 31, 32, 33 & 34

oh boy, i am quite behind on reporting out on my reading!  time to catch up.  in august i read:

the color of sundays, by andrew conte (this was one of six choices that our students had for a summer reading book, and the librarian (who is a friend of mine) asked me to read it so i could help lead a book club discussion on it.  the book is nonfiction, the story of the pittsburgh steelers beginning to recruit black players from hbcu colleges...and the history that led up to it.  it was written by an author who teachers at a college locally, and he's coming to school to speak in assembly next month.  as a person new to being a steelers fan, there was a lot in this book that i think locals would grab onto that just didn't mean much to me, but i did enjoy reading it and learned a lot!)

little house on the prairie, by laura ingalls wilder (the third book in the series, and part of my re-read.  like the others, i enjoyed this but didn't necessarily fall back in love with it.)

the golden thread, by kassia st. clair (this is the story of different fabrics that humans have made and used throughout our history - from microscopic scraps of fabric found by archeologists in caves to wool used for viking sails to fabrics that have gone into outer space.  for the immersives class that i am teaching in may, we are going to have the students read this book so i needed to preview it.  it was really interesting and is going to be a great pick for our class.  the kids will read a few chapters all together and then will pick one to focus on and present to the rest of the class.)

madness: race and insanity in a jim crow asylum, by antonia hylton (this author is coming to pittsburgh and i have a ticket to see her speak this spring, so i wanted to read the book before i went.  i found it really interesting - the story of segregated asylums, focusing on one in maryland.  you learn a lot about how the mental healthcare industry has changed over time, and also about how problematic (shocker) the management of all-black institutions was in the first half of the 20th century.  i listened to the audiobook, which is well-narrated.  definitely recommend this!)

stiff: the curious lives of human cadavers, by mary roach (this was recommended to me by a coworker and i really enjoyed it - nonfiction but with a playful take it it.  this book made me want to read more books by this author - having seen how many books this author has written, i can't believe this is the first one i've read!  would definitely recommend.)

july: 25, 26, 27, 28 & 29

hello beautiful, by ann napolitano (this is the second book by this author that i've read, and both have made such a small impression on me that i can't remember what the books are about...even this one that i finished just a month before writing this post.  does that mean the titles are boring and vague?  or the writing is flat?  i'm not sure.  i know that this author is popular, but her books fall flat for me.  this one is [thanks, internet, for reminding me] about sibling relationships, marriage, and forgiveness.  if you want a perfectly fine book that may not stick with you, i did enjoy reading this one!)

gather, by kenneth m. cadow (totally moved by this book, a YA one about a boy and his dog in vermont.  i had heard it referred to as a YA version of demon copperhead, which is a reasonable comparison.  i loved this book and would highly recommend it!  after finishing it i learned that the author is a high school principal who wrote this as a covid project and that really filled my heart up even more.)

there will be fire, by rory carroll (i listened to this audiobook at the recommendation of kevin hazzard, the author of american sirens that my book club at school read and then we zoomed with the author.  it's the story of the IRA bombing of a hotel in brighton, england in 1984 and is excellent narrative nonfiction.  i learned a lot and would definitely recommend it!  as a bonus, the audiobook narrator is excellent.)

family meal, by bryan washington (this is the second book by this author that i've read, both set in houston and interesting for that reason.  this is the story of two men, childhood friends, and how they deal with a tragedy and their relationship with each other.  i think the author is a beautiful writer but this book didn't totally enthrall me.)

the god of the woods, by liz moore (i sped through this book, a read with jenna book club pick, and would definitely recommend it!  the author creates a vibrant world at a summer camp where a girl has gone missing, and flashes back to a missing kid 15 years earlier at the same camp. you follow the investigators, the camp counselors, the girl's best friend, her mother, and others...and it winds together a really intriguing story.  a great summer read!)

june: 21, 22, 23 & 24

master slave husband wife, by ilyon woo (i listened to this audiobook and really enjoyed it.  this was one of the new york times' best books of last year, so i added it to my list - it's the story of a married couple who escaped slavery and then went on an anti-slavery speaking tour in the north.  the story of how they escaped is fascinating, and the details bring to life how dangerous this choice was, even years after they had made it to the north, as slave catchers arrive to look for them.  highly recommend!  great narrative non-fiction, and the audiobook was well-narrated.)

shark heart, by emily habeck (i think this is my favorite book of this year, and i was so reluctant to read it - a man slowly starts turning into a shark shortly after he gets married.  i mean.  but the book is so beautifully written and the characters are so well-developed, and i read the last 50 pages at a sprint and then cried some tears.  the shark book!  you must read this!)

iron flame, by rebecca yarros (the second book in the series...this one dragged for me - i think i read it too soon after reading the first.  dragons and romance...and this book has a lot more strategy and battle planning and such.  it ends on a cliffhanger, so i'm sure i'll read the third book that comes out in january, but i definitely liked this one less than the first in the series [fourth wing].)

where the deer and the antelope play, by nick offerman (listened to this audiobook at the recommendation of a colleague - though the middle part got a little preachy about how much we're screwing up our relationship to nature, i did really enjoy this book.  funny, self-deprecating, thoughtful, well-written and well-narrated by the author.  a great recommendation for a road trip!)

may: 19 & 20

i didn't read a ton in may (a few works in progress will be completed in june), and i didn't fall head over heels for either of these books:

let us descend, by jesmyn ward (this was a hard read - the main character is enslaved and much of the content is as brutal as you'd expect - but beautifully written.  if you haven't read anything by jesmyn ward, you must.  i might point you towards sing, unburied, sing instead.)

farmer boy, by laura ingalls wilder (the second in the series that i'm making my way through.  i'm actually not sure i ever read this as a kid, which wouldn't surprise me - this is stories from laura's husband's childhood, and i didn't want to be a pioneer BOY, i wanted to be a pioneer girl.  glad i read it, though - more amazing descriptions of food and daily life, this time of almanzo's childhood in new york state.)