2018 was another great year of reading and fun book groups. Choosing my five favorites like I did last year was too hard, so I’m breaking it down into fiction and nonfiction faves…
Fiction
- Little Fires Everywhere – A seemingly uncomplicated book that is actually rather intense and complicated. While I can’t say I enjoyed this book, I did appreciate the topics Ng tackled and the conversations it yielded in my book group.
- Still Me – In her third book following the character Louisa Clark, Moyes told her story against one of my favorite backdrops, NYC, so of course I loved every moment of her accessible writing.
- Pachinko – Hands down my favorite historical fiction of the year, highly recommend, couldn’t put it down!
- This Is How It Always Is – A heart-warming and heart-breaking story of a family struggling with gender dysphoria alongside other more typical family challenges.
- Crazy Rich Asians series – With the movie coming out I couldn’t resist this guilty pleasure any longer – tore through all three books in about two weeks.
Nonfiction
- Girls & Sex – Must read for parents of tween girls OR boys.
- Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End – Well-written, educational book about aging, death, and the medical profession’s mishandling of both. This book shifted my perspective on our health care system and should be mandatory reading for every American.
- The Girl With Seven Names – After reading Pachinko, I found myself hungry for more information about North Korea. This fast-paced memoir both added to my understanding about this country and left me amazed at the perseverance of it’s people.
- Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind – Listened to this one via Audible as tackling a comprehensive view of the history of humankind and all the major forces and events that lead us to who we are today did not seem like something I could easily pick up at the end of the day! I will join in the chorus that includes Bill Gates and Barack Obama recommending this book.
- Magnolia Table – I jumped on the Joanna Gaines train last year and have found some new family favorites in her cookbook.
I’m already into a good read as I write this in the first week of January but always looking to add to my list. Say hello below or over on Instagram with your latest favorite reads!
