A Year In Books
Though I have always held devoted reader as a defining part of my identity, truth be told, in recent years I have allowed the demands of life to steal away this part of me. In October 2019 I cast a line to see if I could find anyone willing to read a book along with me and just like that a book club took root. The next year brought me up to 12 books and this time last year I resolved to read 24 books in 2021, partly wondering (with a house rehab and later a wedding to plan) if I had it in me. The ebb and flow of life still knocked me about a bit, but I still fought to find time for this thing I love. Some months I read 2 or 3 and others I read none. In the end I fell short of my goal, but I am so grateful that I made it as close as I did!
Reads of 2021
Here’s a quick overview:
2021 Reading Goal: 24
Books started: 26
Books completed: 21
Audiobooks/Page-in-hand: 6/15
Re-reads/First read: 3/18
I overwhelmingly loved the books I read this year (with lifetimes of texts to choose from, it would be embarrassing if the inverse were true.) Of the 20 I managed to complete, there are several that beg to be expounded upon and a few to which I oblige.
Play It As It Lays by Joan Didion
Having heard so much of Didion, I tried reading The Year of Magical Thinking when I was in grad school. I didn’t get far. I think the subject matter was a bit too heavy for where I was on my own journey but I still hoped to pick her back up at another time. So when I came across one of her early works of fiction earlier this year, I snatched it up. The first thing I like about Play It As It Lays is that it’s a quick read. I am a proponent of wading into an author with their short works first, when possible. Secondly, I like how it reminded me that the mark of a great writer is not in what is said, but what is unsaid; Didion clearly trusts the reader. Upon completion, I wished I had read this in a group… it could benefit from multiple perspectives.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Beloved by Toni Morrison
Though a part of me knows I read this in high school, I am counting this as a first read because I truly recalled nothing. But oh my, what genius! Morrison is a genius. Every word is hand picked and offered to the reader as a gift to unwrap. A tale of dehumanization and finding value, finding life through the journey of one family, this foundational book confronts the reader in a way that begs compassion. The story itself of course is moving, as it should be, but even more than that, the mode of telling it transcends all others. I am convinced it has no peer. I opted to listen to this book read by the author and I highly recommend it.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Happy City by Charles Montgomery
Chosen for my book club by Rachel Hollar, it is no surprise this book brings us face to face with the impact transportation and urban design have on our lives. Offering many case studies of what works (and what doesn’t work), Montgomery paints the picture of a happy city that feels within reach. And while the transformation of a city takes some time, he reminds us that transforming our own lives can start with simply ditching the car and walking to work.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi
Leant to me by a friend, I promised myself I would finish it by the end of the year. Though at first I was a little intimidated by the page count, once I dove in, the story had me hooked and I completed it in a few days. It was a lovely introduction to a foreign time and place, bringing to life an unknown world. The subject matter journeys into some surprisingly dark places. Joshi very intentionally confronts the limitations and threats women and girls in that world face daily. And while the protagonist is almost overcome by them, Joshi lets the reader’s investment pay off with the sunset in the distance we can hope takes its cue from reality.
⭐⭐⭐
Strange Fruit by Lillian Smith
This book is intense. Published in 1944, the Southern author tackles the hypocrisy of the Christian church in the wake of Jim Crow Laws. Told from multiple perspectives, Smith effortlessly weaves the experiences of the different characters together to form a provocative tapestry. Though overtly confronting inequities surrounding race, Smith also subtly incorporates the oppression of individuals with same-sex sexual oreintation into the story, bringing into sharp perspective the subjugation of any and all who find themselves outside the comfort zone of the ruling class. A bold and lonely voice of her time, Smith offers us a time capsule to reflect and respond to.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein
Sci-Fi and I are giving it another go. And I must admit, this book drew me in instantly. As I listened (Trent and I listened to this audiobook on a road trip), I felt sure that this author could write about anything and I would love it. Imagine my surprise when I learned Heinlein wrote this in only a few weeks! The world is interesting, the mysteries open-ended, and the themes thought-provoking. It was the book I never knew I needed in my life. I highly recommend it.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis
My book club will laugh when I say I didn’t like the ending (this is my most common critique.) I’ve been carrying this book around for years and finally dove in. Lewis dazzles the reader (as always) with an intriguing world and delightfully complex characters. Playing off the classical myth of Cupid and Psyche, he creates an origin story of sorts for one of Psyche’s doubting sisters. This character is one of my favorites of his, at once relatable and magical in her own way. I sincerely loved this story and foresee many rereads.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
And so concludes my brief reflections. A year measured in books is a year well spent.
From Left to Right:
Strange Fruit by Lillian Smith
Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Catch and Kill by Ronan Farrow
Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi
Play It As It Lays by Joan Didion
The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
When You Trap a Tiger by Tae Keller
Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl
Beloved by Toni Morrison
The Duke and I by Julia Quinn
Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein
Persuasion by Jane Austen
Happy City by Charles Montgomery
Spark Joy by Marie Kondo
Broke Millennial by Erin Lowry
Not Pictured:
We Share the Same Sky by Rachael Cerrotti
The Likability Trap by Alicia Menendez
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger