Expectation: A young adult romance weep fest.
Reality: A good balance of heavy subject matter with lighter moments, buoyed by two charming main characters and an understated love story.
The Prophets – Robert Jones, Jr.
Expectation: A remarkable debut novel giving a queer perspective to the experiences of those held in slavery in pre-Civil War America.
Reality: Gorgeous writing, memorable characters and a tense last third help overcome a somewhat confusing structure. This is a book people will talk about all year.
Ring Shout – P. Djèlí Clark
Expectation: An adventure story with political and social commentary.
Reality: A genre-defying horror fantasy featuring an amazing cast of BIPOC women and one of the most terrifying literary villains in recent memory.
A Monster Calls – Patrick Ness
Expectation: A mushy, hopeful tale of a teen manifesting a monster to help him grapple with the death of a parent and the ways it will change his life.
Reality: A simply told, yet incredibly impactful exploration of the ways in which we lie to ourselves.
Anxious People – Fredrik Backman
Expectation: A balanced examination of second chances delivered with Backman’s signature style of homespun philosophy.
Reality: A somewhat slap-sticky and, at times, annoying character study that tries to do a bit too much but finds its footing in the end.
Born a Crime – Trevor Noah
Noah shares the darker moments of his South African upbringing with a casual and humorous delivery that will make you feel guilty for laughing out loud at memories so painful.
Pretty Girls/Blonde Hair, Blue Eyes – Karin Slaughter
After Claire’s husband is murdered during an attempted robbery, the duplicity she slowly uncovers might be connected to her sister’s disappearance 20 years earlier.
A Promised Land – Barack Obama
An exhaustive - and sometimes exhausting - recap of about seven years of Barack Obama’s political career.
2020: The Best Books I Read
Curious about what to read first in 2021? These five-star reads and honorable mentions are a great place to start.
2020: The Worst Books I Read
I read these books so you don’t have to.
2020: The Best And Worst Audiobook Narrations I Heard
Almost 82 percent of my reading this year was done through headphones, but you don’t need to be an audiobook all-star to recognize a good narration from a bad one.
2020: My Year In Reading – The Stats
This infographic breaks down my reading by page count, hours listened, author diversity and genre.
2020: My Year in Books
Whether you stopped by once or were a return visitor, thanks for being a part of my book reading and reviewing hobby this year.
“A Christmas Carol” and the Other Classics I Read This Year
All told, I read 10 classics this year, which accounted for about 13 percent of my total books read – my English teachers would be so proud!
The Midnight Library – Matt Haig
Expectation: A science-fiction version of “It’s A Wonderful Life.”
Reality: A deeply emotional, highly philosophical and ultimately feel good “what if” story.
The Houseplant – Jeremy Ray
“The Houseplant” proves that you can pack as much story, character development and emotion into a 5,000-word standalone story as some full-length novels.
Do You Have Literary Genre Bias?
How often do you step outside your literary comfort zone?
Ready Player Two – Ernest Cline
Expectation: Another trip down memory lane with hefty doses of geek culture.
Reality: Enjoyable and more accessible – from a pop culture perspective – but missing the energy that propelled the first novel.
Shuggie Bain – Douglas Stuart
Expectation: A bleak, yet heartfelt story about overcoming obstacles and discovering who you are.
Reality: This would be the most depressing book I’ve ever read if “Betty” didn’t take the crown last week.
Betty – Tiffany McDaniel
Expectation: The female “A Little Life.”
Reality: The most depressing book I’ve ever read, yet there was something still beautiful about its pain and misery.
Recommended For: People that like character driven stories, especially those about Americana.