pookiebeary

[aldieb]

it’s looking increasingly likely that i might write the book. like it doesn’t have to exist but no outside author is biting and if my boss will genuinely commit to swapping out some of my worse job tasks… if my first publication is nonfiction abt [redacted] i will laugh til i die

[crosbytoews]

best books i read in 2020!

listed in the order i read them. it’s dec 29 so this may be premature but lbr nothing i’m going to read in the next 3 days will make this list 

catch and kill by ronan farrow 

nonfiction book about a journalist uncovering the harvey weinsten story and all the crazy intimidation techniques the weinstein camp used. i listened to the audiobook, which i highly recommend. huge tw for rape this book gave me nightmares lol 

the handmaid’s tale by margaret atwood 

written in response to the 1980s moral majority but felt very relevant during the trump administration

the nightingale by kristin hannah

ww2 historical fiction taking place in nazi occupied france. focused on the experiences of women during the war. it follows two sisters, one who stays in france while her husband fights in the war and one who joins a resistance movement. so beautiful and heartbreaking. maybe my favorite read of 2020

misery by stephen king

an author is kidnapped following a car accident and held hostage by a very unsettling nurse in the middle of nowhere. scarier than any supernatural stephen king book i’ve read. the woman holding him hostage is creepy!!! tw for violence, gore, and body horror

i’ll be gone in the dark by michelle mcnamara 

nonfiction book about the golden state killer and the author’s experiences as an amateur sleuth. i knew a lot about gsk going into this, but the way michelle wrote about it was so much scarier than any material i had previously encountered. this book was published posthumously and the parts the author wrote about herself and the parts written about her made me cry a lot 

the great believers by rebecca makkai 

this is a dual perspective historical fiction about the aids crisis in chicago, one part told through the POV of a gay man in the 80s and the other through the POV of this man’s friend in present day. the premise had the potential to be problematic seeing as it was written by a woman who herself never experienced the aids crisis, but it is SO well researched and she did it wonderfully. if you like to cry you should read this book!

beach read by emily henry

enemies to lovers but it gets deep! a woman’s father dies unexpectedly and shortly after she finds out that he was having an affair. she stays in the beach house her father and the other woman owned together and her old college rival is staying next door! this is a very cute romance that also gets deep. i can’t wait to read this author’s new release in 2021! 

anxious people by frederik backman

my favorite 2020 release! this is a book about a hostage situation that is also not at all about a hostage situation. it is funny and heartwarming and backman makes a lot of poignant comments about humanity. single handedly ended capitalism. you will laugh and you will cry, i cannot recommend it enough 

homegoing by yaa gyasi

a historical fiction that spans centuries and generations, starting with two sisters in ghana in the 1700s. it’s about the impact of slave trade in ghana and the united states. the descriptions of slavery leave nothing back, and it’s hard to read at times. lots of trigger warnings there. this book is sad, beautiful, and poignant. 

pride and prejudice by jane austen

the ultimate enemies to lovers story! this book has really stood the test of time. it’s over 200 years old but still very funny. if you like the 2005 adaptation you will like this book even more

betty by tiffany mcdaniel

this is my far the least well known book i’ve read this year and it deserves a lot more recognition!! it follows a half cherokee girl and her family in like the 1950-80s. the family face a lot of hardships during this time, especially betty, the only sibling who cannot pass as white. the author based this book on her mother’s experiences. heed the trigger warnings! graphic descriptions of physical abuse, sexual abuse, rape, animal abuse, and incest. 

the vanishing half by brit bennett 

another multi POV, multi generational historical fiction. twin sisters run away from home and eventually become estranged. one sister returns to her hometown, where the people are obsessed with lightening their skin. the other sister marries rich and passes as white. this book tackles racism and colorism. it’s my second favorite 2020 release.