My Favorite Books of 2023

This is my annual book post!  My tradition is to put pictures of the books I read this year (thanks, Goodreads, for compiling the list), and then post my favorites.  Before I get to the favorites, I always put a few thoughts about my reading life over the last year.  This is probably a little like recipe bloggers who tell a whole story when all you really want to see is the recipe - the good news is, like those blogs, you can just scroll on down to the picks if you so desire! 

The big change in my reading life this year is that I finally, finally picked up the habit of audiobooks.  I've heard people singing their praises for years, but I just didn't think that format would work for me.  The tipping point came this year as my friend Autumn had us swing by the Douglas County Library when we were on an adventure, get a library card, and get the Hoopla app  -- and then, because she had gone to the trouble of

getting me up and running, giving it a serious try with at least one book.  Everyone was right:  audiobooks are an excellent way to get in more reading!  Like with podcasts, you can pop in an earbud while you're doing chores, or put it on the radio when you're driving somewhere, and suddenly you're making it through a bunch more 

pages per week.  I read 91 books this last year - 25 of those were audio.  Thank you, thank you, thank you to those of you who kept pushing them!

(Relatedly, here's a hot tip for any northern Nevada audiobook listeners - Douglas County Library will let Reno residents sign up a library card for free and that gives you access to Hoopla; Washoe County Library

has Libby.  The two apps compliment each other well. Hoopla's big strength is that it lets you check out books instantly, and keep renewing as long as you need to - but its selection tends to be more back list titles.  Libby has many of the hot new books, but there is usually a wait list and then a two week 

deadline to get through the book before it's returned.  So Libby might have the books that you want more, but Hoopla will have the books that are always available.  If you get both, you will always be well stocked with good books.)

I'm still training my mind not to wander while listening, and I still get interrupted frequently with the kids home all the time, so not all books work perfectly.  The books that work the best for me are non-fiction and memoirs, where you still get the gist of what they are talking about even if you miss a thread here and there; lighter / page turner type fiction; and long books of any kind, where you might be mired down for months if you read the print version but can fly through more quickly by audio.  Do you like audiobooks?  What kind are your favorite?

And now, here are my favorites of the year:

Favorite fiction:

• "Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow" by Gabrielle Zevin - excellent portrait of friendships over time, new appreciation for the art of video game design.
• "Birnam Wood" by Eleanor Catton - really enjoyed this eco-thriller set in New Zealand.
  
• "Demon Copperhead" by Barbara Kingsolver - a modern day retelling of David Copperfield, set in modern Appalachia.
• "The Covenant of Water" by Abraham Verghese - Multigenerational family saga set in southern India - Verghese covers the important parts of a life so well.  
• "The Fortnight in September" by R.C. Sherriff - a family in England takes a seaside vacation - this book covers it in fine detail, and from all the characters' perspectives.
• "Shark Heart" by Emily Habeck - this book was part love story, part reflection on grief - really weird, really good.  

Favorite non-fiction:

• "Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World" by David Epstein - compelling case why kids (and adults) should be learning a broad range of skills rather than specializing early.
• "Invisible Child:  Poverty, Hope, and Survival in an American City" by Andrea Elliott - excellent investigative reporting that follows a family living in poverty in NYC over years and shows their experiences with homeless shelter and the different systems.
• "Habits of the Household" by Jusin Whitmel Earley - good ideas for how to incorporate regular spiritual habits into busy family life.
• "A Treatise on Good Works" by Martin Luther - excellent reflection on how faith and good works relate, using the Ten Commandments as a framework.  
• "How to Stay Married: the Most Insane Love Story Ever Told" - this memoir is not going to be for everyone - it's raw and has lots of dark humor, but is also pervasively Christian (i saw reviewers who disliked it from both angles) - but ultimately hopeful, both in terms of faith and the value of fighting through hard times in marriage.  
• "The Six Conversations" by Heather Holleman - a great book about becoming a better conversationalist by being interested and asking good questions.

Favorite Middle Grade:

• "Everything Sad is Untrue" by Daniel Nayeri - a memoir about a child whose life goes from prosperous Iranian to refugee living in America - lots of Arabian folk story woven in, also humor, also some very sad parts - shows the experience well.
• "A Place to Hang the Moon" by Kate Albus - historical fiction book about a group of siblings who were orphaned and grouped with WWII evacuees from London - a good mix of funny, sweet, sad, and ultimately hopeful.
• "Peter Pan" by J.M. Barrie - really fun read aloud for both parents and kids.  
• "The Light Princess" by George MacDonald - funny, well written, beautiful themes.
• The Wingfeather Series - we made our way through #3 and are in the middle of #4 - this is an excellent series for any children or parents who love books like The Chronicles of Narnia. 

Happy reading, all!  I would love to hear your recommendations!  Would especially love to hear books in any genre that were great on audio!