Number of books read through the years. I didn’t quite make my goal of 100 this year. I’ll go ahead and thank the pandemic for that one.
This year, I am resurrecting an old tradition on my blog in Januarys! That is to list the books I read in the previous year and hopefully offer up some suggestions (and warnings) to my readers.
A few notes about the list:
I did not link to the books, because let’s be honest, who has time for that? I think I gave you enough information to find the book if you’d like to.
You will notice many children and young adult books on the list. My motivations for this were twofold: One is that I just enjoy a lot of young adult books! They tend to have more fantastical and magical elements than books written for adults. I also wanted to make more of an effort to read books that my daughter (10) is reading. This has opened up many conversations for us and I hope it also shows her that I am interested in her life. Those were my initial motivations, but I have realized several other unintended blessings! In my work in children’s ministry at our church, I am able to engage with the kids on their level - from young boys reading “Captain Underpants” to older girls reading Natalie Lloyd! Not only this, but occasionally I have been a resource to parents who have children reading the books but haven’t read the books themselves. I can offer a Christian adult perspective, as well as suggest topics of conversation based on the book for the parents to engage in with their child. What an unexpected blessing from something I enjoy anyway!
If you pay attention, you might see that I have started a lot of different series of books, but I rarely finish them. This is for various reasons, one of which being that I tend to get obsessive, and if I just push through book after book in the series, I am no earthly good to anyone. So I usually take a break between books, and by the time I no longer care that much, I have forgotten most of the previous book and don’t have much desire to pick up the series again! (One of my goals for 2021 is to continue various series that I have started.)
Many of these books have reviews written by me on Goodreads if you would like more information (or feel free to contact me).
Books Read in 2020
James Herriot's Treasury for Children, James Herriot
Flavia de Luce series #1-7, Alan Bradley
The Arctic Incident, Eoin Colfer
Lizzy & Jane, Katherine Reay
The Adventure of the Dying Detective, Arthur Conan Doyle
The Road Back to You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery, Ian Morgan Cron
Taliesin (The Pendragon Cycle #1), Stephen R. Lawhead
Murder Most Malicious (A Lady and Lady's Maid Mystery, #1), Alyssa Maxwell
Full: Food, Jesus, and the Battle for Satisfaction, Asheritah Ciuciu
The Green Ember (The Green Ember, #1), S.D. Smith
Frozen 2: Forest of Shadows, Kamilla Benko
Sacramental Life: Spiritual Formation Through the Book of Common Prayer, David A. deSilva
The Beautiful Mystery (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, #8), Louise Penny
Misery Loves Maggody (Arly Hanks, #11), Joan Hess
Mischief in Maggody (Arly Hanks, #2), Joan Hess
The Key to Extraordinary, Natalie Lloyd
Discipline That Lasts a Lifetime: The Best Gift You Can Give Your Kids: Dr. Ray Answers Your Frequently Asked Questions, Ray Guarendi
The Glass Bird Girl (Knight's Haddon, #1), Esme Kerr
In Dublin's Fair City (Molly Murphy Mysteries, #6), Rhys Bowen
The Problim Children, Natalie Lloyd
The Return of Sherlock Holmes (Sherlock Holmes, #6), Arthur Conan Doyle
Death from a Top Hat, Clayton Rawson
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children, #1), Ransom Riggs
Big Little Lies, Liane Moriarty
The Sabbath: Its Meaning for Modern Man, Abraham Joshua Heschel
One for the Money (Stephanie Plum, #1), Janet Evanovich
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (Chronicles of Narnia, #1), C.S. Lewis
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Harry Potter, #4), J.K. Rowling
Erak's Ransom (Ranger's Apprentice, #7), John Flanagan
Tuesdays at the Castle (Castle Glower, #1), Jessica Day George
The Boxcar Children (The Boxcar Children, #1), Gertrude Chandler Warner
The Final Empire (Mistborn, #1), Brandon Sanderson
You Who? Why You Matter and How to Deal With It, Rachel Jankovic
Half the Sky: Turning Oppression Into Opportunity for Women Worldwide, Nicholas D. Kristof
Teaching a Stone to Talk: Expeditions and Encounters, Annie Dillard
Present Over Perfect: Leaving Behind Frantic for a Simpler, More Soulful Way of Living, Shauna Niequist
Surprise Island (The Boxcar Children, #2), Gertrude Chandler Warner
Naughty in Nice (Her Royal Spyness Mysteries, #5), Rhys Bowen
What Alice Forgot, Liane Moriarty
Journey on a Runaway Train (The Boxcar Children Great Adventure #1), Gertrude Chandler Warner
The Mark of the Dragonfly, Jaleigh Johnson
Rodrick Rules (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, #2), Jeff Kinney
Dog Days (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, #4), Jeff Kinney
The Clue in the Papyrus Scroll (The Boxcar Children Great Adventure #2), Gertrude Chandler Warner
Captain Underpants and the Preposterous Plight of the Purple Potty People (Captain Underpants, #8), Dav Pilkey
The Last Mrs. Summers (Her Royal Spyness, #14), Rhys Bowen
The Shackleton Sabotage (The Boxcar Children Great Adventure #4), Gertrude Chandler Warner
The Detour of the Elephants (The Boxcar Children Great Adventure #3), Dee Garretson
Tell Me, Pretty Maiden (Molly Murphy Mysteries, #7), Rhys Bowen
The Last Straw (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, #3), Jeff Kinney
A Stitch in Time (A Needlecraft Mystery, #3), Monica Ferris
Crime Brûlée (A Carolyn Blue Culinary Mystery, #1), Nancy Fairbanks
The Khipu and the Final Key (The Boxcar Children Great Adventure #5), Gertrude Chandler Warner
In a Gilded Cage (Molly Murphy, #8), Rhys Bowen
The Hobbit, or There and Back Again, J.R.R. Tolkien
Mississippi Trial, 1955, Chris Crowe
A Conventional Corpse (Claire Malloy, #13), Joan Hess
Rebecca, Daphne du Maurier
The 39 Clues, #1-7, Rick Riordan and other various authors
On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness (The Wingfeather Saga, #1), Andrew Peterson
Over the Moon, Natalie Lloyd
Mystery Ranch (The Boxcar Children, #4), Gertrude Chandler Warner
Guts, Raina Telgemeier
Sisters (Smile, #2), Raina Telgemeier
Smile (Smile, #1), Raina Telgemeier
Ghosts, Raina Telgemeier
Drama, Raina Telgemeier
Damsels in Distress (Claire Malloy, #16), Joan Hess