I read fewer books this year than any since I started tracking it in 2011. But I rallied enough in the past couple months to justify an end of year list of my favorites. Shared with the usual caveat that they aren't necessarily the "best" books I read. But they are the ones I found most interesting, entertaining, edifying, enlightening, challenging, and/or simply enjoyable.
Generally in order of most favorite on down.
- Have been hugely helped by reading Bavinck the last few years, and this was an absolutely stellar biography of his life.
Everything Sad is Untrue (a true story) - Daniel Nayeri
- I don't even know what genre to call this. It's not a biography per se, but it tells the story of his life. Sort of. I will just say it has some of the best and most moving prose I've read in quite a while. Seriously, read this book.
All the Light We Cannot See: A Novel - Anthony Doerr
- I'm a little late to the party on this one. It's been sitting around my house for a couple years, and I finally got around to it this year. Beautifully written, and an amazing story. Honestly one of my favorite novels ever.
Anxious People - Fredrik Backman
- Some authors are really good at creating fascinating plots and telling stories. Some authors write sentences that make your heart jolt and eyes do things involuntarily. Backman does both. Extremely well.
The Air We Breathe: How We All Came to Believe in Freedom, Kindness, Progress, and Equality - Glen Scrivener
- An excellent take on how most of the values we prize in the West are ultimately grounded in Christianity. Scrivener engages cultural issues but isn't angry about it. Refreshing.
Thomas Jefferson: A Biography of Spirit and Flesh - Thomas Kidd
- Thomas Kidd is probably my favorite historian, and this look at the spiritual life of Thomas Jefferson was wonderful. So balanced and nuanced in detailing a fascinating historical figure.
Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones - James Clear
- Another one I was a little late to, but glad I finally read this. The ideas aren't earth-shattering, but the presentation and the practicality of this book was so helpful. I do multiple positive things on a daily basis now because of this book.
The Storyteller: Tales of Life and Music - Dave Grohl
- Wouldn't recommend for everybody, especially due to language. But I love the Foo Fighters' music and I like Dave Grohl even more after reading this book.
- Wonderful for Lord of the Rings and Narnia fans, but really a broader apologetic for classical education and the value of good literature in forming virtue and seeing beauty in the world.
The Scarlett Letter - Nathaniel Hawthorne
- I know opinions differ about the point Hawthorne was making with this book, but I found his portrayal of Dimmesdale and the guilt that consumes him fascinating.
The Old Man and the Sea - Ernest Hemingway
- This is actually the first I've ever read Hemingway. Very short, but he made me care about the old man quite a bit in those few pages. Great writing.
- A million times better than the movie. Can't believe how much of this they ruined when they wrote that screenplay. Also read King's novella Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption and it was equally great.
A Time to Kill - John Grisham
- They didn't ruin this story when they made the movie, but the book is still much better. It's jarring to enter a world where people talked like this, but a powerful story.
