Books of 2018

What would the world be like without books?  To me, books aren't just about enhancing literacy and gaining knowledge (though these things are essential, of course), but reading also means experiencing new perspectives, envisioning a different life, understanding the past, and gaining an appreciation of my own life in comparison.  Books allow us to escape from our own tiny reality and experience something greater, and I believe that the desire to enhance our knowledge of others' perspectives makes us better people and more compassionate citizens of the world.  I try to make reading a priority every day, and to also set this example for Ady.  We eat breakfast every day, we brush our teeth, we walk the dog, and we read books.  There are literally books in every room of the house (yes, including next to Ady's potty).  

I read a lot of books this year -- fiction, mysteries/thrillers, memoirs, parenting books, a few in the scifi and fantasy realms, and a few re-reads of old favorites.  Some titles were for book club, but most were for fun.  My book club has grown a lot, and as always I feel inspired by our group of intelligent and thoughtful women and by the books everyone chooses!  I renewed my Audible subscription this year and also borrowed audiobooks via the Overdrive app through the public library.  I read a lot of books about diversity, different cultures, and shared humanity.  I read a few titles from the longlists for the Booker Prize and National Book Award, and a previous Pulitzer winner, and hope to read more award-winning books in 2019.  I discovered some new favorite bookstores here in Santa Fe, and also made an effort to find excellent bookstores in cities where we traveled this year.  Below is my complete list!  Happy reading!

My 18 favorites titles of 2018:
Shantaram, by Gregory David Roberts
We Need to Talk About Kevin, by Lionel Shriver
Everything Here is Beautiful, by Mira T. Lee
My Absolute Darling, by Gabriel Tallent
Cutting for Stone, by Abraham Verghese
All the Light We Cannot See, by Anthony Doerr
Little Fires Everywhere, by Celeste Ng
The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak
Salvage the Bones, by Jesmyn Ward
A Place for Us, by Fatima Farheen Mirza
The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto, by Mitch Albom
The Female Persuasion, by Meg Wolitzer
Home Fire, by Kamila Shamsie
The Mars Room, by Rachel Kushner
The Alice Network, by Kate Quinn
Every Note Played, by Lisa Genova
Us Against You, by Fredrik Backman
The Girl Who Smiled Beads: A Story of War and What Comes After, by Clemantine Wamariya


And the complete list from 2018:

Fiction

The Angel’s Game, by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

November Road, by Louis Berney

Mansfield Park, by Jane Austen

There There, by Tommy Orange

A Place for Us, by Fatima Farheen Mirza

Leopard at the Door, by Jennifer McVeigh

The President is Missing, by Bill Clinton and James Patterson

All the Pretty Horses, by Cormac McCarthy

My Absolute Darling, by Gabriel Tallent

We Need to Talk About Kevin, by Lionel Shriver

Beautiful Exiles, by Meg Waite Clayton

The Witch Elm, by Tana French

Origin, by Dan Brown

Nine Perfect Strangers, by Liane Moriarty

The Monkey Wrench Gang, by Edward Abbey

American Gods, by Neil Gaiman

Since We Fell, by Dennis Lehane

Macbeth, by Jo Nesbo

Franny and Zooey, by J.D. Salinger

Home Fire, by Kamila Shamsie

The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto, by Mitch Albom

Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay, by Elena Ferrante

The Female Persuasion, by Meg Wolitzer

Cutting for Stone, by Abraham Verghese

The Map of Salt and Stars, by Jennifer Zeynab Joukhadar

Salvage the Bones, by Jesmyn Ward

Candide, by Voltaire

Tangerine, by Christine Mangan

The Mars Room, by Rachel Kushner

Swing Time, by Zadie Smith

The Flight Attendant, by Chris Bohjalian

The Night Circus, by Erin Morgenstern

The Swans of Fifth Avenue, by Melanie Benjamin

The Girl Who Smiled Beads: A Story of War and What Comes After, by Clemantine Wamariya

Prodigal Summer, by Barbara Kingsolver

Everything Here is Beautiful, by Mira T. Lee

Keeping Faith, by Jodi Picoult

Not that I Could Tell, by Jessica Strawser

Every Note Played, by Lisa Genova

Because It Is Bitter, and Because It Is My Heart, by Joyce Carol Oates

Dear Mrs. Bird, by A.J. Pearce

In the Midst of Winter, by Isabel Allende

Maisie Dobbs, by Jacqueline Winspear

The Couple Next Door, by Shari Lapena

Us Against You, by Fredrik Backman

Clock Dance, by Anne Tyler

When Life Gives You Lululemons, by Lauren Weisberger

The Light We Lost, by Jill Santopolo

My Not So Perfect Life, by Sophie Kinsella

The Little Paris Bookshop, by Nina George

Astonishing Color of After, by Emily X.R. Pan

The Story of a New Name, by Elena Ferrant

Shantaram, by Gregory David Roberts

Pachinko, by Min Jin Lee

Lincoln in the Bardo, by George Saunders

All the Breaking Waves, by Kerry Lonsdale

That Kind of Mother, by Rumaan Alam

Same Beach, Next Year, by Dorothea Benton Frank

The Harder They Come, by T.C. Boyle

Modern Lovers, by Emma Straub

LaRose, by Louise Eridrich

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, by Gail Honeyman

Surprise Me, by Sophie Kinsella

The Great Alone, by Kristin Hannah

Moonglow, by Michael Chabon

The Late Show, by Michael Connelly

The Alice Network, by Kate Quinn

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry, by Gabrielle Zevin

Little Fires Everywhere, by Celeste Ng

Bel Canto, by Ann Patchett

The Little Friend, by Donna Tartt

Goodbye, Vitamin, by Rachel Khong

The Green Glass Sea, by Ellen Klages

This is Your Life, Harriet Chance!, by Jonathan Evison

The Zookeeper’s Wife, by Diane Ackerman

Everything I Never Told You, by Celeste Ng

Sweetbitter, by Stephanie Danler

You Will Know Me, by Megan Abbott

All the Missing Girls, by Megan Miranda

Two by Two, by Nicholas Sparks

Glass Houses, by Louise Penny

Camino Island, by John Grisham

See Me, by Nicholas Sparks

The Japanese Lover, by Isabel Allende

Gwendy’s Button Box, by Stephen King

The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak

Future Home of the Living God, by Louise Erdrich

All the Light We Cannot See, by Anthony Doerr

Nonfiction

Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right, by Jamie Glowacki

Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

Educated: A Memoir, by Tara Westover
Hamilton: The Revolution, by Lin-Manuel Miranda

Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar, by Cheryl Strayed

Notes from a Public Typewriter, by Michael Gustafson

The Emotional Life of the Toddler, by Alicia F. Lieberman

Bad Feminist, by Roxanne Gay

Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, by Irin Carmon and Shana Knizhnik

Scraping Heaven: A Family’s Journey Along the Continental Divide Trail, by Cindy Ross

Wherever You Go, There You Are: Mindfulness Meditation in Everyday Life, by Jon Kabat-Zinn

The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom, by Jonathan Haidt

Half the Sky: Turning Oppression Into Opportunity for Women Worldwide, by Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn

The Code Book, by Simon Singh

Astrophysics for People in a Hurry, by Neil deGrasse Tyson

Hidden Figures, by Margot Lee Shetterly
The 5 Love Languages, by Gary Chapman

Winterdance: The Fine Madness of Running the Iditarod, by Gary Paulsen

The Boys in the Boat, by Daniel James Brown