2020 Reading Summary

Memoir/Autobiography:

• Heating, Cooling: 52 Micro-Memoirs by Beth Ann Fennelly
• Becoming by Michelle Obama
• The Autobiography of Hudson Taylor: Missionary to China by James Hudson Taylor
• Feathers from My Nest by Beth Moore
• Garlic and Saphire: The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise by Ruth Reichl
• A Song Flung Up to Heaven by Maya Angelou
• Behind the Scenes Or, Thirty Years a Slave and Four Years in the White House by Elizabeth Keckley
• Stories of My Life by Katherine Paterson

A good memoir is always a treat, and each of these books brought something to my life (though Heating, Cooling didn't quite live up to my expectations).  Katherine Paterson's was a reread, and I am so fascinated by her experiences growing up in China as a missionary's child leading up to WWII as well as by her humility and sense of humor in the midst of her successful career as a children's book author.  Keckley's book gave me insight into not only her life, but the life of the Lincolns, as she devotedly worked for Mrs. Lincoln as a dressmaker.  Finally I'll mention A Song Flung Up to Heaven, in which Angelou shares her own experiences during a specific time in US history.  She returns to the USA to work for Malcolm X, and he is murdered soon after.  Later she agrees to work for Martin Luther King, Jr. just before he too is assassinated.

Non-Fiction:

• You and Me Forever: Marriage in Light of Eternity by Francis Chan
• In Search of the Source by Neil T. Anderson
• Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation by Lynne Truss
• Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
• The Five Love Languages: The Secret to Love That Lasts by Gary Chapman
• The Ministry of Motherhood: Following Christ's Example in Reaching the Hearts of Our Children by Sally Clarkson
• The Danish Way of Parenting: What the Happiest People in the World Know About Raising Confident, Capable Kids by Jessica Joelle Alexander
• Stitches: A Handbook on Meaning, Hope and Repair by Anne Lamott
• Sacred Marriage: What if God Designed Marriage to Make Us Holy More Than to Make Us Happy? by Gary L. Thomas
• Living on the Devil's Doorstep by Floyd McClung
• A Year of Biblical Womanhood by Rachel Held Evans
• The Quotidian Mysteries: Laundry, Liturgy and Women's Work by Kathleen Norris
• Miracles: What They Are, Why They Happen, and How They Can Change Your Life by Eric Metaxas
• The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
• Stories Behind the Best-Loved Songs of Christmas by Ace Collins
• A Sanctuary in Our Midst: Christmas Reflections on Jesus by Karen L. Straszheim
• Currently Reading: Mom Heart Moments: Daily Devotions for Life-giving Motherhood by Sally Clarkson, Peaceful Parent, Happy Kids: How to Stop Yelling and Start Connecting by Laura Markham, and Unselfie by Michele Borba

As you can see, I leaned heavily into marriage, parenting, and Christian spiritual books this year.  And the above in those categories were definitely well-worth reading.  Miracles was a great book to read in the Easter season.  I finally read The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, which I learned of 10 years ago.  It shed light not only into the Black experience in medical care and medical studies but also on the ideas of whether you have a right to your own body matter (tissue, cells, blood) once it's been taken as a sample.  I especially enjoyed the little volume The Quotidian Mysteries by Norris, and I'd like to reread it again soon.

Fiction:

• Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
• North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell
• The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte
• The Great Divorce by C. S. Lewis
• Certain Women: A Novel by Madeleine L'Engle
• The One-in-a-Million Boy by Monica Wood
• Virgil Wander by Leif Enger
• Out of the Silent Planet by C. S. Lewis
• Olive, Again by Elizabeth Strout
• How the Light Gets In (Inspector Gamache book 9) by Louise Penny
• Mary Barton by Elizabeth Gaskell
• Truly Madly Guilty by Liane Moriarty
• The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah
• Lila by Marilynne Robinson
• Death Comes to Pemberley by P. D. James
• Delicious! by Ruth Reichl
• Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
• Euphoria by Lily King
• A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
• The Hen Who Dreamed She Could Fly by Sun-mi Hwang
• The Complete Fiction of Nella Larsen by Nella Larsen
• The Dutch House by Ann Patchett
• Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
• Nathan Coulter by Wendell Berry
• Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng
• Vilette by Charlotte Bronte
• Currently reading The Valley of Amazement by Amy Tan and Do Not Say We Have Nothing by Madeleine Thein

I love fiction, as can be seen by the long list above.  To save space, I've put in bold some of my favorites, and I'll here mention some books that didn't quite measure up.  Though many loved The Great Alone, once again I struggled with some of Hannah's stylistic habits, and at some point I felt like she was just trying to add in as many triggers as possible: domestic abuse, natural disasters, etc.  Also James's Death Comes to Pemberley was quite underwhelming.  I'll praise James for effectively recreating the Austen world, but overall I didn't find the plot very compelling. Charlotte Bronte's Vilette was a lot of pages for very little emotional return.  I really enjoy books that are hope-filled or that somehow inform or inspire me.  This book was not that.  Moreover, the book had a lot of characters I didn't like and the plot vague. So if you're looking for novel by a Bronte, I'd recommend The Tenant of Wildfell Hall or Jane Eyre.

Anthologies:

• Knitting Yarns: Writers on Knitting by Ann Hood

Though this was the only anthology I read this year, it was a lot of fun to read as a knitter and reader.  I especially enjoyed the pieces by writers I already know and admire (for example, Barbara Kingsolver and Ann Patchett).

Short Stories:

• Lucy Maud Montgomery Short Stories, 1909 to 1922 by L.M. Montgomery
• Lucy Maud Montgomery Short Stories 1907 to 1908 by L. M. Montgomery
• Esmerelda by Frances Hodgson Burnett
• Louisa by Frances Hodgson Burnett
• Lucy Maud Montgomery Short Stories, 1905-1906 by L. M. Montgomery
• On Christmas Day in the Morning by Grace S. Richmond

Fans of L. M. Montgomery will enjoy any of her collections above (free on Kindle).  Her stories contain the optimism and happy endings we tend to expect from Montgomery, even if there are tears along the way.  I didn't enjoy Burnett's stories as much, but Richmond's Christmas story had the tears flowing. (Yes, it is sentimental, and I loved it, and you should download the free version on Kindle and have a nice 20-minute sentimental Christmas experience.)

Middle Grade:

• The Sword in the Tree by Clyde Robert Bulla
• The Penderwicks at Last by Jeanne Birdsall
• The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
• A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (#4) by J. K. Rowling
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (#7) by J. K. Rowling
• The Secret of Red Gate Farm (Nancy Drew #6) by Carolyn Keene
• The Littlest Bigfoot by Jennifer Weiner
• The Sign of the Twisted Candles (Nancy Drew #9) by Carolyn Keene
• Ramona and Her Father by Beverly Cleary
• The Clue in the Diary (Nancy Drew #7) by Carolyn Keene
• Password to Larkspur Lane (Nancy Drew #10) by Carolyn Keene
• The Whispering Statue (Nancy Drew #14) by Carolyn Keene
• The Haunted Bridge (Nancy Drew #15) by Carolyn Keene
• The Clue of the Tapping Heels (Nancy Drew #16) by Carolyn Keene
• The Mystery at the Moss-covered Mansion (Nancy Drew #18) by Carolyn Keene
• Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder
• On the Banks of Plum Creek by Laura Ingalls Wilder
• From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg
• Currently reading: By the Shores of Silver Lake by Laura Ingalls Wilder

2020 has definitely had its challenges, and when I wasn't quite sure what to read or when I wanted something less demanding, I'd pick a book from my box of Nancy Drews or from the Litle House on the Prairie series (both of which I'm reading for the first time).  Two delightful books from this year are marked in bold.  Park's A Single Shard was such a joy to read.  Set in Korea, a homeless boy becomes fascinated by the work of a local potter and begins to do little tasks for him.  This book has not only great details about traditional Korean pottery, but there are wonderful relationships that form. I look forward to reading more of Linda Sue Park's books, and she's written plenty.

Young Adult:

• Hope Was Here by Joan Bauer
• Meet the Austins (Austin Family 1) by Madeleine L'Engle
• Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor
• The Moon By Night (Austin Family 2) by Madeleine L'Engle
• The Young Unicorns (Austin Family 3) by Madeleine L'Engle
• A Ring of Endless Light (Austin Family 4) by Madeleine L'Engle 
• Troubling a Star (Austin Family 5) by Madeleine L'Engle

I prefer middle grade to YA, but the above reads were very enjoyable.  I'm a big fan of L'Engle and I especially enjoyed reading The Moon By Night, which follows the Austin family on a cross-country camping trip.  I happened to pack it for our own Austrian camping trip, and it was the perfect fit.

What are your top reads for 2020?  Is there anything you're still hoping to squeeze in?