I'm a little late to the party here, I know most of these "Top 2019" posts were done months ago, but forgive me... I just could not narrow it down. So that being said, I WILL have some honorable mentions down below. All in all, I narrowed it down to the books this year that really left me thinking after I put them down.
Before I get into it, I have to preface by saying that these are all over the board as far as genre goes. When I went into 2019, I made the decision to try to read as many different genres as possible to re-kindle my affair with reading. Spoiler alert- it worked. However, now I have my toes dipped in a lot of water. Regardless, I hope one of them sparks your interest!
That being said, with them all being so different in content, I can't list them in preferential order... it's just not possible. Instead, we'll go with the order I read them in.
Happy Reading!
Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders
Some of you have seen me post about this book, and that's because I didn't shut up about it for months. As my January read, it expanded my horizons and really pushed the boundaries of what Historical Fiction can mean as it flirted with Fantasy elements as well as some completely Non-Fictional elements as well. It was written in such a unique style of going between news articles and historical sources and back into the play-style like story of the relationship between President Lincoln, his recently deceased son, and fellow spirits in the cemetery.
My only difficulties with this book also coincide with what I love about it. With the writing style being so unique, in the beginning I found myself lost and having to go back and re-read a few times. However, I did listen to a few chapters of the audiobook (narrated partly by the lovely Nick Offerman), and that really helped me get into the flow of the book. Nothing I say can give it enough justice, and I couldn't recommend it enough to someone looking for a palette cleanser in their reading routine.
All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven
I'll be honest. I would be lying if I said I never put this book down... but I'm so glad I picked it back up when I did. I purchased this book in 2018 when I wasn't as committed to reading, and picked it back up at the end of the winter/early spring when I needed something to read. This story of an unlikely friendship between two people with one thing in common- their personal struggles with mental health- was incredibly eye opening to me. We see two scopes of depression- a lifelong sufferer that wears it on their sleeve, and someone stricken with grief and nobody would expect to be struggling. As someone that has been either side of that coin at one point or another, I really found myself connected to both characters- who take turns speaking from their point of view.
While this is technically categorized as "YA," I think people of all walks of life can benefit from this title. The author had never written YA before, but felt this story on her heart for a long time that just so happened to be about two high school aged people.
Girl, Stop Apologizing by Rachel Hollis
Guys, I cannot express my love for Rachel Hollis. After reading "Girl, Wash Your Face" in 2018, it was a no-brainer to pick this one up. I personally love listening to her content via audiobook, because as a public speaker she has such a talent for narrating- and I felt like I absorbed the content the way she intended. That being said, I loved it so much I picked up a copy for future reference. I won't go too much in detail because her content is widely known, but I will say that I took SO much away from this book. It was the springtime read I needed more than anything.
The Bassoon King by Rainn Wilson
This book was two of my guilty pleasures combined: my unhealthy obsession with The Office, and celebrity autobiographies. While this wasn't chalked full of The Office content, it scratched an itch in my life that I needed. Talking about Rainn's childhood struggles with a uniquely broken home, his super nerdy upbringing including his love for Sci-Fi and Dungeons & Dragons, and of course his Angsty, Artsy and Pessimistic teens and twenties. Rainn is an incredibly open and emotional man that plunges depths beyond Dwight Schrute, and him and his wife are doing amazing things in Haiti that I encourage you all to look into via lidahaiti.org , or his work with mental health and emotions via soulpancake.
Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys
Holy cow, you guys. This book rocked by world. It was an impulse purchase because it was on display as a workers pick in the Starbucks inside Barnes & Noble... and I'm not kidding when I say I read this every waking moment until it was finished. Told from the perspective of 4 refugees during WWII, it speaks from perspectives of the war we normally don't shine as much light on. I'm going to keep this one short because I could go on about this book for days, but as my final read of 2019- it is the one that I recommend the most and holds the biggest piece of my heart.
Honorable Mentions:
1. The Woman in the Window by A.J Finn - Mystery
2. Elizabeth II: Life of a Monarch by Ruth Cown - Non-Fiction Biographical
3. Twain's Feast by Nick Offerman- Non-Fiction, History Research
4. Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari- Non-Fiction Research, Comedy
5. The Hidden Power of F*cking Up by The Try Guys - Self Help, Comedy
6. Scrappy Little Nobody by Anna Kendrick- Autobiography, Comedy
7. Teen Titans Rebirth, Vol. 1-3 by Ben Percy- Graphic Novels
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