2020 Reading List

 As I've done for several years now, here is my reading list from 2020. Due to the pandemic, it was a very good reading year. I read 91 books and 28,044 pages, including rereading the entire Amelia Peabody series by Elizabeth Peters. There were 13 books which I started but did not finish, which was the same amount as the year before.

As I list the books, if I have written about a book in a blog post, I will link to it. If I think a book is good enough to warrant buying it in order to read it (that would be the very best books I read this year), I will put an '*' next to the title. I will also notate genre and whether I read it out loud.

F = Fiction
NF = Non-fiction
M = Mystery
YA = Young adult or juvenile
RA = Read aloud

Ready? Here we go.

1. The Learning Tree: Overcoming Learning Disabilities from the Ground Up - Stanley I. Greenspan (NF)
     -Not much new information in here for me, and J. had to stop reading it because he couldn't stand the poor writing style.

2. The Ten Thousand Doors of January - Alix E. Harrow (F) *

3. The Girl Who Reads on the Metro - Christine Feret (F)

4. The Bookshop of Yesterdays - Amy Meyerson (F)

5. The Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration into the Wonder of Consciousness - Sy Montgomery (NF - RA)

6. The Horse: The Epic History of our Noble Companion - Wendy Williams (NF)

7. This Is Where You Belong: The Art and Science of Loving the Place You Live - Melody Warnick (NF)*
       -The asterisk is for anyone who has recently moved and wants to feel more a part of the place they are living.

8. A Gentleman in Moscow - Amor Towles (F)*
       -This was the best book I read during the year. It has also moved into my top five favorite books of all time. Highly, highly recommended.

9. Spiritual Parenting: An Awakening for Today's Families - Michelle Anthony (NF)

10. The Miracles of Jesus - Jessica Lagrone (NF)*
       -This is a very excellent Bible study. If you are looking for a study to work through, I highly recommend it.

11. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee (F)
       -Believe it or not, I had never read it. I also have extremely mixed feelings about it. What a tough book.

12. Caravan - Dorothy Gilman (F)

        -A joining of brain science and theology, what's not to like?

14. There are not Problem Horses, Only Problem Riders - Mary Twelveponies (NF)

15. Mara: Daughter of the Nile - Eloise Jarvis McGraw (YA -F-RA)

16. Rules of Civility - Amor Towles (F)

17. The Book Charmer - Karen Hawkins (F)

18. The Thirteenth Tale - Diane Setterfield (F)

19. Paris by the Book - Liam Callanan (F)
       This is possibly the most boring book I ever read. I only finished because I kept hoping that something, anything, would happen. But it didn't.

20. The Red Fox - Anthony Hyde (F)

21. Treasure Island - Robert Lewis Stevenson (F-RA)

22. Hunter Seat Equitation - George H. Morris (NF)

23. The Second Worst Restaurant in France - Alexander McCall Smith (F)

24. No Way to Treat a First Lady - Christopher Buckley (F)

25. Crocodile on the Sandbank - Elizabeth Peters (M)

26. The Curse of the Pharaohs - Elizabeth Peters (M)

27. The Mummy Case - Elizabeth Peters (M)

28. The Clan of the Cave Bear - Jean M. Auel (F)*
       - I had never read this so grabbed it in my run through the library to grab books before the lock-down. It was much better than I was anticipating since I tend to not believe the hype about things.

29. Lion in the Valley - Elizabeth Peters (M)

30. The Deeds of the Disturber - Elizabeth Peters (M)

31. The Girl with the Louding Voice - Abi Dare (F)*
       - Set in Nigeria, it was a tough read in some places, but ultimately hopeful.

32. The Snake, the Crocodile, and the Dog - Elizabeth Peters (M)

33. The Hippopotamus Pool - Elizabeth Peters (M)

34. The Wonderful Adventures of Nils - Selma Lagerlof (F-RA)

        -Very good natural science writing [There are two different blog posts for this book.]

36. Seeing a Large Cat - Elizabeth Peters (M)

37. The Ape Who Guards the Balance - Elizabeth Peters (M)

38. A Wrinkle in Time - Madeleine L'Engle (F-RA)

39. The Rosie Project - Graeme Simsion (F)*
        -A fun read

40. A Wind in the Door - Madeleine L'Engle (F-YA-RA)

41. Guardian of the Horizon - Elizabeth Peters (M)

42. After the Boxes are Unpacked: Moving on After Moving In - Susan Miller (NF)

43. The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend - Katarina Bivard (F)

44. A River in the Sky - Elizabeth Peters (M)

45. Before We Were Yours - Lisa Wingate (F)

46. A Swiftly Tilting Planet - Madeleine L'Engle (F-YA-RA)

47. The Art of Inheriting Secrets - Barbara O'Neal (F)*
        -Because who doesn't love a book where the main character inherits a title and an estate she had no idea about?

48. Educated: A Memoir - Tara Westover (NF)
        -I don't know whether to recommend this or not. It is definitely intriguing in a very painful way.

49. The Secret Chapter - Genevieve Cogman (F)*
        -If you love the Invisible Library, this is the most recent title.

50. The Gown - Jennifer Robson (F)

51. Secret Water - Arthur Ransome (F-YA-RA)

52. A Deadly Inside Scoop - Abby Collette (M)

53. Dragonfly - Leila Meacham (F)*
        -If you enjoy books set in WWII, you'll enjoy this one about operatives in Paris.

        -A combination of gardening and brain science

55. A Stranger Came Ashore - Mollie Hunter (F-YA-RA)

       -Disappointing. The book, Fluent Forever does a much better job of this.

57. The Falcon at the Portal - Elizabeth Peters (M)

58. He Shall Thunder in the Sky  - Elizabeth Peters (M)

59. The Winged Girl of Knossos - Erick Berry (F-YA-RA)*
       -A great family read aloud whether you are studying Ancient Greece or not.

60. The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse - Charlie Mackesy

61. All the Devils are Here - Louise Penny (M)*
        -The latest title in the Inspector Gamache series

        -If you ever have to teach math to anyone, you should read this.

        -This is a fascinating book and so much more interesting than the title would suggest.



66. Lord of the Silent - Elizabeth Peters (M)

67. The Children's Homer - Padraic Colum (F-YA-RA)


69. The Memory Code: The Secrets of Stonehenge, Easter Island, and Other Ancient Monuments - Lynne Kelly (NF)

70. The Golden One - Elizabeth Peters (M)

71. Theras and His Town - Caroline Dale Snedeker (F-YA-RA)

72. Children of the Storm - Elizabeth Peters (M)

73. Delicious! - Ruth Reichl (F)*

74. The Deeply Formed Life: Five Transformative Values to Root Us in the Way of Jesus - Rich Villodas (NF)

75. The Serpent on the Crown - Elizabeth Peters (F)

76. Lion in the Gateway - Mary Renault (F-YA-RA)

77. Nine Coaches Waiting - Mary Stewart (F)*
       -A well-written, escapist story

78. Tolstoy and the Purple Chair: My Year of Magical Reading - Nina Sankovitch (NF)

79. Cleopatra's Shadows - Emily Holleman (F)*
       - If you are interested in Ptolemaic Egypt, this is a good title

80. The Bookman's Tale - Charlie Lovett (F)*

81. Beginning with a Bash - Phoebe Atwood Taylor (M-RA)

82. A Noel Killing - M. L. Longworth (M)

83. Tomb of the Golden Bird - Elizabeth Peters (M)

84. The Cut Direct - Phoebe Atwood Taylor (M-RA)

85. Midnight Riot - Ben Aaronovitch (F)

86. Gilead - Marilynne Robinson (F)

87. News of the World - Paulette Jiles (F)

88. The Home Place - Carrie La Seur (F)

89. Cold Steal - Phoebe Atwood Taylor (M-RA)

90. The Red Lotus - Chris Bohjalian (M)

91. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time - Mark Haddon (F)
      - I'm still not sure how I feel about this one yet.
   

Comments

Anonymous said…
Thanks so much for the book list. I have already enjoyed some of the titles and look forward to reading some of the others. And congratulations on your newest family and becoming a mother -in -law. Great way to start the new year. Best wishes to the happy couple!
1/02/2021 9:22 PM
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