A Year in Reading: Pt. 4

My favorite books of the year

Dec 31, 2023

It’s finally time to share my favorite reads of the year.

But first, thank you to everyone who has read my previous posts. I went from sending nothing for a few months to (sort of) bombarding you and I truly appreciate those who have read and engaged with them. I promise, after tomorrow the newsletter will go back to a normal pace.

In case you missed it, earlier this week I shared my favorite romance novels of 2023 (plus what my husband read this year), the best audiobooks I listened to this year (as well as some thoughts on listening to audiobooks going forward), and my 2023 superlatives.

Note: My top books of the year include backlist (i.e. not just books that were published in 2023). Because reading backlist is important to me, I try not to put too much emphasis on reading alllll the new releases (because there are a LOT).

The Top 10 Books I Read This Year

Top 5

These were hands down my absolute favorites. All 5 stars, all books I wish I could read again for the first time. And ones I’ll be forever trying to find read alikes for.

📖 Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel – I absolutely loved Station Eleven when I read it back in 2018, and was sure her other books wouldn’t live up to it. Boy was I wrong. It’s hard to say if I liked SOT even more, since it’s been 5+ years since I read SE, but I couldn’t put it down and haven’t stopped thinking about it since. (I still haven’t read any others of hers, again for fear of them not meeting my expectations. Am I wrong? Are there others from her backlist I should try?)

📖 Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano – Ranking books at the end of the year because it’s hard to tell if my love for some over others is recency bias or if they’ll stand the test of time. Either way, Hello Beautiful is a clear standout. I sobbed at the end, sobbed (my husband had to ask me if I was okay), and I’ll be thinking about Padavano family (plus William) for a long, long time. This gave me similar feelings as my next favorite…

📖 Talking at Night by Claire Daverley – Somehow I devoured this 400 page book in about two sittings. Once Will and Rosie wiggled into my heart, I had to know how their stories would end up. It’s not a page turner in the classic sense, but my love for the characters made this one impossible to put down.

🎧 Congratulations, the Best is Over! by R. Eric Thomas – I’ve been a fan of Eric’s since his debut book, Here for It – it was a balm for the soul during the height of 2020. His YA novel and its love for Baltimore made for a fantastic read. But this one might be my favorite of his. While our life experiences have been different, so much of how he described entering mid-life rang true. Plus, I laughed out loud multiple times at his very accurate portrayal of Charm City.

🎧 Tell Me Everything by Minka Kelly – I’ve long been a fan of Minka Kelly’s, but I had no idea what she’d been through. Her honesty and vulnerability in the sharing of what has been quite a difficult road, has made me love her even more. Whether or not you’re familiar with her roles (“Friday Night Lights” and “Parenthood” are two of my very favorite shows), this is a memoir worth reading (especially on audio).

If you haven’t tried audiobooks or don’t have an audiobook subscription, Libro.fm is my favorite way to listen to audiobooks, and my favorite audiobook company to support. Your purchase supports an indie bookstore of your choosing, and you can pause or cancel at anytime. Use my code (KATHARINE) or this link and get TWO audiobook credits for the price of one.

Other favorites

And there are books I either haven’t stopped thinking about or left a mark on me in some way. Not all are necessarily five stars, but they’re all books that helped shape my reading year.

🎧 Rootless by Krystle Zara Appiah – THIS BOOK. It handled sensitive topics with care and empathy, and it tackled a side of motherhood we don’t see often enough. It’s a hard book to talk about without giving away too much because the ending is what threw me for a loop. Talking with

Katy O.

, and her reaching out to the author to see if we could hear about why she ended it that way, I was able to process my reaction and appreciate the story even more. To be clear, this isn’t an easy read so feel free to message me or look up content warnings on StoryGraph if you want to know more before going in.

📖 The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab – Both my best friend and husband had been telling me for years that I would like this one, and for some reason I kept putting off reading it. And I’m so glad I finally did! Addie will be a character I continue to think about often.

📖 Sam by Allegra Goodman – Something about Sam has buried itself in me and I haven’t stopped thinking about her. It begins when Sam is seven and ends when she’s 19, and I loved how the writing style grew and matured with her. So many parts of this book absolutely broke my heart, and the characters and settings were so vivid that I often felt like I WAS Sam. Pick this up if you like coming of age stories, slow burn character-driven books, and if you want to be put in someone else’s shoes.

📖 The Museum of Ordinary People by Mike Gayle – Gayle’s previous book, All the Lonely People, was a favorite of mine and his most recent didn’t disappoint. It’s both heartwarming and heartbreaking, full of characters that will stick with you, and a story about moving on after loss, managing hardship, and finding community. It made me want to move to London and become friends with every single person in this book. Gayle is now an auto-buy author for me and I can't wait to dig into his backlist.

📖 Falling Back in Love With Being Human: Letters to Lost Souls by Kai Cheng Thom – After just a few pages I knew this book would be a favorite. Thom, an Asian Canadian trans femme author, wrote this during the pandemic, when so much of the world was hurting. Through letters, poems, and short essays, she attempts to answer this question: “What happens when we imagine loving the people—and the parts of ourselves—that we do not believe are worthy of love?” This book demands to be read.

What were some of your favorite books this year?

Life With Kat

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