As I transferred this list from my moleskine journal, I realized what a diverse year of reading it has been and that many books still resonated long after the last page was turned. One measure of a life is the books that become tatooed indelibly to a moment in time.

I invite you to start the new year with one of my favorite reads or share with me one of yours. At the top of my 2017 list is Underground Railroad by Whitehead.

2016 Books:

Radiation  by Redniss. An art book about Marie Curie? You have to read this beautiful book to experience this author’s visual genius.

Me After you by J.J. Moyes.  If you enjoyed the first (Me Before You), this offers more of the same.

Windup Bird Chronicle by Murakami. Confession– I didn’t finish this book but after two years of tackling it, I decided I’ve read enough. My one Murakami novel fail.

*Americanah by Adiche. One of the best books I read this year. A different take on the black & immigrant experience

Shoemaker’s Wife by Trigiani

*Happy City by Charles Montgomery(NF). My new interest in understanding what makes  some cities/communities vibrant places.

Smart Streets by Schwartz (NF)  An amazing look at how highways destroyed American cities and how modern cities are fighting back through smart street design.

Eleanor and Park. A young adult novel but delightful

*Year of Fog  by Richmond.  I avoided this book for a few years for its subject matter–a child kidnapping– but it was worth the wait and not the depressing book you’d expect.

Elizabeth Costello by Coetze. A celebrated writer deals with aging through the lens of a Nobel-winning novelist.

Fates and Furies by Groff. Surprising, page turning story

*Nightingale by Hannah. Excellent novel of WWII in France where two sisters follow different paths of resistance.

Street Fight: Handbook for an Urban Revolution by Sadik-Khan(NF). How NYC transformed and human-scaled the city through innovative bike paths and traffic free zones

Girl on the Train by Hawkins. In the genre of Fates & Furies

*The Last Chinese Chef by Mones. If you’re a fan of novels with food subplots, this is a yummy one.

Sweet Tooth by McEwan

*The Nest by Sweeney. Middle age siblings deal with losing an expected inheritance

The Japanese Lover by Allende

*Book of Unknown Americans by Henriquez. Highly recommended immigant experience novel

Paris Architect by Belfoure. Brilliant novel that I hoped was based on a true story of Paris during WWII

Strange Library by Murakami.  I finished this one!

God of Small Things by Roy

Gratitude by Dr. Sacks.  I read this entire small volume while in the library by a master of the human condition

Black Widow by Silva. Always read Silva on long flights. This one doesn’t disappoint and sets you up for the next chapter of Israel’s #1 spy.

Vinegar Girl by Kingsolver

Marriage of Opposites by Hoffman

*Flight Behavior by Kingsolver.  Wonderful imaging of climate change’s impact in Appalachia.