It’s time for my annual book review! It was a challenging reading year. Too many books fell by the wayside when they failed to engage after a seemingly good start. But amidst the drivel and dross, there were many good, and even excellent, books that took me to “the end.” In compiling this year’s list, I was surprised at how many books I actually read and/or listened to. 

First, my top three books of the year:

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus. This book was so good, funny and original that it should be required reading for every woman striving in what’s still a man’s world.

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver. Demon is a true American original character whose grit, gumption and humor helped him survive an often horrifying childhood. A triumph of resilience.

The Mercies by Millwood Hargrave. This haunting tale of village of women stranded in far north Norway in the 1600s is literally breathtaking. Vividly original.

All My 2023 Books (starred titles are favorites):

*Whalebone Theatre by Joanna Quinn. Utterly surprising and original tale of England before and during WWI thru the eyes of three siblings.

*Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus- see top 3

Anything is Possible by Elizabeth Strout. My first book by this compassionate weaver of stories but not my last.

*Trust by Hernan Diaz. Mesmerizing book within a book. Once I sank into it, I was sunk for days in this brilliant exploration of love, money and who is telling the tale.

*Tell the wolves I’m home by Carol Brunt. Tender tale of love, loss and secrets.

*Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver. See top 3

The Parade By Dave Eggers. Road pavers in a wartorn, unknown nation. Unexpected ending.

*Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbundu- Cameroonian immigrants try to make it in America circa 2008.

Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano. This sisters epic didn’t live up to the hype for me.

Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan. Really small story.

*Fifty Words for Rain by Asha Lemmie. Historical saga of a mixed race daughter in post-war Japan. Perfect book for getting lost in for days.

The Gravity of Birds by Tracy Guzeman. The title was the best part of this mysterious tale of sibling sister rivalry.

The Forest Dark by Nicole Krauss. Not one of her best.

*Under an Outlaw Moon by Dietrich Kalteis. Great read for a road or plane trip. Depression era smalltime robbers

The Huntress by Kate Quinn. I get lost in Quinn’s historical fiction. This one is about a small team pursuing Nazis after the war.

Master Slave Husband Wife by Ilyon Woo. This non-fiction book chronicles a daring escape to freedom by married slaves.

Lucy by the Sea by Elizabeth Strout. Is it too soon to read a novel about the Pandemic? That was my question in this well-crafted story.

*Book woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Richardson. Historical fiction of Depression-era Appalachian women who delivered books to housebound folks in the hills.

The Storytellers Death by Ann Davila Cardinal. Puero Rican family saga.

Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin. Not sure what the big deal is in this endless tale.

The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern. Did I read this? Maybe I should go back again.

Hang the Moon Jeanette Wells. If you like Wells’s memoirs, you’ll like her fiction. I did.

*Mercury Pictures Presents by Anthony Marra. The rise and fall of a movie studio through the eyes of immigrants. Fabulous writing. I posted a memorable sample at the end of this list.

**The Mercies by Millwood Hargrove. See top 3.

Storytellers Death by Ann Cardinal. Forgettable.

In the Distance by Hernan Diaz. A bold and extraordinary western tale.

Postmistress of Paris by Meg Clayton. Felt like a movie I’d already seen

River sing me home by Eleanor Shearer. Moving story of an escaped Caribbean slave’s journey to find her stolen children.

The Collector by Daniel Silva. Always a fan of his Israeli spy thrillers with Gabriel Allon.

The Wind Knows My Name by Isabel Allende. Multi-generational tale weaving Holocaust survivors and Salvadoran refugees.

The Premonition by Banana Yoshimoto. Beautiful writing in a spare story. Murikamiesque.

I Have Some Questions For You by Rebecca Makkai. I still have some questions! An old murder, a podcast and a cast of post-college possibilities. Meh.

Still life with Tornado by A.S. King. A suffering teenager in a dysfunctional family

The Idiot by Elif Batuman. Not sure why this won the Pulitzer Prize but a well-written exploration of strange love across cultures and continents.

Wellness by Nathan Hill. A love story in our crazy century. Lots of witty observations of trends and philosophies of the modern era. Trying to finish before year end!

And now, as promised, a taste of some brilliant, witty writing from Mercury Pictures Presents:

“Despite their love of cigarettes, physical inertia, and bootlegged grappa of questionable potability, the great-aunts exuded immortality. Perhaps credit went to their Mediterranean diet. The olive oil served as embalmment, the fats and salts as preserving agents, endowing the Morabito sisters with the suspect agelessness of filling-station pastry, a three-pack sealed in cynicism, nonperishable people dreaming of decay.”

Happy New Year! Happy Reading. 

And please, please share your favorites (or skippables) in the comments section.

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