Review of 2019 Bookish Goals

It's 2020! It's time to look at my 2019 goals and see how I did. Then I will share my 2020 bookish goals in another post.

1. Read the whole Chronicles of Narnia series.
My friend and I decided to do these on audio, and we discussed them via email. She had a baby around book five so I finished the rest of the series on my own, but I hope we still get to discuss the final books at some point!

2. Reread the Malloreon series on audiobook.
I got a late start on this, but I made it through four of the five books and am in the middle of the final book now!

3. Read some of the unread books on our bookshelf.
I had five books on my shelves (which are separate from my husband's and son's shelves) that I hadn't read; I read four of them and am partway through the fifth. I acquired two new books in 2019, but they are reference books for future parenting stages, so I'm OK with keeping them unread for now.

4. Get roughly 50% of my 2019 reads from my TBR list and 50% from elsewhere.
Just like the previous year, this proved to be too high a target to hit but it pushed me in the right direction; 35 of my 101 books in 2019 were from my original TBR list. That list is now down to 122, so I should get it under 100 in the next year!

5. Read at least three books published in 2019.
Success! I read eight of them. Four made it on my top nonfiction of the year and one on my top fiction.

6. Read at least five books on my "shelf of shame."
I read eight of them! My favorite was Whistling Vivaldi.

7. Read Harry Potter à l'école des sorciers.
I finished this French version of the first Harry Potter book and was able to return it to its owner with a thank-you note. As planned, I followed up each chapter by listening to the corresponding episode of Harry Potter and the Sacred Text. It was a lot of fun to read it in French, and a good match for my language level.

8. Read a few books that are the first in a series.
I read four books that were the first in a series; of these, Binti was the only one for which I continued the rest of the series. I actually put a hold on the sequel to Daughter of Smoke and Bone while I was reading it, and then certain plot developments made me so irritated that I canceled my hold.

9. Get caught up with the Dublin Murder Squad.
I read The Trespasser and loved it! It was the first of the series that got a 5-star rating from me. Then I realized that The Witch Elm was a standalone and not part of the series, so I called this goal done and figured I can come back to that one another time if I feel like it.

10. Read something my sister recommends.
My sister managed to recommend something less creepy than her previous three years' picks: I listened to Sadie on audio at her recommendation and enjoyed it.

Bonus: Read the Tommy and Tuppence books.
This was a goal I added for myself partway through the year, since I finished up all the Poirot books the year before and saw there were only five in this series of Christie's, so I decided to tackle them this year.

How did you do with your 2019 goals?

Looking back:
One year ago I was reading: Cutting for Stone, If You Come Softly, and Pachinko
Five years ago I was reading: The Great Gilly Hopkins and The Canterbury Tales
Ten years ago I was reading: Silas Marner

Top Ten Fiction Reads of 2019

I'm linking up with That Artsy Reader Girl for another Top Ten Tuesday.

Last week I listed my favorite nonfiction reads of 2019. This week I'm sharing my favorite fiction I read the year!

1. The Arrival by Shaun Tan
This is a lovely wordless graphic novel that reads like watching a short animated film. Tan puts the reader in the shoes of an immigrant through the fantastical world that he has designed; just like the protagonist, the language on papers and signs is unfamiliar to us, as are the strange animals, foods, and methods of transportation. Definitely recommend picking this one up.

2. Binti by Nnedi Okorafor
This book is great at both a plot level (action-packed, unpredictable, with a satisfying plot arc) and a metaphorical level, about the pointlessness of long-standing enmities, the challenges of being an outsider, and the difficulties of doing something without a role model to lead the way. I greatly enjoyed the second book in the trilogy as well, but the third one was disappointing.

3. Demon Lord of Karanda by David Eddings
I had always thought King of the Murgos was my favorite book of the Malloreon, but on this read-through I liked this third book of the series better. We get hilarious banter, overcoming prejudice, and a developing relationship between my two favorite characters.

4. The Extraordinary Education of Nicholas Benedict by Trenton Lee Stewart
Although this prequel tells the story of The Mysterious Benedict Society's founder, it is essentially a standalone story, but either way it gave me the same enjoyment as the original series. Nicholas Benedict, 9-year-old orphan, must outsmart bullies and incompetent adults while following the clues of a treasure hunt.

5. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
This was a reread, but I found this just as delightful the second time, possibly more because of the excellent audiobook production with five different narrators. It's the perfect blend of solemnity and humor, talking honestly about the German occupation of Guernsey while also providing a post-war setting that allows for some lightness.

6. Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese
Although this is a novel, it was clear from reading it that I fundamentally misunderstood that those who sequestered indigenous children in boarding schools were not just misguided but horrifically abusive. Given that background as source material, this book could have been very dark and brutal, but Wagamese's prose is so spare that you are able to absorb the experiences of each stage of Saul Indian Horse's life without gratuitous descriptions of suffering.

7. The Magician's Nephew by C.S. Lewis
This is my favorite of the Narnia books. There were many parts I enjoyed that were funny or sweet or just satisfying. And as always, Lewis shows that he is an excellent study of human nature. This book, to me, was the best plotted and least problematic of the series.

8. On the Come Up by Angie Thomas
It's hard to follow up something as stellar as The Hate U Give, but Thomas managed to pull it off. Set in the same neighborhood, this book follows a new character, Bri, as she tries to make it as a rapper. When it seems like she's finally getting a chance to have her voice heard, she has to decide what she's willing to do, and who she's willing to lose, to make that happen.

9. The Trespasser by Tana French
Tana French finally did it — wrote a Dublin Murder Squad mystery that didn't make me want to throw the book across the room when I was done. Her writing is just so good and I did not want to put the book down, and this time the main narrator isn't a horrible person and justice is, more or less, served. Hooray!

10. The Women of Brewster Place by Gloria Naylor
This is less like a short story collection and more like a novel with each chapter told from a different character's perspective, during which we get to learn about their individual backstory. I appreciated that each story/chapter had its own complete story arc; each woman's story serves up consequences for the choices she makes early on in the story. And the writing is just excellent. It's not a happy collection, but it does end with a note of hope and empowerment.

What were your favorite fiction reads this year?

Looking back:
One year ago I was reading: Cutting for Stone, If You Come Softly, and Pachinko
Five years ago I was reading: Yes Please and The Canterbury Tales
Ten years ago I was reading: The Red Pony

Top Ten Nonfiction Reads of 2019

I'm linking up with That Artsy Reader Girl for another Top Ten Tuesday.

Next week's topic is our favorite books of the year, but this year I had enough good reads to be able to split them into nonfiction and fiction lists. People wonder how I can list my favorite reads of the year when there's still a week left in 2019, but I don't plan to read any more nonfiction this year so I feel safe listing out my favorites now.

1. 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff
This is an absolutely delightful collection of letters between a woman in New York and a bookshop in London; it's a quick read and laugh-out-loud funny. I think it will be most appreciated by voracious readers, but anyone may enjoy this look into an earlier era when books were not readily available for two-day shipping.

2. Becoming by Michelle Obama
I knew very little about Michelle Obama's life going into this book, so I appreciated getting a greater understanding of her family of origin, her school experiences, and her career prior to becoming First Lady. In clear, engaging prose, she helps the reader understand both why she was often made to feel "not enough" and how she had the support of many others who lifted her up and kept her going.

3. Let's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson
I reread this for book club and found it just as laugh-out-loud funny the second time around, this time on audio, narrated by the author. I literally had to stop listening to the book while talking a walk outside because I was laughing so hard I thought I might pee my pants (and I was getting weird looks from the people around me!). The audiobook version also contains a bonus chapter plus some unedited audio of Lawson that will give you a fascinating and entertaining window into her brain.

4. Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb
Through Gottlieb's stories of being a therapist and being in therapy herself, this is both a celebration of the power of therapy and a recognition of its limits — that all of us, therapists included, are just doing our best. But you come away feeling that if we were all willing to be a little more vulnerable and put in a little more effort to look at how our own decisions affect ourselves and others, we'd be much better off as a human race.

5. Modern Kinship by Constantino and David Khalaf
This may be the best Christian marriage book I've read, period, even though I'm not the target audience. I found it helpful as a way to understand what my LGBTQ siblings-in-Christ may be experiencing, but also found their general advice about marriage to be a valuable reminder about what makes a relationship last. The authors are vulnerable about their own experiences and also incredibly practical, and the result is a book that is helpful, challenging, and beautiful.

6. Shameless by Nadia Bolz-Weber
I have loved all of Nadia Bolz-Weber's books to date, and this one is no exception. What I love most about this "sexual reformation" is that, while she illustrates how many destructive ideas about sex originate in the church, she advocates for a sexual ethic that is not separate from the Christian faith but rather deeply informed by it.

7. A Thousand Lives by Julia Scheeres
In this history of the mass murder-suicide at Jonestown, Scheeres does a fantastic job bringing to life both Jones and the various people from Peoples Temple she profiles throughout the book. I got a sense both of how Jones could draw so many people to him in the first place and how he kept them under his control as he started to become more and more paranoid. It's unflinching but not gratuitous in the descriptions of what people underwent at Jonestown, and it will give you a much richer understanding of this piece of history in a relatively quick read.

8. Weird Parenting Wins by Hillary Frank
I've recommended this book to so many new parents this past year. The whole first half of the book had me laugh-crying over some of the ridiculous things people (myself included) do out of desperation to get babies to sleep, toddlers to eat, and preschoolers to get out the door fully clothed. The second half of the book I did a lot of highlighting of the excellent tips for life with siblings and older kids. I definitely recommend it for all parents of young kids — if only for the laughs!

9. Whistling Vivaldi by Claude M. Steele
I was familiar with the idea of "stereotype threat" before reading this book, but I was missing many of the key components that make it so fascinating and so pervasive. I found this book a valuable complement to reading about bias and privilege. We can't ignore the realities of both conscious and unconscious bias, but understanding stereotype threat and the ways to combat it can help provide additional tools for creating a more inclusive and equitable world.

10. White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo
This book deserves all the attention it's gotten! It's an incredibly clear and concise guide to the assumptions most white people hold about racism and why they therefore get outraged at the suggestion that they might not be perfectly woke and post-racial themselves. I highly recommend it, particularly for those in the target audience of "white progressives."

What were your favorite nonfiction reads this year?

Looking back:
One year ago I was reading: Cutting for Stone and The Future of the Mind
Five years ago I was reading: God's Bits of Wood and Warriors Don't Cry
Ten years ago I was reading: The Red Pony

Top Ten Reads of 2019 So Far

I'm linking up with That Artsy Reader Girl for another Top Ten Tuesday.

This week's topic is "Most Anticipated Releases of the Second Half of 2019" but as usual I have no idea what's going to be published in the future. We're not quite halfway through the year, but I saw there was no mid-year check-in topic scheduled for July, so why not do it now? I've had exactly ten 5-star reads so far in 2019, not counting rereads of old favorites. Here are those ten!

1. 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff
I could not understand exactly how two decades of correspondence between a woman in New York and a bookshop in London could make for a compelling read, but now I understand. Hanff is a hoot! The book is under 100 pages and made up entirely of letters and postcards that often don't fill a page, so you can get through it quickly. It's worth the read.

2. Becoming by Michelle Obama
I knew very little about Michelle Obama's life going into this book, so I appreciated getting a greater understanding of her family of origin, her school experiences, and her career prior to becoming First Lady. In clear, engaging prose, she helps the reader understand both why she was often made to feel "not enough" and how she had the support of many others who lifted her up and kept her going.

3. Binti by Nnedi Okorafor
This book is great at both a plot level (action-packed, unpredictable, with a satisfying plot arc) and a metaphorical level, about the pointlessness of long-standing enmities, the challenges of being an outsider, and the difficulties of doing something without a role model to lead the way. I was left satisfied but still with enough questions to want to continue the trilogy!

4. The Extraordinary Education of Nicholas Benedict by Trenton Lee Stewart
Although this prequel tells the story of The Mysterious Benedict Society's founder, it is essentially a standalone story, but either way it gave me the same enjoyment as the original series. Nicholas Benedict, 9-year-old orphan, must outsmart bullies and incompetent adults while following the clues of a treasure hunt.

5. Home by Nnedi Okorafor
I enjoyed this as much as Binti, although it ends with a cliffhanger. I love the way Okorafor took a real-life people (the Himba) and layered in futuristic elements like mathematical meditation and space travel.

6. Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb
Through Gottlieb's stories of being a therapist and being in therapy herself, this is both a celebration of the power of therapy and a recognition of its limits — that all of us, therapists included, are just doing our best. But you come away feeling that if we were all willing to be a little more vulnerable and put in a little more effort to look at how our own decisions affect ourselves and others, we'd be much better off as a human race.

7. On the Come Up by Angie Thomas
It's hard to follow up something as stellar as The Hate U Give, but Thomas managed to pull it off. Set in the same neighborhood, this book follows a new character, Bri, as she tries to make it as a rapper. When it seems like she's finally getting a chance to have her voice heard, she has to decide what she's willing to do, and who she's willing to lose, to make that happen.

8. Shameless by Nadia Bolz-Weber
I have loved all of Nadia Bolz-Weber's books to date, and this one is no exception. What I love most about this "sexual reformation" is that, while she illustrates how many destructive ideas about sex originate in the church, she advocates for a sexual ethic that is not separate from the Christian faith but rather deeply informed by it.

9. The Trespasser by Tana French
Tana French has finally done it — written a Dublin Murder Squad mystery that didn't make me want to throw the book across the room when I was done. Her writing is just so good and I did not want to put the book down, and this time the main narrator isn't a horrible person and justice is, more or less, served. Hooray!

10. Weird Parenting Wins by Hillary Frank
The whole first half of the book had me laugh-crying over some of the ridiculous things people (myself included) do out of desperation to get babies to sleep, toddlers to eat, and preschoolers to get out the door fully clothed. The second half of the book I did a lot of highlighting of the excellent tips for life with siblings and older kids. I definitely recommend it for all parents of young kids — if only for the laughs!

What have been your favorite reads so far this year?

Looking back:
One year ago I was reading: Garlic and Sapphires, Inspired, and Feeling Good
Five years ago I was reading: Island Beneath the Sea and A Suitable Boy
Ten years ago I was reading: Metaphors We Live By

Ten 2019 Releases I Might Want to Read

I'm linking up with That Artsy Reader Girl for another Top Ten Tuesday.

A few weeks ago, the topic was 2019 books we were anticipating in the first half of the year, but I didn't have more than a couple on my might-want-to-read list at that point. Thanks to recommendations in the first month of the year, I now have just enough 2019 releases to make a top ten list!

1. Daughter of Moloka'i by Alan Brennert
I mentioned this one last week as a recent addition to my list. I liked the original Moloka'i enough to be interested in the sequel.

2. I Think You're Wrong (But I'm Listening) by Sarah Stewart Holland and Beth Silvers
In recent years I've been trying to figure out where the balance is between being open to those with more conservative viewpoints and not having to subject myself to opinions that are inherently prejudiced and offensive. Since the 2016 presidential election I've been listening to the Left, Right & Center podcast, which has been valuable for helping me understand multiple sides of current events in a way that's calm, coherent, and respectful. While I still don't want to seek out political arguments with people, this book seems like it could be helpful for understanding how to have conversations with others who have different beliefs but also genuinely want to learn.

3. Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb
Through Gottlieb's professional experience as a therapist and personal experience going to her own therapist, this book promises to explore the process of therapy and what makes it worthwhile. It sounds fascinating!

4. Modern Kinship by David and Constantino Khalaf
I had the pleasure of getting to know these guys through Q Christian Fellowship (formerly the Gay Christian Network), where Constantino formerly worked, and I'm excited to read their first book, which grew out of the blog they run of the same name. There are plenty of Christian relationship books out there, but they're (unsurprisingly) written for straight couples. And LGBTQ dating guides don't tend to focus on faith! These guys decided to bridge the gap to provide guidance to same-gender couples wanting to build a God-centered relationship. Although I'm not the target audience, I know many people who are, and I would love to read this.

5. On the Come Up by Angie Thomas
This comes out tomorrow — yay! I've been on the pre-order holds list at my library for forever, since before the original publication date was delayed. Thomas is of course the author of the blockbuster The Hate U Give, and while I'm not going in with expectation that she'll hit it out of the park twice, I am still excited to read this.

6. Once Ghosted, Twice Shy by Alyssa Cole
I saw this pop up as a recommendation from two different people in short succession, and while I don't usually read romance, this one promises to be a sweet, fun novella. I read too much heavy stuff and need something sweet and uplifting every once in a while.

7. Survival Math by Mitchell S. Jackson
I'm aware that Oregon has a pretty racist history and we haven't collectively done a great job overcoming that yet. This book has been highly recommended from the advance reviews, and I'm very interested to read the memoir of a black man who grew up in Portland.

8. There's Something About Sweetie by Sandhya Menon
I read both of Menon's first two books in 2018, and I'm on board for more! She writes great books that combine romantic happy endings with powerful explorations of family, friendship, and identity. I am excited to read this one!

9. Thick by Tressie McMillan Cottom
I always have to remind myself that although I don't like short story collections, I do actually like essay collections, at least when they're done well. I've seen this book, which came out at the start of the year, recommended several times already.

10. Trailblazer by Dorothy Butler Gilliam
As a former journalism major and an avid nonfiction reader, I'm very interested to read this memoir from the first black female reporter at the Washington Post. Plus journalists tend to be great writers, which can make for great memoirs!

Have you read any of these? Which do you recommend?

Looking back:
One year ago I was reading: Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet and The Stand
Five years ago I was reading: The Steerswoman and War and Peace
Ten years ago I was reading: Copyediting

Top Ten Bookish Goals for 2019

I'm linking up with That Artsy Reader Girl for another Top Ten Tuesday.

Since there's no goals topic this year, I'm stealing this week to talk about my 2019 reading goals. (Also, I have no idea what's being published in 2019!) In case you missed it, here's how I did with my 2018 goals. Wish me luck on my goals for 2019!

1. Read the whole Chronicles of Narnia series.
As previously mentioned, I already have plans to do a buddy read of this series with a friend this year. I've read the first two books (publication order) before, but I have not read the rest of them. Now is the time!

2. Reread the Malloreon series on audiobook.
I tried getting through both the Belgariad and Malloreon last year, but I only made it through the Belgariad. The Malloreon was always my favorite of the two series, so I'm looking forward to revisiting it.

3. Read some of the unread books on our bookshelf.
This is a continuation of last year's goal, since I didn't do terribly well. There aren't that many, so I should be able to get through them if I try!

4. Get roughly 50% of my 2019 reads from my TBR list and 50% from elsewhere.
I'm going to attempt this again this year even though I didn't succeed last year because having the goal is still helpful in pushing me to get through the books on my original TBR list, which I capped a few years ago. One of my book clubs recently switched from monthly to every other month, so that will help with the number of non-TBR books I "have to" read.

5. Read at least three books published in 2019.
I like this goal because it gives me permission to pick up new releases that sound interesting, and a lot of my favorite reads from last year were new releases. Also, I hate getting to the annual Goodreads Awards and not having read anything on there.

6. Read at least five books on my "shelf of shame."
I created a tag on Goodreads to mark those books that I really should have read by now, the ones I see pop up again and again. There weren't nearly as many as I expected, and now it feels more manageable to start tackling them intentionally. These include Redwall, King Lear, A Room with a View, and Little Fires Everywhere.

7. Read Harry Potter à l'école des sorciers.
My husband borrowed the French version of the first Harry Potter book from someone for me and I haven't had a chance to read it yet. I've been wanting to listen to Harry Potter and the Sacred Text, so I thought it might be cool to listen to each podcast episode after I finish reading the corresponding chapter in French, as an incentive to get through it.

8. Read a few books that are the first in a series.
I have a tendency to put off books on my TBR if they're the start of a series, because what if I like them and then have to put everything else on hold to read the next eight books? But last year I finally read The Raven Boys and loved it and did not mind devoting the time to reading the rest of the series. Goal #4 be damned, I'm going to take the chance this year on some series.

9. Get caught up with the Dublin Murder Squad.
Speaking of series, I was happy to finally get to The Secret Place last year, only to find that Tana French had released The Witch Elm and I was now two books behind again. I hope to read both The Trespasser and The Witch Elm before the year's end.

10. Read something my sister recommends.
I've enjoyed this annual tradition, so I'm going to ask my sister for a recommendation again this year. Hopefully she can find me something that's less creepy than her last three picks...

What are your bookish goals for 2019?

Looking back:
One year ago I was reading: Peter Pan and After Dark
Five years ago I was reading: The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao and War and Peace
Ten years ago I was reading: Copyediting