My Favorite Books of 2020

I will have completed over 165 by the end of 2020. I did reach my goal of reading FEWER books than in 2019. (I had read 178 last year!)

My reading was nearly split between fiction and nonfiction. A hearty dose of the fiction books fall into the 'historical fiction' category. I was pleased to read many debut novels.

It is hard to pare down my 'favorite' reads. But, of the books published in 2020, these are some that stand out for me.

Top Favorites

What Unites Us by Dan Rather is inspiring and hopeful, a much needed reminder in a time of discord and division.

Homeland Elegies by Ayad Akhtar is a compelling novel of ideas and insights into the American experience and the hope of America.

I read so many fantastic Biographies this year. I loved the books on John Kennedy and his brother Edward because I learned so much about their development and background and evolution into moral leaders. And the John Lewis biography is a wonderful reminder of his conviction and courage. Every age needs people who struggle with the moral questions of political and social power.

Catching the Wind: Edward Kennedy and the Liberal Hour 1932-1975  by Neal Gabler is the first of a two volume biography.

JFK: Coming of Age in the American Century 1917-1956  by Fredrick Logevall is fantastic! I can't wait for the next volume.

His Truth is Marching On: John Lewis and The Power of Hope by Jon Meacham is a beautiful homage to Lewis.

I also enjoy Memoirs.

I have never been to Kendra Attlework's beloved Miracle Country, but her beautiful writing made me love it, too. 

Jerome Charyn's memoir A Singular Beauty about his mother and growing up in the Bronx was memorable. In 2020, I read more books by Charyn than any other writer: Sargent Salinger, which comes out next month; Cesare; The Secret Life of Emily Dickinson; A Loaded Gun: Emily Dickinson for the 21 Century; and Johnny One-Eye.

As a life-long lover of classical music, I read three books about Music, pianos, and composers!

Beethoven: A Life in Nine Pieces by Laura Tunbridge presented Beethoven through nine pieces of music he wrote. I loved listening to the music as I read.

Chasing Chopin: A Musical Journey Across Three Continents, Four Centuries, and a Half-Dozen Revolutions by Annik LaFarge was a joy to read. 

The Lost Pianos of Siberia by Sophy Roberts is a musical travelogue, the author searching for rare and vintage pianos brought to Siberia. 

I also read many books addressing Current Social Issues.  

I was impressed by The Violence Inside Us by Sen. Chris Murphy. His passion and personal journey struggling with gun violence in America is presented in context of human nature and history.

Tightrope: Americans Reaching for Hope by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn is about Kristof's hometown peers for whom the American Dream became a nightmare.

History not only explains the past, it reveals the present. In perfect timing, Larson's study of Churchill during the Blitz was a marvelous study of leadership in crisis.

The Splendid and the Vile by Eric Larson

Literary fiction is my favorite read. There were so many great books out this year! These are the books that indulge my love for language and show a deep understanding of the human experience.

The Inheritors by Asako Serizawa was often hard to read, always beautifully written, a multi-generational story of a Japanese family.

The Dark Heart of Every Wild Thing by Joseph Fasano is beautiful, powerful, dark and hopeful.

Jack by Marilynne Robinson is her latest Gilead novel, the story of the black sheep son whose very love for an African American woman puts her at risk.

Moss by Kaus Modick is hard to describe, a beautiful and intimate story of an old man as he nears death.

When a child who cannot be categorized suddenly appears in a church, the community struggles to know how to respond in Pew by Catherine Lacey. 

Since I read it in 2019, I nearly forgot Cesare by Jerome Charyn! Which is awful, since it is an unforgettable, madhouse story of the Holocaust.

I read a great deal of Historical Fiction, books that imagine past times and people. It was hard to cull down to my favorites. All have in common immersive writing about human courage.

Jess Walter's book The Cold Millions is about the repression of early union organizers.

Emma Donoghue's novel The Pull of the Stars is about a nurse during the 1918 pandemic.

The Night Watchman by Louise Erdrich was inspired by her grandfather's story of Native Americans fighting the termination of their reservation. 

I love to support Debut Novels! This year was especially hard for these writers, unable to promote their work in a traditional way. 

The Mountains Sing by Nguyen Phan Que Mai was her first book in English. It is a multi-generational story of a Vietnamese family.

The Jane Austen Society by Natalie Jenner is a heartwarming story of a community that is brought together through reading.

The All-Night Sun by Diane Zinna was mesmerizing, the story of a woman's search for herself that spins out of control.

Other People's Pets by R. L. Maizes was so much fun! And heartfelt and moving and sweet.

Bronte's Mistress by Finola Austin imagine the woman who caught the heart of Branwell Bronte; she was vilified in Elizabeth Gaskill's biography of Charlotte Bronte; Austin humanizes her.

Godshot by Chelsea Biker is a disturbing, Gothic, propelling story of a girl escaping a cult community.

I enjoy reading Short Stories, and Daniel Mason's A Registry of My Passage on Earth also hits my favorite historical fiction category.

Contemporary Fiction, Women's Fiction, General Fiction--whatever you call it, these are books that reflect our experience today, often focused on personal growth and relationships.

A woman suffers a coma in With You Or Without You by Caroline Leavitt, and she faces many decisions while rebuilding her life.

A woman struggles personal freedom and fulfillment, breaking away from what the men in her life want her to be in The Lives of Edie Pritchard by Larry Watson. 

Afterlife by Julia Alvarez is about grief  and meaning after the loss of a spouse.

Karen Dionne returns to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan for the setting of her Suspense novel The Wicked Sister.

Dystopian, and a climate change novel, Charlotte McConaghy's
Migrations was beautifully written and left me in tears.

What can I suggest for All Ages?

My Bed: Enchanting Ways to Fall Asleep Around the World features Salley Mavor's fantastic art. Adults and children alike will spend hours looking at this book. And, it teaches that children are the same everywhere, in spite of their cultural differences.

When animals talk, we should listen. Jane Smiley's Perestroika in Paris seems merely like a sweet, inter-generational read, but these animals teach us about family and rising from tragedy.

I would love to list every book I read that was published this year! Plus,  I read books this year that don't come out until next year! So, I hope you follow my blog, because I surely want you to know about all the lovely reads that you need to put on your TBR shelf!

Wishing you safe and Happy New Year.

I Am Not a Label by Cerrie Burnell

I Am Not a Label: 34 Disabled Artists, Thinkers, Athletes and Activists From Past and Present by Cerrie Burnell is a beautifully illustrated (Lauren Baldo, artist) anthology that introduces young readers to disabled role models.

Growing up, Cerrie felt the lack of books with disabled protagonists; she was born with one hand. "Representation matters," she writes in the Introduction. She decided to share the stories of her favorite role models.

Readers will learn about famous people, like Beethoven (deafness) or Helen Keller and Stevie Wonder (Blindness).

Beethoven 

Stevie Wonder

And those with mental disabilities, like John Nash (subject of the book and movie A Beautiful Mind) and President Abraham Lincoln (depression).

Illness also creates disability, like Henri Matisse's cancer that caused him to fins a new way of doing art, resulting in some of his most beloved works. 

Henri Matisse

There are people representing those with Down's syndrome, spina bifida, polio victims, those who self-harm, chronic pain, autism, brittle bone disease, transgender, epilepsy, and more.

I was moved by these stories. Burnell's book is for everyone and every age. The wonder of what the human spirit can accomplish is marvelous.

Every library needs this book, for those who feel alienated by their disability, and for those who need to understand that disabled people are not so different, and in fact, may be remarkable.

I received a free book through Amazon Vine in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

I Am Not A Label

by Cerrie Burnell, Lauren Baldo Illus.

Wide Eyed/Quarto

ISBN: 9780711247444

hardcover $14.79

from the publisher

In this stylishly illustrated biography anthology, meet 30 artists, thinkers, athletes, and activists with disabilities, from past and present. From Frida Kahlo to Stephen Hawking, find out how these iconic figures have overcome obstacles, owned their differences, and paved the way for others by making their bodies and minds work for them.

These short biographies tell the stories of people who have faced unique challenges that have not stopped them from becoming trailblazers, innovators, advocates, and makers. Each person is a leading figure in their field, be it sports, science, math, art, breakdancing, or the world of pop.

Challenge your preconceptions of disability and mental health with the eye-opening stories of these remarkable people:

Ludwig van Beethoven, Gustav Kirchoff, Henri Matisse, Eliza Suggs, Helen Keller, Frida Kahlo, John Nash, Stephen Hawking, Temple Grandin, Stevie Wonder, Nabil Shaban, Terry Fox, Peter Dinklage, Wanda Diaz Merced, Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah, Dr Victor Pineda, Farida Bedwei, Stella Young, Lady Gaga, Arunima Sinha, Naoki Higashida, Isabella Spingmuhl Tejada, Aaron Philip, Catalina Devandas Aguilar, Redouan Ait Chitt, Jonas Jacobsson, Trischa Zorn, Ade Adepitan, and Dynamo.

The author & illustrator

Cerrie Burnell is an actress, singer, playwright, author, and former television presenter for CBeebies (2009–2017). She was born with half a right arm and has sought to increase visibility of disabled people through her career in presenting, writing, and acting.

Lauren Baldo is an illustrator based in the Philippines. He has worked as a storyboard artist, comic artist, graphic designer, and children's book illustrator.

All That We Carried by Erin Bartels

 

...it was clear that if God was real, he was after her.~from All That We Carried by Erin Bartels

Is life a series of random accidents, or is there a plan? If there is a god, why does God permit evil? Or does this god punish us? Or, lead us to be better? Are people basically self-centered, and therefor evil, and if so, can they change--be saved? And if people can change, can we forgive them?

Sisters Olivia and Melanie have been estranged since the deaths of their parents in a car accident. They were never similar, and their response to the tragedy sent them reeling in different directions. Melanie dropped out of school to settle the estate while Olivia returned to the University of Michigan. When Melanie forgave the man who caused the accident, Olivia was furious and cut her off.

As a lawyer in Lansing, MI, Olivia knows the evil side of humanity. She is controlled, repressed, and a perfectionist. Failure isn't in her vocabulary. When she isn't good at something, she gave it up.

Melanie's blog and YouTube videos turned into a career as a listener and life coach, helping people. Now its time to help herself and bridge the chasm between her sister and herself. She proposes an October hike in the Porcupine Mountains, a natural park in Michigan's Upper Peninsula where bear and cougar still roam, home to the remaining stand of hardwood and hemlock forest between the Rockies and the Appalachians.

Olivia plans the trip in detail; Melanie ignores the advice and is ill prepared. For anything can, and will, happen on the rugged, lonely trails.

Bartels not only references the Michigan landmarks that are the background to the action--she makes them come to life.

Trap Falls

In 2019, my brother and his girlfriend hiked in the Porcupines. They spent a year to prepare, every week hiking longer, harder, with backpacks and food. I knew these sisters were in for trouble from the start! Even Olivia, for all her preparedness, since she already was suffering from hip pain.

Mirror Lake

As the sisters hike the trails, I was able to look at the photographs my brother shared from their hike, shared in this post.

View from Escarpment Trail

Melanie has something she need to tell Olivia, but she needs to tear down the wall between them. The hike doesn't bring them closer. Olivia has shouldered responsibility for them both, her bossy big-sister side dominating. 

Mouth of Big Carp River

Little Carp River

One thing that surprised my brother and his companion was the elevations they had to climb, the rocks and roots. Luckily, they did not suffer any accidents. Unlike Bartel's sisters who end up fleeing a forest fire, resulting in an accident.

Crossing a Stream meant climbing a gorge

All That We Carried has so many wonderful aspects. It's almost a travel guide. It is an adventure story and a family drama. It is a psychological study of the burdens people take upon themselves. 

 

At its heart is the struggle with spiritual matters, the nature of God, the question of evil in the world, the randomness or providential nature of life, universal questions we ask as communities and individuals. 

It is the rare person who can embrace the mystery of life, avoiding anger, despair, or fear.

Overlooked Falls

I loved the Michigan references throughout the book! On the first page, I recognized "Wynken, Blynken, and Nod," the towers from the old Lansing electric plant whose blinking lights always told me I was almost home during our nine years in Lansing.

There is overt God-talk, and a mysterious character who shows up providentially. Melanie is challenged over her incorporation of all faiths into her belief system. But the changes in the characters arise out of their shared experience and conversations, their journey not over, but they have set foot on the right trail. 

I agree that this is Bartel's most mature work so far. 

I read and reviewed Bartel's previous novels We Hope for Better Things  and The Words Between Us.

I received an ARC from the publisher through LibraryThing and a galley from NetGalley. (I also pre-purchased a copy of the book.) My review is fair and unbiased.

All That We Carried: A Novel

by Erin Bartels

Pub Date: January 5, 2021 

ISBN: 9780800738365

soft cover $16.99 (USD)

"This subdued tale of learning to forgive is Bartels's best yet."--Publishers Weekly

Ten years ago, sisters Olivia and Melanie Greene were on a backcountry hiking trip when their parents were in a fatal car accident. Over the years, they grew apart, each coping with the loss in her own way. Olivia plunged herself into law school, work, and a materialist view of the world--what you see is what you get, and that's all you get. Melanie dropped out of college and developed an online life-coaching business around her cafeteria-style spirituality--a little of this, a little of that, whatever makes you happy.

Now, at Melanie's insistence (and against Olivia's better judgment), they are embarking on a hike in the Porcupine Mountains of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. In this remote wilderness they'll face their deepest fears, question their most dearly held beliefs, and begin to see that perhaps the best way to move forward is the one way they had never considered.

Michigan Notable Book Award winner Erin Bartels draws from personal experience hiking backcountry trails with her sister to bring you a story about the complexities of grief, faith, and sisterhood.

Manido Falls

Manabezho Falls

About the author

ERIN BARTELS is the award-winning author of We Hope for Better Things—a 2020 Michigan Notable Book, winner of the 2020 Star Award from the Women’s Fiction Writers Association in both the debut and general fiction categories, and a 2019 Christy Award finalist—The Words between Us—a 2020 Christy Award finalist—and All That We Carried (coming January 2021). Her short story “This Elegant Ruin” was a finalist in The Saturday Evening Post 2014 Great American Fiction Contest. Her poems have been published by The Lyric and The East Lansing Poetry Attack. A member of the Capital City Writers Association and the Women’s Fiction Writers Association, she is former features editor of WFWA’s Write On! magazine and current director of the annual WFWA Writers Retreat in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Erin lives in the beautiful, water-defined state of Michigan where she is never more than a ninety minute drive from one of the Great Lakes or six miles from an inland lake, river, or stream. She grew up in the Bay City area waiting for freighters and sailboats at drawbridges and watching the best 4th of July fireworks displays in the nation. She spent her college and young married years in Grand Rapids feeling decidedly not-Dutch. She currently lives with her husband and son in Lansing, nestled somewhere between angry protesters on the Capitol lawn and couch-burning frat boys at Michigan State University. And yet, she claims it is really quite peaceful.

Visit the author's website at https://erinbartels.com/

Greenstone Falls