As much as I love reading, I set a pretty low reading goal for myself this year. I knew that work projects were going to get overwhelming fast and I was spending more of my evenings hanging out with the boyfriend. But it turns out that reading is still an important break and escape for me, so I’ve already read 35 of my 45 book goal for 2021.
This year I also joined Roxane Gay’s virtual book club, and I’ve loved the selections she made for the year. Not only are the books fantastic, but there’s a great forum for discussion of the books and zooms with authors every month.
I also tried to put a moratorium on buying any new books aside from the book club books. It has been…mildly successful. But I’m still diving into my not-read bookshelves, and I’d love to hear about what books you’ve loved during these first six months of 2021. Now, without further ado, here are my favorite reads from the first half of the year.
Black Futures – Edited by Kimberly Drew and Jenna Wortham
Easily one of the single best things I’ve read in a long time. Saying I read it feels like an understatement, as this anthology is more of an experience. It features art, poetry, social media posts and more on the Black experience in the United States and around the world. It also focuses on hopes for the future. This is a work I will revisit over and over into the future.
What Kind of Woman by Kate Baer
On the list of things that are not usually my jam, poetry is usually right up there. But Kate Baer’s poems feel very accessible for this poetry novice and somehow extremely familiar and comfortable. If poetry is something you’re trying to dip your toes into, this is a great place to start.
The Book of Delights by Ross Gay
I also am not one who usually picks up a book of short stories or essays, but I saw so many good reviews of this that I simply had to. Plus, after the hectic nature of 2020, it was time for some delight. And this book really is it. The way that Gay sees and describes the world and his life left me unexpectedly smiling constantly as I read. Each story was like a balm for the times we live in.
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
Ooooh this one is good! A story of leaving your past behind, your identity and how what you leave behind can still find its way back to you. I loved Bennett’s writing, her deep exploration of how you create who you are and the prices you can pay for those decisions. This multi-generational tale of how life shapes you in unexpected ways and what directions your life takes was so beautiful and frustrating and sad all wrapped up in one.
City of Thieves by David Benioff
I didn’t expect to be so deeply pulled into this tale of Lev and Kolya, sent on a fantastical quest after being arrested during WWII. Benioff’s characterization makes you quickly fall for these two misfits and cheer for them as they move through Leningrad and its outskirts looking for the one thing that will keep them alive…eggs. As they meet up with people both terrifying and friendly, their relationship grows against the backdrop of a desolate city trying to make it through the war.
The Night Always Comes by Willy Vlautin
I have loved every single Willy Vlautin book, and this one is no exception. This one is a bit of a departure for Vluatin, as it feels more ‘action packed’ than his typically more quiet stories. But the incredible characters (you cannot help but want the best for Lynette) and the feelings of desperation are what I always love about his books and this one has it in spades. It’s a perfect reflection of this moment in time, of the way people get pushed to the fringes and sometimes have to resort to desperate measures just to stay on their feet.
Beartown by Fredrik Backman
Backman is another one of my favorites, and I can always depend on him for an excellent read. This one is also a bit of a departure, but it is still incredible. You immediately feel like you understand this place, the people who live there and how their lives all intertwine. Your heart aches for the good in the characters and wants to push back fiercely against those whose egos have outgrown their hearts. Backman’s tales often end with a beautiful coming together of people and circumstances, but this one ends with an aching, for a town that has needed to change but only does so because of an awful, act perpetrated by one person against another (big TW for sexual assualt). There is some redemption, but even more, there is a reminder that far too often, those with the power prevail.
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