I’ve always been a bit flighty in my book choices, reading anything and everything that caught my eye (I will always pick up a bright pink cover). This year, however, I read more by recommendation than by blind intuition and was introduced to the incredible world of indie authors, as well as new book genres, such as linked collections and novels-in-verse. I culled 2021’s #TBR list from #Bookstagram and IG’s #writingcommunity, the wonderful librarian at my son’s school, and finally, the MH Literary Society (the book club I joined this year, and now cannot imagine my life without). 

If you are in a book rut, or just curious about what else is out there, I highly recommend joining a bookish community, whether it’s an in-person club or an online forum. Or ask your favorite librarian! There’s a world of reading out there, and I humbly submit my picks for Favorite Reads of 2021 in hopes of inspiring further travels in your own reading journey.

OLIVE KITTERIDGE by Elizabeth Stout
A masterclass in character and world-building. Each story in this linked collection is a slice of small-town life, illuminating another facet of the titular character’s personality. You may not like Olive, but you will remember her. 

CASTE: THE ORIGINS OF OUR DISCONTENTS by Isabel Wilkerson
By far the most challenging book I have read since graduating college, CASTE is a deep-dive into the history of social stratification and how it relates to race relations today. Recommended to anyone looking for a powerful non-fiction read.

HERE THE WHOLE TIME by Vitor Martin
The sweetest of YA love stories. Felipe is 17, shy, and insecure about his weight. Caio, his crush, comes to stay with Felipe and his mother for the holidays. Allllllll the feels ensue. My daughter and I read this book in tandem, handing it back and forth over a single weekend. 

THERE’S SPAGHETTI ON MY CEILING: AND OTHER CONFESSIONS OF A REFORMED PERFECTIONIST by Allison B. Kelly
Divided into 50 easy-to-read essays, this warm hug of a book is just right for enjoying during those found moments of downtime sitting carpool or on the sidelines at practice. It’s like having coffee with your funniest, most understanding friend. 

RAVEN SONG by Jennifer Brasington-Crowley
This rock-star-meets-ungulate-biologist, rock-star-borrows-biologist’s-belt, rock-star-loses-both-belt-and-biologist love story deserves the Hollywood big-screen treatment ASAP. If you like your romance laced with snark and animal conservation, then this gem is for you. Bonus - there are two more equally excellent books in the Raven series, with a fourth on the way in 2022. 

STARS OF ALABAMA by Sean Dietrich
A Depression-era story of families lost, found, and created, STARS will sweep you up like a Kansas dust storm and carry you all the way to the Gulf Coast of Alabama. Author Sean Dietrich (also known as “Sean of the South”) writes beautiful, quiet observations about human nature. Enjoy this like sweet tea on a hot day. 

THE HUNTRESS by Kate Quinn
“If you’re the hunter, you stalk and if you’re the prey, you run.” A razor-sharp novel about predator and prey, sisterhood and fairytales. Set in dual timelines and multiple POV, the reader knows something the characters in the story do not, and has no choice but to read on (late into the night, gnawing at her knuckles) as the huntress does what she does best. 

TRISTAN STRONG PUNCHES A HOLE IN THE SKY by Kwame Mbalia
Tristan Strong, fresh off his first (failed) boxing match, accidentally opens a portal to Alke, a parallel universe where figures from African American folktales and West African mythology live as gods. Read this with your kids. You’ll all enjoy Tristan’s story (especially his sarcastic parenthetical asides. “Whoopty-poopty-do” has become part of our family lexicon.) The first in a YA trilogy.

THE POET SLAVE OF CUBA by Margarita Engle
My introduction to the Novel-in-Verse format. Devastating and gorgeous, it is based on the life of Juan Francisco Manzano who was enslaved as a child and later escaped to become a celebrated poet. This slim YA biography will be appreciated by all book-lovers for its lyricism and powerful story. 

CULTISH: THE LANGUAGE OF FANATICISM by Amanda Montell
A fascinating look at language and how it influences us for good or bad. I both read and listened to this book, and have recommended it to everyone I know who loves a good cult documentary or anti-MLM podcast. 

MARTITA, I REMEMBER YOU by Sandra Cisneros
At only 50 pages, I hesitated to include this as a favorite ‘book,’ but the story of three college-aged friends living abroad took hold of my imagination in a way that many longer works fail to do. This is a book to be read and shared among friends; a reminder of and nostalgia for those precious “new adult” years. 

THE SUMMER BREEZE by Shail Rajan
A vacation in book form. Callie’s deliciously sweet adventures in renovating and running a bed and breakfast will have the reader ready to relocate. To be enjoyed in any season.