I haven’t shared any book lists with you recently. I have read a lot of good ones this year. Here are my favorites.
- The Dearly Beloved by Cara Wall. A novel about two ministers, their wives, their friendship, and what it means to “believe.” Wall is a tremendously gifted writer and brilliant thinker.
- Akin, by Emma Donoghue. A beautiful story about an old man and a young boy.
- The Confession Club, by Elizabeth Berg. Women. It’s about women. And it is a joy.
- Ask Again, Yes, by Mary Beth Keane. How much can a family forgive?
- Mrs. Everything, by Jennifer Weiner. Jo and Bethie. Sound familiar? Two sisters who lead very different lives. I loved it.
- The Adults, by Caroline Hulse. Exes. They decide to all have Christmas together. It is a mess. But then, there are Scarlet and Posey.
- The Gifted School, by Bruce Holsinger. What happens when a town decides to open a school for “gifted” children? Wow.
- The Grammarians, by Cathleen Schine. Just read it.
- Autopsy of a Boring Wife, by Marie-Renee Lavoie. This one is translated from the French but loses nothing in the translation.
- Stay, by Catherine Ryan-Hyde. One of my great thrills in life is to call Ryan-Hyde my friend. All of her books are absolutely soul-grabbing. This one is no different.
- The World Came to Us, by Molly D. Campbell. I wrote it.
Happy New Year!