It’s that time again: a year wraps up and the top 5/top 10/top 15/etc. lists start appearing everywhere. I admit that I’m a sucker for these lists — for reading them and writing them.
So here are the best books I finished in 2021 — a.k.a. the books I reserved a 5-star Goodreads rating for, a.k.a. the books I would shove in people’s faces and say “PLEASE read this.” Let me know if you agree (or disagree) with me, and let me know what’s on your list, too.
Happy new year, and happy reading!
Wow, No Thank You., Samantha Irby
I probably ended up reading half of this book out loud to my husband, who kept asking me what I was laughing about. I borrowed it from the library, finished it, then bought a copy. Probably the funniest book I’ve ever read. Please read it.
I read this in a few sittings. Whew. The content warnings that open the book were very much appreciated — it's intense. But wow, what a read.
Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You, Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
"...hatred has a way of convincing us that half love is whole. What I mean by that is we — all of us — have to fight against performance and lean into participation. We have to be participants. Active. We have to be more than audience members sitting comfortably in the stands of morality, shouting, 'WRONG!'"
This book — a YA "remix" of Ibram X. Kendi's National Book Award-winning "Stamped from the Beginning" — is such a triumph. I wish it was required reading for every age, every American. Also: can we please have more "remixes" of adult nonfiction for young readers?!
Leadership on the Line: Staying Alive Through the Dangers of Change, Ronald Heifetz and Marty Linsky
I read this for a course I'm taking on foundations of Christian leadership. I was prepared to be bored. (Books on leadership from the Harvard Business Review Press = not really on the top of my "To-Read" list.) But wow. It's a disarmingly good mix of practical Truth Nuggets (my term, not theirs) and powerful real-life examples of leadership (both good and bad) in politics, history, business, sports, etc. This really isn't just a book about leading well — it ends up being a book about loving and living well in whatever areas of leadership we find ourselves in. (And guess what? We ALL find ourselves presented with leadership opportunities, every day! So this is a must-read.)
Liturgy of the Ordinary: Sacred Practices in Everyday Life, Tish Harrison Warren
"In Scripture, in the incarnation, and in the church, we learn that graces comes to us through the tangible, earthy world, through the hours of an average day."
I will be thinking about this book for a long time.
1. First and foremost: Read this book.
2. If you can, listen to the audiobook. When it comes to narrators, Bahni Turpin is in a class all her own.
The Christian Imagination: Theology and the Origins of Race, Willie James Jennings
"To change one's way of imagining connection and one's way of desiring joining is no small thing." (294)
Published in 2010, this is one of those books that is held up as a classic of contemporary theological studies. It's a deep, detailed dive into the ways the Christian imagining of creation has contorted itself in justifying colonialism, slavery, oppression. It's very much an academic book (60 pages of footnotes!), but it's truly essential reading for understanding the conversation in studies of theology and race.
Together: The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World, Vivek H. Murthy, MD
The driving argument of this book — "the healing power of human connection" and the destructiveness of loneliness — seems obvious enough: we all know we need other people, right? That being alone is not the ideal? Yet Dr. Murthy, the former U.S. Surgeon General, does an amazing job of showing exactly HOW we're wired for connection, from a wide variety of angles: psychological, biological, etc.
I listened to the audiobook (which Murthy reads) but knew this was a book I'd need to return to again--so my own copy of it is now on its way!
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, V. E. Schwab
Thoughts I had when I started reading:
- the premise = INTRIGUING
- maybe a little cheesy?
- so much figurative language!
Thoughts I had when I finished reading:
- THIS CAN’T BE THE END!!!
- Why can’t I know someone who’s also reading this so we can talk about it??
Hidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family, Robert Kolker
"Our culture looks at diseases as problems to solve. We imagine every ailment to be like polio: hopelessly incurable, until a miracle drug comes along that can wipe it off the face of the earth. That model, of course, only works some of the time."
*
Oh my goodness. This book. I had a very difficult time putting it down.
It’s a deep dive into the (very true) story of the Galvin family, who had 12 (!!!) children — but that’s just the first part of the premise. Six of those 12 children were ultimately diagnosed with schizophrenia. The Galvins’ DNA and lived experiences became a huge step forward for research into the disease, and Robert Kolker does a fabulous job of narrating the family’s painful stories as well as breaking down the scientific stuff for non-science-y readers (like me).
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou
Gorgeous and triumphant. A book that reminds you of just how powerful books can be.
The Night Watchman, Louise Erdrich
“...if you should ever doubt that a series of dry words in a government document can shatter spirits and demolish lives, let this book erase that doubt. Conversely, if you should be of the conviction that we are powerless to change those dry words, let this book give you heart.”
This is a remarkable book. I didn’t want it to be over.
The Writing Life, Annie Dillard
Just exquisite. Annie Dillard is a marvel.
The Making of Biblical Womanhood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth, Beth Allison Barr
There’s been a good bit of buzz around this book, and it is VERY well-deserved. Dr. Barr, a medieval historian at Baylor, thoughtfully and graciously and convincingly lays out her case: that “biblical womanhood,” this concept that so pervades conservative evangelicalism, isn’t biblical at all, but an attempt at fitting the wider cultural norms of patriarchy into the Christian tradition through efforts like the Council for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, the ESV translation of the Bible, etc., etc.
I hope and pray this book changes hearts and minds.
Angie Thomas is a marvel. This book is not only the perfect companion/"prequel" to "The Hate U Give," but it's a stirring and powerful novel entirely on its own. When is her next book coming out?!
This little book is Annie Dillard’s writing at its dreamy, searching, gorgeous finest. I will be revisiting it again and again.
Finding Jesus in the Storm: The Spiritual Lives of Christians with Mental Health Challenges, John Swinton
I think I underlined something on every page of this book.
For a wonderful and helpful introduction to its themes and thoughts: my coworker interviewed John Swinton back in the fall. You can find that conversation here!
No Cure for Being Human (And Other Truths I Need to Hear), Kate Bowler
"No Cure for Being Human" is at once a memoir and a take-down of the cultural scripts that tell us we can perfect our lives, control our fates — if we only do this, buy that. I flew through this book in a few sittings, and I'll be returning to its wisdom again and again. This is the kind of book you read, highlighting every page, then make a list of people to buy it for so you can talk about it with them.
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, Mildred D. Taylor
I somehow never read this in school, and I've owned a copy for ages. For me, this book was a powerful reminder of how fiction for "young readers" can be the best of all.
A strange, enchanting little treasure of a book that kept me guessing and wondering until the very last page. Just marvelous.
The Fellowship of the Ring, J. R. R. Tolkien
The word that often came to my mind while rereading this was “delightful.” For as epic of a tale as the Lord of the Rings is, it doesn’t take itself too seriously (there are so many lighthearted and comedic moments), and it attends so well to both its likely and unlikely heroes.
I recently came across the poet W. H. Auden’s review of the book from when it first came out, and I think he puts it best: “what happened in the year of the Shire 1418 in the Third Age of Middle Earth is not only fascinating in A. D. 1954 but also a warning and an inspiration.”
Just magnificent. Is there a way to make every human on Earth read it?
P.S. If you can, listen to the audiobook, read by Miller herself. She reads with such grace and humor and pain and nuance. It's exquisite.
An unexpected delight of a book, especially if you’ve studied/worked in writing and publishing — this was a story I wanted to keep returning to and returning to.
Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup, John Carreyrou
I'm way too queasy for most true crime stuff, but this book gave me a taste of what it must be like to get into a true crime show/podcast/etc. It reads like a thriller — even with the abundance of in-the-weeds science details — and was VERY hard to put down.
Evangelical Thought Leader: The Liturgy of Radically Engaging the Culture of Paradigm Shifts, Matthew Pierce
life-changing
Learning to Pray: A Guide for Everyone, James Martin, SJ
A simple, practical, compelling book. I’d originally borrowed it from the library, then I ended up buying my own copy so I can return to its wisdom again and again.
The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together, Heather McGhee
Just masterfully done. McGee takes an incisive and systematic look at how white America has chosen to “drain the swimming pool” — both literally (community swimming pools) and figuratively (resources that would benefit all of us) — because of their belief in a zero-sum game, a scarcity mindset that says only one group can prosper.