Hey, stranger.

It’s time for my favorite type of debrief, since I’ve just finished my 100th book and have been waiting for the day my Goodreads sends me confetti for completing my reading challenge. I’ve included a hearty list of recommendations because, obviously, I had a lot of material to work with but, also obviously, not all of them were good.

I distinctly remember saying I was going to read more Jane Austen and well, I read Emma. No one is perfect.

A side effect of reading this much, and I really haven’t hit 100 since maybe middle school, was that I moved quickly and wasn’t able to sit with the aftertaste of the books I particularly enjoyed. Consider this an exercise in remembering the flavors. This is a list of the titles I’ve sent to friends and family throughout the year and since you, dear reader, fall into that category, I’m sharing it with you too. If you read any of these, please let me know your thoughts.

1. Emma by Jane Austen. My favorite Victorian classic is Jane Eyre, followed closely by Pride and Prejudice, but this may take the cake. Although I far prefer the romantic storyline in P&P, the humor in this book caught me be surprise. For some reason, in my head, everyone who lived in the 1800’s or before had no sense of humor. Did they laugh? Probably not. But Emma is delightful and silly and quite comforting in its reminder that humans are all the same. We are all annoyed by the same type of people, we are all gossipers at our core, we are all endlessly curious about each other. This book reminded me of that.

2. On Women by Susan Sontag. I’ve read so many passages from this book over the years that it felt familiar to return to. I loved the first 3 essays and would recommend it for a few different reasons, depending on who you are. For young women: Sontag begins this collection by discussing the role that aging plays in a woman’s life and I found it particularly inspiring to actively push back against some of the conditioning I’ve already adopted. For older women: I’d imagine Sontag would provide some salve for the feelings you may have been feeling your entire life. She’s eloquent yet firm in her stance that yes, there are unfair standards and yes, it is enraging, but to understand how systems work against you is a lifeline. For men: the way that Sontag presents her thoughts here is so masterful that I’d imagine reading this from a male perspective would, instead of ostracizing, be incredibly impactful.

3. Save Me The Plums by Ruth Reichl. Oohhhhh yeah I love a book about food and a media career in NYC during the 2000’s and Condé Nast drama. This book is for anyone who also loves Nora Ephron. It’s light, it’s fun, it’s interesting, its a perfect palate cleanser.

4. White Nights by Fyodor Dostoevsky. Crime and Punishment took me about 5 months to get through but I still think about that book twice a week, so I was very excited to read this one. The first line convinced me this would be a 5 star read and the rest of the 90 or so pages held up.

5. I’m Mostly Here To Enjoy Myself by Glynnis MacNicol. The book that both inspired this post and my entire mindset the last few months. If On Women filled me with feminist rage, this book offered a tender balm to those feelings. The story follows a 40-something year old woman’s solo trip to Paris in which she fully and completely commits herself to pleasure of whatever form she desires. It’s fantastic and gave me a softer glimpse into a type of future that could await me one day.

6. Royal Assassin by Robin Hobb. Hobb would be required reading if I ever taught an English class. She’s phenomenal and doesn’t get enough press in the fantasy world. My favorite book of all time is The Name Of The Wind because the story has such a beautiful balance of fantasy, politics, folklore elements with really poignant character development. Royal Assassin (forgive the name) does the same thing. The series is magnificent and I miss this world it takes place in and I find myself looking for books that remind me of it, which is high praise.

7. Freedom Is A Constant Struggle by Angela Davis. Since the October attack in Palestine last year, this book feels like a must read. I particularly enjoyed Davis’ emphasis on intersectionality and connecting the experience of Black Americans to that of Palestinians. I have a frankly dismal sense of world politics and global history, so finding books that present context while also describing the impact and interconnection to other topics is very, very helpful. I found myself far more equipped to ingesting and understanding the news on Palestine this year, so I’d highly recommend.

8. First Love by Lilly Dancyger. If you enjoyed The Great Girlhood movement of 2023, you’ll love this book. The stories, from the author’s perspectives on the female friendships that have shaped her life, cover topics such as grief, sexuality, loyalty, the pain of a friendship breakup, etc. It’s beautifully written and one of those books that you are inclined to stop and underline or take photos of passages every few pages.

9. Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain. The patron saint of this blog, Anthony Bourdain will always be the standard in which I hold myself. Sometimes I read my own writing from a few months ago and go eugh, god, who reads this? But then, to my delight, I read something like Kitchen Confidential where Bourdain’s voice is hitting 100mph. He is a classic example that your point of view on a subject is unique and special and is what people want to hear. This book probably would be vaguely interesting if it was written as some news article breaking down the hidden world of the restaurant industry, but it’s the level of personality and charm that Bourdain brings that really makes the experience enjoyable.

10. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith. This was one of the first books I read this year and I distinctly remember the nights I would lay on Michael’s couch, reading well into the night. It’s a story I find myself thinking back on frequently. For those who loved To Kill A Mockingbird, this one’s for you.

11. The Gun Seller by Hugh Laurie. You know me, give me a British author and a murder mystery and I’m charmed. I’d recommend this just because it’s good clean fun. The story is a bit what the hell is going on right now? but the confusion is worth it for the absolutely delightful writing. I had a crush on the main character. At one point they’re in The Alps orchestrating a terrorist attack and it reminded me of The Psych episode where they are trying to catch Desperaux (this reference is for my sister). Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett probably loved this book.

12. Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton. I write what I want to read and this book is exactly the type of thing I like to read. It’s charming and romantic and comforting— plus Alderton is British and I love the way those freaks talk. Init, bloke, etc. I am endlessly charmed by mundane stories that speak to how relationships (family, friends, partners) impact our lives. The book celebrates the messiness of your 20’s and learning to love the process of figuring it out. Highly recommend.

13. Black Swans by Eve Babitz. I knew even before I finished this that Babitz had a place on my favorite authors list. A list that, I would like to think, is a hard one to find a place on. In the preface of Black Swans, Stephanie Danler (who is also the author of one of my favorite novels, Sweetbitter) says that she stumbled upon Eve when she needed her most. I think I did, too. Eve’s writing is casual and funny and effervescent; the stories are frivolous yet poignant and I cannot recommend her fast enough. Any author that can write about mundane life and make it beautiful is talented beyond belief, in my opinion.

14. Winter Solstice by Nina MacLaughlin. One thing I am going to do is talk about this book. Rachel Demary, my beautiful friend, if you’re reading this just know that I read this book because of you and you were right, I loved it. It’s kind of poetry but kind of not, which is a non-explanation but the book is about 100 pages so it’s worth reading even if you’re not a prose fan.

15. The Wedding People by Alison Espach. This year’s reading material theme was: 40-something woman’s self discovery novels. I tried to read that Miranda July book and got bored but The Wedding People? Stunning. Very sweet, very funny, very real. The characters felt so real, you kind of have no choice but to love them, even when you hate them. I also read Big Swiss and Perfume and Pain, which are somewhat in a similar vein and I would recommend if this is the genre you go crazy for.

16. Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto. In all honesty, I was hooked at the first part of this book, got very confused at the middle part, and don’t really recall how it ends. But I still think about it to this day, which is always a marker of a worthwhile read, and the writing packs a punch. There are lines in this book that made me gasp at the casual poignancy, the effortlessness in which they decorate the story. I was reminded of Kafka On The Shore by Haruki Marukami by the absurdism, but I was far more charmed by the narrator in this one.

17. Tom Lake by Ann Patchett. Anyone with sisters should read this. Anyone with a mother should read this. It’s a beautifully written story about the lives our mothers lead far before we ever come into the picture. I was half tempted to force my mom to tell me all the stories she never has after reading this.

18. The Rachel Incident by Caroline O'Donoghue. Set in Ireland, this book follows the story of a girl and her roommate and her affair with a professor through the years. It made me laugh out loud at the most unexpected moments, but I also found it incredibly relatable, particularly the parts on navigating the hellhole that is early adulthood.

In looking at my Goodreads, I have to laugh at the randomness of my book choices. I am completely disinterested in having good taste in books. Completely. I’d rather read whatever I could get my hands on and whatever seems interesting to me at a particular moment. I do not care about the genre or the star rating or how intellectual, or not, a book is. I read to be entertained. Or to satisfy my curiosity. As a result, there are a lot of books I read this year that I wouldn’t recommend on the basis of them being, well, not good. Such is the risk you run! But coming away with 18 books I truly would love people to read is not bad. This year, I’d like to make a list of books that have been on my to-read list for awhile and be diligent about getting through them but I will always, always be on the side of reading whatever the hell you want and enjoying the process of finding what you don’t like.

Let me know if you’ve read any of these books and if so, what your thoughts are. Happy New Year to you all and as always, thank you for reading.

xoxo,

Evie