I was a reading fiend this year, thanks to my two book clubs, the competitive spirit I brought to my Goodreads challenge and the convenience of audiobooks. I finished a book a week, and now, I want to share my literary wisdom with you.
Here are the 10 best books I finished in 2016, as well as a few amusing stinkers.
10. So You've Been Publicly Shamed, Jon Ronson
This book is narrative nonfiction done right. Ronson helped me think about Internet culture in new ways, while also entertaining me with tales of visiting the set of a porno film.
Read this book when you're avoiding your chores or waiting for an appointment.
9. The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood
My mom randomly brought a beat up paperback version of this literary gem to my condo when she visited this summer. I hadn't read it since completing a final project on it as a senior in high school. I'm stunned by how well Atwood's work has held up.
Read this book with Donald Trump's latest tweets scrolling on your computer screen.
8. The Magnolia Story, Chip and Joanna Gaines
Mike got me this book as an early Christmas present after hearing me squeal with delight when I saw it at Costco. Episodes of the Gaines' show, Fixer Upper, bring joy to my weeknights, and it was surprisingly interesting to learn more about their path to success.
Read this book if you have a few hours to spare and misplaced your copy of People magazine.
7. Hillbilly Elegy, J.D. Vance
Although it kills me to include a book that's already been praised by every reviewer on earth, I have to admit that this was the most gripping thing I read this year. Once I picked it up, I couldn't put it down. I know many of my Twitter friends and maybe even my own brother wouldn't agree with Vance's conclusions, but his writing style was smart and engaging.
Read this book if you want to feel like part of the in crowd or if CNN has spent too much time on the same non-breaking news alert.
6. The Wonder, Emma Donoghue
Donoghue's "Room" was a major part of my 2015 media consumption, so it seems fitting that her newest novel greated me in the New Year. Her subject — medical tests for proving miracles — was fascinating for me in both a personal and professional sense, and it inspired an article and lots of weird conversations.
Read this book before church or after brunch.
5. Being Mortal, Atul Gawande
Excuse me while I sob at just the memory of finishing this powerful book. Gawande draws on his family's experience with aging and loss to rethink the modern medical system. He asks readers to consider what counts as a good life when your granparent or parent is running out of time.
Read this book before a visit to your hometown with a box of Kleenex nearby.
4. Eligible: A Modern Retelling of Pride & Prejudice, Curtis Sittenfield
I reread the original P&P at least once a year, and I actually paused the audiobook of it to write this post. I love returning to Elizabeth and Darcy's love story, whether in Austen's book, my P&P coloring pages, a zombie-themed reboot or Sittenfield's modern retelling. "Eligible" was almost everything I wanted it to be, far surpassing Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life for best throwback of 2016 (honestly, GG was the worst.)
Read this book when you're feeling incredibly sappy or planning a home renovation.
3. On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, Stephen King
The closest I've come to reading one of King's novel is watching "It" and "Pet Sematary." His style never appealed to me, but his book on being a writer spoke to my soul. I filled several pages of my favorite notebook with his thoughts on life, art and finding balance.
Read this book if you're a creative person who's feeling a little lost or overwhelmed.
2. Heartburn, Nora Ephron
This semi-fictionalized account of the dissolution of Ephron's marriage to Carl Bernstein drove me crazy in the best way. It was charming, amusing and clever. It made me want to quit my job and write essays until I sounded as cool as her, but also to never write again out of fear that I will never come close to being as cool as her.
Read this one when you're mad at men or in the mood for revenge. It's literary comfort food, and it also holds lessons on how to write sentences that sing.
1. Big Little Lies, Liane Moriarty
I could have put any one of Moriarty's novels in the number one spot. I read them all this year because I was addicted to the juicy storylines and quaint Australian setting. Moriarty's books represent 1/7 of my 2016 reading!
Read Big Little Lies (or The Husband's Secret or What Alice Forgot) when you're in an airport munching on food that's no good for you or sitting at home choosing sweatpants over social interaction.
The books I loved to hate
3. Ready Player One, Ernest Cline
Blame it on the angsty audiobook narrator or my general disinterest in science fiction, but this promising novel quickly turned sour for me. Cline spent a little too much time peering into the brain of a horny, immature teenager and imagining what sex with robots will be like.
2. The Widow, Fiona Barton
A betrayed wife. A missing child. A dedicated detective. Sounds juicy, right? Well somehow Barton managed to turn what could have been the next Girl on the Train into a bland reflection on unhealthy coping mechanisms.
Now I'm back to searching for a way to erase my memory so that I can experience Gone Girl for the first time all over again.
1. The Magicians, Lev Grossman
How dare this gross man present his book as the next Harry Potter. In place of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans and butterbeer, I got wasted teenagers, endless descriptions of finger exercises and (I kid you not) a non-human sex scene.
My book club pals and I raged about this book's stupidity over French toast with cinnamon butter on a warm summer day. I bet the staff of Hoppers is haunted by our cackling.