Here’s my annual list of my ten favorite books read in the year. As always, this is merely the best books I read this year for the first time and not necessarily books published in 20202. For previous years see 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007 and 2006. You may also want to check out My Favorite Books of All Time or see Every Book I’ve Ever Read cataloged in Library Thing.
Books published in 2020 are in bold.
- The 99% Invisible City: A Field Guide to the Hidden World of Everyday Design by Roman Mars and Kurt Kohlstedt
- Caste by Isabel Wilkerson
- The Assassination of Fred Hampton by Jeffrey Haas
- The Good Neighbor by Maxwell King
- Jim Henson: The Biography by Brian Jay Jones
- Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
- Rise of the Rocket Girls by Nathalia Holt
- Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein
- Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe
- When the Irish Invaded Canada by Christopher Klein
Books Read in 2020
The books are rated on a scale from 1 to 5 stars with links to summary reviews. (A) is for audiobook.
Here’s a thumbnail of what the ratings mean:
- 5 stars – all-time classic (I’m very stingy with these)
- 4 stars – a particularly interesting, well-written, or important book
- 3 stars – a good book from start to finish
- 2 stars – not a good book on the whole but has some good parts
- 1 star or less – basically a bad book with no redeeming values
January
- Cartoon County by Cullen Murphy – ****
- The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher (A) – ***
- Return of the Living Dad by Kate Orman – ***1/2
- Star Wars Vol. 11: The Scourging of Shu-Torun
- Star Wars Vol. 12: Rebels and Rogues
- the relationship by Ashley D. Stevens – ***
- Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (A) – ****
- The Good Neighbor by Maxwell King (A) – ****
- Lonely Planet: Yellowstone and Grand Tetons – ***
- Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein – ****1/2
- The Shining by Stephen King (A) – ***
February
- When the Irish Invaded Canada by Christopher Klein – ****
- The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison (A) – ****
- The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben – ***1/2
- 11/22/63 by Stephen King (A) – ***1/2
- Shearwater: A Mermaid Romance by D.S. Murphy – **1/2
- Rise of the Rocket Girls by Nathalia Holt (A) – ****
March
- Empire of Shadows: The Epic Story of Yellowstone by George Black (A) – ***
April
- The Walt Disney World That Never Was by Christopher E. Smith – ***
- Sula by Toni Morrison (A) – ****
- The Fiery Trial by Eric Foner (A) – ***1/2
- The Time Traveller’s Guide to Medieval England by Ian Mortimer – ****
- Jim Henson: The Biography by Brian Jay Jones (A) – ****
- Terry Jones’ Medieval Lives by Terry Jones and Alan Ereira – ****
- All Our Wrong Todays by Elan Mastai (A) – ****
May
- The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker (A) – ***
- Damaged Goods by Russell T. Davies – ***1/2
- Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison (A) – *****
- Bonk by Mary Roach – ***
- The Hunger by Alma Katsu (A) – **
- K : A History of Baseball in Ten Pitches by Tyler Kepner – ***1/2
June
- All the Bad Apples by Moïra Fowley-Doyle (A) – **1/2
- The Monied Metropolis by Sven Beckert – ***
- Highfire by Eoin Colfer – **1/2
- Freedom is a Constant Struggle by Angela Y. Davis – ***1/2
- Letters to The Hall of Presidents by Guy Hutchinson – 1/2*
- Tar Baby by Toni Morrison (A) – ****
- Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White (A) – *****
July
- Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe (A) – ****
- Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore (A) – ***1/2
- This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone (A) – **
- Maeve in America by Maeve Higgins (A) – ***1/2
- Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace by Terry Brooks – ***
- The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix Harrow (A) – ***
August
- Voyage of Mercy by Stephen Puleo (A) – ***1/2
- Star Wars: Master and Apprentice by Claudia Gray – ***1/2
- The Tree by Colin Tudge – ***
- Jedi Academy by Jeffrey Brown – ***1/2
- Watching Yellowstone & Grand Teton Wildlife by Todd Wilkinson – ***
- A Ranger’s Guide to Yellowstone Day Hikes by Roger Anderson and Carol Shively Anderson – ***1/2
- The Farcountry Field Guide to Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks by Kurt F. Johnson – ****
- Caste by Isabel Wilkerson (A) – ****1/2
- Attack of the Clones by R.A. Salvatore – ***
September
- The Case of the Missing Marquess by Nancy Springer (A) – ***1/2
- Revenge of the Sith by Matthew Stover – ****
- Beloved by Toni Morrison (A) – ****1/2
- The Assassination of Fred Hampton by Jeffrey Haas – ****
- Fever Dream by Samanta Schweblin (translator Megan McDowell) (A) – **1/2
- Star Wars: From the Adventures of Luke Skywalker by George Lucas (ghost written by Alan Dean Foster) – ***
October
- The Great Halifax Explosion by John U. Bacon (A) – ***1/2
- The Empire Strikes Back by Donald F. Glut – ***
- Franklin Park by Julie Arrison – ***
- The Map of Salt and Stars by Zeyn Joukhadar (A) – ***1/2
- The Library Book by Susan Orlean (A) – ***1/2
- Return of the Jedi by James Kahn – ***
November
- The Lost Girls of Paris by Pam Jeoff (A) – ***
- Gateway to Freedom by Eric Foner (A) – ***1/2
- The Constant Rabbit by Jasper Fforde – ***1/2
December
- Gulp by Mary Roach (A) – ***1/2
- A Clearing in the Distance by Witold Rybcynski – *****
- The 99% Invisible City: A Field Guide to the Hidden World of Everyday Design by Roman Mars and Kurt Kohlstedt – *****
- Dread Nation by Justina Ireland (A) – ***
- Heir to the Empire by Timothy Zahn – ***
- The Queens of Animation by Nathalia Holt (A) – ***1/2
- George Lucas by Brian Jay Jones (A) – ***
