I love reading books and book reviews are the heart of Panorama of the Mountains. I’ve been keeping track of the books I read since I was a teenager and I’ve attempted to catalog every book I’ve ever read at LibraryThing.
One of my big reading projects is Around the World for a Good Book, where I’ve been attempting to read an original work of fiction from every nation in the world.
On this page I’ve provided links to posts about my favorite books as well as my running lists of books I’ve read this year. If there’s a book you’d like to discuss or think I should read, let me know in the comments!
Favorite Books of All Time (as of 2009)
Favorite Books by Year:
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) –
- The Tree by Colin Tudge –
Read a YA nonfiction book
Read a retelling of a classic of the canon, fairytale, or myth by an author of color
Read a mystery where the victim(s) is not a woman
Read a graphic memoir
Read a book about a natural disaster
Read a play by an author of color and/or queer author
Read a historical fiction novel not set in WWII
Read an audiobook of poetry
Read the LAST book in a series
Read a book that takes place in a rural setting
Read a debut novel by a queer author
Read a memoir by someone from a religious tradition (or lack of religious tradition) that is not your own
Read a food book about a cuisine you’ve never tried before
Read a romance starring a single parent
Read a book about climate change
Read a doorstopper (over 500 pages) published after 1950, written by a woman
Read a sci-fi/fantasy novella (under 120 pages)
Read a picture book with a human main character from a marginalized community
Read a book by or about a refugee
Read a middle grade book that doesn’t take place in the U.S. or the UK
Read a book with a main character or protagonist with a disability (fiction or non)
Read a horror book published by an indie press
Read an edition of a literary magazine (digital or physical)
Read a book in any genre by a Native, First Nations, or Indigenous author
https://www.nypl.org/blog/2020/01/06/read-harder-2020
