I had decided: this was the year I was going to do more regular reading updates, not just one giant post in December. And I started so strong, yes? I got that Q1 update out right on time! But then…life. So here we are, per usual, at the end of December, compiling a long list of every book I read/read aloud/listened to in 2024…
Interesting things to note about my literary life this year:
- Homeschooling brought some very fun “younger” reads into my life.
- I stopped reading more books than I usually do, which led to fewer total books being logged, but less general frustration in my reading.
- I miss Cormoran Strike.
Without further ado, my year in books (well, Q2-4):
Read all my first quarter books here
- Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder – an absolute classic I read aloud for my first grader’s homeschool. I noticed it quietly impacting the way we approached hard work and leisure time.
- Sex and the City of God by Carolyn Weber – I absolutely loved her memoir Surprised by Oxford, and while I maybe wasn’t as enthralled with this follow up, it was still such a rich read about her exploring romance as an intellectually profound new believer.
- The Wise Woman by George MacDonald – An extremely lovely fairy tale by one of my favorite authors.
- The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah – I’m late to the game on this one, and while I don’t think I loved it as much as the rest of the reading world, it was still so gripping.
- The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt – Perhaps the most talked-about book of 2024, and for absolutely valid reasons. If you haven’t, read it.
- Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte – A classic governess tale that I liked but maybe didn’t love.
- Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbit – A reread from my junior high days so I could chat about it with my 6th grader who had it assigned for school.
- Joy in the Morning by P.G. Wodehouse – Maybe my favorite Jeeves + Wooster book yet. These are the books I reach for when I want to laugh (but don’t want my brain turned to mush).
- Thoughts for Young Men by J.C. Ryle – Incredibly short, incredibly powerful.
- Deeper by Dane Ortlund – The subtitle is Real Change for Real Sinners, and Ortlund lays out some really practical but thoughtful ways in which our sin changes us and how to fight it.
- The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood – It was a fun read, but I didn’t feel compelled to read the sequel.
- An Introduction to Christian Mysticism by Jason Baxter – I jump at any chance to read or listen to Jason Baxter. The subtitle for this is Recovering the Wildness of Spiritual Life, and he did an excellent job illuminating how following the lives of church fathers + mothers (the saints, martyrs, monks, anchoresses, etc) is anything but stifling to Christian fulfillment.
- Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare – While I read a lot of teaching material and abridgements for Shakespeare this year, this was sadly my only full read-through. But no matter; I absolutely loved it.
- Outlive by Peter Attia – While I definitely got lost in the science a time or 50, Attia writes incredibly well and is able to make the majority of his claims really accessible. I’d probably classify this read as a game-changer.
- Sipsworth by Simon van Booy – Perhaps the most endearing read of 2024.
- Signals of Transcendence by Os Guiness – A collection of mini-biographies and stories of life change.
- Til We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis – I read this retelling of the Cupid and Psyche myth years ago, but clearly missed so much because this reread was amazing. This might be my favorite Lewis book..?
- The Narnian by Alan Jacobs – Wanted (needed) to know more about this man I love so much, and Jacob’s story of Lewis’ life was incredibly well-written (which comes as no surprise – I’ve loved everything I’ve read by Jacobs).
- Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell by Susanna Clarke – FAVORITE BOOK OF 2024 (meaning I read it this year; it was published 20 years ago). No need to even think about it. While long, this book is a perfect example of everything I love in a novel: a historical English setting, magic (but treated as something scientific or commonplace), humor, adventure, romance, thrills… I loved every minute of it.
- Babel by R. F. Kuang – LEAST FAVORITE BOOK OF 2024. Like above, it contained all of those things I love in a book. But it added a sickening dose of the thing I loathe most: anachronistic activism + didacticism. Meaning it’s a alternative historical fiction book, but has an Important Moral Lesson based on modern sensibilities. Still mad about this one.
- Made for Friendship by Drew Hunter – A good book, but I have yet to read a book about community/friendship that feels truly groundbreaking…
- A Morbid Taste for Bones by Ellis Peters – I liked this first novel in the Brother Cadfael series (detective fiction, but with a Welsh Benedictine monk as the sleuth).
- Murder Must Advertise by Dorothy Sayers – The actual queen of Golden Age detective fiction does what she does best and elevates the form and pushes all the boundaries. Aside from the cricket match (which I did not understand because…sports), this was fun and exciting and smart from start to finish.
- Reading for the Love of God by Jessica Hooten Wilson – Such a good read on, well, reading. I adore Wilson’s podcast, as well.
- The Aviator by Eugene Vodolazkin – I’m still processing this one. A man wakes up in a hospital room, but cannot remember how he got there, who he is, or…when he is. A common trope, but handled very uniquely.
- The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain – Another book I pre-read before my 6th grader was assigned it in literature, and oh my goodness – I’m so glad I did. I wasn’t ready for how hilarious and heartwarming this was.
- The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie – I never regret picking up a Chrstie.
- You Are Not Your Own by Alan Noble – A countercultural thought, explored wonderfully by Noble.
- Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker – Another book in which I may have gotten lost in the data for a moment, but ultimately really valued. Sleep more, sleep better, my friends.
- The Fury by Alex Michaelides – Fine. Didn’t love.
- Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling – Dove back into this series (I read book one years ago as a pre-read for my eldest, but then couldn’t keep up with him) mostly because I missed Cormoran and needed Rowling back in my life. GoodNESS these books are good. So fun, exciting, smart, and full of classical illusion. I won’t do a blurb for each book – just know I loved them.
- HP & The Prisoner of Azkaban
- HP & the Goblet of Fire
- HP & the Order of the Phoenix
- HP & the Half-Blood Prince
- HP & the Deathly Hallows
- A Killing in November by Simon Mason – Stephen Fry recommended this new-to-me detective series and I really enjoyed them! Can’t wait for the next to be released this next year.
- The Broken Afternoon by Simon Mason
- Lost and Never Found by Simon Mason
- Possession by A.S. Byatt – Funny thing about this book. It’s cover jumped out at me at a bookstore one day, but I knew nothing about it. A few days later, I took the Booker Prize quiz to see which past winner I should read next, and guess which book it recommended?
- The Bright Years by Sarah Damoff – Last but in no way least, this debut novel by (my friend) Sarah Damoff. I was fortunate enough to get to read an advanced copy of this book (it will be released in April 2025) and was so incredibly touched. I loved the characters (like, loved them), found the writing so thoughtful, and ugly-cried when it was over. Preorder this one NOW.
Definitely not my top year in terms of quantity, but definitely one of the more varied.
What about you? Any favorites (or total stinkers) from this year?
xo,
sarah
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