I have narrowed down ALL of the books I’ve read in past years into my favorite books lists (2023 favorite books and 2022 and 2021). This year I was inspired to turn my favorite reads from this year into some fun superlatives, thanks to one of the Patreon members from the Currently Reading podcast. I entertained myself coming up with unique superlatives to capture some of my 4 and 5 star reads this year. So far I have read over 125 books, so here is how I categorize some of the hits:

• Best most deserving of the hype – The Women by Kristin Hannah
• Best badass female character – Looking for Jane by Heather Marshall or The Power by Naomi Alderman
• Best jaw dropping ending – Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth
• Best book that sounded like something I would hate but I trusted people who read similarly to me and I was not disappointed – The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters and Tom Lake by Anne Patchett
• If you love someone who loves mysteries, get them hooked on this series – The Inspector Armand Gamache series by Louise Penny [I read the newest this year, but you must read the series in order!]
• Best book to read in one sitting, preferably on a plane ride – Turbulence by David Szalay
• Best friendship book – Happy Place by Emily Henry
• Books with the most outrageous plot points but you don’t care because it’s so bizarre it’s entertaining – Five-Star Stranger by Kat Tang and Annie Bot by Sierra Greer
• Book that will keep you guessing and questioning everything – The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
• Best non-horror book by Stephen King – 11/22/63 by Stephen King
• Best sweeping, intergenerational family saga – A Thousand Times Before by Asha Thanki and Banyan Moon by Thao Thai
• Best Classic that I didn’t want to read but ended up loving – Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
• Best Climate Fiction book (my newest favorite subgenre!) – Clean Air by Sarah Blake
• Best futuristic end-of-the-world mystery – 2034: A Novel of the Next World War by Elliot Ackerman
• Best Middle Grades book – And Then, Boom! by Lisa Fipps and The Wild Robot Protects #3 by Peter Brown
• Best self help book that helped save my perimenopausal life – The New Menopause: Navigating Your Path Through Hormonal Change with Purpose, Power, and Facts by Mary Claire Haver
• Best nonfiction book that scared me for our children’s future but think all parents and educators must read – The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Caused an Epidemic of Mental Illness by Jonathan Haidt
• Best book on American history we should have learned but never did – An Indigenous People’s History of the United States for Young People by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz AND The Small and the Mighty: Twelve Unsung Americans Who Changed the Course of History, from the Founding to the Civil Rights Movement by Sharon McMahon
• Best book about one of the best TV series ever with some serious inspirations for service and altruism – What’s Next: A Backstage Pass to The West Wing, Its Cast and Crew, and Its Enduring Legacy of Service by Melissa Fitzgerald and Mary McCormack
• Best book of snarky and humorous essays – We Are Experiencing a Slight Delay: Tips, Tales, Travels by Gary Janetti
• Best celebrity memoir – The Third Gilmore Girl by Kelly Bishop
• Honorable mentions – Family Family by Laurie Frankel, The Spy Coast by Tess Gerritsen, and Better the Blood by Michael Bennett

If I had to pick just one fiction favorite this year, it would be The Women. I can’t wait to plan my first trip to Vietnam, inspired by this stunningly beautiful story!