Best Reads of 2024

After my overly ambitious goal of 40 books last year, I toned it down a bit and set a goal of 25 books for 2024. Though reading is by no means a race, I do find having a goal motivating when scrolling is tempting.

I reread a number of books and was introduced to some wonderful new books. In between these, was a lot of dithering and bookish procrastination. Without further ado, here is the big list.

1. A Swim in a Pond in the Rain: George Saunders

2. Emma: Jane Austen

3. Kristin Lavransdatter: Sigrid Undset

4. East of Eden: John Steinbeck

5. I Cheerfully Refuse: Leif Enger

6. Ex Libris: Anne Fadiman

7. Hannah’s Children: Catherine Pakaluk

8. The Greengage Summer: Rumer Godden

9. Husband-Coached Childbirth: Robert A. Bradley

10. Anne Karenina: Leo Tolstoy

11. Gunnar’s Daughter: Sigrid Undset

12. Helena: Evelyn Waugh

13. Cassandra and Jane: Jill Pitkeathley

14. The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert: Rosaria Butterfield

15. A Town Like Alice: Nevil Shute

16. Five Lies of Our Anti-Christian Age: Rosaria Butterfield

17. Mrs. Palfry at the Claremont: Elizabeth Taylor

18. Our Bodies Tell God’s Story: Christopher West

19. Angle of Repose: Wallace Stegner

20. Magnolia Table: Joanna Gaines

21. Middlemarch: George Eliot

22. Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand: Helen Simonson

23. My Name is Mary Sutter: Robin Oliveira

24. News of the World: Paulette Jiles

25. Five for Sorrow, Ten For Joy: Rumer Godden

26. Simon the Fiddler: Paulette Jiles

27. The Covenant of Water: Abraham Verghese

28. 5 Purtain Women: Jenny-Lyn de Klerk

Rereads include Emma, East of Eden, Anna Karenina, and Middlemarch.

Of these, my appreciation of Middlemarch grew the most. During my first read, I enjoyed the novel but found parts of it dry and difficult to decipher. This time I found none of the novel dull and had a better grasp of its complexities. Eliot’s brilliant understanding of what constitutes a good marriage, while living in somewhat of a pseudo-marriage herself, is fascinating to me. The ending lines of the novel remain words I strive to live by.

“The growing good of the world is partly dependant on un-historic acts; and that things are not so ill with you and me as they might have been, is half owing to the number who lived faithfully a hidden life and rest in unvisited tombs.”

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Books that did not impress include I Cheerfully Refuse, Husband-Coached Childbirth, Cassandra and Jane, and Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand. I know many people love Leif Enger and his most recent novel I Cheerfully Refuse, but it wasn’t my cup of tea. It had some beautiful moments and lines but the ending felt a wee bit chaotic to me. So many characters were introduced in the latter half of the novel without enough time to develop a deep care for them. The novel was also trying to do a lot in terms of plot and theme and I wasn’t satisfied with the conclusion. I realize I’m in the minority on this one so please don’t come after me!

Husband-Coached Childbirth had some good info on relaxation techniques but was disorganized and repetitive. It also included some odd anecdotes. Like one woman who went three months beyond her due date with a perfectly healthy baby...? And another who ate, and I quote, "two grapes" every hour and staved off morning sickness? And when she missed her hourly grapes she fainted? I'm sorry but I buy neither of those. All in all not the first childbirth book I'd recommend and I am certain there are better Bradley Method books. My opinion of this book does not reflect my opinion of the method - which, from what I understand (thank you Pitocin for robbing me of a drug-free experience), works quite well.

Cassandra and Jane was dry and flat. Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand was a dollar find at the library bookstore (which is usually a great place for cheap books!) and proved to be less sweet than I thought it would be. It couldn’t seem to decide if it wanted to be a sweet romance or a serious book confronting serious cultural issues. These two books are the only ones I didn’t finish this year.

Now, onto the more fun part.

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These are the new-to-me books that stand out above the rest.

1. Kristin Lavransdatter

2. Hannah’s Children

3. The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert

4. A Town Like Alice

5. Our Bodies Tell God’s Story

Some runners-up include A Swim in a Pond in the Rain, Mrs. Palfry at the Claremont, News of the World, and A Covenant of Water. All good reads!!

I struggle to find the words to fully unite my thoughts about Kristin Lavransdatter. As Close Reads would put it, it has become one of my “heart” books and continually lingers in my mind. While reading a theological exposition on godly marriage and womanhood is wonderful, there is something utterly immersive about a story that captures the struggle to become a godly woman. Fiction embodies ideas and thus (at times) teaches better than plain prose. While a thoroughly enjoyable story, this book also opened my eyes to my vices and made me frightened of them. Good literature ought to teach and delight. This novel certainly does both. Rather than recommending only a theological book on marriage to young fiancès, I put forward Kristin Lavransdatter as an essential text for young brides. And also everyone else. I’m excited to dive into another book of Undset’s, Olav Andersson, later this year.

While a sociological, cultural, and economic commentary, Hannah's Children has also become something of a heart book for me. Though I became a mother in 2023, the majority of my learning-to-mother occurred in 2024. Hannah’s Children is more than social commentary. The stories of the women Pakaluk interviewed, combined with her commentary, were vastly moving. Children are a blessing. We say this but I think we often forget how true that statement is. As women, we have the unique gift of being able to house a second immortal soul in our bodies. As couples, we have the gift of raising immortal souls, born out of our love for each other. What greater good can there be? I reflect on this book often, particularly in the moments when toddlerhood and the third trimester are tiring. Motherhood is beautiful.

Having grown up in the Church, my experience of coming to faith was one of gradual and familiar exposure to the same ideas over and over again until the Lord revealed them to my heart more fully. So, it is fascinating to read stories of adults with very little exposure to the faith coming to it. Rosaria Butterfield’s experiences in The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert reminded me that the Gospel really is foreign to most ears. And being foreign, it is rather shocking. Butterfield did an excellent job straddling the line between honesty and privacy. I appreciated her candid observations and was challenged to renew my own zeal for the Gospel.

A Town Like Alice was simply a wonderful story. I picked it up by chance at a thrift store and read it very quickly. Aside from one troubling scene that could only have been invented in the mind of a man, the novel was everything I could want out of a sweeping WWII tale. (But seriously that one *ahem* scene, while not particularly graphic, suggested violence in intimacy that should never be tolerated. In this novel it was quickly brushed aside as something to be expected, which is extremely upsetting.) A lovely regular at the coffee shop I frequent and once worked at, read the book at my suggestion and absolutely loved it. Now I am reading one of her suggestions and I have A Town Like Alice to thank for a sweet book-swapping relationship! What a fitting little anecdote for a publication titled “The Bookshop Barista”. (On a side note, I realize I’ve never explained the title or introduced myself properly on here. I should fix that.)

Our Bodies Tell God’s Story came at the recommendation of my mom and was my first thorough introduction to the Theology of the Body. As lifelong Protestants, my mom and I were rather unfamiliar with many of these ideas but they have changed both of us for the better. West does a good job of making deep theology accessible and I feel comfortable recommending this book to anyone looking to better understand the relationship between the body, the soul, and God’s love. This book, along with many of C.S. Lewis’s books, conversations with my husband and others, and a wonderful video about heaven that Gavin Ortland put out, have slowly broadened my understanding of human telos and eternity.

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Between Christmas presents and Christmas gift cards, I have about settled my reading for the next several months. While having a baby comes with somewhat of a setback to my reading life, finding my rhythm for nursing and naps usually gives me ample time to catch up. I won’t reveal all my reading cards just yet but next on my list is The Betrothed by Alessandro Manzoni, which I’ll be reading in conjunction with the Close Reads subscriber podcast.

I’m also so excited to have a toddler this year who is more interested in books every day. She’s only 15 months but she climbs into the armchair in the living room with her “cup” and a minimum of two books and will stay there for quite some time. It’s very cute. I’ve started building up a collection of picture books for her and suggestions are always welcome.

Please tell me about your reading year down below!! I love a good bookish conversation.