In 2019, I ended up reading 44 books. This number is really honestly surprising to me, but hey, audiobooks and me had a really great thing going on the last quarter of the year. Out of those 44 books, these are my top 10 books that I read from 2019. I don’t know how I would gladly recommend these books as well as re-read them in the future.
MY FAVORITE BOOK READS IN 2019
📖 The Stranger in the Woods
This is biography compiled from interviews about the longest known hermit. The book was so interesting that I listened to it in its entirety in two days.
📖 Big Magic
My only regret is that I didn’t pick this one up sooner. I loved Gilbert’s thoughts on creativity and left the book feeling more ready to tackle any creative idea I have.
📖 Becoming
I really loved this autobiography by Michelle Obama. I admit I really didn’t know much about her and then I was listening to her talk about her childhood in Chicago during white flight and going on marches with Jesse Jackson’s daughter. Her life is interesting, down to earth, and honestly very inspiring.
📖 The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein
Wow! This was SO good! I picked this one up because I was trying to get into the Halloween spirit and I love the book Frankenstein. I had really low expectations and then I ended up with a prequel that matched period text pretty well. I’d really recommend this book!
📖 All the Light We Cannot See
A World War 2 novel that is as unique as it is heart warming and sad. This was so well written and I really want to read more by this author!
📖 The Good Neighbor
This is one of the memoirs of Fred Rogers read, but bonus: it is read by Levar Burton. This book really goes through the history of children’s broadcasting, Fred’s childhood, and what made him tick. My husband was surprised at how interested I was in all of the business back work that went into this (it can get dry), but I left just feeling inspired by Mr Rogers’ legacy.
📖 The Road Back to You
This one would be another one to fit into the category of “I should have read this sooner.” This is my favorite enneagram book I have read, hands down. I had tried to read it before, but I just don’t think I was ready for it. I’m 100% confident in my type now which is amazing too.
📖 The Montessori Toddler
Love, love, love. I picked this up because I was curious about what the Montessori approach was and ended up reading an amazing parenting book in the process. I was so inspired that I ended up reorganizing all the toys in my home before it was finished and I felt like it gave me some names for thought processes I already had on parenting. Even if you don’t want to go full-on Montessori, there were some really great tips in here for any parent.
📖 American Royals
I needed a fun laid back novel that was family friendly (I’d give this a teen PG-13 rating). This book is written on the premise that the US became a monarchy after the revolution instead of a democracy. Duh duh dun… there is a future queen consort to get married off. I’ll be picking up the second book in the series as soon as it comes out.
📖 The Mindful Path to Self-Compassion
I liked this book so much that I bought the audiobook AND the ebook because I wanted to be able to really read some of the words. This is a wonderful book for anyone. I loved the meditative exercises it gave and also the deep reflection it gave me on being kind to myself.
MY READING STATS OF 2019
The shortest book I read was 108 pages and the longest book I listened to was 531 pages; I read/ listened to the equivalent of 12,980 pages which is pretty amazing. The best rated book I read was Becoming by Michelle Obama.
2019 was as great reading year… that I totally wasn’t expecting! My goal in 2020 is smaller so I can focus on having more balanced hobbies and not have the pressure of finishing books quickly.
