It’s hard to believe that 2021 is already over.
In 2021 I read 100 books, but I didn’t do a breakdown by genre this year. I do think I read nearly 50 poetry books last year, which is a lot. I found that I struggled to concentrate on fiction last year. But reading poetry was easier and calming.
Not all of the books I read in 2021 were reviewed last year. I lost some of that reviewing mojo.
There are some books that I couldn’t review last year because they are in the running for the local festival and others have an embargo. You’ll see those reviews throughout 2022, but they will be tagged as “read in 2021.”
What books did you find easier to read last year? Did you struggle with your reading?
Here’s my Best Books of 2021 (though not all were published in 2021): Links go to my reviews of the books.
Nonfiction:
- Taste: My Life Through Food by Stanley Tucci
- The Storyteller by Dave Grohl
Children’s/Kids:
- Frankie Sparks and the Big Sled Challenge by Megan Frazer Blakemore and illustrated by Nadja Sarell
- How Your Body Works by Rosie Dickins
- Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly and illustrated by Laura Freeman
Fiction:
- Jane and the Year Without a Summer by Stephanie Barron (review coming in February)
- The Unexpected Past of Miss Jane Austen by Cass Grafton and Ada Bright
Poetry: (originally there were at least 12 top books on my list – I’ve narrowed that down to these 6)
- Crooked Smiling Light by Alan King (this is really a chapbook, but so full of hope)
- Escape Velocity by Kristin Kowalski Ferragut
- Dialogues With Rising Tides by Kelli Russell Agodon
- Exquisite Bloody, Beating Heart by Courtney LeBlanc
- Postcard Poems by Jeanne Griggs
- Black Girl, Call Home by Jasmine Mans
Please share your Best of 2021 lists in the comments.
