Faithful readers might recall that I set my reading challenge at twenty books this year. I mean, twenty in 2020—who could resist? Faithful readers might also recall that I haven't read twenty books since 2016.
This year, however . . . drum roll please . . .
I did it!
I had a little extra time on my hands for some weird reason (ahem—a global pandemic). I probably should have read more than twenty books. Some of my friends read seventy-five to one hundred books every year.
Don't judge me.
What's the plan for next year? Twenty-one in 2021, of course. Fingers crossed.
Becky's Twenty in 2020
JANUARY
1. The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead
Notes and Favorites:
1. The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead
Notes and Favorites:
“Who are you after you finish something this magnificent—in constructing it you have also journeyed through it, to the other side. On one end there was who you were before you went underground, and on the other end a new person steps out into the light” (p. 310).
2. My Squirrel Days by Ellie Kemper
Notes and Favorites: Um . . . Can Ellie Kemper just read all the audiobooks I listen to?
Notes and Favorites: Um . . . Can Ellie Kemper just read all the audiobooks I listen to?
FEBRUARY
3. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
Notes and Favorites: I can't believe it took me so long to get around to reading the first true crime masterpiece ever written, considering how much I love bingeing on Dateline and Snapped over summer break.
3. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
Notes and Favorites: I can't believe it took me so long to get around to reading the first true crime masterpiece ever written, considering how much I love bingeing on Dateline and Snapped over summer break.
MARCH
4. Miracles by C.S. Lewis
Notes and Favorites:
4. Miracles by C.S. Lewis
Notes and Favorites:
“We believe that the sun is in the sky at midday in summer not because we can clearly see the sun (in fact, we cannot) but because we can see everything else.”
5. Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter Witch by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett
Notes and Favorites: I loved this TV series, starring David Tennant and Michael Sheen. Now after reading the book, I am impressed at how well the screen version retained the tone, which is laugh-out-loud funny.
Notes and Favorites: I loved this TV series, starring David Tennant and Michael Sheen. Now after reading the book, I am impressed at how well the screen version retained the tone, which is laugh-out-loud funny.
APRIL
6. Dave Barry's Greatest Hits by Dave Barry
Notes and Favorites: You can’t go wrong with Dave Barry. Even though these essays from the 1980s mention outdated concepts like yuppies and Reagan (bleck), he is still hilarious.
6. Dave Barry's Greatest Hits by Dave Barry
Notes and Favorites: You can’t go wrong with Dave Barry. Even though these essays from the 1980s mention outdated concepts like yuppies and Reagan (bleck), he is still hilarious.
MAY
7. I'll Mature When I'm Dead: Dave Barry's Amazing Tales of Adulthood by Dave Barry
Notes and Favorites: Even though the title implies a lack of maturity, Dave Barry ventures a little more into introspection in this book, especially in the final chapters. It still includes a hilarious parody of a certain vampire series that will remain unnamed. Having grown up in a baseball family, I especially enjoyed the chapter on parents attending their children’s sporting events: “There are more important things in life than winning such as not being a jerk.”
7. I'll Mature When I'm Dead: Dave Barry's Amazing Tales of Adulthood by Dave Barry
Notes and Favorites: Even though the title implies a lack of maturity, Dave Barry ventures a little more into introspection in this book, especially in the final chapters. It still includes a hilarious parody of a certain vampire series that will remain unnamed. Having grown up in a baseball family, I especially enjoyed the chapter on parents attending their children’s sporting events: “There are more important things in life than winning such as not being a jerk.”
8. The Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood
Notes and Favorites: I enjoyed this modernization of and twist on fairy tale, "The Robber Bridegroom." It was my quarantine read. Fun fact: I ordered it from our local bookshop and received a signed copy. Did I mention Margaret Atwood is one of my favorite authors?
Notes and Favorites: I enjoyed this modernization of and twist on fairy tale, "The Robber Bridegroom." It was my quarantine read. Fun fact: I ordered it from our local bookshop and received a signed copy. Did I mention Margaret Atwood is one of my favorite authors?
9. I Know I Am, But What Are You? by Samantha Bee
Notes and Favorites: I heard an interview with Samantha Bee when this book came out several years ago and just recently thought, “Oh yeah, I need to read that book.” If I read nonfiction, I like it to be funny, and I was not disappointed in this hilarious collection of essays.
Notes and Favorites: I heard an interview with Samantha Bee when this book came out several years ago and just recently thought, “Oh yeah, I need to read that book.” If I read nonfiction, I like it to be funny, and I was not disappointed in this hilarious collection of essays.
JUNE
10. Check Your Privilege by Myisha T. Hill, et al.
Notes and Favorites:
10. Check Your Privilege by Myisha T. Hill, et al.
Notes and Favorites:
“Black and brown people can’t not experience racism, discrimination, hatred, abuse, violence, and injustice. They do not have the privilege to ignore these crimes against themselves, their mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, or their children.”
11. Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
Notes and Favorites: “Oh to be a pear tree—any tree in bloom! With kissing bees singing of the beginning of the world.” Hurston’s imagery of the pear tree and the “golden dust of pollen” is one of my favorite passages in literature. (That and the final paragraph of The Great Gatsby . . . )
Notes and Favorites: “Oh to be a pear tree—any tree in bloom! With kissing bees singing of the beginning of the world.” Hurston’s imagery of the pear tree and the “golden dust of pollen” is one of my favorite passages in literature. (That and the final paragraph of The Great Gatsby . . . )
12. Scrappy Little Nobody by Anna Kendrick
Notes and Favorites: Anna Kendrick is a funny storyteller. She writes a lot about her musical theater and behind-the-scenes movie experiences (you had me at musical theater).
Notes and Favorites: Anna Kendrick is a funny storyteller. She writes a lot about her musical theater and behind-the-scenes movie experiences (you had me at musical theater).
JULY
13. The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck
Notes and Favorites:
13. The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck
Notes and Favorites:
"And to him war was a thing like earth and sky and water and why it was no one knew but only that it was" (p. 319).
SEPTEMBER
14. Love and Ruin by Paula McLain
Notes and Favorites: This book was a much more interesting read than The Paris Wife, also about one of Hemingway's spouses. I was rooting for Martha Gelhorn to make it on her own; I liked her a lot better when she was stowing away on boats as a war correspondent than as Hemingway's third wife.
14. Love and Ruin by Paula McLain
Notes and Favorites: This book was a much more interesting read than The Paris Wife, also about one of Hemingway's spouses. I was rooting for Martha Gelhorn to make it on her own; I liked her a lot better when she was stowing away on boats as a war correspondent than as Hemingway's third wife.
OCTOBER
15. Stamped From the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi
Notes and Favorites: Read this book. That is all.
15. Stamped From the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi
Notes and Favorites: Read this book. That is all.
16. "The Monkey’s Paw" by W. W. Jacobs
Notes and Favorites: Careful what you wish for this story warns . . . I was in the mood for a spooky read for Halloween . . .
Notes and Favorites: Careful what you wish for this story warns . . . I was in the mood for a spooky read for Halloween . . .
17. "The Mortal Immortal" by Mary Shelley
Notes and Favorites: Yes, that Mary Shelley! In case you haven’t noticed the pattern, here is yet another spooky read for Halloween. This story deals with the consequences of immortality as opposed to the Creator vs. Creation dilemma of her best known classic.
Notes and Favorites: Yes, that Mary Shelley! In case you haven’t noticed the pattern, here is yet another spooky read for Halloween. This story deals with the consequences of immortality as opposed to the Creator vs. Creation dilemma of her best known classic.
NOVEMBER
18. Bound For Glory by Woody Guthrie
Notes and Favorites:
18. Bound For Glory by Woody Guthrie
Notes and Favorites:
“I never did make up many songs about the cow trails or the moon skipping through the sky, but at first it was funny songs of what all’s wrong, and how it turned out good or bad. Then I got a little braver and made up songs telling what I thought was wrong and how to make it right, songs that said what everybody in that country was thinking.
And this has held me ever since” (p 178).
19. The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Notes and Favorites: Such a beautiful and haunting story . . .
Notes and Favorites: Such a beautiful and haunting story . . .
“Six years have already passed since my friend went away from me, with his sheep. If I try to describe him here, it is to make sure I shall not forget him. To forget a friend is sad. Not everyone has had a friend” (p 19).
DECEMBER
20. Bunny by Mona Awad
Notes and Favorites: If you read this one, be prepared for a satirical surrealistic nightmare in the best possible way. Also, it's filled with nods to Gen X pop culture. (The main character's name is Samantha "Heather" Mackey.) As a writer (albeit an amateur), I enjoyed the very literal take on "Kill Your Darlings."
20. Bunny by Mona Awad
Notes and Favorites: If you read this one, be prepared for a satirical surrealistic nightmare in the best possible way. Also, it's filled with nods to Gen X pop culture. (The main character's name is Samantha "Heather" Mackey.) As a writer (albeit an amateur), I enjoyed the very literal take on "Kill Your Darlings."
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