My Year in Books: Looking Back at 2024

Or, how reading helped me find myself again

A decade ago, I had three kids six and under, a demanding job, and zero time for myself. The light had gone out of my eyes. I wasn't even reading—something I'd loved since childhood—and without books, I wasn't quite myself.

That's when I started setting annual reading goals. Simple targets that gave me permission to grab a book for myself during library trips with the kids, to join a book club, to claim some time that was just for me.

Since then, my yearly book lists have become a kind of journal. Each one tells a story: what fascinated me, what challenges I faced, where I sought escape.

At year's end, I share these lists, hoping they might inspire others' reading adventures or gift-giving quests.

2024's list was completed a bit late (thanks, pneumonia!), but it's finally ready—another ring around the trunk of my reading tree.

As always, I only finish (and therefore, include) books I'd rate three stars or higher, which means many books I started didn't make the cut. I’m thankful to have a local library that allows me to check out (and return) stacks of books and a local bookstore that always has something new and exciting to entice me.

Below you'll find my complete 2024 Year in Books: 50+ books spanning fiction and nonfiction, practical and fanciful. You can find my notes about each one on my Bookshop.org page (where purchases support indie booksellers) or track my current reading journey on Goodreads.

If you’re looking for something to capture your mind or your heart, I encourage you to check these out. Happy reading!

• The Agathas (Liz Lawson, Kathleen Glasgow)

• The Beach Trap (Ali Brady)

• Be Ready When the Luck Happens: A Memoir (Ina Garten)

• The Berlin Letters: A Cold War Novel (Katherine Reay)

• The Bodyguard (Katherine Center)

• The Book Haters' Book Club (Gretchen Anthony)

• By Any Other Name (Jodi Picoult)

• Consider This: Moments in My Writing Life After Which Everything Was Different (Chuck Palahniuk)

• Counting the Cost (Jill Duggar)

• Crying in the Bathroom: A Memoir (Erika L. Sánchez)

• Crying in H Mart: A Memoir (Michelle Zauner)

• The Dead Romantics (Ashley Poston)

• Democracy Awakening: Notes on the State of America (Heather Cox Richardson)

• Dinners with Ruth: A Memoir on the Power of Friendships (Nina Totenberg)

• Divine Rivals (Rebecca Ross)

• The Dollhouse (Fiona Davis)

• Elmore Leonard's 10 Rules of Writing (Elmore Leonard)

• Enchantress of Numbers: A Novel of Ada Lovelace (Jennifer Chiaverini)

• The End of Procrastination: How to Stop Postponing and Live a Fulfilled Life (Petr Ludwig)

• Expiration Dates (Rebecca Serle)

• Fellowship Point (Alice Elliott Dark)

• Finishing School: The Happy Ending to That Writing Project You Can't Seem to Get Done (Cary Tennis, Danelle Morton)

• Finlay Donovan Is Killing It (Elle Cosimano)

• Finlay Donovan Knocks 'em Dead (Elle Cosimano)

• The Frozen River (Ariel Lawhon)

• Funny Story (Emily Henry)

• Go as a River (Shelley Read)

• Hang the Moon (Jeannette Walls)

• A Happier Life (Kristy Woodson Harvey)

• Happiness for Beginners (Katherine Center)

• The Hint of Light (Kristin Kisska)

• The Husbands (Holly Gramazio)

• I Capture the Castle (Dodie Smith)

• The Kingdom of Prep: The Inside Story of the Rise and (Near) Fall of J.Crew (Maggie Bullock)

• Love, Lists, and Fancy Ships (Sarah Grunder Ruiz)

• Love on the Brain (Ali Hazelwood)

• Main Character Energy (Jamie Varon)

• The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise (Colleen Oakley)

• Now Is Not the Time to Panic (Kevin Wilson)

• The Phoenix Crown (Kate Quinn, Janie Chang)

• The Queen's Faithful Companion: A Novel of Queen Elizabeth II and Her Beloved Corgi, Susan (Eliza Knight)

• The Rom-Commers (Katherine Center)

• The Secret Book of Flora Lea (Patti Callahan Henry)

• The Senator's Wife (Liv Constantine)

• The Sicilian Inheritance (Jo Piazza)

• Still Life: A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel (Louise Penny)

• Such a Lovely Family (Aggie Blum Thompson)

• The Summer of Songbirds (Kristy Woodson Harvey)

• Summers at the Saint (Mary Kay Andrews)

• They Came for the Schools: One Town's Fight Over Race and Identity, and the New War for America's Classrooms (Mike Hixenbaugh)

• The Thursday Murder Club (Richard Osman)

• Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow (Gabrielle Zevin)

• Varina Palladino's Jersey Italian Love Story (Terri-Lynne Defino)

• The Woman in Me (Britney Spears)