First Quarter Favs
Updated: Dec 31, 2022
Hello friends! Whew. It’s been a hot minute since I wrote anything on this platform. To be perfectly honest, I haven’t been reading as much. Spring fever has hit in our house and we’re choosing to spend lots of time outside. With a toddler, unfortunately for me it doesn't really include a lot of reading out of doors. One day this will change though, so I'm enjoying this time with him currently.
In looking back over the books I’ve read the first quarter of 2022 (can you believe we’re already over halfway through April!), I realized I read some really great books! I’ve listed my favorites below as well as some honorable mentions.
Most Heart-Touching Story: The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett by Annie Lyons If you love stories about unlikely friendships, this one is for you! Eudora, Rose, and Stanley will steal your heart and the ending is absolutely perfect. See my full review here!
The One That Surprised Me: The Prettiest Star by Carter Sickels While I didn't write a full review for this one here on the blog (see my Instagram review here), know that this one will put you in all the feels. Set during the AIDS epidemic, The Prettiest Star tells the story of one man who returns home to die. Perfect for anyone whose favorite musical is Rent!
Best Memoir: Beautiful Country by Qian Julie Wang Qian Julie Wang's story is powerful, impactful, and was such an honor to read. I cannot imagine how putting her past on paper felt, but reading it opened my eyes to a lot of things I didn't know about this beautiful country we call America. Read my full review here.
One for the Book Club: We Are Not Like Them by Christine Pride and Jo Piazza If you want to easily open discussion for race and racism in your book club, this is definitely the book to do it. While some of the characterizations are a little much, I do think there is (sadly) a lot of truth behind what was written. Check out more of my thoughts here.
Favorite Non-Fiction of the Year (so far): The Double Life of Katharine Clark by Katharine Gregory I absolutely love non-fiction that is written like a novel, and this one certainly fits the bill! I was hooked from the very beginning and could not put this Cold War era history down! Read more here on why you should pick up this book!
Favorite Fiction of the Year (so far): Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson I will sing about this book from the rooftops and think everyone should read it! This character driven novel debut had me laughing, crying, cringing, smiling, and more. Find out why it's my top recommendation so far this year here!
Honorable Mentions: Upgrade (coming in July!), Call Us What We Carry, Woman On Fire, and Cultish.
Have I convinced you to pick any of these up yet??! I am very curious to see how this list grows and changes over the next nine months. I still have several books to complete for my intentional reading list, and I'm really hoping some of them end up as favorites by the end of the year. Time will tell! What is a favorite book or two you’ve read recently?