Chapter 2 - Last Year, Part Two

Last week I told you about some of the great books I read in 2020. Scott Richards of WEZV 105.9 threw down the gauntlet and asked me to come up with my top 10 for 2020. In reflection this was a bigger challenge than I originally thought. While not all of my books were published in 2020, most of them were.

As you know, I read all over the board. For the most part, I don't really read Romance, Science Fiction, or Horror, although I hit all those genres this year. My favorites have included History, Popular Fiction, Historical Fiction, and Memoir so as promised, here is the continuation of my favorite books I read in 2020.

This Tender Land by William Kent Kruger - Kruger's book is a coming of age story with four orphans escaping from an Indian school in the 1930's. It is filled with adventure, murder, understanding and redemption and is highly recommended by all who read it.

The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi - A young woman in Pakistan in the 1950's escapes a brutish husband by running away and becoming a henna artist. Of course, the past has a way of catching up with all of us and so it is with Lakshmi who tries to make it in a male dominated society.

Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, HER Therapist, and Our Lives Revealed by Lori Gottlieb - This memoir was a fascinating look into the life of a therapist with a practice in Los Angeles. Not only does Gottlieb talk about some of her own cases but also details her time with a therapist when her own world comes crashing down. Told with humor and insight, it is nice to know that therapists are trying to figure out life just like the rest of us.

The Book of Lost Friends by Lisa Wingate - After Wingate's best seller, Before We Were Yours, a fan wrote to tell her of another story she should consider writing - one of former slaves trying to find family and friends after the Civil War. Alternating between that time period and the 1980's Wingate's story touches on the lives of strong women trying to make it in the world.

The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix - Maybe the best modern horror book I've ever read, Hendrix has a particularly feisty Mount Pleasant, South Carolina mom and book club member working hard to rid her town of its only vampire. Scary and gross in places, it was a fun read.

Have you any favorites from last year? Please let me know!