Kristin Hill Taylor

Seeking God as the Author of Every Story

Books of 2020

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Here we are the end of another year, and here I am with a book post.

It was a weird year all around. Reading came in phases for me. Some weeks I wouldn’t touch a book because I just couldn’t handle any more information; other weeks I devoured a couple of fiction books. I read 68 books.

Turns out I managed to read more than than I did in 2019 (53 total), 2018 (52), 2017 (47), and 2016 (53.) I did read almost twice as much non-fiction this year compared to last, but that’s because I was on a memoir kick. I guess reading worked out for me, even though there wasn’t much of a rhythm to it. (Read here about the nine ways I make time for books.)

I try to make these posts helpful, so I added links to my reviews elsewhere on the internet. Most helpful would be telling you my favorites or something like that, but that’s like choosing favorite children and just depends on what you’re wanting. How about 10 superlatives for the books I managed to read in 2020?

Kristin’s 2020 Book Superlatives

Alright, friends, now for my whole list. But, wait, first, you have to know a few things: If I can’t get into or don’t like a book, I typically quit it. I am picky about historical fiction. And I don’t read scary anymore, especially if it has to do with missing kids or husbands who die in car wrecks.

Fiction

  1. “The Things We Cannot Say” by Kelly Rimmer {Instagram Review}
  2. “Lilac Girls” by Martha Hall Kelly {Instagram Review}
  3. “Lost Roses” by Martha Hall Kelly {Goodreads Review}
  4. “Maybe Someday” by Colleen Hoover {Goodreads Review}
  5. “Maybe Now” by Colleen Hoover {Goodreads Review}
  6. “Everything You Are” by Kerry Anne King {Instagram Review}
  7. “The Odds of Loving Grover Cleveland” by Rebekah Crane {Instagram Review}
  8. “Postcards for a Songbird” by Rebekah Crane {Goodreads Review}
  9. “The Infinite Pieces of Us” by Rebekah Crane {Instagram Review}
  10. “The Survivor’s Guide to Family Happiness” by Maddie Dawson {Instagram Review}
  11. “Ragged Edge of Night” by Olivia Hawker {Goodreads Review}
  12. “The Rest of the Story” by Sarah Dessen {Instagram Review}
  13. “An American Marriage” by Tayari Jones {Goodreads Review}
  14. “Letters to the Lost” by Iona Grey {Instagram Review}
  15. “The Huntress” by Kate Quinn {Goodreads Review}
  16. “Eleanor & Park” by Rainbow Rowell {Goodreads Review}
  17. “We Are Okay” by Nina LaCour {Goodreads Review}
  18. “Great Small Things” by Jodi Picoult {Instagram Review}
  19. “The Girl You Left Behind” by Jojo Moyes {Instagram Review}
  20. “The Alice Network” by Kate Quinn {Facebook Review}
  21. “The Other Mrs.” by Mary Kubica {Instagram Review}
  22. “Little Fires Everywhere” by Celeste Ng {Goodreads Review}
  23. “Slightly South of Simple” (The Peachtree Bluff Series #1) by Kristy Woodson Harvey {Instagram Review}
  24. “The Secrets to Southern Charm” (The Peachtree Bluff Series #2) by Kristy Woodson Harvey
  25. “The Southern Side of Paradise” (The Peachtree Bluff Series #3) by Kristy Woodson Harvey
  26. “The Dearly Beloved” by Cara Wall {Instagram Review}
  27. “Ask Again, Yes” by Mary Beth Keane {Instagram Review}
  28. “The Killing Tide” (Coastal Guardians #1) by Dani Pettrey {Facebook Review}
  29. “Crushing Depths” (Coastal Guardians #2) by Dani Pettrey {Goodreads Review}
  30. “The Giver of Stars” by Jojo Moyes {Instagram Review}
  31. “The Reckoning” by John Grisham {Facebook Review}
  32. “If You Must Know” by Jamie Beck {Goodreads Review}
  33. “Heart Bones” by Colleen Hoover {Instagram Review}
  34. “Feels Like Falling” by Kristy Woodson Harvey {Instagram Review}
  35. “The Edge of Belonging” by Amanda Cox {Review}
  36. “Big Summer” by Jennifer Weiner {Facebook Review}
  37. “This Secret Thing” by Marybeth Mayhew Whalen {Goodreads Review}
  38. “What You Wish For” by Katherine Center {Instagram Review}
  39. “Beach Read” by Emily Henry {Instagram Review}
  40. “28 Summers” by Elin Hilderbrand {Facebook Review}
  41. “The Vanishing Half” by Brit Bennett {Facebook Review}
  42. “Looking for Alaska” by John Green {Goodreads Reiew}
  43. “This Time Next Year” by Sophie Cousens {Instagram Review}
  44. “Nine Perfect Strangers” by Liane Moriarity {Facebook Review}
  45. “The Wife Upstairs” by Rachel Hawkins {Instagram Review}

Memoir

  1. “The Girls from Ames: A Story of Women and a Forty-Year Friendship” by Jeffrey Zaslow {Goodreads Review}
  2. “On the Bright Side: Stories about Friendship, Love, and Being True to Yourself” by Melanie Shankle {Review}
  3. “The Call of the Farm: An Unexpected Year of Getting Dirty, Home Cooking, and Finding Myself” by Rochelle Bilow {Goodreads Review}
  4. “The Sound of Gravel” by Ruth Wariner {Instagram Review}
  5. “Glitter and Glue” by Kelly Corrigan {Facebook Review}
  6. “A Polygamist’s Daughter” by Anna LeBaron {Goodreads Review}
  7. “Educated” by Tara Westover {Goodreads Review}
  8. “Yes Please” by Amy Poehler {Goodreads Review}
  9. “Live in Love: Growing Together Through Life’s Changes” by Lauren Akins {Instagram Review}
  10. “Everything Beautiful in Its Time: Seasons of Love and Loss” by Jenna Bush Hager {Instagram Review}
  11. “Sisters First: Stories from Our Wild and Wonderful Life” by Jenna Bush Hager and Barbara Pierce Bush

Non-fiction

  1. “The Enneagram: A Christian Perspective” by Richard Rohr
  2. “Anger: Calming Your Heart (31-Day Devotionals for Life)” by Robert D. Jones
  3. “Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death at a Storm-Ravaged Hospital” by Sheri Fink {Goodreads Review}
  4. “Keeping the Faith: A Study in Jude” by Lianna Davis {Review}
  5. “I’d Rather Be Reading: The Delights and Dilemmas of the Reading Life” by Anne Bogel {Related Instagram Post}
  6. “Reading People: How Seeing the World Through the Lens of Personality Changes Everything” by Anne Bogel {Related Facebook Post}
  7. “7 Feasts: Finding Christ in the Sacred Celebrations of the Old Testament” by Erin Davis {Review}
  8. “The Lazy Genius Way: Embrace What Matters, Ditch What Doesn’t, and Get Stuff Done” by Kendra Adachi {Review and Related Instagram Post}
  9. “Take Back Your Life: A 40-Day Interactive Journey to Thinking Right so You Can Live Right” by Levi Lusko {Review}
  10. “Bringing Home More Than Groceries: Stories About Gathering & Nourishing People” by Kristin Hill Taylor (Me!) {Resources & Goodies}
  11. “The Powerful Purpose of Introverts: Why the World Needs You to Be You” by Holley Gerth {Instagram Review}
  12. “Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus: Experiencing the Peace and Promise of Christmas” edited by Nancy Guthrie {Related Post}

Family books

  1. “On-the-Go Devotional” {Review}
  2. “Jesus and the Very Big Surprise: A True Story about Jesus, His Return, and How to Be Ready” by Randall Goodgame {Review}
  3. “Little Words Matter Jumbo Coloring Book” {Review}
  4. “Important Things Every Kid Should Know to Survive Middle School: Follow God, Try New Things, and Don’t Freak Out” by Sandy Silverthorne {Review}

*****

Of course, I want to hear about what books from this list you’ve loved, what I need to read in the new year, and whatever else you want to tell me about books. Pull up a chair on my virtual porch, and let’s talk books.

In the meantime, I also keep a list of all kinds of recommended reads (divided into categories) on Amazon, if you’re looking for even more suggestions. I also keep an updated list and post some reviews at Goodreads, if you want to follow along there. Here are lists from 2019, 2018, and 2017.

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