My best books of 2019 (and other distinctions)

It was another tremendous year for books! There were many times this year where I finished a book and thought, “I am so lucky to live in a world where people write books like that one.” This was particularly true in the non-fiction realm this year, and my best books list reflects that. Here are my favorite books of 2019.

Assad or We Burn the Country, by Sam Dagher. This book turned an entire era of my life - already lived, recorded, and sorted - absolutely upside down. Every year has a book that feels like it was written just for me. This is 2019’s.

The Five, by Hallie Rubenhold. What reverence for the lived lives of these women! What courage in wresting back the narrative from the perpetrator of these horrible crimes! What attention and care in examining historical records! I heard about this book in passing on a Twitter thread and I am so glad I checked it out. I hope we get more books like this in the future.

Guest House for Young Widows, by Azadeh Moaveni. It has been literal months since I read this and I still can’t stop thinking about it. Every time those kids and those moms in the Al-Hol camps come up in the news, I want to stop everyone on the street and just start handing out copies of this book so we can all go into this armed with information. You might start this book, as I did, completely befuddled as to how any woman would choose to join ISIS. But you will come out of it full of compassion and understanding for these women and the impossible circumstances they faced. And any judgment that is left is at least informed.

Say Nothing, by Patrick Radden Keefe. The way this book unfurls the complexities of The Troubles and sits with the terrible things that happened, and doesn’t look away, even when you wish it would…it’s heartbreaking. I keep thinking about the Price sisters, and what they endured, and perpetrated, and how Keefe let their story tell itself.

The Spy and the Traitor, by Ben Macintyre. Can this year have two books that were written just for me? OK. Then it’s Assad or We Burn the Country but also this one. It was with absolute GLEE that I read this book and it was almost as fun to sit and watch Jeremy while he read it.

Now for other distinctions!

Most unexpectedly good book: The Five. Random, in-passing recommendation on Twitter from a stranger, so-so, self-publish-y cover art…I thought this would be a mediocre book but I was blown away by how good it was.

Most unexpectedly bad book: Prisoner. I usually love captivity narratives, and this one started out in a promising way, but it got bad, fast. And, not for nothing, my negative Goodreads review of it has 22 likes and counting.

Most read book: This year I re-read Sweet Valley Saga and Stepping on the Cracks each for the umpteenth time but it was the first time I did so as an adult.

Best bad book: Dangerous Lies, by Becca Fitzpatrick. Like her Black Ice, it’s a total Monet - looks good from far away as a fast read, but up close, with too much consideration, it’s a big old mess.

Worst good book: I am not naming anything in this category this year. I feel like all the good books I read this year had value and purpose and do not need to be called ‘worst’ anything!

Worst book I didn’t finish. All of my DNFs this year were more “it’s not you, it’s me”, so I am not naming one for this category. I will, however, name…

…Worst book I did finish. The Last Stone. It was way too scary for me and I knew it and I read it anyway because I was in the car for 15 hours and didn’t have anything else to do.

Worst cover:

This book deserves something different! It is not a self-published novel about a naive but charming servant girl headed to the big city, which I am sure would be lovely! But that is not what this book is! Plus, the whole point of this book is to make these women no longer faceless or nameless…and on this cover we have a girl who is Unknown. And the perspective is of someone following her, like her murderer did, which is a perspective this book completely avoids. Get this book a new cover!!!

Best cover. I think Assad or We Burn the Country, Guest House for Young Widows, and Say Nothing all have extremely arresting covers. Otherwise, check out these two:

Worst title. All the titles were fine this year! Good work, everyone.

Best title. Assad or We Burn the Country and The Only Plane in the Sky.

Logorrhea books. In 2019 I could NOT stop talking about Assad or We Burn the Country, Guest House for Young Widows, The Spy and the Traitor, Deep River, and Invisible Women.