2021 began with newborn baby sleep deprivation, a reading dry spell of 10 months, and a profound mourning for what I thought was the end of my bookworm personality. Luckily, TikTok’s algorithm introduced me to Sarah J. Maas and copious amounts of fae smut, my baby learned to sleep through the night, and my Booknectar other half inspired me to catch up to her breakneck reading pace. And as a former gifted child, I couldn’t not rise to the challenge.
TOP 5 READS FROM 2021:
DUNE BY FRANK HERBERT
Genre: science fiction / Length: 863 page / Tags: sci-fi, space, technology
Why I loved it: I began DUNE fully prepared to hate it — bogged down by plot intricacies, epic timelines, world-building adages, and the quizzical vocabulary hallmark to the futuristic sci-fi genre. Yet it turns out that these exact qualities are what made DUNE inescapable after just the first chapter. The narrative style is one of my favorite parts, as Herbert elected to retell the story as if from a storyteller’s perspective, albeit one with access to numerous records, histories, diaries, records, and religious texts. It’s rare I read plot-driven books (as opposed to relationship driven), and this one delivered with non-stop action, violence, inter-galactic politics, and perfectly delivered revelations. Be prepared to actually WANT to read the FOUR indices and cartographer’s notes. Oh, and the 20 sequels.
Recommended for: the reluctant science fiction reader who has an affinity for deeply flawed antiheroes and Abrahamic mythology
THE SONG OF ACHILLES BY MADELINE MILLER
Genre: mythological retelling / Length: 370 pages / Tags: Greek mythology, LGBTQ+, coming of age, angst, tragedy, historical fiction
Why I loved it: Madeline Miller’s retelling of Patrokles’ and Achilles’ relationship will make your heart hurt from the moment you open it. Her language is impeccably researched and achingly beautiful, and while you know the ending, there’s the sense that somehow the pair will escape their famous fate. Despite the overbearing sense of dread that clouds the narrative and the tragic flaws of the beloved characters, I was swept up in the idyllic love story and literally read this in one go. And yes, I did cry.
Recommended for: Greek mythology nerds, readers in need of catharsis
KUSHIEL’S DART BY JAQUELINE CAREY
Genre: fantasy / Length: 802 pages / Tags: medieval, romance, enemies to lovers/forbidden love, courtly intrigue, magical elements, kink
Why I loved it: Kushiel’s Dart followed a string of Wattpad-esque, purely smut novels, and to be honest, I thought it would continue my downward spiral into literary trash. The Goodreads negative reviews were what drew me to this one, after all. Much to my surprise, I was forced to slow my pace by beautiful prose, a complex and sexy plot revolving around court espionage, and a deliciously dark sense of voyeurism. Jacqueline Carey’s worldbuilding encapsulates the feudal era with just hints of magical elements, which makes this novel not-quite fantasy, while the relationships are slow-burn and of dubious consent, which makes it not-quite romance as well. (I should also mention this is part of a trilogy as well as an extended universe, so if you like it, Carey has provided ample content to keep you reading further — I actually think the third book in the series, Kushiel’s Legacy is my true favorite!)
Recommended for: readers who don’t skip content warnings, don’t mind first person POV, and don’t mind heroines who quite literally sleep their way to the top
BEHIND THE BEAUTIFUL FOREVERS BY KATHERINE BOO
Genre: creative nonfiction / Length: 278 pages / Tags: India, nonfiction, Pulitzer Prize, journalism, humor, resourcefulness, drama, poverty, hope, National Book Award
Why I loved it: I actually read this entire book before discovering that it was, in fact, nonfiction. I almost wish that all readers could have this experience. The pure panic and rush of dread after the realization that the characters I had just followed for three brutal years of heartbreak, injustice, and crushing poverty were not just characters — but living, breathing, individuals — would have hounded me with a lingering anxiety the entire time if I had known from the beginning. I have the utmost respect for the actual three years that the Pulitzer prize winning author, Katherine Boo, spent in the small slum of Annawadi, near the Mumbai airport, and even greater respect for the people and families she portrays in her novel. Their humor and shockingly blunt outlook on life in the face of circumstances I can barely fathom, but of which they continually meet with determination and an inexhaustible, plodding, forward-motion acceptance of the hand life dealt them, is incredible. Katherine Boo is able to detail their lives and struggles with the Indian government, class systems, neighborhood drama, family relationships, and societal expectations while honoring each person’s dignity and voice. Like all people, those profiled have faults, and as the reader you may even feel sickened by the slum community’s treatment of each other. However, within the context of the economic system casting what may as well be a steel ceiling over their lives, the individual determination to survive becomes understandable. Without creating poverty porn, Behind the Beautiful Forevers offers readers a peek of existence on Earth far different from, yet quite similar to, their own.
Recommended for: people prepared to question the profound inequality of human life on Earth and their own role in the economic systems that allow it, thus leading to an existential crisis, while being in awe of the resilience and resourcefulness of others, and grateful for the journalism that allows these stories to come to light; people who want to read nonfiction in the form of a story, not a textbook
EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE BY JONATHAN SAFRAN FOER
Genre: contemporary fiction / Length: 326 pages / Tags: NYC, 9/11, coming of age, WWII, mystery, family
Why I loved it: Look, I know some people think Jonathan Safran Foer had exhausted his one-trick pony, that he exploited formatting gimmicks, or that the child’s POV was a cop-out. But listen: if an author was able to manipulate people into devouring his book, crying multiple times, and re-examining the human condition with humor, sentimentality, and trauma all wrapped into one — doesn’t that mean they’ve succeeded in writing a good book? Perhaps because I’m a middle school English teacher, I approached this like it was a YA “mystery” novel, and I fully loved it, was emotionally drained by it in every way, and appreciated the quite literal Bildungsroman. The narrative parallels between Dresden, Hiroshima, and 9/11 bridged the gap between historical and contemporary fiction, making this novel a solid favorite that both fit within and outside of my favorite genre.
Recommended for: readers not unwilling to confront 9/11
And What I Didn’t Like .. .
These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong
I really, really wanted to like this one, since Chloe Gong is living every English major’s dorm room dream, but the characters were 2-D, the plot moved too slowly, the sexual tension was slacking, the cliffhanger was gimmicky, and I just couldn’t picture the story. As a Shakespeare buff, I felt bored and cheated.
The Overstory by Richard Powers
Sometimes NYT Bestsellers are just pretentious, overhyped, depressing vignettes that force you to read one painful chapter at a time, put you to sleep, and eventually collect dust unfinished in your nightstand.
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