My Favorite Books of the Second Half of 2024
Photo by Magda Ehlers: https://www.pexels.com/photo/vintage-library-with-secret-wooden-bookshelf-29976382/
I’ve read 61 books so far this year. I’m on track to finish a 62nd, but I may not finish it – it’s oddly lacking in tension and narrative drive, and this from an author I generally admire. I just don’t care about the character or her low-stakes search that is (so far) pretty predictable.
So – on to other books I read July-December that I actually did like:
I had put off reading Elena Ferrante’s Neapolitan Quartet for years, and finally got into it. And of course, it was just as brilliant and engrossing as predicted. These people seem real, in all their pride and shame and successes and insecurities. You’re utterly immersed in Elena Greco’s life, and it’s a masterclass of interiority, as well as postwar Italian culture, classism, and political and social upheaval. Start with My Brilliant Friend, and go from there. I’m partway through the HBO adaptation, and although I’m enjoying seeing the scenes come to life, it’s not the same without being fully immersed in Elena’s thoughts.
Jade Dragon Mountain, The White Mirror, and City of Ink by Elsa Hart, are all part of a mystery series that takes place in 18th-century China, whose protagonist is Li Du, a disgraced former imperial librarian. This is another series that will completely immerse you in another world and culture – and with the mystery element in each, keep you guessing as to how it will all turn out - both for the mystery in each book, and for Li Du overall.
Another modern classic I finally read is Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad. It brilliantly mixes the fantastic and the real in ways that underline the larger story of a young female slave gradually searching for a way toward true freedom. For every part that isn’t based on reality, it makes you think about why the writer chose to portray it that way - and it also highlights the horror, the surreality, and strangeness of Cora’s flight, and the system of chattel slavery itself. It’s not an easy read – Whitehead is unsparing of the details – but the prose keeps flowing, and I was gripped by the need to know how Cora’s story turned out.
The Personal Librarian, by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray, tells the story of Belle da Costa Greene, the personal librarian of J.P. Morgan in his quest to create the Morgan Library. She was a white-passing woman of color in the early 20th century, who became highly respected in the area of rare books and manuscripts. However, if anyone had discovered she was in fact of African descent (not Portuguese as she claimed) her life as she knew it would have been over. The book was a bit repetitive, and read more as an autobiography than a novel, but it was fascinating anyway to see how she was central to amassing the collection that became world-renowned.
R.F. Kuang’s Babel is an alternative-history-fantasy that is richly detailed and also shines a spotlight on the real issues of colonial exploitation that occurred in the British Empire and beyond. Robin Swift is rescued from a cholera epidemic in China and brought to England, where he is ruthlessly trained by his mentor to become a Translator – or one who can create magic through silverworking, which depends on an arcane system of translation to work. The Empire runs on silverworking, and Robin only gradually learns how warped and exploitative the system is. Soon he must choose- to become a Translator and Silverworker and live a life of luxury while ignoring what he knows, or to try to fight the powers that be and change the system. Can he change it from within, or is violence the only answer to enact real change? This book is both an excellent fantasy and one that asks thought-provoking questions: how far should one go to change the system? How far will those who want to preserve the system they see as a necessity go to protect it?
Colleen Cambridge’s A Murder Most French brings us back to postwar Paris, where American expat Tabitha Knight and her friend Julia Child once again find themselves embroiled in a murder – and this time at the famed Cordon Bleu cooking school itself. Like its predecessor, this was a fun read if you like a good mystery and (bonus) are a foodie as well.
In nonfiction, the only one that wasn’t Buddhist-centered or of strictly personal interest that I loved was Florence Williams’ The Nature Fix: Why Nature Makes Us Happier, Healthier, and More Creative. She looks at the latest science behind how nature affects our mental and physical wellbeing. Of course, those of us who spend regular time in nature can attest to its benefits, but it’s nice to have empirical evidence that shows that regular forays into nature, no matter how short, are crucial for our wellbeing. Fascinating and fun read.
Finally, I was excited to read the ARC for Blaze Orange, the first book in the Midcoast Maine mystery series by my friend Allison Keeton. It's officially out January 7, and if you’re a cozy mystery fan, it has all the perfect elements – intriguing setting that is integral to the plot, mystery that will keep you guessing, quirky supporting characters, and a sympathetic main character with her own issues to deal with. You’ll feel like you could go to that town and know these people, even if you’ve never been to midcoast Maine before. As with many of the best cozy series, the place is a distinct character of its own. Having read the novel in progress, I’m excited for it to finally be coming out!
And yes, I’m realizing that I’ve had a mystery-heavy summer and fall. In addition to the ones above, I also read books by Louise Penny and Donna Leon.
And of course, I have a pile of already-acquired books waiting to be read in 2025, as well as a ridiculously long list of books I’d like to read. No shortage of reading material here!
What about you? Any favorite books of 2024? Please share them in the comments!
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