Beyond knitting, I’m also an avid reader! As a kid I would check out 12 books every few weeks from the library. I’d regularly stay up late and hide under my bedsheets sneak-reading so my parents wouldn’t catch me and make me go to sleep! My reading habit fell off a bit through college, but my 2019 resolution was to pick it up again and read one book per month, and I am proud to say I exceeded that and fell back in love with reading! If you follow along on instagram, you’ve seen all the books I read because I post in my stories and “Recent Reads“ highlight after each one! Even though it’s already February 2020 (I know I’m late!), I’m finally bringing you my favorites from last year. There is definitely a trend in my books I read and that’s historical fiction focused on women and female empowerment and that’s what I’m interested in in real life too. Hopefully you’ll enjoy or have enjoyed some of these books! *Also, you’ll notice many of these are Reese Witherspoon book club picks because I tried my best to follow along with her book club this year!

Top Book Recommendations of 2019

1. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

MY FAVORITE BOOK OF THE YEAR BY FAR! Just trust me and everyone else that loved it. The title made me weary, thinking it wasn’t my kind of book and it took several chapters for me to get into it, but wow I was so invested in it. To this day, I think, wow, that happened.

2. Next Year in Havana and When We Left Cuba by Chanel Cleeton

“Next Year in Havana” is the original historical fiction novel, followed by “When We Left Cuba.“ These aren’t exactly sequels to one another, rather each novel follows the journey of one Perez sister. I learned a lot about the history of Cuba and the Cuban Revolution in the novels and yet was intrigued. They both encompass harrowing adventures, romance and history.

3. The Moment of Lift by Melinda Gates

This one is nonfiction, and is a must-read in my opinion. It was truly eye-opening discussing women’s needs and situations all across the world. From access to vaccines to birthing care to child marriage and equality, each chapter focusses on a specific topic that details how empowering women can change the world. I’m reading it again in 2020 because it’s such an important read.

4. Conviction by Denise Mina

This was a fun read! I sped through it. As a fellow “crime junkie“ podcaster, the premise of this book intrigued me. It’s about a woman who listens to a true crime podcast as her real life is falling apart, she realizes she knows the man at the center of the podcast and sets off to perform her own investigation. It’s funny, adventurous and exciting.

Honorable mentions

The Alice Network by Kate Quinn

I was on a historical fiction kick much of 2019 and this one was another top book I read! It’s set in two parallel time periods spanning World War I and World War II about a spy and a young girl setting out on her own to find her cousin. I was wrapped up in both stories, but especially the World War I history in Europe and how impactful women spies were at the time.

Something in the Water by Catherine Steadman

These last two novels surprised me because I did not expect to like them, honestly. This one specifically was a psychological thriller and I read it in two days! Once I got into it, I spent almost all of a Sunday finishing it. A couple discover “Something in the Water” on their honeymoon - do they speak out and tell someone? Do they keep it a secret? This decision and aftermath reveals more about this couple to each other than they realized.

The Night Tiger by Yangtze Choo

I did not expect to like this one, I was skeptical because of the title to be honest, but I was intrigued! Set in 1930s Malaysia, this novel features a young girl who wants to go to college and branch out rather than what is expected of women in that time period. While she’s (secretly) working, a customer leaves something behind that leads her on an unexpected journey. At the same time a young boy is searching for that same item to fulfill a promise he made. Their paths crisscross and this novel is interlaced with cultural elements, romance and superstition.