My Top 20 Book Recommendations From 2024
5 remarkable reads in four different categories, plus reflections on my 2024 in reading.
Happy New Year!
I hope this newsletter finds you cozy on your couch, reading a book or journaling or watching The Lord of the Rings or something chill like that. That’s what today is for, after all.
Many book people have already shared their top book recommendations of 2024, but I refuse to choose mine until the year officially ends. I’m especially glad I waited this year, because seven (!!) of the books I read in December made it onto my list.
In today’s newsletter I’m going to share that list with you, plus do some reflecting on how my 2024 reading went overall. I’ll give you the list first because I know that’s what you want to see the most, but only if you promise to keep reading beyond it! 😉
20 remarkable books I read in 2024
This year, in lieu of a “top 10” or similar, I’ve curated a more intentional list of 20 highly recommendable books that I read in 2024. I picked five titles in each of four categories: literary fiction, fantasy and sci-fi, nonfiction, and audiobooks. I wanted to paint you a more complete picture of my taste than you might otherwise get if I just listed a bunch of “favorites” based on vibes.
That said, of course, if a book is here, it’s safe to assume it’s at least one of my favorites from the year. And because I know the internet demands stakes in the ground, I’ve listed my (subjective, vibes-driven) favorite from each category first and in bold.
Okay, let’s do it!
(Click each title for a link to my full review. If there is no review link when you read this, check back in a few days — I’m working on them!)
Literary fiction
There Are Rivers In the Sky by Elif Shafak (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
This book was written just for me: A gorgeous, sweeping story with a cast of characters living across multiple timelines and a touch of magic. I wanted to sink into this book forever.
Recommended format: Either print or audio (or both!).
James by Percival Everett (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
The book of the year for good reason. You are seeing this everywhere for good reason. If you haven’t picked this up yet, you’re late to the party.
Recommended format: Print and audio together at the same time. You don’t want to miss this one in either format, I promise.
Held by Anne Michaels (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
I read this Booker Prize finalist twice in 2024; once in October and once in December. It is short, but absolutely benefits from close attention and a second read. Please don’t let that deter you! This book is absolutely beautiful and I loved every second I spent with it.
Recommended format: Print, because it needs to be savored (you might even want an ebook to control-F and make sure you find all the ways the characters are connected).
Intermezzo by Sally Rooney (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
Yes, another extremely hyped book. But I really did enjoy it that much! My favorite Rooney yet (although I haven’t read them all).
Recommended format: Print, because Peter’s sections are written in something akin to stream-of-consciousness.
Beautyland by Marie-Helene Bertino (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
This book was fun but also deeply affective; it pulled on my heartstrings in the best way. If you want to tear up because humanity is beautiful, give this one a shot.
Recommended format: Either print or audio (or both!).
Fantasy and sci-fi
The Bone Season (The Bone Season, #1) by Samantha Shannon (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
I’m so mad at myself for waiting so long to pick this series up. It was everything I’d been craving in a fantasy read lately — well written and the start of what promises to be an epic, awesome new adventure. It’s been awhile since I read a great urban fantasy (this one’s set in London), and I can’t wait to continue the series in 2025.
Recommended format: Print for the first 50 pages, because there’s a lot of worldbuilding and you’re going to want to go slow and make sure you’ve got it all down. Then can definitely switch to audio if you want.
Heir (Heir Duology, #1) by Sabaa Tahir (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
This was one of my most anticipated books of the year because An Ember in the Ashes is my favorite fantasy series of all time. And it absolutely did NOT disappoint! When do we get book two, Sabaa?
Recommended format: Either print or audio (or both!).
Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
This one was so exciting and had one of the best plot twists I’ve read in recent years, and it was wonderfully inclusive in a way it feels like sci-fi does best.
Recommended format: Either print or audio (or both!).
Fire & Blood (A Targaryen History, #1) by George R.R. Martin (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
I am nothing if not a fandom nerd, and House of the Dragon was one of the highlights of my summer. I decided it was finally time to read the source material, and I was so pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it! Don’t let the fake-history-textbook format put you off; it was funny and delightful.
Recommended format: Either print or audio (or both!).
The Emperor and the Endless Palace by Justinian Huang (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
This one really surprised me; it had so much more depth than I would ever have expected based on the cover and marketing messaging. If you’re a fantasy lover who also likes literary fiction, I think this one’s exploration of themes might appeal to you.
Recommended format: Either print or audio (or both!).
Nonfiction
I read ALL of these in December!
The Bookshop: A History of the American Bookstore by Evan Friss (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
Reading this book was like curling up on the couch with your best bookish friend with a blanket and warm tea and candle burning. I just had such a great time reading it. It’s a book by a book lover about the history of bookstores. What more could you want?
Recommended format: Print, because there are photos throughout.
There’s Always This Year: On Basketball and Ascension by Hanif Abdurraqib (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
Okay, okay, I get it now, Hanif fans. (They’re right. This is a must-read. And no, you don’t need to have a significant interest in basketball to love it — although if you do, I bet you’ll love it even more.)
Recommended format: Print and audio together at the same time. You don’t want to miss this one in either format, I promise.
Abortion: Our Bodies, Their Lies, and the Truths We Use to Win by Jessica Valenti (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
Essential reading as we head into 2025. Read my full recap and takeaways in “Conversation Pushers #2” here.
Recommended format: Either print or audio (or both!).
How to Tell When We Will Die: On Pain, Disability, and Doom by Johanna Hedva (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
This essay collection by a queer disabled Asian nonbinary person is not to be missed. The prose is stunning and Hedva is unbelievably smart. Do not miss this one!
Recommended format: Either print or audio (or both!).
Magical/Realism: Essays on Music, Memory, Fantasy, and Borders by Vanessa Angélica Villarreal (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
Another incredible essay collection. I was most drawn to the essays that related fantasy, magical realism, and pop culture phenomenons in the genre (like Game of Thrones) to the immigrant experience. If you are a music lover, there is a lot here for you too. Really smart, thought-provoking stuff.
Recommended format: Print, because there are photos throughout.
Audiobooks
What If We Get It Right?: Visions of Climate Futures by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed this book. It is hopeful without being saccharine, fascinating without being overly academic. I followed so many new people and organizations because of this book.
Why audio: The book is a collection of interviews with many different people working either directly or adjacently toward climate justice today. Instead of reading the edited transcription of each interview, Johnson compiled the actual audio files into this audiobook, so it feels much more like a fantastic season of a podcast.
Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution by Cat Bohannon (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
I read this in January and still think about it almost every single day. I learned so much! And it was so much more accessible and fun than I would ever have expected. Believe the hype, my friends.
Why audio: Bohannon reads it and really brings her personality into things. It made me want to be her friend!
Challenger: A True Story of Heroism and Disaster on the Edge of Space by Adam Higgenbotham (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
Winner of the Kirkus Prize and talked about everywhere for good reason. Higgenbotham has managed to turn narrative nonfiction into a thriller of sorts. I knew how it ended, and yet in the last third of the book, I was on the edge of my seat.
Why audio: Higgenbotham goes a lot further back in history than you might expect in order to really give a complete picture of the cultural and political forces at work that led NASA to make such a terrible decision. These sections are good, but I’m not sure they would have held my attention quite so well in print.
The Voyage Home (The Women of Troy, #3) by Pat Barker (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
I loved The Silence of the Girls and The Women of Troy, so it’s no surprise that I loved this one too. Parker writes retellings in such a sharp, smart way that feels elevated and deeply relevant to our modern world.
Why audio: The voice acting was just so good — shout out to Kristin Atherton! There is a creepy chorus of ghost children, for example, that literally gave me chills.
Small Rain by Garth Greenwell (Bookshop | Libro.fm)
I’m embarrassed to admit that this was my first Greenwell, but obviously it didn’t disappoint. I found it deeply moving and relatable (especially as someone who had a short hospital stay earlier this year).
Why audio: Greenwell narrates it himself, and he does it excellently. His Iowa-style inflection (IYKYK) matches perfectly with his Iowa-style prose and brings the best of the book out.
And that’s what I’ve got for you this year, friends!
Reflections on my 2024 in reading
This was a noteworthy year for me: six hard months of pregnancy and six beautiful but hard months of new motherhood. Physical recovery from a C-section and a return to the joy of exercise. And so much love, but also mental exhaustion on a level I could never have anticipated, no matter what others said to try to prepare me. I spent much of the summer with my brain in a zombie state, scrolling on my phone instead of reading.
So above all, I’m dang proud that I managed to hit 100 books this year. It’s not so much about the number itself as it is about where that number falls in relation to a typical year for me — less, but not too much less! I held on to a part of myself that is critical and affirming and joyful, and that is no small thing.
Drilling down, though, I certainly have some learnings to carry forward into 2025.
54 of the books I read this year were literary fiction, 28 were sci-fi/fantasy, and 18 were nonfiction (12 of which I read in the fourth quarter of the year). 77 of them were frontlist titles (published in 2024) and 23 were backlist titles.
There’s an obvious bias toward frontlist lit fic here, which is nothing new for me. But thinking back, it didn’t work out as well as it has in years past. It wasn’t bad, per se; this was the best year of prize-list reading I’ve had since 2019, and I have zero regrets about reading my way through the Women’s Prize, Booker Prize, and National Book Award nominees. But there were also a LOT of books I picked up because a bunch of my friends read them and/or because a publisher had sent them to me, and while I enjoyed nearly all of them, the LOVES were few and far between.
Meanwhile, only a quarter of my reading was devoted to my true love, my comfort genre, the thing I crave most often: SFF. I notice this misalignment at the end of every year, and I can’t seem to fix it. It’s past time for me to double down on what lights me up the most!
Finally, I still can’t get over how many of my top recommendations above came from December, when I pushed off books I felt like I “should” read in favor of the ones I’d really been wanting to read all year, plus a couple of mood-reads in the nonfiction category. That is certainly an energy I’d like to carry into 2025.
More to come in a few weeks as I narrow down my 2025 intentions and put the proverbial pen to paper, but there is much to think about.
Happy New Year once again, friends. And thank you for making 2024 such a fantastic year for me on Substack! I’m enjoying this platform so much and feeling so creatively inspired. I’ve got a ton of ideas, plus the start of a new year means lots of things to talk about (intentions, ins and outs, anticipated releases, and more) in addition to my usual twice-monthly reading updates. So look for me in your inbox a bit more than usual in January.
Until then, it would mean a lot if you were to take a second to like this post. I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments, too. Did you love any of the books I loved? Have you noticed any patterns in your own reading that you’d like to course-correct?
Finally, if you like this newsletter, please send a few friends my way.
See you next time!
— Deedi (she/her)
So glad you finally got to Bone Season; loved it!
Interesting that you recommended the audiobook of Small Rain. I read it in print and found it a bit difficult (it's been awhile since I read it, but I think it was a bit stream of consciousness?); I wonder if the audio experience would have solved my problem.