Books I read in 2024

Near the end of 2023, I chronicled all the books I had read that year, along with some thoughts on how important reading was to me. I find myself reflecting again. 2024 was a hard year. I left a job that I loved more than words can say. I had some personal ups and downs. Got COVID... AGAIN. I had to give up some hobbies that were dear to me.

But some neat things happened. I made incredible friendships. I wrote a book (I'm writing the second draft now, which SUCKS and is also awesome). I spent hours and hours and hours in my pool. I went on incredible trips exploring the Midwest.

​Now here at the end of 2024, before we are collectively forced to endure four years of heartbreak, tragedy, and ruin from which return will be slow or impossible, I decided to use my completed books as a lens to reflect once again on the past 360-ish days. I present all the books I read in 2024, with their author, how many stars I gave them, and their length, if known.

• I Swear: Politics is Messier Than My Minivan, Katie Porter, Audiobook- 4/5 stars
• Hotel Nantucket, Elin Hildebrand, 368 pages- 3.5 stars
• Less, Andrew Sean Greer, 261 pages- 2 stars
• The Woman in Me, Britney Spears, Audiobook- 3/5 stars
• Shark Heart, Emily Habeck, 405 pages- 5/5 stars
• Hello Beautiful, Ann Napolitano, 383 pages- 4.5 stars
• The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck, Audiobook- 3.5 stars
• Peace Like a River, Leif Enger, 311 pages- 3.5 stars
• The Echo Maker, Richard Powers, 451 pages- 2 stars
• So Brave, Young, and Handsome, Leif Enger, 285 pages- 2.5 stars
• Quietly Hostile, Samantha Irby, Audiobook- 4/5 stars
• Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone, Benjamin Stevenson, 366 pages- 3.5/5 stars
• Me Talk Pretty One Day, David Sedaris, Audiobook- 4.5/5 stars
• I Cheerfully Refuse, Leif Enger, 329 pages- 3.5/5 stars
• Just for the Summer, Abby Jiminez, 405 pages- 3.5/5 stars
• Bright Young Women, Jessica Knoll, 373 pages- 3.5/5 stars
• Funny Story, Emily Henry, 384 pages- 4/5 stars
• Meaty, Samantha Irby, Audiobook- 3/5 stars
• The Husbands, Holly Gramazio, 342 pages- 3.5/5 stars
• Good Material, Dolly Alderton, 315 pages- 3/5 stars
• Kitchens of the Great Midwest, J Ryan Stradel, 310 pages- 3.5/5 stars
• I'm Glad My Mom Died, Jennette McCurdy, Audiobook- 4/5 stars
• The Ministry of Time, Kaliane Bradley, 335 pages- 3/5 stars
• Cheaper by the Dozen, Frank & Ernestine Gilbreth, 207 pages- 4/5 stars
• The House in the Cerulean Sea, TJ Klune, 396 pages, 5/5 stars
• Big in Sweden, Sally Franson, 306 pages- 2/5 stars
• The Rom-Commers, Katherine Center, 317 pages- 3/5 stars
• Belles on Their Toes, Frank & Ernestine Gilbreth, 225 pages- 3.5/5 stars
• Kitchen Confidential, Anthony Bourdain, Audiobook- 4/5 stars
• ​The God of the Woods, Liz Moore, 476 pages- 3.5/5 stars
• Whoever You Are, Honey, Olivia Gatwood, 297 pages- 2/5 stars
  
• Under the Whispering Door, TJ Klune, 376 pages- 3.5/5 stars
• The Radium Girls, Kate Moore, Audiobook- 3.5/5 stars
• Slow Dance, Rainbow Rowell, 390 pages- 3.5/5 stars
• Business or Pleasure, Rachel Lynn Solomon, 363 pages- 2.5/5 stars
• Somewhere Beyond the Sea, TJ Klune, 400 pages- 3.5/5 stars
• The Golden Spoon, Jesse Maxwell, 272 pages- 3/5 stars
• Playing With Myself, Randy Rainbow, Audiobook- 4/5 stars
• Killers of a Certain Age, Deanna Raybourn, 349 pages- 3/5 stars
• Bummer Camp, Ann Garvin, 311 pages- 2/5 stars
• Here One Moment, Liane Moriarty, 495 pages- 4/5 stars
• North Woods, Daniel Mason, 369 pages- 3/5 stars
• Small Things Like These, Claire Keegan, 116 pages- 4/5 stars
• The Fellowship of Puzzlemakers, Samuel Burr, 356- 3/5 stars
• Framed, John Grisham & Jim McCloskey, Audiobook- 3.5/5 stars
• Lula Dean's Little Library of Banned Books, Kristin Miller, 295 pages- 2.5/5 stars

An explanation of my star rating system:
3 stars: It's fine. I might not recommend it unless someone is looking for something quite targeted, but it was an adequate read. 
3.5 stars: This is the start of my "I liked this book" range. It's usually the type of book I find enjoyable, but forgettable, or I would find it really awesome except it has a couple things that monumentally piss me off.
4 stars: I not only like this book, but find myself thinking about it a lot. Perfect? no. But something about it hit right.
4.5 stars: This is almost the perfect read. I find it difficult to give 5 stars, and so 4.5 stars usually means, "It's incredible except for this one annoyance like the overuse of parentheses" or "It was a fine book but this one little thing made it absolutely stellar"
5 stars: the perfect book. Since I started journaling my books, I believe I have given six 5 star ratings.
Anything below 3 stars: I resent this book for various reasons, and the lower the number, the more I resent it.

I also recognize that whatever is going on in my life very much impacts how I rate a book. For example, just because something is excellent literature, doesn't mean I rank it higher than a fluffy romcom if a fluffy romcom was what I needed at the time I was reading it.