My Favorite Books of 2021

Ah yes, three weeks into 2022, and just now getting to my end-of-year 2021 post. Sounds about right. It can’t just be me; this has been a particularly chaotic feeling January, right? What with the state of the world these last couple years, I’ve been spending a lot less time traveling and generally going out, and more time doing solitary activities, such as reading. So, I thought I’d share my top 8 favorite books I read in 2021.

I tend to read whatever strikes my fancy at any given moment (which is how I often end up in the middle of 4+ books simultaneously), so this list is not necessarily made up of books that were released in the year 2021–just ones I read and liked over the course of the year. As you compile your “to be read” lists for 2022, maybe some of these will strike your fancy too.

#8. The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

Even though this book was published only about a year before I read it, I felt like I was late to the boat on this one. A Reese’s Bookclub pick and 2020 Goodreads Choice Award Winner, this novel did not disappoint. I found it a bit slow-paced at the beginning, but the journeys that the characters took were well worth the slow start.

#7. You’ll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey: Crazy Stories About Racism by Amber Ruffin and Lacey Lamar

Before reading this book, I knew Amber Ruffin from her late night show on Peacock. She’s hilarious and insightful on her show, so I was confident her book would be no different. Going into it knowing nothing about her sister Lacey, I was a fan by the end of the book. What I love about this one is its “slice of life” reality. It’s just two sisters sharing the real, sad, sometimes devastating, but also sometimes funny anecdotes of the racism they’ve faced in their lives. For white folks like me, it’s a good wake up call to the unfair reality that unfortunately far too many people experience, even on the most typical days.

#6. Writers & Lovers by Lily King

This book shares the day to day life of a fictional writer who makes her living serving tables. As I was reading this book, I realized we don’t often get to hear stories of writers. Maybe it’s because the people writing them don’t find their own lives as writers interesting enough to write about. Or perhaps because the inherently autobiographical nature of writing about someone whose days are spent like your own might feel vulnerable. Either way, I’m so glad King was inspired to tell this story.

#5. Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body by Roxane Gay

This book was my introduction to Roxane Gay, and wow. She tells her story beautifully and honestly, even as it pertains to issues that are too often seen as taboo.

​#4. Untamed by Glennon Doyle

This book shook me up, and I believe that was Doyle’s goal. I was introduced to the book when Doyle appeared as a guest on Brene Brown’s podcast “Unlocking Us,” where she shared her book’s introduction about a cheetah who was bred in captivity but knew by instinct she was born for something more. Just hearing that introduction on a podcast made me think in a new way, let alone what the rest of the book had to say.

#3. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

Another novel, this book has one fantastical element that directs the life of main character, Addie LaRue: she’s made a deal with a dark force and is cursed to be forgotten by everyone who meets her. In return, she is immortal. The premise in and of itself is enough to tell an interesting story, but unexpected turns throughout the story made the book hard to put down.

#2. Sitting Pretty: The View from My Ordinary Resilient Disabled Body by Rebekah Taussig
 
This memoir-in-essays opened my eyes to so much that shouldn’t have taken me 26 years to learn. But the fact that it did is a testament to the abilism so deeply rooted in our society that many people don’t even notice it’s there. I’m so grateful for Taussig and her graciousness to share her life experiences through her beautiful writing so that many of us can be educated. I also loved spotting the Kansas City references sprinkled throughout the book.

#1. Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor by Layla F. Saad
 
Every white person should read this book. Saad explores deeply ingrained and complex issues in our society in a way that is easy to follow. She includes journal prompts for readers to take what they’re learning and make meaningful changes in their own lives. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.
 
These were my top eight books I read throughout 2021, but if you’re interested in the rest of the books I read in 2021 or keeping up with what I’m currently reading, give me a follow on Goodreads.