See ya, 2020… don’t let the door hit you on the way out.
Wishing everyone a happy (and much safer) 2021! Cannot wait to see you in person as soon as we’re able.
1. Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
It now seems like decades ago that I read this. This was my second attempt at it and I made it all the way through this time, but I still had trouble following what was happening and who was doing what to whom and why.
2. The Circuit: A Tennis Odyssey by Rowan Ricardo Phillips
A year on the professional tennis tour. The best parts of this were about the tier of players just below the Serena/Roger/Rafa level.
3. Drinking Coffee Elsewhere by ZZ Packer
Some excellent short stories in this one, even though it’s not my favorite form.
4. Kudos by Rachel Cusk
Couldn’t get fully into this stream-of-consciousness novel of a middle-aged woman’s experience, but I think I should give it another go in the future.
5. Shortcomings by Adrian Tomine
Very precisely written and drawn graphic novel of a handful of young-ish people in the Bay Area. Insightful though maybe a bit too depressive for me.
6. Making Movies by Sidney Lumet
Interesting explanation of the movie-making process from start to finish, which sounds incredibly tedious in many ways. Lumet’s Dog Day Afternoon is an all-time favorite of mine.
7. The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
This is the first novel I read once lockdown hit and it was a purposeful departure from the current day. To the extent it was possible to concentrate on something else at that time (um… it really wasn’t), it helped. I had already seen the excellent Scorsese movie, but this was a good opportunity to revisit it.
8. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Burrows
This lighter read did help me get my head out of lockdown a bit in its early days. The Netflix adaptation was also not bad for virtual travel to a postwar European island.
9. Dear Girls by Ali Wong
Some funny stuff here, but I’m not the exact target audience.
10. Fooled by Randomness by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
There is a handful of good nuggets about statistics and randomness in this book, but the author seems like an a-hole. Read The Drunkard’s Walk instead.
11. Divisadero by Michael Ondaatje
I’ve been re-reading Ondaatje’s novels over the past several years. They all have riches and in this one it’s the endearing central trio of Anna, Claire, and Coop
12. Bertie and Jeeves stories by P.G. Wodehouse
I know these are supposed to be funny, but I can’t get on the same wavelength as them.
13. The Honourable Schoolboy by John Le Carre
I’m a huge Le Carre fan in general (RIP), but like when I read Tinker, Tailor, Solider, Spy, I could not follow the plot of this one. During lockdown it was sometimes nice to get lost in plot, but this required more concentration than I could give.
14. South and West by Joan Didion
Didion is a legend.
15. X-Men by Jonathan Hickman and others
Due to some combination of nostalgia for childhood pleasures, lockdown-induced extra reading time, and availability from the library, I read a bunch more graphic novels this year than in the past. These Jonathan Hickman X-Men stories are wild.
16. The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson
This was fine, but it mostly made me wonder why some books turn into such sensations and other much better ones don’t make a dent.
17. The Newlyweds by Nell Freudenberger
This had been sitting on my bookshelf for years and I finally got to it. It was okay.
18. Notebooks 1942–1951 by Albert Camus
This note on page 100 as Camus was working on his novel: “Plague. A chapter on fatigue.” So true.
19. The Conversations by Michael Ondaatje and Walter Murch
Enlightening series of interviews between the writer and film editor/sound mixer/all-around craftsman. Murch’s thoughtfulness and reflections on his work are fascinating.
20. Marvels by Kurt Busiek and Alex Ross
Beautiful painted artwork in this one, but I didn’t care much for the story.
21. “The Way We Live Now” and other short stories by Susan Sontag
First time reading any of Sontag’s fiction and “The Way We Live Now” about the aftermath of the AIDS epidemic is essential.
22. State of Wonder by Ann Patchett
Amazing novel about a doctor who goes deep into the Brazilian rainforest to learn more about potentially life-changing research her pharmaceutical company is doing there. This great book succeeds on every level.
23. The Undisputed Guide to Pro Basketball History by FreeDarko
Thoroughly enjoyed these essays on the history of pro basketball, particularly the ones about the championship Knicks teams of the early 1970s and the seven seconds or less Suns.
24. Talking to Strangers: Selected Essays, Prefaces, and Other Writings 1967–2017 by Paul Auster
Lots of good ephemera from Auster.
25. “Mr. Salary” by Sally Rooney
I’m not sure if this even qualifies as a full book; it’s more like a very short novella. Having said that, I put it on here because I’ve loved everything Sally Rooney has written. That includes the Normal People adaptation that was on TV this year.
26. Negroland by Margo Jefferson
Terrific memoir of growing up in a higher income Black community and its attendant pressures, privileges, and injustices. Both personal and social history.
27. Stone Arabia by Dana Spiotta
Another re-read. I’ve mentioned before that I think Dana Spiotta might be the best current American novelist. The ending of this book is perfect.
28. Intimations by Zadie Smith
I read this on vacation and after five months of COVID news, it may not have been the right time for more reflections on the pandemic and life during quarantine. Regardless, Zadie Smith is one of the greats.
29. X-Men Vignettes by Chris Claremont, Ann Nocenti, and John Bolton
Some beautifully illustrated short comic book stories. Slight, but mostly fun.
30. The Girls by Emma Cline
Good novel about a young woman who becomes part of the Manson cult.
31. Trick Mirror by Jia Tolentino
Totally brilliant collection of essays about a range of topics, including what the internet is doing to us. That makes it sound like it could be overly broad and facile, but these are deeply personal essays that also made me think about my own life and how I think about my life. Great passage: “… the more I try to uncover whatever I’m looking for, the more I feel that I’m too far gone… I can feel the tug of my deep and recurring suspicion that anything I might think about myself must be, somehow, necessarily wrong.”
32. The Education of an Idealist by Samantha Power
Excellent memoir of the former ambassador to the UN (and also professor when I was at the Kennedy School). Her reflections on her time in the Obama administration are the most newsworthy, but I particularly enjoyed reading about her upbringing and the people and experiences that led her to public service in the first place.
33. The Incendiaries by R.O. Kwon
Unsettling short novel about a couple of college students who get drawn into a cult-like group.
34. Best. Movie. Year. Ever. by Brian Raftery
Fun book about the movies of 1999. I still remember how powerful it was watching Boys Don’t Cry in a theater that year (though if they made that movie now hopefully they would cast an actor who is trans to play Brandon Teena). I also loved Paul Thomas Anderson’s reflection on what he would change about his work on Magnolia if he could do it again: “Chill the eff out and cut 20 minutes.” (My other favorites from 1999: The Insider and 10 Things I Hate About You.)
35. St. Marks Is Dead by Ada Calhoun
Enjoyed this history of St. Marks Place in the East Village. I miss going to Sounds to check out the CDs and it makes me do a double-take to go there now and see all the Asian restaurants and cafes on the block.
36. Grand Union by Zadie Smith
I have a hard time reading short stories now, for whatever reason, so I generally prefer her novels and essays, but the story “For the King” in this collection is beautiful.
37. Nobody Knows My Name by James Baldwin
His writing will never not be relevant. In this book I particularly liked “The Black Boy Looks at the White Boy” about his relationship with Norman Mailer and his thoughts on William Faulkner’s racism in “Faulkner and Desegregation.” In the latter this line stood out: “There is never time in the future in which we will work out our salvation. The challenge is in the moment, the time is always now.”
38. Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe
This is hands down the best book I read all year. It’s both a terrific history of the Troubles and also an incredible piece of reporting about the disappearance of one woman in Northern Ireland and the reverberating impact on her family. Masterpiece.
39. Blood of Palomar by Gilbert Hernandez
Winding, knotty, surreal graphic novel.
40. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
I knew this book had become popular during the pandemic, but I didn’t know until I started reading it that it was because it’s about a global flu pandemic that wipes out civilization. This was a terrific, if sometimes anxiety-inducing, read.
41. Movies (and Other Things) by Shea Serrano
Shea Serrano is a national treasure. This isn’t as all-conquering great as his basketball book, but any book with a chapter on who should make up a heist movie dream team crew is more than worth the time. I smile and laugh more reading Serrano’s stuff than any other writer’s.
42. Girls to the Front by Sara Marcus
Interesting history of the riot grrrl movement during the 1990s. There are a lot of inspiring things that came out of it, but I was also surprised by the level of disillusion that some participants ultimately felt as the music and movement spread around the country.
43. This America: The Case for the Nation by Jill Lepore
A short history of nationalism and what it can do to the country if we leave it unchecked. It felt important to read this as the election approached.
44. Bring the Noise by Simon Reynolds
A collection of music criticism and interviews that I dipped in and out of during the week of the election to try to keep my mind occupied (I also watched The Queen’s Gambit that week for the same purpose). I’ll mostly remember it for that, but it also sent me back to listen to The Streets again, so that was nice. (Favorite tunes of the year: albums by Waxahatchee, Teyana Taylor, Dua Lipa, and Fiona Apple; “Savage” by Megan Thee Stallion and Beyonce; “Exile” and “Betty” by Taylor Swift; “Anthems” by Charli XCX.)
45. Circe by Madeline Miller
Wonderful imagining of the goddess’ life.
46. X-Men Grand Design by Ed Piskor
Alternative re-telling of some past stories.
47. The Fire This Time: A New Generation Speaks About Race edited by Jesmyn Ward
Series of passionate, anguished, sharp, and inspired essays. I especially liked “Know Your Rights!” about a set of murals across NYC that instruct people on what to do if they’re arrested or protesting or otherwise approached by law enforcement, including one just a few blocks away from our apartment.
48. Midnight Days by Neil Gaiman
Collection of short stories. I enjoyed the one about the Sandman.
49. The Pigeon Tunnel: Stories from My Life by John Le Carre
Not a full memoir, but some recollections from across Le Carre’s life. As a result, this doesn’t feel like it adds up to a whole, but there are some wonderful bits, such as remembrances of his grifter/con man father, impressions on meeting Arafat, and recollections on the making of the movies of his books.
50. Logicomix: An Epic Search for Truth by Apostolos Doxiadis, Christos Papadimitriou, Alecos Papadatos, and Annie Di Donna
Educational graphic novel about the life and work of the logician Bertrand Russell. Some of the theoretical stuff in this book went way over my head, but this is the kind of topic that works better for me in the graphic novel format. I never would have made it through material like this in text only.
51. DC Universe Stories by Neil Gaiman
Another collection. “Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader” is a charming tale.
52. Raising Kane by Pauline Kael
Read this book-length essay about the making of Citizen Kane after watching Mank, which used it as some of its source material. It’s weird to think that this created such a controversy at the time, as it doesn’t impugn Orson Welles nearly as much as I would have expected. (BTW, Mank was pretty good.)
53. Selected Poems 1950–2012 by Adrienne Rich
I’ve been trying to read at least one book of poetry each year recently and settled on this one this year. I find reading them out loud helps, but I still can’t focus all the way through. I did love this bit from one of the poems collected here: “but you can learn from the edges that blur/O you who love clear edges/more than anything/watch the edges that blur.”
54. The Infinity Gauntlet by Jim Starlin and George Perez
I read this because I found out the Avengers movies were partially based on it and I wanted to see the original. Instead of wiping out half the universe for ecological reasons, however, here Thanos does so in order to romantically woo the embodiment of death. I love the idea because it is so bizarre, but otherwise this was not good. Still, the idea alone is deserving of the Nobel Prize for literature.
55. A Promised Land by Barack Obama
The man writes with such clarity and insight that the 700 pages breeze by. If Biden lost the election, I don’t think I could have read this without weeping, but now we can go into 2021 with a modicum of hope, while still recognizing all the problems we have to face. Obama’s reflectiveness and even ambivalence during some of his greatest triumphs is striking. Already looking forward to part two.
56. Nomadland by Jessica Bruder
Just started reading this nonfiction account of people who live “houseless” (in their words, not homeless) and travel the western states looking for seasonal work.
