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Best Books From 2020
By: Angela & Melissa
Updated:
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Whether you are participating in our In Case You Missed It Backlist Reading Challenge or simply found this post searching for the best books of 2020, you’ve come to the right place! Our list includes a mix of the best-selling novels of 2020 as well as highly-rated books published that year that flew a bit more under the radar.
There are so many great books released each year that it’s impossible to keep up. The Book Girls typically read about 200 books a year between the two of us, but nonetheless, our TBRs (to-be-read lists) just keep getting longer. And we know we’re not alone! With that in mind, we decided to take a look back at some of the best books that we missed from past years.
In Case You Missed It…
We’ve compiled a list of highly-rated books from 2020, including a wide variety of genres, from contemporary and literary fiction to mystery and romance. Our goal was to make these recommendations much more than just a list of the 2020 best-seller books. In addition to popular titles, you’ll find hidden gems that we think should have been more popular.
While researching 2020’s best books, we also had fun reminiscing about some pop culture moments that defined the year.
Five Things We Were Talking About in 2020
- Who could forget the great toilet paper shortage of spring 2020? While the empty store shelves were very stressful at the time, toilet paper hoarding also led to some very funny memes that we can appreciate more now that our cupboards are fully restocked.
- During the early weeks of quarantine, Netflix released Tiger King, a true-crime docuseries about the life of former zookeeper and convicted felon Joe Exotic and animal-rights advocate Carole Baskin. With seemingly the whole world having extra time on their hands, Tiger King immediately became the binge-worthy sensation we didn’t know we needed.
- Sourdough had a major pop culture moment in 2020. With sparse grocery shelves and an abundance of downtime, people took to the kitchens to painstakingly keep their bubbly sourdough starters alive. They also took to social media to share their jiggly rounds of dough, their perfectly scored loves, and their “crumb shots.”
- While 2020 kept many of us at home, it also invited us into the homes of some of our favorite celebrities. From morning show hosts like Kelly Ripp and Savannah Guthrie to late night hosts like Jimmy Falon and Jimmy Kimmel, their at-home broadcasts gave us a peek into their home offices, kitchens, and basements. Other celebrities used their time at home to create new entertainment offerings. John Krasinski developed a filmed-from-home web series called “Some Good News,” and nearly 50 musicians, including Jason Mraz, Meghan Trainor, and John Legend, participated in the “Together at Home” benefit concert.
- In August of 2020, Apple TV gave us all the perfect feel-good show right when we needed it the most. Ted Lasso, starring Jason Sudeikis, follows an American college football coach who, despite having no soccer experience, is recruited to coach a fictional English Premier League team.
Last but certainly not least, the Book Girls launched our very first reading challenge in January 2020. Although the inaugural edition of the Decades Reading Challenge started with just a small group of loyal participants, it provided a lovely sense of connection throughout the long, lonely months of quarantine. We still know the names of many of our OG challenge participants and love seeing them actively involved in the group to this day.
Best Books of 2020
Anxious People
Book Summary
Anxious People is about a failed bank robber who stumbles into an apartment open house and inadvertently holds a group of strangers hostage. The eclectic group of captives may just be the worst hostages in the world, and none of them are quite who they appear to be.
Throughout the ordeal, they divulge secrets, form allegiances, and set into motion a chain of events so unexpected that, when questioned by the police, they can hardly explain what happens next.
The Book Girls Say…
We debated how to classify this book’s genre. It is part locked-room mystery and part classic humorous examination of humanity. It has all the characteristics we love in other Fredrik Backman books, including quirky characters, witty prose, and entertaining writing that gets right to the heart of the matter!
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The Girl With the Louding Voice
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Book Summary
Adunni is a 14-year-old girl living in poverty in a Nigerian village. She loves school and knows that learning all she can is the key to achieving a better life. But, despite promising to allow Adunni’s schooling to continue after her mother’s death, Adunni’s father makes a decision that ends her education in the village and changes the trajectory of her life.
You’ll be moved to both tears and cheers as Adunni endures and overcomes heartbreaking challenges while remaining focused on her dream of an education.
The Book Girls Say…
PICK THIS ONE! We would both give this one more than 5 stars if we could.
While we didn’t experience this ourselves, some readers struggle with the dialect in either audio or written form, but find that the other form works well for them (ie: if the audio isn’t working for you, try reading and vice versa). The main character, Adunni, tells the story using her limited English, and one of the beautiful parts of the writing is that you can see her improvements over time.
In August of 2024, the sequel, And So I Roar, was released. It picks up when Adunni is 15 years old, and the husband she escaped is searching for her. Again, she will need to use her louding voice to protect herself and others in her village.
Author Abi Daré grew up in Lagos, Nigeria and now lives in the UK. She studied law, international project management (M.Sc.), and creative writing (MA).
Book Summary
In the 1580s, William Shakespeare married a woman named Anne (Agnes) Hathway. Together the couple settled in Stratford and had three children, a daughter named Susanna, and twins named Hamnet and Judith. Sadly, Hamnet died at the age of only eleven. Several years later, Shakespeare wrote one of his most famous plays – Hamlet.
Agnes, rather than William, is the star of this story (in fact, William himself is never mentioned by name in the book, so as not to pull focus). This novel is a stunning portrayal of grief, and how that grief may have influenced one of the most famous plays in history.
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Book Summary
As a child, Maggie’s parents purchased Baneberry Hall, a rambling Victorian estate in the Vermont woods. However, the family only lived in the home for three weeks before fleeing in the middle of the night. Maggie’s father, Ewan, gained worldwide acclaim after he recounted their terrifying weeks in the house in a nonfiction book called House of Horrors.
Maggie now works as a restorer of old homes and doesn’t believe in ghosts. She was too young to remember any of her time at Baneberry Hall. So, when she inherits the estate after her father’s death, she’s not too concerned about going to restore it. However, her homecoming is anything but warm.
The Book Girls Say…
Home Before Dark was a 2020 Goodreads Choice nominee for Best Mystery & Thriller.
The Happy Ever After Playlist
Book Summary
This story starts on a hilarious note as a lost dog shocks Sloan by jumping through her sunroof during an already rough day. When the owner doesn’t respond to calls, Sloan begins to love the dog, Tucker, as her own.
After several weeks, Tucker’s owner finally contacts her and wants Tucker back. Unfortunately, he’s out of the country and can’t claim Tucker right away, and Sloan isn’t sure he deserves his dog back. She’s been through a terrible two years and the dog has helped her heal.
You’ll love how the story develops after that – a musician and the interaction between his life on and off the stage play an important role in the book.
The Book Girls Say…
You may recognize Sloan from her role as Kristen’s friend in The Friend Zone.
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Truths I Never Told You
Book Summary
As the oldest sibling, it’s fallen on Beth to clean our her father’s house after his transfer to a memory care facility. She’s already struggling with being a new mom, and this task has added to her overwhelm.
While much of the house is tidy, she’s shocked to find a padlock on her childhood playroom. When she’s able to get into the space, she’s shocked to find a hoarder’s mess of her father’s paintings, mounds of discarded papers and miscellaneous junk.
More confusing, she’s found what appears to be a journal page in her mother’s handwriting. While Beth and her siblings grew up believing their mother died in a car accident when they were little more than toddlers, but this note suggests something much darker.
The real story unfolds in a split timeline between Beth’s mother in the 1950s and Beth’s life in the 1990s.
The Book Girls Say…
This is a true “how did we miss this?” book for us. We both LOVED Kelly Rimmer’s “The Things We Cannot Say” from 2019 but completely missed this lesser-known 2020 release. We can’t wait to read it!
The Midnight Library
Book Girls’ Readers Rate This Book
Book Summary
Nora has decided she is done. Done with the way her life is going. In a moment of darkness, she attempts suicide, but she finds herself in the Midnight Library between life and death. The shelves go on and on, and inside each book is a life that she could have lived, had she made just one different choice somewhere along the way – from following dreams to pursuing different careers to undoing old breakups.
Each time she opens a book, she finds herself living that alternate life, and she is faced with the decision of whether she wants to permanently exchange her life for a new one. As she visits these alternate realities, she’ll have to decide not only which life she wants, but also what makes life worth living in the first place.
The Book Girls Say…
Some find this book to be too predictable – and it’s true that the synopsis of the book tells you exactly what to expect. However, this is a book that will really make you think – not just about Nora’s choices and regrets, but also about your own.
As mentioned, this book does deal with suicide contemplation. However, we believe by the end, you’ll be left positively contemplating life.
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The Love Story of Missy Carmichael
Book Summary
Missy is 79 years old and lives in a stately London home alone. Her husband, Leo, passed away after a challenging illness, and her favorite child, son Allistair, broke her heart by moving to Australia. Daughter Melanie lives much closer in Cambridge, but they have a contentious relationship.
As Missy walks alone through a park, her primary mission is to experience something worthy of including in her next email to Allistair. While she prefers keeping to herself, she forces herself to interact with some interesting characters she encounters on her walk. When she faints, her new acquaintances not only help her in the moment, they invite her to a nearby coffee shop.
But is 79 too old for new friends and a new outlook on life?
The Book Girls Say…
While unexpected friendships are a favorite theme for us, this novel has a twist as it includes a dog helping break down emotional barriers and flashbacks to Missy’s earlier years. Melissa found the novel to be a good reminder of how little we know about those we meet as adults, and especially how their personalities are impacted by things they survived in the past. But also that it’s never too late to see things in a new way.
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Dear Edward
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Book Summary
Twelve-year-old Edward boards a plane with his beloved older brother and his parents, bound for their new home and life in California, but when the plane tragically crashes, Edward emerges as the sole survivor. After recovering from his injuries, he goes to live with his mom’s sister and her husband with the eyes of the world on him. Everyone is eager to hear his story.
His aunt and uncle work hard to shield him from all the attention and to allow him time to process his loss, but when Edward uncovers a stack of letters, he discovers an unexpected path to healing.
The chapters in the book alternate between Edward’s day-to-day life during the three years following the accident, and a minute-by-minute recounting of the ill-fated flight, through which we are introduced to many of the other passengers.
The Book Girls Say…
Although the main, named character is a teen, this is not a YA book. Half of the book details the experiences of the adults on the plane. As you would expect, this book is heavy in the grief department, so be prepared and keep the tissues close by.
Dear Edward was a Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Best Fiction in 2020. Though it is a work of fiction, the author has stated that it was loosely inspired by the 2010 crash of Libyan-operated Afriqiyah Airways Flight 771, in which the sole survivor was a 9-year-old boy. When Ann Napolitano learned about this crash, she said, “This story flayed me. I could not imagine how that boy would be OK and I could feel from the stickiness of my obsession that I was going to have to write a book that created a set of circumstances to make him OK.”
The book has also been adapted into a television series on Apple TV+.
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The Henna Artist
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Book Summary
Travel back in time to 1950s India to meet Lakshmi. After fleeing from an abusive marriage, she settles in the vibrant city of Jaipur. Her talents as a henna artist enable her to survive on her own. She becomes a confidant to her clients in the wealthy upper class.
As her reputation grows as an herbalist who provides beautiful henna work and sound advice, she helps her clients in new ways. Then, Lakshmi is shocked when her past resurfaces. The husband she escaped arrives in Jaipur, along with a girl he says is Lakshmi’s 13-year-old sister.
The book covers a full year in Lakshmi’s life. You’ll find yourself absorbed by the vivid descriptions of the culture and scenery and enamored with Lakshmi’s strength.
Heads Up: Abortions are part of the plot.
The Book Girls Say…
This book can easily be read as a standalone, but it is the first in a trilogy. The second and third books, respectively, are The Secret Keeper of Jaipur and The Perfumist of Paris.
Author Alka Joshi was born in Rajasthan, India, and moved to the US with her family when she was nine.
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The Book of Lost Names
Book Summary
In 1942, Eve fled Paris after her father was arrested for being a Polish Jew. When she arrives in the Free Zone, she decides to help Jewish children escape by creating new identity documents for them. She doesn’t want their true identities to be lost forever, so she begins documenting them in The Book of Lost Names.
Sixty-five years later, in Florida, Eve is now a semi-retired librarian. She’s shocked when she sees a photo of the book in a magazine article about the looting of libraries in WW2. Only Eve knows that the code contained within the book, but she’s not sure if she has the strength to revisit this tragic time in history.
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Book Girls’ Readers Rate This Book
Book Summary
In 1993, Mallory inherited a beach cottage in Nantucket and decided to embrace the unexpected gift and move to the island full-time. Shortly after, she hosts a bachelor party for her brother and meets his friend from college, Jake.
After things go wrong for other attendees, Mallory and Jake are left alone for the rest of the weekend. They have undeniable chemistry. After watching the classic movie, Same Time Next Year, they decide to continue getting together one weekend every summer, no matter what.
As the title suggests, the book spans 28 years of these secret meetings, one chapter per year from 1993-2020. You’ll keep the pages turning to find out how their lives change individually and together each year as Mallory and Jake go from college through career, love, and loss.
The chapters start with a fun recap of what was happening in the world each year, and you’ll be transported through time as their lives move forward.
The Book Girls Say…
This was a 5-star read for both of us, and our readers rated it their second favorite of all of Elin Hilderbrand’s popular beach reads. Be aware that this book does deal with infidelity.
Keep the Kleenex ready for the ending. Then, pick up the novella sequel, The Sixth Wedding. This 76-page follow-up takes place during the Labor Day weekend of 2023, providing answers to lingering questions about some of the main characters and wrapping up storylines for some of the secondary characters.
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Mexican Gothic
Book Summary
Looking for a horror book leading up to Halloween? While not a genre we normally read, this gothic meets horror set in 1950s Mexico is the perfect spooky book to read in the fall.
Socialite Noemi travels to High Place, her cousin’s countryside estate, after receiving a mysterious letter begging for help. Despite her newlywed cousin’s menacing new family and creepy home, Noemi isn’t afraid. But should she be?
The Star-Crossed Sisters of Tuscany
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Book Summary
Do you dream of seeing the Venetian canals, the Amalfi Coast, or wandering through gorgeous Tuscan villages? This novel will transport you to all three dramatically different scenic Italian locations in vivid detail.
Two hundred years ago, Filomena Fontana cursed her sister. Ever since then, every 2nd born sister in the Fontana family has been unable to find love.
Some of the women believe in the curse, and others are skeptical, but when elderly Aunt Poppy invites two of the young second-born sisters to return to Italy with her, promising to have a plan to break the curse, they can’t pass up the chance. The trio of women travel throughout Italy, learning about their family history and uncovering secrets.
The Book Girls Say…
If you’re looking for a book to get lost in, this is a charming and light read filled with vivid atmospheric details! The narrator’s Italian accent makes the audiobook especially enjoyable.
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Book Summary
Best-selling romance novelist January Andrews is suffering extreme writer’s block after finding out her parents weren’t the perfect couple she thought they were.
When she retreats to her dad’s secret Lake Michigan beach house in a last-ditch effort to meet her next book deadline as a romance writer, she finds another distraction instead.
Her college English-department rival lives next door and is suffering from his own bout of writer’s block.
The Book Girls Say…
This was one of our favorite books from 2020! It was also a Book of the Month selection, so you can add it onto one of your future boxes!
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Transcendent Kingdom
Book Summary
Transcendent Kingdom immerses you into the life of a Ghanaian family who immigrated to Alabama. Gifty is fifth-year candidate in neuroscience at Stanford School of Medicine studying reward-seeking behavior in mice and the neural circuits of depression and addiction.
Gifty’s brother, Nana, was once a promising high school athlete, but then he was prescribed OxyContin after a knee injury. He became addicted to the pills, which lead to the less expensive replacement drug, heroin. And that unfortunate choice lead to his death by overdose.
Gifty’s mother is now suicidal and lives in her bed. Despite the suffering all around her, Gifty is determined to find the scientific answer that can explain her family’s pain and prevent others from the same slide down. At the same time, she is grappling with the evangelical church in which she was raised.
The House in the Cerulean Sea
Book Summary
While this book is technically a YA Fantasy, it receives high ratings across the board, even from those who don’t typically choose YA or Fantasy novels.
Linus is a 40-year-old caseworker at the Department in Charge of Magical Youth, and spends his days overseeing children in orphanages and his nights in a tiny house with his devious cat.
When Linus is called to a classified assignment to visit 6 children deemed dangerous, he also meets their caretaker, Arthur Parnassus, who is dedicated to the children’s safety. However, as Linus and Arthur connect, secrets are exposed. Linus must choose between destroying the home of the children or risking them destroying the world.
The Book Girls Say…
The book’s central theme is kindness, and our readers describe it as a book that’s great for your heart and soul.
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Book Summary
Looking for something suspenseful but not too scary? The Last Flight follows two women trying to escape their own lives. When they meet at the airport, they decide to swap identities and truly leave their own old lives behind.
Things don’t go quite as expected when one of the planes crash, which means the surviving woman is the only one who knows about their arrangement.
The twists and turns will keep you guessing until the end, and you won’t want to put this book down until the final page!
The Vanishing Half
Book Summary
This story centers on light-skinned Black twins who take very divergent paths in life after leaving their small town. One marries a man with very dark skin and has a dark-skinned daughter, while the other decides to hide her heritage and live as a white woman and has a white daughter.
While that sets up the initial premise of the book, it was more about identity issues well-beyond skin color. Brit Bennett has a gift for words and is able to boil down significant moments/concepts within this book into single poignant, powerful sentences sprinkled throughout. Each character has their own complicated relationship with their identity, and it was really interesting to see how those feelings about themselves impacted everything in their lives.
The Book Girls Say…
Melissa didn’t feel fully engaged in the story until the 2nd section, but once she was in, she didn’t want to put it down.
The Two Lives of Lydia Bird
Book Girls’ Readers Rate This Book
Book Summary
After Lydia’s fiance, Freddy, dies in a car crash on the way to her 28th birthday dinner, she wants nothing more than to be alone with her grief. But soon, she discovers that she’s not alone after all – in fact, she wakes up in bed next to Freddy, alive and well. But then she wakes up again, and he’s gone. In this alternate reality, her life with Freddy continues toward their impending wedding.
As Lydia leads these two parallel lives, a new relationship causes her to question where she really belongs. Weaving together grief, humor, and heart, this book will give you all the feels.
The Book Girls Say…
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The Lions of Fifth Avenue
Book Girls’ Readers Rate This Book
Book Summary
It’s 1913, and Laura’s husband is the superintendent of the NY Public Library. The job comes with an apartment in the grand building for the couple and their two children. Laura seems to have it all, but after she enters journalism school at Columbia and has her worldview rocked, she starts to question if the things she has are the things she wants.
Eighty years later, in 1993, Sadie landed her dream job as a curator at the NY Public Library, but her grandmother Laura’s legacy looms over her until she can no longer ignore it.
The Book Girls Say…
Fiona Davis is one of our favorite historical fiction writers because of her strong female characters. Her novels are each set in a famous NYC building and combine history, a little romance, and a mystery.
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Boyfriend Material
Book Summary
Bitter Luc O’Donnell has excess emotional baggage after growing up in the shadow of a distant B-list celeb father and eccentric mom. While his parents aren’t in charge of a country, he still has to deal with paparazzi complicating his life.
When Luc’s job at a charity is endangered after incriminating photos of him are posted online, he has to re-make his image from party boy to “the right kind of gay” by coming up with a stable boyfriend. He knows he’s not ready for a real relationship, but could he sustain a fake relationship long enough to get through a fundraiser?
The Book Girls Say…
The narration is excellent and adds to the book, so we recommend that format if audiobooks are something you enjoy.
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Valentine
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Book Summary
In 1976, Odessa, Texas, the next great oil boom was on the horizon. But then the town is rocked by a brutal crime against a fourteen-year-old girl in one of the oil fields.
This novel explores the lasting effects of the crime on not only the girl but several of the town’s women, each with their own unique backstory and circumstances.
The Book Girls Say…
Melissa was concerned going into this book based on other reviews stating there were too many disconnected characters. However, after reading, she thought the author made all the proper connections between them. The links were clear as long as you didn’t rush through the pages. Much of the beauty and brilliance in the book was found in single sentences peppered in to pull things together.
Melissa enjoyed each woman’s individual story and loved how they intertwined. She found it to be a story of survival in terrible circumstances and how we often have to rely on others. Each character was saved by others in different ways. While she understands why the tragic nature of the book was deemed depressing by many, it also felt very representative of real life.
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Book Summary
Bea is a plus-sized fashion blogger tired of watching casts full of size 0 models. After a drunken post about the un-realness of the reality dating show, Main Squeeze, she gets a shocking call asking HER to be the next star of the show.
Can she trust the male contestants with her heart, or is it safer to remember she’s on the show for her career?
The Book Girls Say…
We both loved this one and enjoyed that the story varies between the actual narrative/ standard book format and snippets of podcast dialog, emails, etc about the show as fans watched. All the aspects came together and served as a great way to help your brain fully engage in the story.
The storyline blending reality TV, blogging, and the push to stop judging based on traditional beauty standards is fun and an excellent representation of the 2010s!
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The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett
Book Girls’ Readers Rate This Book
Book Summary
Eudora has lived a long, full life, but at the age of 85 she’s decided she’s done with it all. She’s already witnessed the indignities and suffering of old age, and she wants the end – her end – to be on her own terms. She’s called a clinic in Switzerland to set her plan into motion. But then she meets 10-year-old Rose.
Rose is rainbows and sparkles and cheer. And as much as Eudora just wants to be left alone, she can’t help but be drawn into her young neighbor’s world of adventure. Along with her affable and recently widowed neighbor Stanley, they join Rose for afternoon teas, shopping sprees, trips to the beach, and birthday celebrations. As they all await the arrival of Rose’s new baby sister, Eudora is secretly waiting for approval to go ahead with her plan.
As this unlikely trio grows closer, the joy that her new friends bring to her life forces Eudora to reconsider whether she’s really ready to say goodbye.
The Book Girls Say…
This book quickly became one of Melissa’s all-time favorites after she read it for our Lifetime of Reading Challenge. The author did a beautiful job relaying what it’s like to be alone in your 80s with no family, but also the uplifting power of found family.
While both Rose and Eudora pull at your heartstrings in different ways, the novel also addresses the topic of medically-assisted suicide, so it could make for a fabulous book club discussion.
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Migrations
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Book Summary
Franny packed up her research gear and talked her way onto a fishing boat in Greenland to follow the Arctic terns on what could be their last migration from the Arctic Circle to Antarctica.
Set in an unspecified date in the future, this novel has dystopian qualities. As the boat travels farther from civilization and safety, it becomes clear that Franny’s journey is as much about running away as it is about following the birds. Franny’s tale and journey are equally heartbreaking and breathtaking.
The Book Girls Say…
Reviewers warn that this story may make you uncomfortable and that you might need some Kleenex, but that you won’t regret being consumed by Franny’s story and the beautiful writing.
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The Heirloom Garden
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Book Summary
After losing her husband in WWII and her daughter to illness, Iris walled herself off from the world. She’s spent many decades hiding behind the tall fence around her home. In place of human connection, Iris has surrounded herself with a family of flowers. Propagating her daylilies and roses and tending to a garden that helps her keep memories of those she loved alive.
In the early 2000s, Abby is a young mother whose husband has recently returned from military service in Iraq. When Abby’s family rents a cottage along Lake Michigan, next door to Iris’ property, the older woman can’t help but view the young family as a window to the life she once had.
As Iris and Abby are drawn together by their shared love of flowers, the friendship that blossoms between them is a testament to the healing power of both gardening and human connection.
The Book Girls Say…
This book is an interesting look at PTSD for soldiers returning from war, and its effect on the soldier’s family. The comparisons between the 1940s & 2000s add an additional discussion point.
Readers particularly enjoy the audio version of this heartwarming book because of the two different narrators who read for Iris and Abby. Keep the tissues nearby as you read because you’re sure to shed a few cathartic tears during the ultimately uplifting tale.
Writers & Lovers
Book Summary
Writers & Lovers is a classic coming-of-age book about the struggle of an in-debt 31-year-old. She works as a waitress to pay the bills while trying not to give up her bigger dream of writing a novel.
We thought it was the perfect mix of literary fiction and reality TV as the book follows the main character through every aspect of her daily life.
The Book Girls Say…
After reading so many reviews from people who found this book boring, we went in skeptical, but we both fell in love with Writers and Lovers. Specifically, we think fans of the movie Reality Bites will enjoy this book!
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American Dirt
Book Summary
Lydia has a comfortable life in Acapulco as the wife of a journalist and the mother of an 8-year-old little boy. However, when her husband publishes a story about the newest drug lord bringing trouble to town, they become targets of a cartel. After hiding while many family members are massacred, they have to get out of the country for any hope for safety.
Lydia and Luca begin a harrowing journey to the US that will leave you on the edge of your seat. You’ll feel their fear along the way, making the book both suspenseful and heartbreaking as they make the journey of their lives.
The Book Girls Say…
When this book was published, it came with understandable criticism because it was not written by an OWN voices author. The author received significantly more money and publicity than books written by authors with Mexican heritage and first-hand experience of the journey.
Much of the criticism was aimed at the publishing industry versus the author’s writing, and the story has deeply impacted many readers. Readers often say their eyes were opened to aspects of immigration they hadn’t previously considered and increased their empathy, so believe it still has value. However, we recommend combining your reading of the fictional American Dirt with an OWN memoir, such as A Dream Called Home by Reyna Grande.
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Oona Out of Order
Book Summary
The night before Oona’s 19th birthday, on New Year’s Eve 1982, she’s struggling with a big decision. Should she go all-in on her commitment to her band and boyfriend or follow through with a long-time plan to study economics in London with her best friend?
Before she can go down either path, she wakes up on New Year’s Day. Except she’s now in the year 2014. Instead of being 19, Oona is suddenly 51. She continues to live her life out of order, traveling backward or forward each New Year, but never knowing what age she’ll be when she wakes up.
The Book Girls Say…
This book is only enjoyable if you’re willing to suspend your disbelief around the core concept that Oona wakes up a different age each year, and someone other than Oona also knows this happens to her.
If you start questioning details, you’ll be taken out of the story. However, if you just go with it and stay engaged, it’s a fascinating premise and a great look at how technology has changed over time.
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The Sun Down Motel
Book Girls’ Readers Rate This Book
Book Summary
This atmospheric, dual-timeline thriller, with a side of the paranormal, is a perfect pick for fans of the suspense and horror genres.
In 1982, 20-year-old Viv worked as a night clerk at the Sun Down Motel. She was hoping to save enough money for a move to NYC, but something isn’t right at the hotel, and she’s determined to find out what it is.
In 2017, 20-year-old Carly grew up hearing the story of her aunt Viv’s disappearance from the Sun Down Motel thirty-five years before. When she visits the motel, she soon finds herself entangled in the mystery of the haunted motel.
The Invisible Life of Addie Larue
Book Summary
In 1714 France, a desperate young woman, Addie Larue, made a Faustian bargain to live forever to avoid marrying a man she doesn’t love. Unfortunately, as part of the agreement, she is also cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets.
For 300 years, she’s been on an adventure around the globe. Then, in 2014, she stumbles on a man in a bookstore who remembers her name. Is this her chance to find normality within her immortal life?
The Guest List
Book Girls’ Readers Rate This Book
Book Summary
Imagine the picture-perfect wedding on a remote Irish island between a rising TV star and an intelligent magazine publisher. Despite the rough waves and spotty cell service, the wedding is sure to be idyllic, with every detail and moment planned in advance.
However, you can’t plan for old traditions and ongoing jealousy. The groomsmen are soon playing drinking games, someone may regret missing out on romance with the bride, and a bridesmaid ruins her dress – on purpose. So, when someone dies, who’s to blame?
The Book Girls Say…
We knew we had to add this locked room mystery to the list after one of our readers recommended it by saying that the Irish setting is so atmospheric that it becomes one of the characters in the book, and that the descriptions transported her right back to her recent travel in Ireland.
If you are looking for another mystery set in Ireland, consider The Searcher by Tana French. This book will place you in rural Ireland with Cal, a former cop who searching for a missing teen and quickly discovers that the small village of — has many dark secrets. This book is described – filled with well-developed, vulnerable characters – is full of suspense and slowly ramps up the tension.
You are welcome to choose any book you’d like to read for the challenge, but we hope this list of books has given you a good starting point.
Sign Up for the ICYMI Backlist Challenge
Sign up for our email list below to receive a free printable tracker for the In Case You Missed It Backlist Challenge. Our weekly email newsletter helps you stay on track with friendly reminders while still allowing you the flexibility to read at your own pace. Additionally, challenge participants have an opportunity to discuss the books on this list and to provide ratings and reviews via our book logs.
Printable Version of This Book List
Readers who support The Book Girls’ Guide through our Buy Me a Coffee (BMAC) membership site have access to two different printable versions of this book list.
New for 2024, members can print a single page containing all the book titles from each guided challenge list. We will also continue providing the journal page format, which has space to indicate your interest level in each book, jot down notes, and rate the books once you have read them.
Our BMAC members (we call them our BFFs) help cover the cost of running the challenges so we can keep them free for everyone. You can read more about why our members are essential and learn about the perks of membership.
