Top 5 Books of 2019

This is difficult every year but I love doing a Top 5 for the year. I realize this rarely aligns with books I gave a 5 Star rating to. More so, these are books that have stayed with me since I read them and which I want to recommend to random strangers because they’re that good. So, with full bias, here are my Top 5 Books of 2019.

#5: Born a Crime by Trevor Noah

It should be no surprise that I have a memoir on this list. I adore memoirs and I adore Trevor Noah so this was bound to be a winning combination for me. I listened to the audio for this book and it was one of the best audio experiences I’ve had. Noah narrates it himself and he’s able to demonstrate his mastery of many languages by reading in each of them. His ability to blend into new cultures is part of what made him successful. I remember listening to this audiobook during a long run I did leading up to my Half Ironman. I was in North Carolina for my brother’s MBA graduation and it was the morning we flew out. I did a ten-mile run and enjoyed every step of it because of this delightful audiobook.

#4: Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys

My first Sepetys read and not my last! I was blown away by this book. The amazing narration helped for sure, but the book itself was well written with an amazing cast of characters and an intricate plot that kept me reading as much as possible until the very end. Josie was an amazing main character and the setting was so well drawn that I want to go back to New Orleans to explore it more. This book inspired me to read another Sepetys book and while I didn’t enjoy it as much, I’ll keep pushing on to find some more of her books that I enjoy as much as this one.

#3: Simon vs. The Homo Sapien’s Agenda by Becky Albertalli

I’d heard a lot of good things about this book so I was nervous that when I started it, it would fall flat of the high expectations I’d built up. I was thrilled when it lived up to the hype for me! I loved the voice Albertalli gave Simon, it felt very true to me and reminded me of high school. She captured the misfit feeling and the horribleness that is puberty wonderfully and gave us Simon’s amazing voice to tell us about it. I listened to this book on audio as well and the narration was great. I remember listening to it as I drove to and from swimming State Meet and sitting in the parking lot waiting for the last chapter to wrap up before I went to swim my events.

#2: The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee

Another book that took me completely by surprise. I decided to listen to this one just to get a new time period for my When Are You Reading? Challenge and finish out 2019. I fell in love with Monty and his internal turmoil and his star-crossed love and I was hooked. I can’t wait to continue on with this adorable series and see what happens next with Felicity. I listened to this one recently so this may be a case of recency bias. It made my new (longer) commute to work seem like a breeze.

And finally…

#1: Before the Fall by Noah Hawley

A book club pick success! I loved the mystery of this book and the way it dealt with a tragedy. The characters were forced into situations they never thought they’d be in and there was a big struggle between love and money that I thought was wonderfully done. I loved figuring out who was responsible and liked the pacing of this one a lot. My husband and I listened to this on audio driving to and from Christmas last year. We didn’t finish it until early January. It’s stuck with me ever since.

A few trends this year I didn’t anticipate. I loved YA and I was able to get through some good YA. I don’t read as much YA as I probably should, seeing as I write in the genre. But when I have, I’ve really liked it. I’m not surprised to see a memoir here and I’m glad to see a book club pick, something I wouldn’t have enjoyed if it wasn’t for the club. I also noticed that I have a ton of audiobooks this year! In fact, they were all audiobooks. With my active lifestyle, audio is sometimes the only way I can get through the books I want to read so I’m not surprised it’s taken over my list in a major way this year.

I look forward to more amazing books in 2020! Have you read any of these? Any of them also make your top list for 2019?

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!