Books I read in 2016

Jan 3, 2017

At the beginning of 2016, a former classmate of mine posted on Facebook suggesting a New Year’s resolution that had previously worked well for him: writing down every book he read during the year. As someone who read voraciously growing up but had struggled to make time once the demands of college kicked in, I thought it was a great idea and vowed to take up the practice, jotting down titles in the Notes app on my phone.

I ended up reading 29 books in a busy year that involved finishing a master’s degree, moving across the world and starting a reading-heavy job. This was a huge improvement on my reading habits in college and had a really positive impact on my life. Some thoughts: I read far more non-fiction than fiction this year, which I found interesting because throughout my childhood/adolescence I always read far more fiction, and limited my nonfiction pretty much exclusively to popular science. I’ve also found that I quite enjoy the self-improvement/pop psychology genre and should probably take more notes when I’m reading these books in 2017 to make sure the lessons stick.

Having a Kindle has certainly helped me read while travelling or commuting, but I do still love having physical copies of the books I most cherish. I also really dislike the fact that (especially for non-fiction) I can’t flip back and forth within a book as easily on the Kindle. I need to take a trip to the San Francisco public library one of these days to sign up for a card!

Thanks to all my friends who recommended or gifted me books, and listened to my rave about my favorites. Here they are, loosely grouped into fiction, general nonfiction, and books I read with the specific aim of self-improvement.

Fiction

The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman

Tell the Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt

Inés of My Soul by Isabelle Allende

Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare

Where I Lost Her by T. Greenwood

Despite the Falling Snow by Shamim Sarif

The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead

General Nonfiction

Galileo’s Middle Finger by Alice Dreger

Overwhelmed by Brigid Schulte

Girls & Sex by Peggy Orenstein