This year has been filled with plenty of amazing reads and I am excited to share my year in books with you. I’ve really enjoyed sharing my thoughts on my Goodreads, on Instagram, and here on the blog. Amanda from Mud and Ink Teaching posed a challenge to the online teacherverse to chronicle the books that had the biggest impact on us this year, so I wanted to take her up on the challenge.
This is the question she posed: What have you read this year and how does your book stack speak to your LIFE this year? In what ways has your reading life shaped, changed, inspired, or redirected your personal life?
Wintering by Katherine May
The past few years have been particularly difficult for so many reasons. This book really made me reflect on how we can find beauty in the hard parts. Wintering felt like a tender friend I didn’t know I needed. It reminded me to be kind to myself and take the good with the bad. I may reread it this winter.
Alan Gratz
I discovered Alan Gratz this year and I wish I could pick just one book that I could say shaped me, but I can’t. His writing is exquisite and I’ve found that I expect more from novels now from having read so much of his work. His pacing is fact, but the information is so thorough. I’ve been engrossed in so many of his works with my favorites being Refugee and Ground Zero.
Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo
Reading Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo this year was transformative for me. I didn’t realize how much I could love novel in verse until I read her work. I’ve read others before, but this one really stuck with me. This novel was stunning. The writing, the plotline, the culture… I loved it all. This book led me to seek out other novels in verse that I also loved such as Starfish by Lisa Fipps.
Shadow and Bone Trilogy
It’s been a long, long time since I’ve loved anything fantasy. I used to read fantasy exclusively in high school, but I hadn’t found anything else that piqued my interest. Shadow and Bone (and really anything Leigh Bardugo writes) is perfection. I quickly found a new favorite author and swallowed at least six of her books whole this year. I’m on a hiatus until the summer because her world building can be quite intense and I don’t have the brain power for it during the school year, but rest assured I plan to read everything she has ever published.
Looking Ahead to 2022
There are quite a few titles I’m looking forward to in 2022.
- The American Royals series is getting a third installment with Rivals. This is such a lighthearted, fun historically-inspired rom-com series. I read it over the summer and loved every minute. So glad it’s getting a third installment to wrap up those loose ends.
- Shauna Niequist is releasing a new title with I Guess I Haven’t Learned That Yet… I love her writing and always feel like it helps me grow as a human being.
- I Am Margaret Moore by Hannah Capin looks fantastic. I have an ARC waiting for me that I’m hoping to tackle over winter break.
- One of my favorite authors, Ruta Sepetys, will be putting out a new title looking in on communist Romania in the late 1980s called I Must Betray You.
My love for literature was reignited this year and I ended up reading more than usual. I set a goal of 20 books for myself (teaching + toddler = minimal time), but I found a way to work it into my day that makes it part of my self care routine, so I ended up reading 41 books so far. I think next year, I’ll try 50. New year, new books to love.
Did you read any of these? What did you think? Did any other titles transform you in any way? I’d love to hear about your year in books, too! Sound off in the comments below or follow along on Instagram to join in the conversation.
Happy reading!
Looking for some of my favorite YA book recommendations for you and your students? Grab my list of 100 teacher-curated, student approved YA titles across genres for your classroom library or bedside table.
