One of my favorite things to do in December is to look back at all the books I read during the year.

I set out with a book list, like I do every year, and then changed my mind as I came across books in the library and in church basement sales, books that came recommended by friends.

I used to set a goal to read 10 books in a year, then I worked my way up to 12. Last year, I read 16 books and this year, I read 31!

Now, for those of you who read 50+ books a year, this may not be very impressive, but I hope it’s encouraging for those of you who want to read more that you can teach yourself how to be a better reader, little by little.

Today, I want to share the six best books I read in 2019, along with a brief description of what I liked about each one:

The Six Best Books I Read in 2019

*Disclosure: I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

Just Mercy (Bryan Stevenson)

I read this book at the beginning of the year and can’t recommend it enough. It’s a memoir about the author’s mission of compassion: fighting for justice and redemption in criminal justice cases. It’s hard, intense, challenging, and yet, so necessary.

These are stories that need to be told. Truths that need to be spoken. There are racial injustices and biases and assumptions buried in our history and rooted in our communities and I, for one, feel responsible to listen, learn, and respond however I can.

Zig Zag: The Surprising Path to Greater Creativity (Keith Sawyer)

I came across this book in Libby, the library app. Keith Sawyer is a jazz pianist turned creativity researcher and has a great perspective on what the creative process really looks like.

One of my favorite takeaways was this: “Never turn down a chance to learn something . . . . no authentic, thoughtful experience, no new glimmer of knowledge, is ever wasted.”

Reading People (Anne Bogel)

I love personality assessments (INTJ, Ennagram #1). I love figuring out what type I am, how closely the description matches my perception of myself, and what it all means for life, work, and connecting with others.

If you can relate, you’ll love this book!

Anne shares a variety of personality frameworks, offering a summary of each one, how they relate to each other, and how we can use them to learn more about ourselves and the people around us.

Deep Work (Cal Newport)

Cal Newport is brilliant and I loved learning more about the concept of “deep work” and how we can teach ourselves to focus on challenging tasks without falling prey to the many distractions that compete for our attention.

This book includes lots of practical advice, helpful systems and strategies for doing more focused work, lengthening our attention span, and finding clarity.

Becoming (Michelle Obama)

I finally read this beautiful memoir this year and found it to be intimate and authentic, beautifully written, and deeply wise.⁠ One of my favorite quotes: “It’s all a process, steps along a path. Becoming requires equal parts patience and rigor. Becoming is never giving up on the idea that there’s more growing to be done.”⁠

Little Fires Everywhere (Celeste Ng)

This book came recommended by a few people and I was thrilled to receive a copy as an early Christmas present this year.

It’s full of secrets and complicated pasts, interwoven family relationships, identity struggles, and hidden motives. Everything you could want in a novel!

I’m looking forward to reading her first book, Everything I Never Told You, next year.

Have you read any of these? If so, I’d love to hear what you thought!

In case you’re curious, here are the other books I read this year:

• Legal Guide to Social Media (Kimberly Houser) - a practical guide to sharing, creating, and posting content on social media. A great resource for online business owners!

• Building a Story Brand (Donald Miller) - a popular book this year among self-employed and small business owners, Donald Miller discusses marketing and psychology, building relationships with customers, and key brand messaging strategies.

• Everybody Always (Bob Goff) - what it means (and looks like) to love everybody, always, written in Bob Goff’s characteristic down-to-earth style.

• A Spool of Blue Thread (Anne Tyler) - the story of a family spanning four generations and the Baltimore residence they’ve called home over the years.

• Can’t Wait to Get to Heaven (Fannie Flagg) - set in Elmwood Springs, Missouri, this comedy-mystery seeks to answer the question, “Why are we here?" In the end, the answer is that "heaven is right here, right now, with people you love, neighbors you help, friendships you keep."

• A Simplified Life (Emily Ley) - tons of practical strategies for simplifying all aspects of life.

• The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows) - through a series of letters, we learn about a writer in London in the wake of WWII, the residents of the small island of Guernsey during the German Occupation, unexpected friendships, and the power of the written word.

• Clock Dance (Anne Tyler) - a novel full of self-discovery, impulsive choices, and second chances.

• The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry (Gabrielle Zevin) - the life of a bookstore owner who’s given an opportunity to remake his life and the friends that come alongside him along the way.

• The All-Girl Filling Station’s Last Reunion (Fannie Flagg) - another vivid, multi-generational story with elements of mystery and intrigue (and some fascinating American history) all told with Fannie Flagg's signature humorous style.

• The Most Famous Illegal Goose Creek Parade (Virginia Smith) - a small town in Kentucky, an old Victorian mansion for sale, a new veterinarian, and a town-wide debate over what color the water tower should be painted. All things that make up a great novel.

• Tell Me Three Things (Julie Buxbaum) - an easy, lighthearted read about a high school girl adjusting to life at a new private school in CA, friendly emails from someone who wants to remain anonymous, and her quest to uncover their true identity.

• The Bookshop of Yesterdays (Amy Meyerson) - a story about a 20-something middle school history teacher who inherits her uncle’s bookshop and a scavenger hunt to uncover long-lost family secrets.

• Small Victories (Anne Lamott) - a collection of heartfelt essays on love and forgiveness, grace and transformation, dark periods and bright spots of hope in the midst of it all.

• Introvert Power (Laurie Helgoe) - how to embrace your inner strength and thrive in a world geared toward extroverts.

• Young Jane Young (Gabrielle Zevin) - a quick read, this novel is about four women whose lives cross in different ways: through politics, scandal, friendships, and trying to live under society’s double standards.

• How We Learn (Benedict Carey) - a research-driven study on how people learn with some surprising findings.

• My Salinger Year (Joanna Rakoff) - a memoir about NYC in the 90s, a new job with a literary agency, and managing fan mail for J.D. Salinger.

• Gardenias for Breakfast (Robin Jones Gunn) - a story about growing up, learning about each other, and an insightful look at the intricate and complicated intergenerational relationships of women.

• Come Matter Here (Hannah Brencher) - a personal story of growth and bravery, courage to show up and put down roots, commitment to building community, and the strength it takes to reach beyond ourselves and create space for others to come and belong.

• A Man Called Ove (Fredrik Backman) - set in Sweden, this novel is about a grumpy old man who lives a very principled, solitary life… until a young family moves in next door.

• 12 Ways Your Phone is Changing You (Tony Reinke) - this book had a stronger Christian lens than I was expecting but I was able to glean a few research-based insights into how technology affects us and things to be wary of in the future.

• Liturgy of the Ordinary (Tish Harrison Warren) - thoughtful insight into the daily routines, practices, and rituals (both spiritual and otherwise) that shape and guide us and the power of small, ordinary moments.

• Twelve Days of Christmas (Debbie Macomber) - a Christmas Hallmark movie in book form.

• Delicious! (Ruth Reichl) - a delightful novel about a young girl who moves to NYC to work for Gourmet magazine. It’s a story about friendship and reconciling the past with the present as the main character discovers a set of letters from WWII and embarks on a journey to find the author.

What was the best book you read this year? What challenged you, inspired you, broadened your perspective, helped you develop a new skill, or made you a better person? I’d love to hear your recommendations as I make my 2020 book list!

P.S. See a list of all the books I’ve read in the past few years here.