books-open-on-tableThere was a person on my college campus who, at least once a week, wore a T-shirt that said, “So many books, so little time.” I chuckled at the shirt the first time I saw it, but now have felt that phrase profoundly as a working mom. Despite the need to come to peace with my slower reading pace, it was a great year of reading. The books listed below, then, are not books published in 2016 necessarily, but books I finally got around to reading in 2016. As I mentioned previously, I have been seeking out books on race and will continue to do so. With the need for quality to trump quantity, I’d love to hear what is on your must read list for my for 2017!

5 Favorite Books on Race of 2016

  1. Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
  2. Citizen by Claudia Rankine
  3. The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
  4. Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
  5. The Color of Water by James McBride

 

img_20161223_100534129Favorite Anthology of 2016:

Best American Essays of 2015 edited by Ariel Levy

Favorite Memoir of 2016:

The Light of the World by Elizabeth Alexander

Favorite Novel of 2016:

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

Favorite Humor of 2016:

You’ll Grow Out of It by Jessi Klein

Favorite Poetry of 2016:

The Purity of Desire: 100 Poems by Rumi 

 

 

May your 2017 be full of great reading, including Play Like a Girl, which is coming soon!