This year, I managed to read 157 books in 2020. And while 2020 sucked in so many ways, books were not one of them. As per usual, my top 10 books are books only composed of books published in 2020. So while I read some other remarkable books (and some that would near the top of this list), they were excluded to keep the focus on what's present. In terms of trends, I'm happy to say that my list was full of more diversity than ever before with half the authors of some minority. There's still a long way to go. This year, I'll also be writing my top 10 YA books of the year, so look forward to that later this week. For a one page printable of this list, click here. So without further ado:
1. The Vanishing Half by Britt Bennett
Is there any book more worthy of our attention than Bennett’s masterpiece? No book felt more pressing. A novel about race, American identity and the American Dream, the story of twin sisters who go and live completely different lives is unlike anything else this year. It’s no surprise nearly every publication named The Vanishing Half one of 2020s best books.The Vanishing Half doesn’t deserve your time, it demands it. A new American Classic.
2. The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi
Vivek Oji has what few books have. Resonance. Normally, I read and move on to the next book and then the next. But Emezi’s third book continues to reverberate with me. The story of a dead teen yields serious Toni Morrison vibes through flashbacks and magical realism. It’s tonally unlike anything I’ve ever read. Emezi brings Nigeria to your doorstep. Maybe the only book of 2020 I will return to again in the near future.
3. My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell
Loilta part 2. Nabokov’s classic feels more and more problematic during the #MeToo era; thankfully, Russell’s My Dark Vanessa remedies this problem with a female perspective. The disturbing story of a teacher who grooms the young Vanessa crosses the line of good taste so many times, yet the writing and the intrigue embedded into the text forces you to return even when you want to look away.
4. Prairie Lotus by Linda Sue Park
If you told me one of my favorite books of 2020 would be a middle grade book with an Asian protagonist inspired by Little House on the Prairie and set in the 1800s frontier would be one of my favorite books of the year, I would call you crazy. But this is one of the most essential reads of 2020 no matter the age. Like the best middle grade books: Bridge to Terabithia or The Bridge Home, Park isn’t interested in easy answers, and it’s all the better for it.
5. Shakespeare in a Divided America By James Shapiro
I don’t know if literary criticism ever felt this essential. Often too esoteric or self-indulgent, Shapiro bucks all the trends by bringing Shakespeare to 2020 and makes the bard feel more essential. From race, to same-sex marriage to the Trump administration, Shakespeare in a Divided America is about America, and everyone needs to stop and listen.
6. Saint X by Alexis Schaitkin
Every year there’s one book that makes me wonder why I don’t read more thrillers. Last year it was The Silent Patient, this year, Saint X. When a young college girl disappears in the Virgin Islands, your heart breaks. But as her sister becomes an Ahab like monomaniacal detective, this traditional “whodunnit?” elevates to the next level. Full of intrigue, plot twists and gorgeous world building, Saint X is the kind of pop-fiction I hope stays around for a long time.
7. Sigh, Gone: A Misfit's Memoir of Great Books, Punk Rock, and the Fight to Fit In by Phuc Tran
Phuc Tran’s story of casual microaggressions is the story 2020 needed. Each chapter is set against a famous novel from War and Peace to A Christmas Carol and how these stories connect to his life. But these connections, which at first seem simple, continue to surprise. Sigh, Gone is the punk rock memoir we needed. If you felt like you never belonged, you’ll find yourself right at home here.
8. This is My America by Kim Johnson
Tracy’s father sits on death row and she continues to write to the Innocence Project. With time waning, Tracy needs to stop the wrongful execution, but the people with power are controlling much more than she realizes. The only YA book to crack my top 10, if you love Serial, or followed the Curtis Flowers case, and you were just hoping for a bit of over-the-top Riverdale inspiration, Kim Johnson covered you with the most bingeable book of the year.
9. Enter the Aardvark by Jessica Anthony
When Republican congressman Alex Wilson receives the oddest gift of a taxidermied Aardvark, his life is flipped upside down. The most biting satire of the year pokes fun at politics, millennials and all those who vote against their best interest. If you loathe some of your elected officials as much as I do, I found the perfect book for you.
10. Florence Adler Swims Forever by Rachel Beanland
One part The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, another part The Queen’s Gambit, Florence Adler surprised me this summer as I was whisked to Atlantic City in the 1930s. A story of love and loss, of what could be and can no longer be, Florence Adler Swims Forever is remarkable in making an entire family feel so real. If there was ever a need of comfort food in a year where the world seemed so harrowing, this is the book for you.
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Daniel Valentin teaches English 9 and Ethics at Horace Greeley High School. He is currently reading Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko and is listening to Authentically Mexican by JP Brammer. He wants his students to feel empowered through books. Follow him on Twitter @DanielJValentin
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