During a year that’s sent us careening through a hot sludge of crises, books might be as important as anything else on earth. Within those rigid rectangles (or, er, millions of microcapsules of electronic ink), worlds unfold to comfort, teach, and entertain us. Books help us understand where we’ve been, and where we might be going. They’re a soothing balm for irritation, a light in the dark, a way to travel without moving. As E.B. White wrote, “Books are good company, in sad times and happy times, for books are people—people who have managed to stay alive by hiding between the covers of a book.”
They are, then, exceptional gifts for these tough times. Both in what they offer—wisdom, calm—and what they command—patience, attention. For the book-lovers and the yet-to-be’s, this list collates the most memorable reads of the year: The ones that moved us. Sparked meaningful, if difficult, conversations. Inspired a recommendation sent frantically to the group text; read this book! To whittle down the guide, we trawled reviews and best-of lists, polled our people, and read our butts off. These titles span fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and more, and aim to represent both the spectrum of human experience and a diversity of modern authors. Here’s what we read and loved this year.
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