My Favorite Books of 2016

I need to create a better system for keeping track of the books I read, because every time I sit down to do a “recent reads” or “best of” books post, I end up having to search through my Amazon purchases, this blog and other places to remember what I read!

Oh, of course. I need to create a Books I Read collection in my Bullet Journal for 2017.

Ok done.

Now on to my favorite books of 2016!

My criteria is simple. I read a lot of books last year, but for most of them, I couldn’t tell you the main takeaway or how they made me feel. These titles are the exceptions.

I still think about their lessons; some still haunt me.

The definition of a great book, no?

In Non-Fiction:

Smarter, Faster, Better by Charles Duhigg

I am a huge fan of Duhigg’s work on habits (see this post with free printable habits flowcharts, this one about keystone habits and spillover and this one about why habits are so awesome), so I was excited to read this book. It’s unlike any other I’ve read about “productivity”, a typically bo-ring topic. I was riveted by the stories in this book and couldn’t put it down!

If you want to know what you can learn about goal-setting and inspiring others from the Marines, how to strengthen your kids’ internal locus of control (and why), how to motivate yourself and others to do important-but-unpleasant tasks, why “craving for closure” can hamstring good decision-making, and potentially life-saving lessons you need from Air France 447, read this book. I have an entire page of notes from it.

30 Chic Days by Fiona Ferris – Books such as this one are like candy for me, so I try to make them last as long as possible by reading a tiny section every once in a while.

This is a sweet book written by a fellow Francophile about harnessing the françaises approach to life and great style – meaning not just clothing, but everything else. I find myself listening to the Breakfast at Tiffany’s soundtrack and wearing eye makeup and perfume, thanks to Fiona. This book has a place now on my dresser, where I’ll pick it up and re-read it when I need some chicspiration.

Honorable mention:
Presence by Amy Cuddy. This is one of those books that I felt took a lot of pages to say a simple message (and indeed Amy Cuddy’s TED talk on this topic is one of their most popular). Still, I find myself reminding myself and others to “starfish up” when we’re needing to take on some challenge.

In Fiction:

The Light Between Oceans

So much conflict. Raw and beautiful. (The movie was awesome too. Alicia Vikander reminds me so much of my daughter Sadie, I felt like I was watching her as an adult on the screen.)

Premise: A newborn infant shows up, alongside her dead father, in a little boat. The keepers of the lighthouse find her. And here is where the story begins. (Trigger warning: if you’ve had a miscarriage, you may not want to read this book.)

I love books about the sea, and lighthouses especially. This one is set in Australia, and it’s the first time I remember reading a novel set there. This is not a book that makes you feel good and happy, but it is gripping and stays with you.

Room by Emma Donoghue

Wow. An amazing book. A sensitive topic, for sure, and disturbing, although not graphic. I wanted to read it as soon as I heard it was loosely based on the real-life Fritzl case which captured my attention years ago.

The book is written from the perspective of Jack, a 5-year-old boy who, along with his young mom, are held captive in a garden shed that has been converted into a bunker from which they cannot escape.

What makes this book touching despite the circumstances of the protagonists is the tenderness between Jack and his Ma. In the world she creates for him in Room, he lacks nothing. A powerful testimony to the mother-child bond. Interesting side note: it normalizes prolonged breastfeeding.

In Memoir: