20 Books for 2020

A sampling of the books I’m hoping to read in 2020

If you know me, you know I’m an obsessive reader. I devour books like some people binge TV shows or podcasts. Last year, I read 118 books (the goal was 100, but I hit that goal in October and kept going) and blogged about them along the way. I guess I should have seen the whole hitting 100 books in October thing coming when I hit the 50 book mark in May.

You can’t read more every year, so no, I’m not upping my reading goal again. In fact, I’m cutting it in half. My goal for 2020 is just 59 books. I’m hoping to read a bit less (and some longer books that I skipped in 2019 so I could read more books) and to try out some new hobbies and creative pursuits.

But of course, there are still plenty of books I’m looking forward to reading in 2020. Plus, people are always asking me for recommendations, so without further ado, here are 20 books I’m looking forward to reading in 2020:

1. Odes to Lithium, by Shira Erlichman 

2. Maybe You Should Talk to Someone, by Lori Gottlieb

3. Emily of New Moon, by L.M. Montgomery

4. The Shadow King, by Maaza Mengiste

5. Dear Girls, by Ali Wong

6. The Book of X, by Sarah Rose Etter

7. Just Kids, by Patti Smith

8. Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott

9. Fieldnotes on Ordinary Love, by Keith S. Wilson

10. The Memory Police, by Yoko Ogawa

11. Pachinko, by Min Jin Lee

12. The Yellow House, by Sarah M. Broom

13. We Are Never Meeting in Real Life, by Samantha Irby

14. Little Weirds, by Jenny Slate

15. Uncanny Valley, by Anna Wiener

16. A Little Life, by Hanya Yanagihara

17. The Mighty Heart of Sunny St. James, by Ashley Herring Blake

18. Clap When You Land, by Elizabeth Acevedo

19. It’s About Damn Time, by Arlan Hamilton

20. The Fifth Season, by N.K. Jemisin

Since I haven’t read the 20 books mentioned above, I’m including an added bonus for you. Here are 19 of my favorite reads from 2019:

1. Red, White & Royal Blue, by Casey McQuiston

2. Someone Who Will Love You in All Your Damaged Glory, by Raphael Bob-Waksberg

3. Good Talk, by Mira Jacob

4. On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous, by Ocean Vuong

5. All This Could by Yours, by Jami Attenberg

6. Trick Mirror, by Jia Tolentino

7. Heavy, by Kiese Laymon

8. Very Nice, by Marcy Dermanksy

9. Go Ahead in the Rain: Notes to a Tribe Called Quest, by Hanif Abdurraqib

10. Know My Name, by Chanel Miller

11. Once More We Saw Stars, by Jayson Greene

12. The Poet X, by Elizabeth Acevedo

13. Over the Top, by Jonathan Van Ness

14. We Are Okay, by Nina LaCour

15. The Monk of Mokha, by Dave Eggers

16. The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue, by Mackenzi Lee

17. Fruit of the Drunken Tree, by Ingrid Rojas Contreras

18. I Wish You All the Best, by Mason Deaver

19. How Long Til Black Future Month, by N.K. Jemisin

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Any titles catch your eye? Did I miss one of your favorites? I’d love to hear! Tweet me at @servemethesky. For more book recommendations, sign up for my unboring email newsletter, the SkyMail Club.