2021 Book List

“Read more” seems to be a resolution that makes it onto everyone’s list in the new year. It’s not a bad one, but just one that seems to start strong but eventually fade out. This past year I shot for a book a month and actually succeeded! I succeeded in large part because I found a way to incorporate it into my lifestyle.

I’m in my car a lot, so I subscribed to Audible. Instead of listening to music, I started listening to books. It worked out well, helped me reach my goal, and now I’m addicted. Since I know so many of you love to read, too, I thought I’d compile a list of the books I read as well as some of y’all’s top recommended books from this past year, too!

Fleurdille’s 2021 Book List:

1. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon – this is one of my favorite love stories. A nurse from the 1940s travels through time to Scotland in the 1740s and falls in love with a Scot. It’s a crazy good love story and full of crazy adventures. I HIGHLY recommend it!
2. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir – I’m not sure I’ve ever read a book faster. I’m not typically a sci-fi person, but this was a page turner from the very first page. Andy Weir, author of The Martian, writes a novel about a man, a sole survivor on a mission to save Earth and all of humanity.
3. Ski Weekend by Rektok Ross – a thriller, this was one of my favorite reads of 2021 and not just because I know the author. Ski Weekend is a captivating story about 6 teens who get stranded in the mountains and embark on a mission to survive.
4. Atomic Habits by James Clear – this was one of my favorite books from 2021. The author gives very practical strategies on forming habits that will lend life-changing results in your life.
5. The Compound Effect by Darren Hardy – another great book with practical strategies to instill key disciplines in your life that will help you achieve your goals and succeed.
6. Last Girl Gone by J.G. Hetherton – a great thriller and an easy read!
7. A Promise Land by Barack Obama – albeit long, this was a super interesting read and gives such cool insight into the life of a president. I highly recommend it no matter what your party affiliation may be.
8. Next Year in Havana by Chanel Cleeton – if you enjoy love stories and historical fiction, this book is definitely for you. It’s a beauty love story immersed in Cuban culture in the 1950s.
9. When We Left Cuba by Chanel Cleeton – this sequel to Next Year in Havana follows the story of one of the sisters from Next Year in Havana. Chanel Cleeton’s writing is beautiful and captivating yet again!
10. The Meaning of Marriage by Timothy Keller – as the excerpt from Amazon explains, Timothy Keller “uses the scriptures as his guide to show readers what God’s call to marriage is, and why this is such a powerful call. He talks in frank terms about the difficulties that couples have and how they can best work them out while keeping their faith in God intact.”
11. The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson – I highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone. This novel shares the legend of Honi, the Circle Maker, and how to pray big prayers over your life. It’s a great reminder of the power and intimacy of prayer.
12. The Girls in the Stilt House by Kelly Mustian – unfortunately, I don’t recommend this book. I thought this one might be good – it sounded similar to Where The Crawdad’s sing, but it was definitely not. The plot is okay, the character development is okay, but it’s slow moving, a bit disjointed, and just doesn’t quite get there.
13. Between Two Kingdoms by Suleika Jaquad – a wonderful memoir about a life interrupted by cancer and how one learns to live again.

Reader Favorites from 2021:

1. Malibu Rising
2. Lost Apothecary
3. We Are The Brennans
4. Where the Crawdad’s Sing
5. Something in the Water
6. Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine
7. The Midnight Library
8. The Four Winds
9. The Good Sister
10. A Gentleman in Moscow
11. The Choice 
12. We Were the Lucky Ones
13. The Girl with Seven Names
14. The People We Keep
15. Ready Player One
16. Verity
17. The Invisible Life of Addie Larue
18. The Nightingale
19. Educated
20. Brain on Fire
21. Untamed
22. Paper Palace
23. Olympus, Texas