Hi all, I’m taking a blog hiatus but hope you’ll join me on Patreon. I’ve posted a link to my Patreon post about the best books of the year. You can also always do a search and find me at Journal Juice on Patreon. The website was designed to help artists, writers, and musicians among others. My page, Journal Juice, offers journaling prompts and activities, inspiration, interviews with other creative people, videos and more.
Take a look!
Happiest of holidays,
Carrie
Photo by Emre Can on Pexels.com
Read a book! As a writer, I read a lot—it’s my work and my practice. I’ve tried to recommend books published in the last couple of years, although there a few exceptions. If you have kids or teens, I’ve made a list for them, too. Enjoy!
Adult Fiction
The Nickel Boys: Colson Whitehead
A Gentleman in Moscow: Amor Towles
Circe: Madeline Miller
American Dirt:Jeanine Cummins
A Woman is No Man: Etaf Rum
The Friend: Sigrid Nunez
The Great Alone: Kristin Hannah
There, There: Tommy Orange
Writers and Lovers: Lily King
Water Dancer: Ta-Nehisi Coates
Bear Town: Fredrik Backman
Homegoing: Yaa Gyasi
Olive, Again: Elizabeth Strout
Lilac Girls: Martha Hall Kelly
The Great Believers: Rebecca Makkai
The Refugees(short stories): Viet Thanh Nguyen
Sabrina & Corina(short stories): Kali Fajardo-Anstine
State of Wonder: Ann Patchett (I liked it better than The Dutch House)
Top of my to-read Fiction list:
The Island of Sea Women: Lisa See
Non-Fiction
–Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor; Layla Saad
–The Five Invitations; Discovering What Death Can Teach Us About Living Fully: Frank
Ostaseki
–The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee: Native America from 1890 to the Present: David
Treuer
–The Immoral Majority: Ben Howe
–The Choice: Embrace the Possible: Edith Eger (part memoir of the holocaust)
–The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness: Michelle Alexande
Top of my NF to-read list: American Wolf: Nate Blakeslee
Memoir
–The Distance Between Us:Reyna Grande
–The Summer Isles: Philip Marsden
-Waiting for Snow in Havana: Carolos Eire
–The Faraway Nearby: Rebecca Solnit
–The Fire Next Time: James Baldwin (Non Fiction)
-Educated: Tara Westover
-The Honey Bus: A Memoir of Loss, Courage and a Girl Saved by Bees: Meredith May
Young Adult (I’m not a fantasy reader but there are great YA fantasy, sci-fi and dystopian books out there)
The Poet X: Elizabeth Acevedo
Shout: Laurie Halse Anderson
The Language of Cherries: Jen Marie Hawkins
We Were Here: Matt de la Pena
A Room Away From the Wolves: Nova Ren Suma
Boy Erased: A Memoir: Garrard Conley
We Are Okay: Nina LaCour
Dear Martin:Nic Stone
All the Bright Places: Jennifer Niven
The Serpent King: Jeff Zentner
You’ll Miss Me When I’m Gone: Rachel Lynn Solomon
I’ll Give You the Sun: Jandy Nelson
Story of a Girl: Sara Zarr
Two Boys Kissing: David Levithan
books by Ellen Hopkins (poetry format)
Top of my YA to-read list:
Skythe: Neal Shusterman
Upper middle grade (11-13)
The Bridge Home: Padma Venkatraman
Refugee: Alan Gratz
The War That Saved My Life: Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
To Night owl from Dogfish: Holly Goldberg Sloan
Eventown: Corey Ann Haydu
The Only Black Girls in Town: Brandy Colbert
The Benefits of Being and Octopus: Ann Braden
Merci Suarez Changes Gears: Meg Medina
Ghost: Jason Reynolds
Millicent Min, Girl Genius:Lisa Yee
The Someday Birds: Sally J. Pla
Listen, Slowly; Thanhha Lai
The Good Hawk; Joseph Elliott
George: Alex Gino
Top of my NF to-read list: A Wish in the Dark: Christina Soontornvat and Genesis Begins Again: Alicia D. Williams
Younger middle grade (8-10)
The Runaways: Ulf Stark
Breaking Stalin’s Nose: Eugene Yelchin
Everlasting Nora:Marie Miranda Cruz
Bob: Wendy Mass
The One and Only Ivan: Katherine Applegate
Clementine Series: Sara Pennypacker
Books by Sarah Aronson and Kate DiCamillo
Picture books– there are so many to love!
As soon as I publish this list, I’ll think of 10 more to add, so feel free to contact me any time for ideas.
Stay well. Find emerging beauty.
Carrie
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Carrie Brown-Wolf • Rock, Paper, Write 