20 years ago this month, I began writing Sonderbooks!
To celebrate, I’m writing posts revisiting favorite books from each year. Tonight we’re looking at the 2014 Sonderbooks Stand-outs.
For Grown-ups
You Should Have Known, by Jean Hanff Korelitz
I’m not sure I should get therapeutic satisfaction from a thriller about a marriage therapist whose husband turns out to be a sociopath, but I do.
The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry, by Gabrielle Zevin
A tale about a bookseller whose life is changed by a baby.
Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar, by Cheryl Strayed
Beautiful advice that lifts my heart to read.
Her Gates Will Never Be Shut, by Bradley Jersak
Another book that presents a strong biblical case for universalism.
For Teens
Mortal Heart, by Robin LaFevers
The third book in the amazing historical fantasy trilogy about assassin nuns in medieval Brittany.
Impossible, Extraordinary, and Unthinkable, by Nancy Werlin
These books are part of an amazing trilogy I devoured one after the other, with the beginning based on a young woman and her daughters cursed as in the ballad Scarborough Fair.
All the Truth That’s In Me, by Julie Berry
An amazingly crafted tale about a wounded girl finding her voice.
For Children
The Winter Horses, by Philip Kerr
A story of trying to save a herd of wild Przewalski’s horses from the Nazis during World War II, and some children as well.
The Great Greene Heist, by Varian Johnson
A middle school heist novel! All kinds of fun!
Brown Girl Dreaming, by Jacqueline Woodson
A multiple-award-winning memoir in verse. It’s moving and it has beautiful poetry.
The Princess in Black, by Shannon Hale and Dean Hale, illustrated by LeUyen Pham
A delightful beginning chapter book that shows that even princesses can be action heroes.
Waiting Is Not Easy! by Mo Willems
I read this beginning reader while waiting for a job to come open I wanted to apply for, then to hear about each step of the process. How I related to Gerald! I didn’t even get the job in the end, though Piggie does show Gerald a delightful surprise at the end.
If you didn’t catch these books in 2014, I hope you’ll enjoy them now!