BY GRACE MCQUADE
Come Jan. 1st, many people are eager to move on from the past year and embrace all things new.
Not so fast. In the world of books, there was a flurry of new releases in 2018 that should remain on reading lists.
Last year saw the return of many best-selling novelists whose books have become perennial favorites, such as Anne Tyler with “Clock Dance,” Stephen King with two new novels, “The Outsider” and “Elevation,” and Barbara Kingsolver with “Unsheltered.”
There were new literary stars who delivered books lauded by critics, including “Asymmetry” by Lisa Halliday, “The Boatbuilder” by Daniel Gumbiner, and “Educated: A Memoir” by Tara Westover.
Recent National Book Award winners included Sigrid Nunez for her novel, “The Friend,” and Jeffrey C. Stewart for the non-fiction work, “The New Negro: The Life of Alain Locke.”
Former President Bill Clinton penned his first novel, “The President is Missing,” and former First Lady Michelle Obama shared her memoir, “Becoming,” which became the top-selling book of the year.
Overall, 2018 was a good year for reading. Library officials reported an increase in book check-outs, and the PBS series, “The Great American Read,” had people across the country rediscovering literary classics.
Following are more book highlights over the past 12 months — from popular bestsellers and lesser-known tomes, to critics’ picks and personal favorites.
“The Woman in the Window: A Novel” by A.J. Finn (January 2018). This thriller that will be adapted into a major motion picture tells the story of an agoraphobic woman who thinks she’s witnessed a murder outside her window… or was it a figment of her imagination brought on by a little too much wine? Readers will be spellbound right up until the novel’s final twist.
“The Great Alone: A Novel” by Kristin Hannah (February 2018): Hannah transports readers to the Alaskan wilderness in a story about a 13-year-old girl who moves to a remote part of the state with her mother and father, a troubled former POW. With the help of a newfound friend and fellow frontier folk, she struggles to survive the bitter winter and her parents’ stormy marriage.
“More than True: The Wisdom of Fairy Tales” by Robert Bly (March 2018): National Book Award-winning poet Robert Bly examines enduring fairy tales that have captured imaginations throughout time. Combining his own insights and poetry with works of great thinkers like Freud and Yeats, Bly gives these timeless stories renewed life.
“Magnolia Table: A Collection of Recipes for Gathering” by Joanna Gaines (April 2018): This beautifully designed cookbook is filled with the former HGTV star’s family recipes for comfort classics like White Cheddar Bisque and Lemon Pie. If you like this one, you may also want to pick up Gaines’ recently published “Homebody: A Guide to Creating Spaces You Never Want to Leave.”
“Rolling Stone 50 Years of Covers: A History of the Most Influential Magazine in Pop Culture” by Jann Wenner (May 2018): This collection features the covers from all 50 years of Rolling Stone with everyone from John Lennon and Adele, to Steve Martin and Barack Obama, giving readers a walk down the memory lanes of music, entertainment and politics.
“A Place for Us: A Novel” by Fatima Farheen Mirza (June 2018): In this first novel from Sarah Jessica Parker’s new publishing imprint, SJP for Hogarth, an Indian family gathers for a wedding where secrets and betrayals are revealed. The author then traces the family’s roots from India to America in a story that journalist Christiane Amanpour has called “a book for our times.”
“Slow: Simple Living for a Frantic World” by Brooke McAlary (July 2018): McAlary believes that the key to happiness is leading a simpler, more fulfilling existence focused on people and special moments. Here she provides life-affirming stories and practical advice on how to create a life filled with the things that really matter… slowly, but surely.
“The Tangled Tree: A Radical New History of Life” by David Quammen (August 2018): Science writer David Quammen, called “our greatest living chronicler of the natural world” by the New York Times, explains how recent discoveries in molecular biology can change our understanding of evolution and life’s history, with powerful implications for human health.
“Lake Success: A Novel” by Gary Shteyngart (September 2018): With a title that’s familiar given the nearby Long Island village, this story about a hedge fund manager who boards a Greyhound bus to escape his family and an SEC investigation was called “uproariously funny” by the Boston Glove and “an artistic triumph” by the San Francisco Chronicle.
“1,000 Books to Read Before You Die: A Life-Changing List” by James Mustich (October 2018): Turning the pages of this collection is like visiting your favorite bookshop, with recommended reads for a lifetime — from fiction and poetry, to history and biography — in what the Washington Post calls “the ultimate literary bucket list.”
“Nine Perfect Strangers” by Liane Moriarity (November 2018): From the best-selling author of “Big Little Lies,” which was adapted into the award-winning HBO series starring Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon, Moriarity’s latest page-turner describes what happens when nine people gather at a remote health resort.
“Come with Me: A Novel” by Helen Schulman (December 2018): Called “mind-blowingly brilliant” by the San Francisco Chronicle, a woman works for a tech startup that has developed an algorithm that enables people to explore alternative life choices. When her marriage is tested, she can’t resist the lure to explore the roads not taken in her own life.
