My Top 5 Books of 2023
Even though I write often about how I love my job as a Connecticut branding photographer and copywriter for creatives, one of my first loves in life was reading.
I love reading so much that I’m what you could call a bookworm. I like simply being in the presence of books. I love libraries like my own Ridgefield Library, bookstores like Books on the Common on my town’s sweet Main Street, but most of all…I love to read. Novels are far and away my preferred type of reading material, but being in Sabrina Gebhardt’s Root to Rise mastermind this year pushed my reading boundaries and I ended up reading a few professional development books that really resonated.
At the end of the day, I am a person who always has a book to read, and a list of others on my “must read” list. And now that the end of 2023 is near, I’m sharing my top 5 favorite books of the year. Here goes!
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow
By Gabrielle Zevin
I started the year in a total book binge with this one. The subject matter isn’t one I’d think I’d be drawn to - about two friends turned successful video game designers - but I fell in love with the characters and their stories. It was a book I picked up over the Christmas holiday last year and finished in a matter of days - on New Year's Day, in fact. It was a great way to ring in a year of reading.
The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell
By Robert Dugoni
This coming of age story about a boy born with red, “devil” eyes had so much depth. It was on my “to-read” list for far too long, but it was worth the wait.
We Should All Be Millionaires
By Rachel Rodgers
Classified as a “Business and Economic” book by its publishing house, this is not a read that would’ve been on my radar if not for participating in a photography mastermind earlier this year. But, I’m so glad We Should All Be Millionaires was placed in my path. It’s a special combination of empowerment and action steps, and Rachel’s perspective - one of confidence, ease, and determination (with a healthy dose of good humor) is one that I was really drawn to. I loved this one and keep it closeby, to reference when I start to lose confidence.
The Whispers
By Ashley Audrain
I loved Audrain’s first book, The Push, so much that I devoured it in a day. So when The Whispers came out this year, I rushed to grab a copy and it did NOT disappoint. Audrain is so good at speaking to society’s unrealistic expectations of women, while wrapping it in a page-turning package. The Whispers did just that, and left me counting the days until her next release.
Demon Copperhead
Barbara Kingsolver
I’ve saved my personal best for last. This is a book about the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of a young boy growing up in Appalachia, how his life is altered after his teenage, single mom dies of addiction, and what takes place in his town when OxyContin sweeps the community. While it is NOT for the faint of heart, Demon Copperhead is both a serious reflection of the drug problems that plague our country’s most vulnerable communities and a coming of age tale that leaves you rooting for the main character. It just won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and it’s so deserving of that win. I’ll remember this read for years to come.
Are you a reader, too? What books have you loved this year? Please drop me a line here and tell me. I always love hearing about great new reads, and I’m excited to see what 2024 has in store for us bookworms.
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