Ep. 71: Best Books of 2020 and Bookish Superlatives with Susie from @NovelVisits

Sarah's Bookshelves Live

In Episode 71, Susie Boutry (@NovelVisits) and I share our favorite 2020 books (overall and by genre) and our picks for tons of bookish superlatives.

This post contains affiliate links, through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!).

Announcements

• Sarah’s 2020 Holiday Gift Guide
• 2021 Rock Your Reading Tracker

Highlights

• 2020 Podcast Overview (including favorite and most downloaded episodes)
• Overview of our reading years (including the impact of COVID-19)
• Favorite books of 2020 (trends, overall, by genre)
• 2020 Superlative Awards

Our Favorite Books of 2020 (Overall and by Genre) [19:31]

Sarah

• Saving Ruby King by Catherine Adel West (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [20:00]
• Untamed by Glennon Doyle (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [22:30]
• The Familiar Dark by Amy Engel (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [24:15]
• The Heir Affair by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [25:36]
• The Knockout Queen by Rufi Thorpe (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [27:19]
• Saving Ruby King by Catherine Adel West (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [29:34]
• One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [30:07]
• Long Bright River by Liz Moore (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [32:17]
• The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [33:27]
• Craigslist Confessional by Helena Dea Bala (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [34:42]
• We Keep the Dead Close by Becky Cooper (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [34:42]
• Memorial Drive by Natasha Trethewey | Buy from Amazon [39:02]
• Smacked by Eilene Zimmerman (My Review) | Buy from Amazon (My Review) [39:18]
• This is My America by Kim Johnson | Buy from Amazon [40:23]

Susie

• The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab | Buy from Amazon [20:41]
• A Knock at Midnight by Brittany K. Barnett | Buy from Amazon [23:26]
• The Night Swim by Megan Goldin (Susie’s Spoiler Discussion) | Buy from Amazon [24:43]
• Godshot by Chelsea Bieker | Buy from Amazon [26:18]
• The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [27:56]
• Writers and Lovers by Lily King (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [28:45]
• The Happy Ever After Playlist by Abby Jimenez | Buy from Amazon [31:16]
• Greenwood by Michael Christie | Buy from Amazon [34:48]
• Stamped by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [36:55]
• Open Book by Jessica Simpson (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [39:42]
• Majesty by Katharine McGee | Buy from Amazon [41:52]
• A Children’s Bible by Lydia Millet | Buy from Amazon [43:39]
• Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam | Buy from Amazon [44:37]

2020 Superlatives [45:01]

Sarah

• The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [45:16]
• Running by Natalia Sylvester (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [45:55]
• We Wish You Luck by Caroline Zancan (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [47:01]
• The Searcher by Tana French (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [48:58]
• Sea Wife by Amity Gaige (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [50:27]
• Saving Ruby King by Catherine Adel West (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [53:01]
• The Knockout Queen by Rufi Thorpe (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [53:32]
• Deacon King Kong by James McBride | Buy from Amazon [54:27]
• Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia | Buy from Amazon [54:27]
• A Good Neighborhood by Therese Anne Fowler (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [54:27]
• Darling Rose Gold by Stephanie Wrobel | Buy from Amazon [54:27]
• Eat a Peach by David Chang | Buy from Amazon [56:18]
• Stray by Stephanie Danler (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [57:32]
• Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam | Buy from Amazon [57:32]
• The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [58:37]
• Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia | Buy from Amazon [58:37]
• The Boys’ Club by Erica Katz (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [01:00:03]
• The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [01:01:33]
• The Office by Andy Greene (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [01:02:06]
• A Knock at Midnight by Brittany K. Barnett | Buy from Amazon [01:06:15]
• The Last Story of Mina Lee by Nancy Jooyoun Kim | Buy from Amazon [01:06:25]
• Caste by Isabel Wilkerson | Buy from Amazon [01:06:38]

Susie

• Perfect Tunes by Emily Gould (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [45:27]
• 28 Summers by Elin Hilderbrand | Buy from Amazon [46:25]
• Valentine by Elizabeth Wetmore | Buy from Amazon [47:29]
• Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam | Buy from Amazon [48:23]
• Anxious People by Fredrick Backman (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [49:38]
• Last Couple Standing by Matthew Norman (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [51:52]
• Want by Lynn Steger Strong (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [52:19]
• Valentine by Elizabeth Wetmore | Buy from Amazon [53:21]
• Writers and Lovers by Lily King (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [54:09]
• The Guest List by Lucy Foley | Buy from Amazon [55:17]
• Pretty Things by Janelle Brown | Buy from Amazon [55:17]
• When No One is Watching by Alyssa Cole | Buy from Amazon [55:17]
• 28 Summers by Elin Hilderbrand | Buy from Amazon [55:47]
• Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [57:38]
• Memorial by Bryan Washington (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [58:11]
• The Knockout Queen by Rufi Thorpe (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [58:11]
• Smacked by Eilene Zimmerman (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [59:39]
• The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [01:01:33]
• The Happy Ever After Playlist by Abby Jimenez | Buy from Amazon [01:02:59]
• A Good Marriage by Kimberly McCreight (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [01:03:11]
• Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [01:03:46]
• Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo | Buy from Amazon [01:04:58]

Other Books Mentioned

• Beach Read by Emily Henry | Buy from Amazon [14:36]
• The Roanoke Girls by Amy Engel (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [24:26]
• The Royal We by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [25:50]
• The Mothers by Brit Bennett (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [28:34]
• In Cold Blood by Truman Capote | Buy from Amazon [36:18]
• The Devil in the White City by Erik Larsen | Buy from Amazon [36:18]
• Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt | Buy from Amazon [36:18]
• Stamped from the Beginning by Ibram X. Kendi | Buy from Amazon [37:05]
• American Royals by Katharine McGee | Buy from Amazon [42:19]
• The Witch Elm by Tana French (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [49:06]
• Beartown by Fredrick Backman (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [50:00]
• The Girls of Corona del Mar by Rufi Thorpe (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [53:54]
• Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [01:03:11]
• Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi | Buy from Amazon [01:03:46]
• Love Warrior by Glennon Doyle | Buy from Amazon [01:04:45]
• Blacktop Wasteland by S.A. Cosby | Buy from Amazon [01:05:40]
• Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell | Buy from Amazon [01:05:46]

Other Links

• Podcast Ep. 43: Jordon Moblo (@jordys.book.club)
• Podcast Ep. 63: Helena dea Bala (author of Craigslist Confessional)
• Podcast Mini Ep. 59: Alyssa Hertzig
• Podcast Ep. 56: Holly Root (the Rise of the Rom-Com & Publishing in the COVID Era)
• Podcast Ep. 66: Kate Stayman-London (author of One to Watch)
• Podcast Ep. 64: Catherine Adel West (author of Saving Ruby King)
• Susie’s “Reading in the Midst of a Global Pandemic” blog post

About Susie

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Susie has loved reading for as long as she can remember. Some of her fondest childhood memories involve long afternoons at the library and then reading late into the night. More than ten years ago, she began journaling about the books I read and turned that passion into writing about books. Her first forays were as a guest reviewer on a friend’s blog, but she soon realized she wanted to be reviewing and talking about books on a blog of my own. From there, Novel Visits was born. That was in 2016 and, though the learning curve was steep, she loves being a part of the book community. Novel Visits focuses on new novel reviews (print and audio), previews of upcoming releases, and musings on all things bookish.