2025 in Books
Being an aspiring writer, whose first novel is finished and being queried to agents at the moment, doing my top 5 books of 2025 post isn’t fun. It’s a bit raw. All I want right now is to be somebodies pick. I dream daily about being on a list, any list. I’ve queried 60 agents. Two asked for the full manuscripts. One kindly wrote me back feedback I’m not quite sure what to make of and the other I haven’t heard from. About once a week I get a rejection in my inbox which is like an arrow to my heart. I understand now why authors recommend making an email just for queries so you can dip in only after putting on your emotional shield.
So yes, this is why I haven’t posted by top five of 2025 and now it’s February. At the moment it feels flippant and a bit overdone. Yet I can’t let my writing rollercoaster ride keep me from sharing some reading highlights. Not a list. Simply books I recommend and why. I’m so grateful for my reading community and as the world turns to AI for all, let us still turn to each other and keep reading and discussing books that make us feel and connect.
The books everyone is talking about and I agree.
The Correspondent - inspires the lost art of a handwritten note.
Slanting Toward the Sea - a quiet reflective novel that I didn’t want to end.
The Bright Years - all the feels.
The Berry Pickers- I already posted about when your best friend says to read a book. Read it. Truth be told, we don’t always agree but most of the time we do.
The books my mom recommends and I always finish because she’s my mom. She is 85 and still an avid reader and always has been. We’ve shared a love of reading for a long time and I’m so grateful. And honestly when she loves a book, it’s almost always a really good book as it really needs to hold her attention. ❤️
Theo of Golden - I loved this book. It’s creative, compelling and hopeful.
I’ll Push You - This book is about the power of friendship and the very important life lesson - “when you deny someone the opportunity to help you, you deny them joy in life.”
Books no one else is talking about at the moment and they still should be because they are that good.
Wild Game- a memoir that can be best described with one word and it may be a buzz word, but still: AUTHENTIC and one more word: IMPORTANT.
The Rise - This is simply the best comeback story ever. And now that my daughter, Birdie has had a season ending knee injury it gives me hope that “it isn’t over till it’s over.”
Upon reflection I realize that my 2025 reading theme was truth. I read books that explored what is truth for our selves and in our lives.
I’m grateful for all the storytellers that help us through the highs and lows of life, that inspire us and connect us.
And I promise I won’t give up. Soon I’ll be sharing my debut novel here with or without an agent.
Happy reading.