"The book is a film that takes place in the mind of the reader." ~ Paulo Coelho

Friday, January 1, 2021

Books I read in 2020

Salutations everyone! Happy 2021!

It seemed like miles away, but we're here! I don't know what is in store for this year, but I wish the best for all of you!

As is tradition here at Movies Meet Their Match, I'm kicking off the new year by telling you all the books that I read in the previous year! It's exciting for me because I don't usually get to talk about books as I'm more focused on movies. Don't worry, that's coming tomorrow.

If you're interested, here are my lists from other years: 20192018, 2017, and 2016.

You can check out my Goodreads account HERE, but I count things a little differently in my official journal. 

These books are listed in the order that I read them, and if I reviewed them it should have a blue link to that post. My long time goal is to eventually review all of these, but we'll see. If there is one that you would specifically be interested in, tell me about it! Let's get to it!

New to me books:

“Shouldnʼt You Be In School?” - by Lemony Snicket
“Why Is This Night Different From All Other Nights?” - by Lemony Snicket
Educated - by Tara Westover
The Lions at Little Rock - by Kristin Levine
The Ringmasterʼs Secret - by Carolyn Keene
Keeper of the Lost Cities - by Shannon Messenger
Anna Karenina - by Leo Tolstoy
Sammy Keyes and the Skeleton Man - by Wendelin Van Draanen
Exile - by Shannon Messenger
Whose Body? - by Dorothy L. Sayers
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - by J. K. Rowling, John Tiffany, & Jack Thorne 
The Blue Castle - by L. M. Montgomery
The Ickabog - by J. K. Rowling
Middlemarch - by George Elliot
Prairie Lotus - by Linda Sue Park
The Changerʼs Key - by Kent Davis
The Mysterious Howling - by Maryrose Wood
Howardʼs End - by E. M. Forster
The Penderwicks on Gardam Street - by Jeanne Birdsall
One Bad Apple - by Rachel Kovaciny
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane - by Kate DiCamillo
Caddie Woodlawn - by Carol Ryrie Brink
The Great Unravel - by Kent Davis
Charmed - by Jen Calonita
Artemis Fowl - by Eoin Colfer
The Ruins of Gorlan - by John Flanagan
The Healerʼs Apprentice - by Melanie Dickerson
The Metropolitans - by Carol Goodman
The Hidden Gallery - by Maryrose Wood
Rescue Road - by Gayle M. Irwin
The Scarlet Pimpernel - by Emmuska Orczy
The Unseen Guest - by Maryrose Wood
Moon Over Manifest - by Clare Vanderpool
The Marvels - by Brian Selznick
Sammy Keyes and the Sisters of Mercy - by Wendelin Van Draanen
 
Total: 41


Rereads:
It is very rare for me to reread a book, so I list it as well.

Heidi - by Johanna Spyri (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3)
Frankenstein - by Mary Shelley
James and the Giant Peach - by Roald Dahl
A Riddle in Ruby - by Kent Davis
Murder on the Orient Express - by Agatha Christie 
Death on the Nile - by Agatha Christie

Total: 6


Grand total: 47


My 10 Favorite New-To-Me Reads of 2020: 

1. Anna Karenina - by Leo Tolstoy

2. The Metropolitans - by Carol Goodman

3. The Ickabog - by J. K. Rowling

4. Moon Over Manifest - by Clare Vanderpool

5. Prairie Lotus - by Linda Sue Park

6. The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane - by Kate DiCamillo

7. “Shouldnʼt You Be In School?” - by Lemony Snicket

8. Exile - by Shannon Messenger

9. One Bad Apple - by Rachel Kovaciny 

&






It's now your turn to talk to me! What do you think of my top ten? Have you read any of these books? Give me all your thoughts--I'd love to talk about them with you! Thanks for reading, and happy 2021!

MovieCritic

14 comments:

  1. You read Artemis Fowl?? What did you think? It's my favorite series ever! And how didn't it make the top ten?? I would love to hear your review on it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes!! I'd been wanting to forever and I finally got around to it in November. It was so good! Seriously, one of the most creative stories that I've ever read. It was so close to being in the top ten, but I had to make a decision quickly. I'm glad to hear that because I am planning on reviewing it one day.

      Delete
  2. Wow we read so many of the same books this year!!

    Moon Over Manifest!! I read it years ago, and I LOVED IT SO MUCH.

    I'd love to hear your thoughts on The Scarlet Pimpernel! I just finished it and I'm planning to write a post about it soon!

    I read Artemis Fowl for the first time this year too! It's fantastic! Did you read the whole series or just the first book? If you've read the whole series, LET US FANGIRL ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We have good taste. :D

      It is gorgeous. INCREDIBLY GORGEOUS! What took me so long to get to it!?

      Oh, I'll love reading that post! I quite enjoyed The Scarlet Pimpernel because it was jolly good fun! I'm also a little obsessed with that kind of trope (Robin Hood, Zorro, the Lone Ranger...the list goes on), so it was a worthy addition.

      I only read the first book, but I will read the others as soon as I get my hands on some copies. Then we shall fangirl into infinity!! ;)

      Delete
  3. Wow, you read lots of books! They all look good.
    OHMYGOSH, YOU'RE READING KEEPER OF THE LOST CITIES???? I love, love, love, love those books! Exile is so good!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yeah, I had such a good year! I can't think of any that I didn't like (well, The Grapes of Wrath, but I didn't finish it).
      Eeep! Yep!! I wasn't too invested in the first one, but then Exile was excellent! I need to read the rest of the series.

      Delete
  4. Aaaaah this was your first time reading Till We Have Faces? DID YOU LOVE IT?! (Seriously, why was that one not first? XD) (If you can't tell, it's quite possibly my favorite Lewis book ever).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. To be honest, I had a hard time getting into it (my own fault because I kept switching between an e-book and an audiobook), but then the end happened. I AM STILL REELING. Yeah, so I enjoyed it. ;) Great choice for a favorite!

      Delete
  5. Great list! I'll have to check some of these out, as I've only read The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane and I've have Caddie Woodlawn, but haven't read it yet.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! I would especially recommend Prairie Lotus. I need to hear more people talking about it! You're in for a sweet treat with Caddie Woodlawn. It is one of those wholesome books that makes you happy!

      Delete
  6. Moon Over Manifest!!! I was so happy to see it made your top 10! Isn't it just a lovely book? The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane is really good, too. I've not read any of your other Top 10 yet, but Rachel Kovaciny's books are high on my TBR, since I really enjoyed Cloaked. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was marvelous! The way it was told was amazing, and the story itself was...let's suffice to say that tears were shed. Same for The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane. Megan, you must assuredly need to read all of the ones in my top ten! Both of Rachel's books are so refreshing and fun. You'll have a blast. :)

      Delete
  7. You read a lot! I didn't read half as much as I should have.
    So happy to see Rachel Kovaciny's books and Ships, Secrets, and Survivors all of those are so good!
    I read The Blue Castle too, easily one of my favorites.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I probably won't have as much time for reading this year, so I'm happy that I had time for so many in 2020.
      They were all awesome! I can't wait for more from them!
      The writing in The Blue Castle is the most beautiful that I've ever read! Outstanding!

      Delete

To comment, or not to comment? That is the question. Whatever you decide, I would love to hear from you!! I am always open to suggestions, advice, and any other comments! Even if you don't agree with me, I would love to hear from you as long as you keep the comment respectful and on subject. And, please, no swearing. I love comments on old posts!!
My computer won't let me leave comments, so it might take a few days, but I will reply!

"If you want a happy ending, that depends, of course, where you stop your story." -Orson Welles