When I was a kid, one of my favorite things to do before I went to bed was read. At that time, it was usually the latest Harry Potter novel or the Warrior’s series by Erin Hunter. Doing it before falling asleep was for multiple reasons. It helped calm and settle my brain for my body to relax and drift to sleep, but it also helped with my imagination. My dreams would be enchanted with what I had just read, transporting me into the world that was inside the pages of the book. Books have that kind of power more than any other medium can, because your brain will take the words of the author and create what has been described to you. People say that a picture is worth a thousand words, I like to think without the thousand words there would be no picture. This April, I found my love for books again and it has been magical. Since it is the beginning of the new year, I wanted to share my Top Five Books of 2022. Included in the list are stories that deal with family trauma, discovering your true self, worlds were magic both rules and has disappeared, and the power of storytelling. Alright enough pomp and circumstance let's get to the rankings!
5. Daisy Jones & The Six (by Taylor Jenkins Reid) This year I was introduced to the contemporary fiction genre through the book club I joined in April. When I was a heavy reader before college sucked the fun out of it, I had almost exclusively read science fiction, fantasy, or similar genres. Let me tell you that after this year, contemporary fiction is right there with those as one of my favorite genres and it all started with my introduction to Taylor Jenkins Reid (who will show up again on this list).
Daisy Jones & The Six has one of the most interesting formats of a book that I have read this year. It is written like an autobiographical memoir, with interviews from the members of the band. The way it is written feels like you are reading a VH1 Behind the Music special. It tells the story of two groups: Daisy Jones, a young musician with raw talent haunted by the demons of trauma caused by her family and The Six, who are led by Billy Dunne. Dunne deals with his own trauma that he caused with his drug abuse and strained relationship with his wife. Eventually the record label brings them together and magic explodes from their recording sessions. What follows is an explosive and creative union of two people who are the best and worst for each other.
Reid can transport you to the sixties in Los Angeles through her inclusion of real places that would have been around at the time. There is a love of the rock and roll style of music that she captures and comes through with every word on the page. I think if you enjoy this type of music and this period then this book is going to be hard for you to put down.
4. Malibu Rising (by Taylor Jenkins Reid) I told you Taylor Jenkins Reid would show up again on this list. She was one of the biggest surprises with getting back into reading this year. Reid can make you feel different types of emotion across her books and because the books are so different her style does not overstay its welcome.
Like she did with Daisy Jones & The Six, Malibu Rising has another unique format that the book is set up in. The story of the Riva family is told over one continuous 24-hour period, with flashbacks to different characters and time periods of their lives. The pacing is extremely fast but in this case works for how this book.
Why this book made such an impression on me are the themes that Reid decided to tackle with these characters. Reading through this book, watching Nina Riva deal with the family trauma that her parents put her through, having to grow up before she should have to take care of her younger siblings, and putting the pressure of keeping the family alive ahead of her own goals is something that is unfortunately relatable to me. Reading through this book, with the mother doing everything she can to keep a roof over her kids' heads and in the process becoming too reliant on them to function without their support, while dealing with an absentee partner hit close to home for me. This is a story about how to start anew, you sometimes must burn it all down first. It is a quick read and really cemented Taylor Jenkins Reid as someone I will pay attention to in the book space for the foreseeable future.
3. Shades of Magic Trilogy (by V.E Schwab) It has been a while since I have fallen in love with a fantasy world built across multiple books like I did with Shades of Magic. V.E. Schwab can weave the real world and fantasy with such perfection, she almost makes it seem effortless with her words.
This series follows Kell who is one of the last Antari, magicians with a coveted and rare magic ability that allows them to travel between parallel versions of London. The different versions of London (Red, White, Grey, and Black) do not know about each other except for the each of their respective rulers. After getting attacked and set up in Grey London, Kell meets Delilah Bard who is a street rat with bigger aspirations and has something mesmerizing about her. Across the three books, Schwab paints a picture of political intrigue, the inner workings of magic, and love.
If I was forced to pick which of the three books was my favorite, it would be book two called A Gathering of Shadows. The second book primarily takes place in Red London during an international competition of magic called the Element Games. It deals with the fallout of the events of the first book, plus with the Element Games happening we also get a fantastically written tournament arc that expands all the great magic system that Schwab has created. After reading this trilogy, V.E Schwab has created a universe that I have not stopped thinking about and cannot wait for her upcoming return to the world of the Shades of Magic.
2. The Vanishing Half (by Brit Bennett)
This was another contemporary novel that blew me away with the emotional impact that it had on me when I was reading it. What Brit Bennett was able to do with The Vanishing Half, which is a story that intersects race and culture with traumatic family history that future generations must reconcile with, is some of the best writings a reader has come across. Bennett uses time skips over the course of thirty years to tell the events of the Vignes sisters Desiree and Stella, who grew up in a small town called Mallard. The decisions that Desiree and Stella make, how they affect their future families, and their own relationship are the central driving plot.
When I reviewed the book earlier in the year, I was blown away that this was only Bennett’s second novel, and that feeling has not changed in the months after. This book has the most emotional chapter I have ever read, when Jude is going through the immediate aftermath of a death in the family. “That was the thing about death. Only the specifics of it hurt. Death, in a general sense, was background noise” is a quote that I have not stopped thinking about since the first time I read it and have gone back to read repeatedly this year. I have made connections with all the books on this list, but rarely do I feel like a book “sees” me. That quote made me feel raw and exposed in the best possible way, and I think that is the best way to describe The Vanishing Half. This book will leave you feeling raw and exposed on a cultural level that will help you grow as a person.
1. The Starless Sea (by Erin Morgenstern) Have you ever gotten blindsided by something that you did not know you were looking for? That is exactly what happened with me and The Starless Sea. This book that Erin Morgenstern crafted is a love letter to storytelling. The way it uses prose to weave its narrative while also showing reverence for how stories are crafted throughout our lives is masterclass.
The Starless Sea is a timeless love story which follows Zachary Ezra Rawlins as he uncovers a hidden world below the surface, a magical world that helps him discover his own purpose. I do not want to go into tons of detail because the journey that this novel takes you on through the world is magnificent and should be experienced firsthand.
Not only does Morgenstern craft an amazing overarching narrative but she uses short stories that are in-universe to help bridge the gap and cover the history of the Starless Sea. This book has influences from C.S Lewis and his Narnia series all over it but is able to stay unique and craft its own magical world. I have not stopped thinking about this world since I finished it in late November and would heavily consider re-reading it again, which is something that I almost never do especially for stand-alone stories. This also has my favorite ending of a book I read this year, even if it is a little controversial in how it wraps everything up. What Morgenstern created was one of the more unique experiences I have had with reading and helped reignite my passion for the medium. Because of that, The Starless Sea is the best book I have read in 2022.
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