My Top Ten Reads of 2025

In spite of spending more concentrated time in prayer (praying and fasting once a week), I read more books in 2025 than in 2024. I read a total of 73 books. Over half of those (41 books, or 56%) were 4 or 5 page-turners. 38% were 3 page-turners. Only 4 books were disappointing.

My top ten reads of 2025 (in order read, not by preference):

The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife by Anna Johnston

The Wright Brothers by David McCullough

Letters from the Mountain by Ben Palpant

Saving the Saved by Bryan Loritts

The Story She Left Behind by Patti Callahan Henry

Good Catastrophe by Benjamin Windle

Coming Clean by Seth Haines

The Deconstruction of Christianity by Alisa Childers and Tim Barnett

Five Mere Christians by Jordan Raynor and Kaleigh Cox

Heaven and Nature Sing by Hannah Anderson

I wish to give the following five non-fiction books an honorable mention:

You Are a Tree by Joy Marie Clarkson

Becoming Elisabeth Elliot by Ellen Vaughn

Being Elisabeth Elliot by Ellen Vaughn

E. M. Bounds: Man of Prayer by Lyle Wesley Dorsett

A Marriage at Sea by Sophie Elmhirst

It appears only 2 of these highly recommended reads were fiction. I focused on nonfiction reads more than fiction this year. I read 39 nonfiction books and 34 fiction books. Plus, 11 of these 15 titles are Christian books. Out of 73 books, 44 were Christian reads. I still like to read a wide variety of books, but have been selecting more from my worldview.

My Top Ten Reads of 2024

2024 was an outstanding year for reading! Out of the 67 books I read and reviewed, 42 of them (63%) were 4 or 5 star reads. Only 3 books (4%) received a 2 star rating from me. One third of the books were 3 star reads. In looking back over the quarterly lists, I highly recommended ten books:

Do You Pray? by J. C. Ryle - Christian Nonfiction

Loving Him Well by Gary Thomas - Christian Nonfiction

A Lifelong Love by Gary Thomas - Christian Nonfiction

Only the Beautiful by Susan Meissner - Historical Fiction

If I Were You by Lynn Austin - Historical Fiction

Listening for Lions by Gloria Whelan - Middle Grade Historical Fiction

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte - Fiction Classic

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt - Fiction

Catching Foxes by John Henderson - Christian Nonfiction

Waiting Isn't a Waste by Mark Vroegop - Christian Nonfiction

I would like to give an honorable mention to the following five books:

The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles - Historical Fiction

Authentically, Izzy by Pepper Basham - Humorous Christian Romance

The Divine Proverb of Streusel by Sara Brunsvold - Christian Fiction

Hope is the First Dose by Dr. W. Lee Warren - Christian Nonfiction

Funny Story by Emily Henry - Humorous Romance

Compilation: A Baker's Dozen Health and Nutrition Books

As we approach the Christmas gift season, I wanted to provide a compilation of outstanding daily devotionals. It is a great time to give the gift of a devotional that covers every day of the year. Alas, I can only recommend two, despite owning and working through many more. It came down to Paul David Tripp's New Morning Mercies and Bob Hostetler's The Shakespeare Devotional. Since 2 books hardly made a compilation, I shifted gears and chose to highlight health and nutrition books.

One would think I'm a fit and thin individual, given the number of nutrition and health books I read. One would be sadly mistaken. I love to read about this subject. Implementing what I read is something of a struggle. Again, though, it is that time of year when gifting reflects best intentions for resolutions. Or perhaps, like me, you just enjoy reading books about getting healthy (sometimes more than actually getting healthy). I cannot say these are the best books on the subject, only that they are ones I have reviewed (although I didn't take much time compiling this list and didn't go back further than a few years except for ones I remembered well enough to call forth again). I have marked the most memorable and meaningful books with an asterisk (*).

1. Clean Gut by Alejandro Junger MD
2. Salt, Sugar, Fat by Michael Moss *
3. It Starts With Food by Dallas and Melissa Hartwig
4. The Patient's Playbook by Leslie D. Michelson
5. Brain Maker by David Perlmutter MD *
6. The Aging Brain by Timothy Jennings MD
7. The Clean 20 by Ian K. Smith MD *
8. The End of Alzheimer's by Dale E. Bredesen MD *
9. The Lose Your Belly Diet by Travis Stork MD
10. The Circadian Code by Satchin Panda PhD *
11. The Fast Diet by Dr. Michael Mosley and Mimi Spencer
12. The Grain Brain Whole Life Plan by David Perlmutter MD
13. Intermittent Fasting for Women Over Sixty by Lauren Grant

Happy Thanksgiving, today, and here's to happy, healthy eating in 2025! May I keep off the 19 pounds I lost in 2024, in preparation for my son's wedding. What are your favorite or most impactful health and nutrition books? Do you struggle with implementing what you read when you read in this subject?

Compilation: 14 Autobiography/Biography Reads

I love to read about others' lives and eavesdrop on what they experience. My forays into autobiography and biography have been varied. While I enjoy focusing on authors, I've also delved into royalty, musicians, evangelists, and even an odd-ball outlier. Here are a few titles if you are looking for interesting autobiographies or biographies:

1. Andy Miller: A Legend and a Legacy by Henry Gariepy - biography of a Salvation Army evangelist
2. Amazing Grace in the Life of William Wilberforce by John Piper - biography of a politician/philanthropist
3. Barbara Park by Dennis Abrams - children's biography of the author of the Junie B. Jones books
4. Looking Back: A Book of Memories by Lois Lowry - autobiography by the author of The Giver
5. Victoria: Portrait of a Queen by Catherine Reef - biography of the queen of my favorite era to study
6. Prairie Fires by Caroline Fraser - biography of children's author Laura Ingalls Wilder
7. The Stranger in the Woods by Michael Finkel - biography of an odd hermit
8. About Alice by Calvin Trillin - biography of the author's wife
9. The Good Neighbor by Maxwell King - biography of Fred Rogers
10. A Curious Man by Neal Thompson - biography of Robert Ripley
11. The Library Book by Susan Orlean - not strictly biography, but contains a biography of Ray Bradbury
12. Lives of the Writers by Kathleen Krull - children's biographies of famous writers
13. Lives of the Musicians by Kathleen Krull - children's biographies of famous musicians
14. Spare by Prince Harry - autobiography of the lime-lighted prince

Compilation: Twenty Books on Memoir

Next month, I plan to visit with a dear old friend who has quite a story to tell. She has asked for my assistance in getting that story down. I feel privileged and honored. Plus, it will be a great distraction from the current intensity of my own story these days. In light of that upcoming process, I compiled a list of memoirs featured on this book review blog. I had not realized the extent of my reading in memoirs. I found around 45 titles. This seemed too intense to provide, so I gleaned a baker's dozen of my favorites to offer up here:

1. Three Weeks With My Brother by Nicholas Sparks - memoir of a prominent author's travels
2. The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid by Bill Bryson - memoir of a humorist
3. Bloom by Kelle Hampton - memoir of life with a special needs baby
4. The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch - memoir of wisdom in facing death
5. The Gift of an Ordinary Day by Katrina Kenison - memoir of simple pleasures
6. Coming Clean by Kimberly Rae Miller - memoir of a hoarder
7. Colors of Goodbye by September Vaudrey - memoir of a loss of a child
8. Educated by Tara Westover - memoir of life pursuing betterment
9. Beautiful Boy by David Sheff - memoir of life with addicted son
10. An Ocean, an Airplane and Two Countries Full of Kisses by Maria Novajosky - memoir of Italian food, faith, and family
11. Surprised by Oxford by Carolyn Weber - memoir of coming to faith
12. My Wife Said You May Want to Marry Me by Jason B. Rosenthal - memoir of remarriage after death of spouse
13. Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life by Amy Krouse Rosenthal - memoir of writer's life

In addition, here are 7 books I've read on writing memoir (some involve writing in general):

1. Telling Secrets by Frederick Buechner
2. Handling the Truth by Beth Kephart
3. Fearless Confessions by Sue Silverman
4. Before We Get Started by Bret Lott
5. Letters and Life by Bret Lott
6. Old Friend from Far Away by Natalie Goldberg
7. Five Pages a Day by Peg Kehret

What about you? Do you have a life story you need to share with the world? Do you enjoy reading memoirs?

Compilation: Poetry

"Painting is silent poetry, and poetry is painting with the gift of speech." - Suetonius 

What better month to provide a compilation of poetry reads than during National Poetry Month! Here are some links to reviews I've written for poetry books (in roughly reverse chronological order from when read):

1. Winter is Scissors by Kyle L. White
2. Freezing and Thawing by Kyle L. White
3. Prodigals and Those Who Love Them by Ruth Bell Graham (memoir/poetry)
4. These Fevered Days by Martha Ackmann (biography of poet)
5. Things Pondered and Further Still by Beth Moore (memoir/poetry)
6. Footprints of a Pilgrim by Ruth Bell Graham (memoir/poetry)
7. Walking Home by Simon Armitage (more memoir than poetry)
8. The Lost Words by Robert Macfarlane (beautiful children's nature poetry)
9. Runaway by Wendelin Van Draanen (YA novel with poetry)
10. Neighbor as Yourself by Kyle L. White
11. Poetry: Starting from Scratch by Michael A. Carey (on teaching poetry)
12. The Bard and the Bible by Bob Hostetler (devotional with lines from Shakespeare's poetry)
13. Real Love: Guaranteed to Last by Anne Peterson (memoir/poetry)
14. Wisconsin River of Grace by Kyle L. White

As an addendum, I offer up two reviews written for my poetry book, Watching the Wayward: Psalms for Parents of Prodigals:

Here is Rebecca Goldsmith's review in the British War Cry magazine.

Or you can read my blogging friend, Maria Novajosky's review on her blog, La Dolce Vita: The Sweet Life with Three Sons.

Compilation - 15 Books About Victorian London

Photo by Hert Niks on Unsplash

My favorite era/location for study is Victorian England. As a teen, I fell in love with Dickens. As a young adult, I pursued a masters degree in history with a focus on Victorian history. Thus, I often read books set in that time/country. Here are some past reads (with links to my reviews) for those who might be interested in fiction or non-fiction about Victorian London:

Fiction:

1. 12 Days at Bleakly Manor by Michelle Griep - 1st in Once Upon a Dickens Christmas series
2. A Tale of Two Hearts by Michelle Griep - 2nd in Once Upon a Dickens Christmas series
3. The Old Lace Shop by Michelle Griep - 3rd in Once Upon a Dickens Christmas series
4. Mr. Dickens and His Carol by Samantha Silva
5. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens 
6. At the Back of the North Wind by George MacDonald
7. The Clockmaker's Daughter by Kate Morton
8. Kidnapped by River Rats by Dave and Neta Jackson

Nonfiction:

1. Dirty Old London by Lee Jackson 
2. The Victorian City by Judith Flanders
3. A Metropolitan Murder by Lee Jackson (I apologize - on further review, this is a mystery novel)
4. London by A. N. Wilson
5. Victoria by Catherine Reef
6. The Wicked Boy by Kate Summerscale
7. The Five by Hallie Rubenhold

Compilation - 15 Noteworthy Middle Grade Historical Novels

For my 2024 compilation posts, I've decided to provide lists according to genre. I recently joined a Facebook group for historical fiction enthusiasts. No doubt some of them may wish to find historical fiction titles for their tweens. This month, I'm offering a list of middle grade historical fiction (presenting most recently read first). All of these titles garnered 4-1/2 or 5 stars in my estimation:

• More Than Grit by Gretchen A. Carlson - (ACFW Genesis Award Winner) A coming of age novel based on a true story. It is 1939 in Kansas and Sissy is desperate to help her family raise the necessary funds to bring electricity to their farm home.
• Lifeboat 12 by Susan Hood - A riveting survival tale based on a true story. This novel in verse is set aboard a lifeboat during World War II.
• Rascal by Sterling North - (Newbery Honor Book) Set in 1918 in Wisconsin and published as fiction, this autobiographical tale tells of Sterling's adventures in his eleventh year, when he adopted a baby raccoon.
• We Dream of Space by Erin Entrada Kelly - (Newbery Honor Book) A novel about The Challenger Space Shuttle Expedition in 1986.
• Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary D. Schmidt - (Newbery Honor Book) Set in New England in 1912, and based on a true story of a community's destruction, this book highlights a challenging friendship despite cultural prejudices.
• Penny from Heaven by Jennifer L. Holm - (Newbery Honor Book) A tale of an Italian-American family fighting prejudice after WWII in 1950s New Jersey.
• Bird in a Box by Andrea Davis Pinkney - Three kids fight their own battles as they follow the radio commentary of heavyweight champion, Joe Louis.
• Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder - Beginning in a log cabin in 1871, this is the first of the nine pioneering Little House books.
• A Faraway Island by Annika Thor - (Mildred L. Baltchelder Honor Book) Book One of the Faraway Island series. Two Jewish girls find refuge in Sweden in 1939.
• The Lily Pond by Annika Thor - (ALA-ALSC Notable Children's Book) Book Two of the Faraway Island series. Stephie Steiner is sent to school on the mainland.
• A Night Divided by Jennifer A. Nielsen - Details a family divided by the rise of the Berlin Wall.
• Countdown by Debra Wiles - First in The Sixties Trilogy. A riveting book about an 11-year-old girl in 1962.
• Revolution by Debra Wiles - (National Book Award Finalist) Book Two in The Sixties Trilogy. Sunny experiences all the changes brought by Freedom Summer in 1964 Mississippi.
• Lily's Crossing by Patricia Reilly Giff - (Newbery Honor Book) Lily learns that lies have consequences when a Hungarian refugee comes to her Rockaway summer house by the Atlantic Ocean in the summer of 1944.
• Number the Stars by Lois Lowry - (Newbery Award Winner) During WWII, Annemarie's family take in her Jewish friend, concealing her as part of the family.

Top Dozen Reads of 2023

As I said in my 2023 reading analysis post, 2023 didn't seem to be a stellar year, but then, I did have a half dozen reads I highly recommended. Perhaps if I only read bestsellers, my recommendation list would be longer, but I like to read a variety. I list the following BEST books read in 2023 in chronological, rather than preferential, order (although, if pressed, my favorite of 2023 would be The Happy Life of Isadora Bentley):

Paths of Glory (historical fiction)

by Jeffrey Archer

Maureen (fiction)

by Rachel Joyce

Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy (Christian non-fiction)

by Mark Vroegop

On Getting Out of Bed (Christian non-fiction)

by Alan Noble

A Place to Land (fiction)

by Lauren K. Denton

The Happy Life of Isadora Bentley (fiction)

by Courtney Walsh

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

The Wager (historical nonfiction)

by David Grann

Beyond That, the Sea (historical fiction)

by Laura Spence-Ash

The Words We Lost (Christian fiction)

by Nicole Deese

The Body Keeps the Score (nonfiction)

by Bessel Van Der Kolk, M.D.

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight (young adult fiction)

by Jennifer E. Smith

Tactics (Christian nonfiction)

by Gregory Koukl

Compilation - A Baker's Dozen Christmas Books

Across the years of this blog, I have read and reviewed over 30 Christmas-focused books. More than half of them received a lackluster to average billing. I will not draw attention to those, beyond saying that many of those reviews referenced my regret that they were not more like Karen Kingsbury's Red Glove Series (have always been a fan of those). This compilation includes the titles I considered excellent, very good, or good.

Excellent:

The First Miracle by Jeffrey Archer

A Season of Gifts by Richard Peck

A Wreath of Snow by Liz Curtis Higgs

Follow the Star by T. D. Jakes

Very Good:

Last Christmas in Paris by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb

Maggie's Miracle by Karen Kingsbury (of the Red Glove Series)

Mr. Dickens and His Carol by Samantha Silva

Good:

The Greatest Gift by Ann Voskamp

A Choice to Cherish by Alan Maki

A Midnight Clear by Katherine Paterson (short stories)

Promise Me by Richard Paul Evans

Marley & Me by John Grogan

Twice Loved by Wanda E. Brunstetter

Compilation: A Baker's Dozen Books About Writing Perseverance

This compilation was quite challenging. I've read scores and scores of books on writing, but I wanted to hone in on the ones that hammer the specific message of perseverance. I'm sure many of the other writing books I've read mention the importance of "Butt in chair. Do the work." However, these seemed to stand out:

1. The Soul Tells a Story by Vinita Hampton Wright
2. The Forest for the Trees by Betsy Lerner
3. Before We Get Started by Bret Lott
4. Letters and Life by Bret Lott
5. Good Advice on Writing by William Safire and Leonard Safir
6. Do the Work by Steven Pressfield
7. The Writing Life by Annie Dillard
8. Think Like a Five-Year-Old by Len Wilson
9. Daily Writing Resilience by Bryan E. Robinson, PhD
10. Wild Words by Nicole Gulotta
11. Five Pages a Day by Peg Kehret
12. Still Writing by Dani Shapiro
13. Daily Rituals by Mason Currey

Compilation: 10 Books on Perseverance

Life can easily knock you down. I'm all too familiar with temptations to give up. To call it a day. To put down the pen. To cease to strive. But, perseverance is so important. 

The other day, I saw this John Greenleaf Whittier poem:

So, if you're needing encouragement and a pep talk to persevere, here are some books I've read on perseverance:

1. Life Without Limits by Nick Vujicic
2. Do Hard Things by Alex and Brett Harris
3. Unstoppable by Nick Vujicic
4. Make Your Bed by Admiral William H. McRaven
5. Chase the Lion by Mark Batterson
6. Master of One by Jordan Raynor
7. Win the Day by Mark Batterson
8. Grit by Angela Duckworth
9. It's Not Your Turn by Heather Thompson Day
10. Fighting Forward by Hannah Brencher 

Compilation: A Dozen Books on Depression/Anxiety

In thinking of Mental Health Awareness Month, I decided to provide a compilation of books on depression and anxiety. As stated before, I know this list will not be conclusive in any way. These are merely books I have read and reviewed (in chronological order). Perhaps you might find them helpful:

1. Poe's Heart and the Mountain Climber by Richard Restak, M.D. - non-fiction
2. Who Switched Off My Brain by Dr. Caroline Leaf - non-fiction
3. The Chemistry of Joy by Dr. Henry Emmons - non-fiction
4. The Omega-3 Connection by Dr. Andrew Stoll - non-fiction
5. Beyond Blue by Therese J. Borchard - non-fiction
6. My Age of Anxiety by Scott Stossel - memoir
7. When We Collided by Emery Lord - YA novel
8. My Anxious Mind by Katherine A. Martinez and Michael A. Tompkins
9. The Power of Different by Gail Saltz, M.D. - non-fiction
10. Life Inside My Mind by 31 YA authors
11. Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb - non-fiction
12. Acedia and Me by Kathleen Norris - memoir

I think my favorite was the very first one, Poe's Heart and the Mountain Climber. I remember Bryce's comment after hearing me listen to it in the car on our drives back and forth to school. He remarked, "Anxiety, blah, blah, blah, anxiety, blah, blah, blah." I also highly recommended Lori Gottlieb's book, Maybe You Should Talk to Someone. Some of these reads sprung from my battle with panic attacks and newfound anxiety. Others arose out of research for a young adult novel I wrote about a protagonist with paralyzing anxiety.

As several of these books attest, the presence of depression and anxiety does not automatically preclude usefulness. Indeed, in The Power of Different, Gail Saltz talks about how creative and productive individuals often battle anxiety and depression, and how it tends to drive their creativity. Kathleen Norris also identifies the spiritual benefits of traversing an emotional wasteland. Think of the many spiritual giants who have also struggled against melancholy temperaments: David and Elijah, Charles Spurgeon and Mother Theresa. Next up I would like to explore Companions in the Darkness: Seven Saints Who Struggled With Depression and Doubt by Diana Gruver. You can find an interesting interview with Gruver here. If you struggle with depression and anxiety, perhaps you, too, will go on to impact the world in a positive way despite your despair. 

Compilation - A Baker's Dozen Parenting Books

My in-home parenting days are numbered. My youngest is knee-deep in driver's training and has only 2-1/4 more years of high school. But, I have reviewed quite a few parenting books on my blog. Primarily, I seem to gravitate toward two subjects: brain development and discipline. Here are 13 books on parenting, in order from first read to last read. I have also added an asterisk to identify ones that I highly recommend:

1. Bright from the Start by Jill Stamm
2. How to Raise a Child With High EQ by Lawrence Shapiro PhD
3. The Whole Brain Child by Daniel Siegel MD and Tina Payne Bryson PhD *
4. Honeycomb Kids by Anna M. Campbell
5. Why Smart Kids Worry by Allison Edwards LPC
6. No-Drama Discipline by Daniel Siegel MD and Tina Payne Bryson PhD *
7. The Teenage Brain by Frances E Jensen MD with Amy Ellis Nutt
8. The Opposite of Spoiled by Ron Lieber
9. The Five Money Conversations by Scott and Bethany Palmer
10. Thirty Million Words by Dana Suskind MD *
11. The Power of Praying for Your Adult Children by Stormie Omartian
12. The Age of Opportunity by Paul David Tripp *
13. The Addiction Inoculation by Jessica Lahey

While I'm sure this list is miniscule compared to how many books cover this subject, I may have read one you never encountered. Moreover, if you are looking for parenting books, this provides a wide variety of options and several that I can highly recommend.

Compilation: 7 Books on Raising Boys

Seven! Seven? Can you believe I've only read seven books on raising boys? With a blog called Of Books and Boys, you'd think I would have done more thorough research into the topic of raising boys. Alas, perhaps that is my problem. My library has hundreds of books on raising boys, but I was too busy reading general parenting books and even more busy reading novels. This compilation post was surprising to me. I was sure I had read more than seven books on this important topic. Here is my paltry list from first read to last read:

1. The Purpose of Boys by Michael Gurian 
2. Raising Cain by Dan Kindlon and Michael Thompson
3. Boys Should be Boys by Dr. Meg Meeker
4. What a Son Needs from His Mom by Cheri Fuller
5. Raising Boys by Steve Biddulph
6. Bright Beginnings for Boys by Debby Zambo and William G. Brozo
7. Things My Son Needs to Know About the World by Fredrik Backman

So, all you boy moms out there - fill me in. What are the best books about parenting boys that you have read? My sons may be almost grown, but perhaps another mom might be looking for more suggestions.

2022 Reading Analysis

I read 73 books in 2022. These books held 21,492 pages (of those pages, I listened to 343.75 hours of audio books). I read more fiction (43) than non-fiction (30) and more adult (63) than youth (10). As far as ratings, I think it was a great year. Most books (93%) were rated 3👍 or greater:

👍👍👍👍👍 - 9 books

👍👍👍👍-1/2 - 12 books

👍👍👍👍 - 16 books

👍👍👍-1/2 - 14 books

👍👍👍 - 17 books

👍👍-1/2 - 2 books

👍👍 - 2 books

👎 - 1 book

 

Dozen Top Reads of 2022

In 2022, I billed the following 9 books as "highly recommended" - listed in order read, not in order of preference:

The Reading List by Sarah Nisha Adams - Fiction

The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth - Fiction

Redeeming Your Time by Jordan Raynor - Non-fiction

The World Played Chess by Robert Dugoni - Fiction

The God of the Garden by Andrew Peterson - Non-fiction

In Five Years by Rebecca Serle - Fiction

The Book of Lost Friends by Lisa Wingate - Fiction

God Walk by Mark Buchanan - Non-fiction

More Than Grit by Gretchen A. Carlson - Middle Grade Fiction

I'm giving the following books an honorable mention:

Holier Than Thou by Jackie Hill Perry - Non-fiction

The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah - Fiction

Dear Dana by Amy Weinland Daughters- Non-fiction

What were your favorite books this year? I'd love to hear them.