Hello friends! I know I haven’t been posting a lot this year, and I promise I have lots of plans for new posts in 2023, but in the meantime, here I am, rolling back in with my annual list of favorite reads.
My reading goal for 2022 was different from my reading goals in the past. In previous years, I’ve made goals to read a specific number of books, usually around 100, with no preference to new rereads or rereads. In 2022, I set a goal to read 50 books that I haven’t read before.
I read 67 new books in 2022. I also reread 18 books, for a grand total of 85 books in 2022. It’s not as many books as I’ve read in past years, but 2022 was also quite a year (more on that in a future post).
The books I read mainly fell into three genres this year: fantasy, with a big emphasis on middle grade fantasy; historical fiction focused on WWII; and historical nonfiction focused on WWII. I was trying to refresh my research to venture back into rewriting my college honors thesis into a historical fantasy novel set in WWII Italy. I did get pretty far into that revision before turning to something else, because WWII is really depressing friends, and there was enough bad stuff happening in the world this summer and fall that I needed a minute. But this project really drove what I read this year.
So without further ado, I give you my favorite books of 2022
The Bone Shard Emperor by Andrea Stewart: epic fantasy; a gripping sequel to The Bone Shard Daughter, which I read at the end of 2021.
Redemptor by Jordan Ifueko: another epic fantasy; also another sequel; a fabulous conclusion to the Raybearer duology.
Night Owl by Sarah Mlynowski, Emily Jenkins, and Lauren Myracle: a heartfelt conclusion to the Upside-Down Magic series.
Sal and Gabi Break the Universe and Sal and Gabi Fix the Universe by Carlos Hernandezz: a middle grade sci fi duology full of so much humor and heart. I just adored these books!
The Night Crossing by Karen Ackerman and The Butterfly by Patricia Polacco: I’m putting these two together because they were the first historical fiction books I ever read about WWII. I was glad to discover they held up all these years later, and it was fascinating to revisit books I’d read so long ago and see what I remembered and what I was surprised by all over again. (And before you say anything, I’m not counting books I read more than twenty years ago and haven’t seen since as rereads).
The Problim Children by Natalie Lloyd: another fun middle grade adventure/fantasy novel. I was so impressed with how Natalie Lloyd handles such a large cast with such finesse. I can’t wait to read the next book in this series.
Across the Greengrass Fields and Where the Drowned Girls Go by Seanan McGuire: The next two installments of the fantasy Wayward Children series I started in 2021. These books are about what happens to children who have adventures in other worlds after they come home, and I was really intrigued and excited by the turn in the series these books took. Looking forwart to the next one, which should be out in early 2023.
We Must Not Forget: Holocaust Stories of Survival and Resistance and We Had to Be Brave: Escaping the Nazis on the Kindertransport by Deborah Hopkinson: both of these books should be required reading. They tell the true stories of young people living through, escaping, and resisting the Holocaust, in their own words. Nothing I can say here can express the power of these too books.
All the Frequent Troubles of Our Days: The True Story of the American Woman At the Heart of the German Resistance to Hitler by Rebecca Donner: in this nonfiction book about WWII, the author tells the story of her great aunt who worked in the heart of the German resistance. Definitely worth a read.
One Jar of Magic by Corey Ann Haydu: a heartwarming middle grade fantasy about struggling to meet parental expectations, escaping abuse, and finding your own family and your own magic. Loved this!
All the Impossible Things by Lindsay Lackey: a middle grade fantasy that combines so many of my favorite things. There’s found family and discovering your own quiet magic.
The Firebird Song by Arnee Flores: a beautiful middle grade fantasy quest about what it costs to save the world and what true friendship means.
A Place to Hang the Moon by Kate Albus: A historical fiction middle grade set in WWIIabout three orphans with no relatives and a large inheritance who are sent into the English countryside fleeing the Blitz and also in the hopes of finding a family who will adopt them. This was another book that touched my heart.
The War that Saved My Life and The War I Finally Won by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley: a middle grade historical fiction duology about a disabled girl fleeing the Blitz and her abusive mother and discovering independence and freedom, safety and family, and horses.
Lisa’s War by Carol Matas: Another middle grade WWII historical fiction, about a gJewish girl in Denmark joining the resistance against the Nazis. This one was really powerful.
The Boy on the Wooden Box by Leon Leyson: The true story of the youngest person Oscar Schindler saved from the Holocaust. This one made me cry so much. So moving.
The Librarian of Auschwitz by Antonio Iturbe: This book was absolutely incredible. It’s a novelization of the true story of a school on the children’s block in Auschwitz, and the illicit library run in that school. It is an emotional, heart wrenching story, and I think absolutely everyone should read it.
Between Shades of Gray and Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys:These two historical fiction novels are related standalones. I loved them because they dealt with areas of WWII history I didn’t know anything about. The writing is also stellar. Highly recommend both these books, and I’ll definitely checking out this author’s other work.
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein: I’m late to the party on this one, but this book was absolutely breathtaking! If you haven’t read it, you must.
Witchlings by Claribel A. Ortega: A delightful middle grade fantasy adventure about discovering magic and friendship and defeating some very bad bad guys. Really looking forward to the second book.
The Golden Enclaves by Naomi Novik: Naomi Novik’s Scholomance series has been getting better and better with each book, and this finale made the whole series just incredible. It definitely was everything I wanted and more.
Amari and the Great Game by B. B. Alston: A delightful sequel to Amari and the Night Brothers, which I read and loved in 2021. And OMG that ending! When does the next book come out?
If you’ve read any of these books, I’d love to talk about them with you. And if you decide to pick any of these up in 2023, let me know. Finally, if you have any recommendations for books you simply couldn’t put down, books that grabbed you and wouldn’t let you go from beginning to end, please give them to me.
I hope everyone had a wonderful year of books in 2022 and I wish you all even more great reads in 2023!