2023 Reading Wrap Up

Here's my 2023 Reading Wrap Up. This year I managed to read 90 books and exceeded my goal of 50 books. I surprised myself when I realized that I read more non-fiction books this year than fiction. I did make a goal to read more non-fiction, but didn't expect that I would have read more of them than fiction.

I also decided this year to participate in the book bracket challenge but I thought it would be interesting to split it up between non-fiction and fiction as well as the overall. 

"The Lightmaker's Manifesto" by Karen Walrond was the overall winner and the non-fiction winner with "The Diary of Anne Frank - 75th Anniversary Edition" coming in second. On the fiction side I had "The Good Girl's Guide to Murder" by Holly Jackson as the winner with "The House in the Cerulean Sea" by T.J. Kline coming in second.  

2023 Books Read: 

Non-Fiction - Memoirs:

A Place for Us: A Memoir - Brandon J. Wolf

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings - Maya Angelou

Spare - Prince Harry

The Diary of a Young Girl, 75th Anniversary Edition - Anne Frank *

The Opposite of Loneliness: Essays and Stories - Marina Keegan

Walking in My Joy: In These Streets - Jenifer Lewis

Non-Fiction - Audiobooks: 

How Ya'll Doing?: Misadventures and Mischief from a Life Well Lived - Leslie Jordan

What Remains: A Memoir of Fate, Friendship, and Love - Carole Radziwill †

Non-Fiction - Personal Growth:

Acres - Kendra Barnes

The Lightmaker's Manifesto: How to Work for Change without Losing Your Joy - Karen Walrond

Non-Fiction - True Crime: 

Butcher, Baker: The True Account of an Alaska Serial Killer - Walter Gilmour

Evidence of Love: A True Story of Passion & Death in the Suburbs - John Bloom & Jim Atkinson

If You Tell: A True Story of Murder, Family Secrets, & the Unbreakable Bond of Sisterhood - Gregg Olsen

Sutherland Springs: God, Guns, and Hope in a Texas Town - Joe Holley

The Perfect Father: The True Story of Chris Watts, His All-American Family, and a Shocking Murder

Non-Fiction - History: 

I Am Not Your Negro - James Baldwin

I Have a Dream - Martin Luther King Jr. 

Stupid History: A Collection of Stupidity, Strangeness, and Mythconceptions Through the Ages - Leland Gregory & John Mitchinson

The Book of General Ignorance - John Lloyd

Touching History: The Untold Story of the Drama that Unfolded in the Skies Over America on 9/11 - Lynn Spencer

Non-Fiction: 

Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics - Dolly Parton

Fiction: 

Carrie Soto Is Back - Taylor Jenkins Reid

Red, White & Royal Blue - Casey McQuiston

Reminders of Him - Colleen Hoover

The Bluest Eye - Toni Morrison

The Color Purple - Alice Walker

The Glass Menagerie - Tennessee Williams

The Guncle - Steven Rowley

The Hate U Give - Angie Thomas

The House in the Cerulean Sea - T.J. Kline

The Last Thing He Told Me - Laura Dave

The Virgin Suicides - Jeffrey Eugenides *

Under the Whispering Door - T.J. Kline

Fiction - Series: 

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder (A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, #1) - Holly Jackson

Good Girl, Bad Blood (A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, #2) - Holly Jackson

As Good as Dead (A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, #3) - Holly Jackson

Oz, the Complete Collection, Volume 2 - L. Frank Baum

Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz (Oz, #4) - L. Frank Baum

The Road to Oz (Oz, #5) - L. Frank Baum

The Emerald City of Oz (Oz, #6) - L. Frank Baum

Hearstopper: Volume 1 - Alice Oseman

Hearstopper: Volume 2 - Alice Oseman

Hearstopper: Volume 3 - Alice Oseman

Hearstopper: Volume 4 - Alice Oseman

For You and Only You (You, #4) - Caroline Keynes

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (The Hunger Games, #0) - Suzanne Collins

The One and Only Ruby (The One and Only Ivan, #3) - Katherine Applegate

The Winners (Beartown, #3) - Fredrik Backman

Poetry: 

2am Thoughts - Makenzie Campbell

Call Us What We Carry - Amanda Gorman

And Still I Rise - Maya Angelou

fluid. - Renaada Williams

healing for no one but me - Jennae Cecelia

Home Body - Rupi Kaur

Milk & Honey - Rupi Kaur

Please Love Me at My Worst - Michaela Angemeer

salt. - Nayyirah Waheed

The Flower That Went Mad: Bipolar Poetry - Yogesh Chandra

The Hill We Climb: An Inaugural Poem for the Country - Amanda Gorman

The Sun and Her Flowers - Rupi Kaur *

Uncaged Wallflower - Jennae Cecelia

you are safe here. - AVA.

You'll Come Back to Yourself - Michaela Angemeer

Short Stories:

A Night at the Tropicana - Chanel Cleeton

Frozen - Ann Sleeves

If the Fates Allow - Rainbow Rowell

Model Home - J. Courtney Sullivan

Resting Scrooge Face - Meghan Quinn

Straw into Gold: A Rumpelstiltskin Faerie Tale Retelling - Carol Beth Anderson

The Bookstore Sisters - Alice Hoffman

The Rise: A Short Story - Ian Rankin

The Scenic Route - Christina Baker Kline

Trayvon: Ten Years Later - Sybrina Fulton

Short Stories - Series: 

Two Henrys (This Can't Be Happening Collection, #1) - Kevin Allison

Identity Thief (This Can't Be Happening Collection, #2) - Rachel Rosenthal

The Third Man (This Can't Be Happening Collection, #3) - Mani Sheriar

Black Sheep (This Can't Be Happening Collection, #4) - Rory School

Everything My Mother Taught Me (Inheritance, #1) - Alice Hoffman

Short Stories from Hogwarts of Heroism, Hardship and Dangerous Hobbies (Pottermore Presents, #1) - J.K. Rowling

Short Stories from Hogwarts of Power, Politics and Pesky Poltergeists (Pottermore Presents, #2) - J.K. Rowling

Hogwarts: An Incomplete and Unreliable Guide (Pottermore Presents, #3) - J.K. Rowling

Innocent (Pen Pals and Serial Killers, #5) - Jo Michaels

Leap to Love (International Sports Romance, #0.5) - Johana Gavez

Children's Books:

A Light in the Attic - Shel Silverstein

Falling Up - Shel Silverstein

I Snoop On My Anxiety - Melissa Winn

I've Loved You Since Forever - Hoda Kotb

Odder - Katherine Applegate

The Smart Cookie (The Food Group, #5) - Jory John & Pete Oswald

The Sour Grape (The Food Group, #6) - Jory John & Pete Oswald

* Books that have been read 2 times

† Books that have been read 3 times

Checkout the link below to view all the books I read in 2023 and feel free to add me as a friend:

2023 Reading Challenge

Tiffany has completed their goal of reading 50 books in 2023!

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90 of 50 (100%)

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Goodreads Review - "Reminders of Him"

Reminders of Him by Colleen Hoover
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

My first CoHo book and it did not disappoint. Very beautiful story!

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Goodreads Review - "Big Little Lies"

Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This one is in my Top 10 favorite books. Decided to read it again this year.

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Goodreads Review - "Nineteen Minutes"

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Jodi Picoult is an amazing writer and I’m still impressed every time I pick up a book from her.

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Goodreads Review - "Pumpkin (Dumplin', 3)"

Pumpkin by Julie Murphy
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Dumplin’ series is one of my favorites and this one did not disappoint. LGBTQ+ representation matters. Very relatable story if you’re from a small Texas town like myself.

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Goodreads Review - "Puddin' (Dumplin', 2)"

Puddin' by Julie Murphy
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Dumplin’ series is one of my favorites and this one did not disappoint. Very relatable story if you’re from a small Texas town like myself.

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Goodreads Review - "the flower that went mad"

The Flower That Went Mad: Bipolar Poetry by Yogesh Chandra
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is not the best poetry book I’ve read but I was able to relate to some of the poems.

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Goodreads Review - "Oz, Complete Collection, Volume 2"

Oz, the Complete Collection, Volume 2: Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz / The Road to Oz / The Emerald City of Oz by L. Frank Baum
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz
This one was not my favorite of the series but it was still creative and really good. I love that there are more characters introduced and it was good to have Dorothy back. Eureka, the kitten, is my favorite character in this book.

The Road to Oz
Another adventure in Oz where a group of queer (which is what they are referred to in the book) people are getting from one location to the next. This book was not the best but the creativity was really good. Interesting to see that Santa Claus makes an appearance in this book.

The Emerald City of Oz
This book was okay. Not the best one. The adventure wasn't too exciting but the creativity was good. It was another adventure through other parts of Oz not previously mentioned and then leading to another battle at the end where the Nome King wants the magic belt back. I love the idea of the Forbidden Fountain. I kind of wish we had one of those in this world.

"Foolish fears, and worries over nothing, with a mixture of nerves and ifs, will soon make a Flutterbudget of any one." I guess if I could be any character in Oz, so far, it would be the Futterbudgets.

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Goodreads Review - "Oz, Complete Collection, Volume 1"

Oz, Complete Collection, Volume 1: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz / The Marvelous Land of Oz / Ozma of Oz by L. Frank Baum
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

"The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" review:
It's always fun to relive a childhood story but in a book instead of on the screen. I really enjoyed how different the book was from the movie.

"The Marvelous Land of Oz" review:
I really loved this book after the second half. It got more humorous and eventful towards the end. *Side note: It's extremely important to remember that this book was published in 1904 which means that some words are used in a different context like the word 'molest' which Jinjur and Glenda the Good Witch used. So I went and looked up the definition and the older use for the word was: "to bother, interfere with, or annoy." It has since been updated in the dictionary to reflect the current definition.

"Ozma of Oz" review:
Not as good as the 2nd book but it still kept my attention all the way until the end. Can't wait to start the next one.

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Goodreads Review - "The Perfect Father"

The Perfect Father: The True Story of Chris Watts, His All-American Family, and a Shocking Murder by John Glatt
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Best author for true crime stories!!

This book was written really well and I would definitely recommend this author for other true crime stories. Such a sad story but I believe (in my opinion) it was written from an unbiased view and told both sides of the story.

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Goodreads Review - "Walking In My Joy"

Walking in My Joy: Stories from on My Way to Happy by Jenifer Lewis
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this book and it was a quick read for me. She writes exactly how to she talks.

Here’s a couple of my favorite quotes from the book:

“Laughter is a great life preserver when you feel like the world is drowning.”

and

“I saw the living proof that our secrets connect us. Our secrets heal us.”

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Goodreads Review - "The Hill We Climb"

The Hill We Climb: An Inaugural Poem for the Country by Amanda Gorman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The inaugural poem everyone needed to hear.

We will not march back to what was,
But move to what shall be:
A country that is bruised but whole,
Benevolent but bold,
Fierce and free.
We will not be turned around,
Or interrupted by intimidation,
Because we know our inaction and inertia
Will be the inheritance of the next generation.
Our blunders become their burdens
But one thing is certain:
If we merge mercy with might, and might with right,
Then love becomes our legacy,
And change, our children's birthright.

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Goodreads Review - "Still I Rise"

And Still I Rise by Maya Angelou
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this book. A collection of beautiful poems. It was way better than I expected. I saved and highlighted a lot but this excerpt from "Still I Rise" is one of my favorites:

Leaving behind nights of terror and fear
I rise
Into a daybreak that's wondrously clear
I rise
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise.
I rise.
I rise.

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Goodreads Review - "The Opposite of Loneliness"

The Opposite of Loneliness: Essays and Stories by Marina Keegan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I actually really liked this book. I wasn't sure what to expect with all the reviews. My favorite was "Stability in Motion" in the non-fiction section. The world missed out on a brilliant writer. I would have loved to see more of her work (fiction and non-fiction).

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