2020 was an interesting year, to say the least, and one of my coping mechanisms was reading. Here are five of the best books I read this year, in the order I read them:
High School by Tegan and Sara Quin
A great coming-of-age and coming out memoir from a duo whose music I love. I listened to the audiobook which is read by both of the authors, alternating chapters between Tegan and Sara. The ends of many of the chapters also have recordings of some of their first songs and recordings of interviews with and by some of their high school friends. Tegan and Sara Quin were born and raised in Calgary, the same city I was born and raised in, so it was fun to recognize many of the landmarks they mentioned, even though their version of Calgary was 14 years younger than the Calgary I know.
The Summer Before the War by Helen Simonson
This book was marketed as a great option for Downton Abbey nerds so I had to give this a try. It captures the bucolic atmosphere of rural England right before the outbreak of World War I, and all the little details of the setting made me feel like I was really there in 1914 Sussex. Like Downton Abbey, there are many instances of manners over-taking honesty. Also like Downton Abbey, the characters are all really interesting, and the central ones have well-defined character arcs that I enjoyed. I ended up really caring about all of them in the end even if I didn’t like them at first. Lastly, there is just so much that happens in the plot, without feeling rushed or out-of-place. This book is a new favourite that I am sure I will return to again and again.
The Gender Games by Juno Dawson
There are very few books that make me laugh out loud, but this was one of them. This is part memoir of a transgender woman who for a good portion of her life lived as a gay man, and her journey of figuring out she was trans and then the journey of actually making the transition. It is another part societal criticism about how gender norms don’t help anybody — regardless of whether a person is cis-gender or transgender– and about how to be a good human to transgender people. Throughout there is a ton of unapologetic sass that was so much fun to read.
The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar
This is a wonderful story of acceptance. This book deals with so many tough topics beautifully: coming out, getting outed, racism, homophobia and cultural appropriation. Nishat is also a wonderful character. I particularly loved how she does not give in to her family’s attempts to change who she is. Her temper is relatable, and the Bangladeshi cultural elements made me think of my own South Asian heritage. Plus, the fact that she falls in love with another woman of colour makes this book a rare gem.
Underland by Robert Macfarlane
This is such a beautifully-written book. It is very layered, so it required perseverance, but it definitely rewarded the effort I put in. It celebrates all sorts of underlands, and the people who are drawn to them. It captures the varied, profound relationships many people have with underlands. Right away, I could see how much effort he had put into the prose of this book, and the lyricism that results really shines through. The way he uses language and the way he blends metaphor with science is so profound. There is a lot of repetition of the roots of words in a sentence, which gives a lovely rhythm to it. There were times when I wanted to copy entire paragraphs down into my notes because that is how detailed the metaphors were. This is a book that will stay with me for a long time.
Here’s hoping for a great 2021, friends, both in reading and in life.
The Rooted Reader 