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Now that you've had time to process and think about your 2024 reading year, what were your favorite reads written by women? Top 5, top 10, Best #WiT, Best overall. Share your best reading experiences in whatever way strikes your fancy.

+ if you have written a 2024 Year in Review, feel free to share a link to it here.

Link to my year in review

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full listing of women read: /topic/show/...

Of the 80 books I read this year, 60 were written by women (my personal all-time high, I'm sure!

Here are my top 5 Favorites and a little bit about each:

Sparks Like Stars by Nadia Hashimi
Historical Fiction about a young girl whose entire family is assassinated during a coup in Kabul in 1978, then follows her into adulthood as she immigrates to the US. I love Hashimi's writing style and her blend of fiction with real events. She brings her characters to life in a way that few authors do, in my opinion.

A Living Remedy: A Memoir by Nicole Chung
I love a good memoir and really enjoyed Chung's voice in this one. I thought she articulated the pull she felt between worlds so well. Her love for her parents yet her despair at not being recognized wholly was sort of the vein throughout, but it felt raw and vulnerable, traits I enjoy in a memoir.

The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak
Thanks to this group for creating the Author Focus challenge and introducing me to this author! This was my favorite of the 3 I've read so far, but I will likely read more by Shafak.
This one is Historical Fiction and takes place in Greece, Turkey and the UK. The most endearing part of this book is that an old Fig Tree is one of the "main" characters and narrates half of the chapters. A clever trick which allows Shafak to tell 2 decades-apart stories at once through the eyes of the old tree. Bizarrely (or maybe not?) the Fig was my favorite character.

How Beautiful We Were by Imbolo Mbue
This might be my favorite of the entire year. It's a heart wrenching story that is fiction, but based in truth, about the greed of both the US oil companies and the local African community/political leaders (*I say African because this novel is based in a fictional city and the country is not named, but there are several that it could be). Children are dying and no one will admit that the water is the culprit - the water poisoned by the oil companies, who bought the towns and fill the pockets of greedy city leaders. There's no happy ending to this one, but it leaves a lot to think about.

Nightcrawling by Leila Mottley
This is such a wonderful debut. It's also heartbreaking and all too real. Kiera is a young woman struggling to survive in Oakland, CA with little to no family, forced to grow up way too soon and to make decisions she should never be faced with. Every US Politician, lawmaker, judge and person in power could benefit from reading this.

And had to include this one as an "Honorable Mention" of sorts. I can't say it was one of my favorite books ever, but it left such an impression. I thought about it for days (maybe weeks) after putting it down.
Almond by Sohn Won-Pyung
Yunjae was born with Alexithymia, a brain condition which makes it nearly impossible for him to feel emotions, specifically anger & fear. He struggles through school and, later, through a terrible tragedy that leaves him alone and confused. His story is of a young man deemed "other" who struggles to fit within the norms of society. It's raw and tragic, yet hopeful in a way.

I love these lists and the way they expand my TBR.

I read 63 books by women, out of 112 total, in 2024, the best ratio I've ever achieved. Of those, 20 were nonfiction, another first for me.

Nonfiction Favorites

The White Album: Essays by Joan Didion
The Brothers Grimm: A Biography by Ann Schmiesing
Witchcraft: A History in Thirteen Trials by Marion Gibson
Feel Free: Essays by Zadie Smith
Intimations by Zadie Smith
On Juneteenth by Annette Gordon-Reed

NonFiction Honorable Mentions
The Bells of Old Tokyo: Meditations on Time and a City by Anna Sherman
Night Flyer: Harriet Tubman and the Faith Dreams of a Free People by Tiya Miles
Freedom Farmers: Agricultural Resistance and the Black Freedom Movement by Monica M. White
Reindeer: An Arctic Life by Tilly Smith
A Book of Migrations: Some Passages in Ireland by Rebecca Solnit

Fiction Favorites
The Fox Wife by Yangsze Choo
Heads of the Colored People by Nafissa Thompson-Spires
Less Than Angels by Barbara Pym
The Gate of Angels by Penelope Fitzgerald
Swing Time by Zadie Smith
The Art of Losing by Alice Zeniter (translated from French to English by Frank Wynne)
Finn Family Moomintroll by Tove Jansson
Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick: Stories from the Harlem Renaissance by Zora Neale Hurston
The School for Cats by Esther Averill (I love this series)

Fiction Honorable Mentions

8 Lives of a Century-Old Trickster by Mirinae Lee
A Game of Lies by Clare Mackintosh (best mystery I read in 2024)
Clear by Carys Davies
Mina's Matchbox by Yōko Ogawa
Love Marriage by Monica Ali

Unique Category: So glad we read it, thank you, group, but I’m bewildered at the love so many readers have for it:
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

I like these lists for reminding me of books I've wanted to read but are no longer top of my mind. I'm glad to be reminded by Lindsey that Nightcrawling is an Oakland story. I love that about the Tommy Orange books.

It seems I read 75% women in 2024. I had alot of 5 star ratings but some were more like 4.5.

These were stand-outs that I'd like to reread eventually though one of them is a daunting 800pg:

Swing Time by Zadie Smith
Lies and Sorcery by Elsa Morante
Claudine at School by Colette Gauthier-Villars
We Have Always Been Here: A Queer Muslim Memoir by Samra Habib
White Is for Witching by Helen Oyeyemi
Bless the Daughter Raised by a Voice in Her Head by Warsan Shire

I think I ended up with 81% of my books being by women and NB authors this year. I read 187 books by women.

Here are the five-star books I read this year (which I obviously recommend!!!)
1 - Sistersong by Lucy Holland (historical fiction/speculative fiction)
2 - Where the Light Gets In: Losing My Mother Only to Find Her Again by Kimberly Williams-Paisley (non-fiction)
3 - Plastic-Free: How I Kicked the Plastic Habit and How You Can Too by Beth Terry (non-fiction/environmental)
4 - Wicked as She Wants by Delilah S. Dawson (Steampunk fantasy) (Blud series)
5 - House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J. Maas (romantasy) (Crescent City series)
6 - A Vicious Game by Melissa Blair (fantasy) (The Halfling Saga)
7 - The Girlfriend by K.L. Slater (thriller)
8 - Afterlife by Julia Alvarez (fiction)
9 - The Eternal Ones by Namina Forna (fantasy) (The Gilded Ones series)
10 - A Fire Endless by Rebecca Ross (fantasy) (Elements of Cadence duology)
11 - India's Story by Kathlyn S. Starbuck (SciFi)
12 - Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Pérez (Non-Fiction)
13 - Husband and Wife by K.L. Slater (Thriller)
14 - A Touch of Darkness by Scarlett St. Clair (Romantasy)
15 - The Narrator by K.L. Slater (Thriller)
16 - Barracoon: The Story of the Last "Black Cargo" by Zora Neale Hurston (Non-Fiction/Historical)
17 - He Shall Thunder in the Sky by Elizabeth Peters (Mystery) (Amelia Peabody series)
18 - Bila Yarrudhanggalangdhuray by Anita Heiss (Historical Fiction)
19 - Talking While Female & Other Dangerous Acts by Teatro Luna (Not a book and only available on Audible - but totally worth a listen)
20 - Carniepunk: The Three Lives of Lydia by Delilah S. Dawson (short story - steampunk fantasy)
21 - You're Not a Girl in a Movie by Hala Alyan (poetry)
22 - Killing Trail by Margaret Mizushima (Mystery) (Timber Creek K9 Series)
23 - The Preacher by Camilla Läckberg (Nordic Noir) (Fjallbacka series)
24 - Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer (Romantasy)
25 - Stalking Ground by Margaret Mizushima (Mystery) (Timber Creek K9 series)
26 - Hunting Hour by Margaret Mizushima (Mystery) (Timber Creek K9 series)
27 - Burning Ridge by Margaret Mizushima (Mystery) (Timber Creek K9 series)
28 - Tracking Game by Margaret Mizushima (Mystery) (Timber Creek K9 series)
29 - The Stonecutter by Camilla Läckberg (Nordic Noir) (Fjallbacka series)
30 - The Stranger STRANGER Paperback by Camilla Läckberg (Nordic Noir) (Fjallbacka series)
31 - The Hidden Child by Camilla Läckberg (Nordic Noir) (Fjallbacka series)
32 - The Drowning by Camilla Läckberg (Nordic Noir) (Fjallbacka series)
33 - The Lost Boy by Camilla Lackberg by Camilla Läckberg (Nordic Noir) (Fjallbacka series)
34 - Unashamed: A Coming-Out Guide for LGBTQ Christians by Amber Cantorna-Wylde (Non-fiction/Religious/LGBTQ+)
35 - Artificial Condition by Martha Wells (SciFi) (Murderbot series)
36 - The Bone Shard Emperor by Andrea Stewart (Fantasy) (The Drowning Empire series)
37 - Poems To Live By in Uncertain Times by Joan Murray (Poetry)
38 - Bloom by Delilah S. Dawson (Thriller/LGTBQ+)
39 - Missing by K.L. Slater (Thriller)
40 - Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler (Dystopian)
41 - Exit Strategy by Martha Wells (SciFi) (Murderbot series)
42 - Catching the Light by Joy Harjo (Non-Fiction/Memoir)
43 - Network Effect by Martha Wells (SciFi) (Murderbot series)
44 - Sinister Graves by Marcie R. Rendon (Mystery) (Cash Blackbear Mysteries)
45 - Dust Tracks on a Road by Zora Neale Hurston (Non-Fiction/Memoir)
46 - A Darker Shade of Magic by Victoria E. Schwab (Fantasy)
47 - Sunreach by Brandon Sanderson and Janci Patterson (SciFi) (Skyward series)
48 - Human Acts by Han Kang (Fiction)
49 - ReDawn by Brandon Sanderson and Janci Patterson (SciFi) (Skyward series)
50 - It Ends with Us by Colleen Hoover (Fiction)
51 - Evershore by Brandon Sanderson and Janci Patterson (SciFi) (Skyward series)
52 - Sunreach by Brandon Sanderson and Janci Patterson (SciFi) (Skyward series)
53 - Liar, Dreamer, Thief by Maria Dong (Thriller)
54 - Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross (Fantasy) (Letters of Enchantment)
55 - Akata Warrior by Nnedi Okorafor (Fantasy) (Nsibidi Scripts series)
56 - Kindred by Octavia E. Butler (This is usually marketed as SciFi, but it is more like a historical fiction/thriller)
57 - The Fireground by Dervla McTiernan (Mystery)
58 - Rainbow History Class: Your Guide Through Queer and Trans History by Hannah McElhinney (Non-Fiction/LGBTQ+)
59 - Wayward Witch by Zoraida Córdova (Fantasy) (Brooklyn Brujas series)
60 - A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness (Fantasy)
61 - The Original by Brandon Sanderson and Mary Robinette Kowal (SciFi)
62 - Incendiary by Zoraida Córdova (Fantasy) (Hollow Crown)
63 - Illusionary by Zoraida Córdova (Fantasy) (Hollow Crown)
64 - Akata Woman by Nnedi Okorafor (Fantasy) (Nsibidi Scripts)
65 - Mrs. Pollifax and the Whirling Dervish by Dorothy Gilman (Mystery) (Mrs. Pollifax series)
66 - Next Year in Havana by Chanel Cleeton (Fiction/Historical Fiction)
67 - Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse (Fantasy)
68 - The Spy Wore Red by Aline, Countess of Romanones (Non-Fiction/Espionage)
69 - Where They Last Saw Her by Marcie R. Rendon (Mystery)
70 - Do Not Disturb by Freida McFadden (Thriller)
71 - An Easy Death by Charlaine Harris (Dystopian)

Misty wrote: "I think I ended up with 81% of my books being by women and NB authors this year. I read 187 books by women.

Here are the five-star books I read this year (which I obviously recommend!!!)
1 - [boo..."

This is amazing, Misty !! Thanks for sharing it. (I hope real life has settled down a little for you. )

Carol wrote: "This is amazing, Misty !! Thanks for sharing it. (I hope real life has settled down a little for you. )"

I would really like to say it has...... and maybe after my middle kid has surgery in February it will...... Oh well. I still have books! ;)

Misty, I'm bookmarking your amazing list. Thanks!

I surpassed my goal of total books read by a lot in 2024. I had a huge list of 5-star reads. These are just a few of them:

Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel
How to Say Babylonby Safiya Sinclair
The Wren, the Wren by Anne Enright
Bad Cree by Jessica Johns
What It Means When a Man Falls from the Sky by Lesley Nneka Arimah
The Women by Kristin Hannah
The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka
Daughter's Keeper by Ayelet Waldman
Stay and Fight by Madeline ffitch

I did not end up with as high a percentage as I hoped. This year I'm not certain if I will fare any better because I am focusing of culling my physical bookshelves which include many men authors.
But I am finally giving myself permission to set aside books that become too much of a chore to get through. That means I am going to donate the ones I keep skipping over so that they are not within my eyesight. This will give me more room to add books that I keep adding to my TBR list. LOL
Happy reading in 2025 all!

Of the 78 books I read in 2024, 40 were by women. Many were 4-star reads. The handful below were 5-star reads:

A Boy of Good Breeding by Miriam Toews. I've loved just about everything I've read by her.

Late Migrations: A Natural History of Love and Loss by Margaret Renkl. Autobiography.

The Fawn by Magda Szabó, translated from the Hungarian by Kathleen Szasz. Again, I've loved everything I've read by her.

Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays the Rent by Judi Dench. Very entertaining.

The Swan's Nest by Laura McNeal. The love story of Elizabeth Barrett and Robert Browning. A beautiful story, beautifully told.

The Coin by Yasmin Zaher. Very original and cleverly executed.

I've picked up several books from the lists above. Thanks to all for the recommendations.

I read 66 books in 2024, with 46 (70%) by women. I'm happy with that percentage. My 5 star reads (in alphabetical order):

Fiction
The Formation of Calcium by M.S. Coe
The Wedding People by Alison Espach

Nonfiction
Sleepless: Unleashing the Subversive Power of the Night Self by Annabel Abbs-Streets
Intervals by Marianne Brooker
Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death by Laura Cumming
First Love: Essays on Friendship by Lilly Dancyger
Wifedom: Mrs. Orwell's Invisible Life by Anna Funder
My Life in Paper: Adventures in Ephemera by Beth Kephart
The Dictionary People: The Unsung Heroes Who Created the Oxford English Dictionary by Sarah Ogilvie
Lost & Found: A Memoir by Kathryn Schulz
Still Writing: The Perils and Pleasures of a Creative Life by Dani Shapiro

Carol wrote: "Unique Category: So glad we read it, thank you, group, but I’m bewildered at the love so many readers have for it:
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by��"

This made me laugh, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow was one of my very few 5 star reads this year! I love this group. Also, 112 books is a hefty amount, bravo.

Looking through my list I was surprised to only find a few others that I deemed worthy of five stars: DallerGut Dream Department Store by Mi-Ye Lee,
Annie Bot by Sierra Greer,
Hum by Helen Phillips (- this one I don’t even remember).
What We Fed to the Manticore by Talia Lakshmi Kolluri was a charming collection of short stories told from the animals�� POV but was really a reflection on humankind’s actions towards nature,
How to Pronounce Knife: Stories by Souvankham Thammavongsa
The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal - a good series started here
And All Systems Red by Martha Wells - a re-read but still held five star status for me.

Honorable mention to The Women by Kristin Hannah
Bailey's Café by Gloria Naylor
Lapvona by Ottessa Moshfegh

59 out of 66 reads were women.