Favorite Books of 2021
Why am I publishing this in March? Well, I actually talked about this list back in January on my YouTube channel (in Spanish). However, because I like being consistent, I thought it would be a good idea to have the list on my Medium page (and in English) as well. So if you haven’t watched that video, in 2021 I read 24 books, and these were my 9 favorites:
9. Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
This book was a complete surprise. Expecting a light reading, what I found instead was an incredibly moving story. On top of that, I learned about a topic I didn’t know anything about: the history of Koreans living in Japan. Pachinko is a family saga that takes place during most of the 20th century. It tells the story of a Korean family that moves to Japan, where they will face many adversities but most of all, discrimination.
Soon to be released as a TV series on Apple TV+.
8. The Lottery and Other Stories by Shirley Jackson
I wrote in my review that this collection of short stories reminded me of the TV show Mad Men, if it had been directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Published during the late 1940s, these stories show day-to-day interactions under a sinister light, and exposes how social norms can oppress people, especially women. Subtle tales that require more than one reading.
Her most famous story, The Lottery, is chilling. You can read it here.
7. Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin
This book starts with the final scene, so we know that it ends in tragedy and the rest of the novel will tell us why and how. It tells the story of David, a 25-year-old American guy living in Paris during the 1950s, who meets Giovanni. An undeniable attraction will become a secret romance, because even if at that time homosexuality wasn’t illegal in France, it wasn’t exactly accepted. This is an intense love story which can border on melodrama sometimes, and where the main obstacle is that all too human need to fit in.
6. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
One of the most beloved books in French literature, The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantès, a young sailor about to begin a happy life with his fiancée Mercedes. All of a sudden, he becomes unjustly incarcerated, and after years of sorrow will swear vengeance upon every person who betrayed him. Edmond Dantès will become the Count of Monte Cristo, moving the rest of the characters like chess pieces in order to achieve his revenge. A classic story no one should miss.
5. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
A charming book full of memorable characters, Great Expectations tells the story of Pip, a young boy who lives in a modest house with his sister and brother-in-law Joe after the death of his parents. His luck will change when he receives an anonymous fortune which will allow him to move to London and become a gentleman. One of the best coming-of-age stories I’ve ever read, with a sometimes obnoxious yet endearing protagonist.
4. Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
This was the first book I finished in 2021, foretelling a great reading year. This is a novel that conveys a sense of anguish like no other. It tells the story of Raskolnikov, a young Law student living in Saint Petersburg, who is forced to drop out of school due to lack of money. To get the funds he needs, Raskolnikov decides to commit a crime, but the guilt will be unbearable. It is a dense book, full of emotion, philosophy and psychology. One of the best I’ve ever read.
3. Recollections of Things to Come by Elena Garro
This novel tells the story of the fictional town of Ixtepec in postrevolutionary Mexico. Ixtepec lives under the rule of general Francisco Rosas, a tyrant and corrupt military man. His lover is Julia, a beautiful and mysterious woman, object of the town’s obsession. Ixtepec is a small and conservative town, where everyone knows everyone, and everyone talks about everyone. It is also a town where social classes are sharply defined, where cruelty and violence abound, and where women are nothing or guilty of everything. With a poetic language full of beautiful sentences, Elena Garro describes life in Mexico in the 1930s. A life not so different from today.
2. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez
This book was quite an experience. It tells the story of several generations of the Buendía family in the fictional town of Macondo, while at the same time it tells the story of humanity. The love and the heartbreaks, the celebrations and the wars, the joy and the sorrow, the kindness and the corruption, everything with a touch of what we now call magical realism. It has one of my favorite endings in literature and a style that reminds me how beautiful the Spanish language can be.
1. Beloved by Toni Morrison
This book tells the story of Sethe, a black woman living in freedom in the United States after the Civil War, who remembers the time she lived in slavery. In particular, the most traumatic event of her past: the death of her baby girl, Beloved. A tragedy not only because it happened, but because how it happened. Through the story of Sethe and the other characters, Toni Morrison offers us a glimpse to the barbarity of slavery and its consequences. A difficult read without being extremely graphic, this book made me reflect like no other. A master of her craft, Toni Morrison achieved the impossible, to create a work of incredible beauty out of the horrors of the past.
If I were to focus on the number of books I read alone, I would be a bit disappointed. It’s actually the exact same amount I read last year and, once again, I didn’t meet my goal of reading 30 books. However, the quality of what I read made 2021 one of my best reading years ever. Looking forward to more years like this!
Have you read any of these books? Will you add any of them to your wishlist? Tell me in the comments!
You can see the complete list of books I read this year on my Goodreads.
This post was originally published in Spanish at Cuaderno Reciclado.
