After an era of what at one time would have been inconceivable—reading very few books each year—this year I joined a book club at church, the first book club I've ever joined.

I also purchased a library card for 2025. So I wanted to make full use of my access to the library. (Because I live out in the county, and our library is a city library, you have to pay a fee if you don't live or own property within the city limits.)

Now I am excited actually to have a book list to show for my reading year (not merely a scattered few titles).

My book list inspiration is Gilion Dumas of Rose City Reader and on Instagram at gilioncdumas. I have her Reading By Year Books Read in 2024: BOOK LIST open in another browser tab as I write my post.

The key is at the end of the list.

Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org and I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

Any other links (for example, to Amazon.com, if a book is not listed on Bookshop.org) are not affiliate links, and I do not earn a commission.

Note: I have tried to list original publication dates. Sometimes the linked book may display a different date if it is for a paperback edition, for example.

Books

• The Secret War of Julia Child by Diana R. Chambers, 2024. Historical fiction. Book Club. Library.
• Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan, 2021. Short novel set in Ireland. Library.
• Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann, 2017. History written by a journalist. Book Club. Library.
• The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray, 2021. Historical fiction. Book Club. Library.
• Belonging: A Culture of Place by bell hooks, 2008. Memoir, essay. Own.
• Anxious People: A Novel by Fredrik Backman, originally published in Swedish in 2019 and translated to English in 2020. Book Club. Library. DNF.
• One Final Breath: A Ricki James Mystery, Book 1 by C. R. Chandler, 2020. Crime/mystery set on the Olympic Peninsula of Washington state. Book Club. E-book.
• Charis in the World of Wonders: A Novel Set in Puritan New England by Marly Youmans, 2020. Historical fiction. Re-read for Book Club (my selection). Own (purchased from Hearts & Minds Books).
• The Lost Bookshop by Evie Woods, 2023. Fantasy-ish. Book Club. Library.
• Late Migrations: A Natural History of Love and Loss by Margaret Renkl, 2021. Memoir. Library.
• How to Inhabit Time Understanding the Past, Facing the Future, Living Faithfully Now by James K. A. Smith, 2022. Theological, philosophical spirituality. Own (purchased from Hearts & Minds Books).
• This House of Sky: Landscapes of a Western Mind by Ivan Doig, 1978. Memoir. Read for the first time in 2025 and then re-read a couple months later for Book Club (my selection). Own.
• The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles by Steven Pressfield, 2002. Self-help. Library.
• The Wartime Chocolate Maker by Gosia Nealon, 2025. Historical fiction. Book Club. Kindle. DNF.
• Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir, 2021. Science fiction. Book Club. Library.
• Leviticus on the Butcher's Block: Making Head or Tail of the Bible's Toughest Book by Phil Bray, 2025. Theology. Own.
• A Shining by Jon Fosse, originally published in Norwegian and translated to English in 2023. Modern fiction/fantasy? Library.
• Garden Spells: A Novel by Sarah Addison Allen, 2007. Fantasy-ish. Book Club. Library.
• The Vegetarian: A Novel by Han Kang, originally published in Korean in 2007 and translated to English in the U.S. in 2016. Han Kang was the winner of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature. Literary fiction. E-book.
• The Missionary Kids: Unmasking the Myths of White Evangelicalism by Holly Berkley Fletcher, 2025. History, theology, some memoir. Library.
• Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter by Ben Goldfarb, 2018. History, ecology, written by a journalist. Library.

Key

• Book Club = a book read for the church book club
• DNF = Did not finish (a prompt for me to go back and finish the book)
• Type and source of the book
  • Own (I own the physical book)
  • Library
  • E-book (borrowed from the library or Kindle)
  • Kindle (I own the e-book)