It has been quite a while since I’ve posted! I’m sorry for such a lengthy absence, but I needed a break from blogging, and (apparently) also from reading, as I’ve read very little since you last heard from me! But this topic seems like a great place to jump back in, mostly because I did read a fair few wonderful books in 2025 and I don’t want to miss the chance to share and rave about them! I’m going to break them down into categories, and I suspect I will (as per usual) exceed my alotted ten!
Fiction
There Are Rivers in the Sky by Elif Shafak
What You Are Looking for Is In the Library by Michiko Aoyama
Sipsworth by Simon Van Booy
James, There Are Rivers in the Sky and Sipsworth were all from my BookTube Prize reading this year, but I’m so glad to have read them. There Are Rivers in particular I don’t think I would have tried otherwise, and I found it very interestingly structured and engaging. What You Are Looking for Is in the Library was a lovely, sweet, hopeful story that centres around a local library in Japan but branches out into the lives of several of its patrons who are affected in some way by their visits to the library. It was an easy and enjoyable read that left me feeling uplifted.
The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by by Sangu Mandanna
One Last Stop by Casety McQuiston
I loved Friends of Dorothy. It might be my favourite fiction book I read last year! It’s got a bit of a mystery, LGBTQIA+ relationships, intergenerational friendships and plenty of shenanigans! It’s funny in places, serious in others, but has characters you’ll love spending time with. The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches and One Last Stop are both romance stories but with fantasy/sci-fi elements to them. I enjoyed them both, even though they’re not genres I normally read!
WWII
The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer
The Postcard by Anne Berest
I’m doing this as its own category because I read quite a few books set during or around WWII this year. These three were the best. The Nightingale doesn’t really need much introduction – it’s so well known at this point! The Things We Cannot Say is about a family whose eldest member is in hospital after she had a stroke. Her daughter, son-in-law and grandson are visiting her when she starts asking them for something – and they aren’t really sure what she wants. This leads to a trip to her homeland by her daughter and subsequent discovery of a complex family history. I also loved that the grandson is neurodivergent, and the description of him and how his condition affect his family. Something that hit close to home. The Postcard is another WWII story, but this one is called a “roman vrai,” or true novel. It’s based on Berest’s own family history, but she has written a fictionalized account so she can bring in perspectives and experiences in a way that creates a vibrant and intriguing story. Loved it.
Thriller
I Found You by Lisa Jewell
I have had mixed experiences with McAllister’s books in the past – I loved Wrong Place Wrong time, but was indifferent to Just Another Missing Person. Luckily, this one was pretty good and a quick read. I Found You is another thriller that has some interesting characters, twists and turns and had me wanting to read “just one more chapter” several times!
Graphic Novels
Garlic & the Witch by Bree Paulsen
The Lost Heir (Wings of Fire series) by Tui T. Sutherland
I forayed into the graphic novel section of the library thanks to my kiddo, who is a regular patron. Wings of Fire is top favourite, and I read about half of the series this year on their request. I can definitely see what all the fuss is about! Very good series, particularly if you like dragons. The other two were ones I either found on my own or read despite “meh” kid responses, and I really enjoyed both. Garlic has some lovely relationships and great self-discovery, while Wildful is more about our connection to nature and how we handle grief. Beautiful.
Non-Fiction/Memoir
Between the Stops by Sandi Toksvig (re-read)
The Year I Met My Brain by Matilda Boseley
We’ve Got This ed. by Eliza Hull
Raising Hare is one of my top books of the year, and also my favourite nature-related one. It’s the story of how Dalton found a leveret (baby hare) and took it home after determining its chance of survival if left alone were near zero. The book deals with her efforts to learn about leverets, her developing attachment to hers, and how this relationship changes her entire sense of the natural world around her. Between the Stops was a re-read (I wanted an audiobook to listen to in the car that wouldn’t pull too much attention). Loved it again. The Year I Met My Brain was the first book I read in 20205, and possibly my favourite. It’s Boseley’s story of learning she has ADHD, figuring out exactly what that means, managing it and then putting the whole experience brilliantly into words. It’s the best book about ADHD (in women, in particular) that I have read, and the one I’d recommend first out of the ones I’ve read or tried so far. Brilliantly researched and written. We’ve Got This is another book I want everyone to read. It’s a collection of essays by parents with disabilities – many different kinds – and just made me feel seen and like I’m not alone. It’s a heavy thing, but also a wonderful one to be a parent when some days being alive is tough. This book did a wonderful job of sharing those feelings.
Vanishing Fleece by Clara Parkes
A Life in Stitches was another re-read for me, and I loved it, yet again. Both of these books deal with knitting, yarn and how obsessed some of us fibre crafters can become. But both come at it from very different directions. Stitches is all about Herron’s personal journey with kitting, how it came and went and all the things she went through that knitting helped her through. It’s a love story of sorts about knitting as a pursuit, a companion activity and a way of coping with difficulty. Vanishing Fleece is all about where wool comes from, the various stages it goes through on its way to yarn store shelves and one woman’s journey through it from start to finish with her very own bale of fleece. It’s extremely interesting if you’re a yarn enthusiast, probably less so if you aren’t!
So that was the top of my reading year! Farewell to 2025, and here’s hoping I get some of my energy and reading mojo back in 2026. Here’s hoping you all had a wonderful festive season, and wishing each and every one of you a very happy new year!
Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly link-up feature created by The Broke and the Bookish and hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl. Every week TTT has a different topic, and everyone who links up has to create a link of ten items that fit that topic. To see past and upcoming topics, go here.