What I Read in 2014

My goal of 50 books in 2014 was too ambitious, but I'm still happy with what I managed to read. Here's my list along with brief comments; books I particularly recommend are starred.

1. Well-Behaved Women Seldom Make History, by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich. Inspired by the now-iconic status of the titular quote, Ulrich wrote this wide-ranging popular account of women's history as a field and of some of the key historical figures who anchor it. Some of her biographical accounts and textual interpretations felt a bit reductive to me, but I think that's a result of the book's ambition and intended audience. Overall, informative and inspiring.
2. Incarnadine, by Mary Szybist. Lovely, lovely poetry. 
3. Bomb, by Steve Sheinkin. I'm generally wary of books that reconstruct historical narratives and dialogue, and I took some of Sheinkin's details with a grain of salt, but that said, this Newbery Honor book seems to be meticulously researched (supposedly the dialogue was all drawn from actual letters and statements). It makes the history of the atomic bomb engaging and accessible, reading a bit like a spy thriller but also confronting the very real ethical implications of the events.
4. The Twible, by Jana Riess. I bought this mostly to support Jana Riess because she's awesome, but it was fun to read through. A bit of snark + a memorable overview of the Bible.
5. * The History of Love, by Nicole Krauss. This reminded me a little of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close and Everything is Illuminated (not surprising, since Krauss is married to Jonathan Safran Foer and they've influenced each other's work), and as with those novels, the structural gimmick and the main character's quirky preciousness didn't keep me from thoroughly enjoying its beautiful moments.
6. The God Who Weeps: How Mormonism Makes Sense of Life, by Terryl and Fiona Givens. This book claims to outline some of Mormonism's unique claims, but while I found it compelling and moving, I'm not convinced the Givenses' theology actually represents mainstream Mormon belief. I sure wish it did, because it's beautiful, expansive, and compassionate.
7. Franny and Zooey, by J. D. Salinger. I'm still deciding what to make of this. Lovely and occasionally irritating.
8. PhD Comics: Adventures in Thesisland, by Jorge Cham. This was a good way to celebrate having successfully defended my dissertation at the end of 2013. My most frequent emotion while reading was relief that my life no longer mirrored the comics.
9. War Talk, by Arundhati Roy. This collection of damning essays on empire, dissent, and war in the twenty-first century was passionate and thought-provoking—and made me realize how little I know about Indian politics. Also, I wonder if Roy will ever write another novel (please please please).
10. Sandy Downs, by Tim Wirkus. Peculiar, witty novella. At the end, you'll wonder what in the world you just read. (Related: check out Tim's new novel, City of Brick and Shadow!)
11. The Secret Keeper, by Kate Morton. I was curious about this Blitz-themed historical fiction because it was surprisingly popular. The story held my interest, but the writing was clunky and I don't think it's ultimately worth the time.
12. Hyperbole and a Half, by Allie Brosh. Exactly what you'd expect, if you're a reader of the blog, plus a few new stories. Which is not at all a bad thing.
13. Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk: A Modest Bestiary, by David Sedaris. I needed an audiobook to listen to during a road trip, and this one happened to be available. Dark, entertaining, but ultimately not very memorable.
14. Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, by Robin Sloan. I didn't like this as much as I expected to, but it passed the time. Fun if you like bookstores, codes, secret societies, and Google.
15. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, by Ransom Riggs. Weird, but I give Riggs points for an imaginative concept and intriguing world-building. A quick read that makes up in originality what it lacks in nuance. 
16. * The Years, by Virginia Woolf. What a pleasure, after lots of fluff, to bask in Woolf's beautiful sentences. This was the only of her novels I hadn't yet read, and while it's probably not my ultimate favorite, it's up there near the top. I appreciated how perfectly this novel spans multiple generations of a family: pausing for glimpses of brief moments in time, giving the reader enough to know the characters but not belaboring the details or feeling the need to fill every gap. (In contrast to, say, The Secret Keeper, which is also a multi-generational family story but very heavy-handed.)
17. * Americanah, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Big winner. This had my attention from the first page, which is unusual for me. It's hilarious and heartbreaking in turns, and gains in both realms from Adichie's understated narration. Seriously, read this beautiful book.
18. Hollow City, by Ransom Riggs. Sequel to Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. See above.
19. * Code Name Verity, by Elizabeth Wein. World War II and female spies + lots of glowing recommendations = obviously I had to read this book. I got a slow start—I actually started then returned my library copy in NC and checked it out again months later in HI to finish—but it's worth sticking with. A well-constructed story with smart, interesting characters that doesn't shy away from acknowledging the costs of war.
20. The Care and Management of Lies, by Jacqueline Winspear. This is a standalone novel by the author of the Maisie Dobbs series. This one isn't a mystery, but like Maisie, it's historical fiction related to WWI. Fluff, but memorable, well-constructed fluff.
21. * The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint, by Brady Udall. I've meant to pick this up since Brady Udall read from it at the BYU English Dept. Reading Series years ago. Dysfunctional but lovable characters, a hilarious narrative voice, absurd plot twists, and solidly crafted scenes made this a great read.
22. Outside History: Selected Poems, 1980–1990, by Eavan Boland. I just love Eavan Boland. Her poems about history are stunning.
23. * Akata Witch, by Nnedi Okorafor. As some internet comments or Goodreads review I can't find right now said, this book manages to tell a story involving Africa and albinism without sensationalizing either one. The pacing was strange (I didn't find out until afterward that there's a sequel planned, which might explain why so much time is spent on exposition with very little action and resolution), but it's definitely worth a read: fun magic system, good storytelling, interesting characters.
24. Fun Home, by Alison Bechdel. I'm not much of a graphic novel reader generally, but this one lived up to its reputation. I found myself lingering on each panel and noticing how tightly Bechdel wove together the textual and visual material, often with parallel narratives. 
25. Wuthering Heights, by Emily Bronte. A classic I finally got around to reading for the first time. Everyone in this novel is terrible. 
26. Hattie Big Sky, by Kirby Larson. At this point I started cramming in more children's and YA books to get my count up before the end of the year. Hattie Big Sky is a Newbery Honor–winning coming-of-age story about a teenage girl homesteading in Montana during WWI. Larson covers a lot of ground: gender roles, racism, xenophobia, family, subsistence, etc., and paints a sweet, vivid story of community and self-discovery under challenging circumstances.
27. River Secrets, by Shannon Hale. Shannon Hale is just brilliant at middle-grade fantasy. Of the Bayern books, I probably still like Goose Girl and Enna Burning better, but this one doesn't disappoint.
28. Moon Over Manifest, by Clare Vanderpool. In retrospect, this one shares a lot with Hattie Big Sky: Newbery recognition (the 2011 medal, in this case), a young girl sent on her own to the American plains, a search to learn about her parents and her past, and life on the WWI home front. Also worth reading.
29. Sweet Home, by Carys Bray. A collection of short stories, most with a dark and sometimes fantastical undercurrent, about home and family life. One story seems to be the basis for Bray's recent novel A Song for Issy Bradley. I probably read this too quickly—I wish I'd allowed myself to linger a bit over some of the more haunting stories.

And here are a few I started but didn't finish:

1. Ceremony, by Leslie Marmon Silko. I just could not get into this one. I'll probably finish it eventually, because I'm not far from the end and it's an important novel, but it was slow going.
2. Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity, by Katherine Boo. I didn't get far into this at all. Something about an American journalist telling the story by putting thoughts and intentions into the minds of her real-life characters rubbed me the wrong way.
3. At Home: A Short History of Private Life, by Bill Bryson. A road trip audiobook. This was fun to listen to and full of interesting histories of routine household spaces and objects. I'll finish it eventually, maybe on another trip.
4. A Legacy, by Sybille Bedford. Another multi-generational family novel, this time semiautobiographical and set in nineteenth-century Germany. I'm still working on this—it's a slow, dense read.

Did you read any of these books? What were your favorite 2014 reads? What do you look forward to reading this year?