Book Review | Book Chatter

This is a list of the books I read in 2016. Once again, my list is short. The death of my FIL and then later the death of my mother really affected me towards the end of the year.

Each link takes you directly to my review of that book. Happy New Year! May 2017 be filled with plenty of great books.

2016 Reviews

1. The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo
2. The Road to Little Dribbling by Bill Bryson
3. The Invaders by Karolina Waclawiak
4. Where My Heart Used to Beat by Sebastian Faulks
5. Ghettoside by Jill Leovy
6. Under the Influence by Joyce Maynard
7. Lost & Found by Brooke Davis
8. Be Frank With Me by Julia Claiborne Johnson
9. The Ramblers by Aidan Donnelley Rowley
10. God Help the Child by Toni Morrison
11. The Nakeds by Lisa Glatt
12. Gold Fame Citrus by Claire Vaye Watkins
13. The New World by Chris Adrian
14. Hour of the Bees by Lindsay Eagar
15. Tuesday Nights in 1980 by Molly Prentiss
16. City of Secrets by Stewart O’Nan
17. We’re All Damaged by Matthew Norman
18. Father’s Day by Simon Van Booy
19. Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff
20. Zero K by Don DeLillo
21. My Last Continent by Midge Raymond
22. Wintering by Peter Geye
23. The Long Goodbye by Raymond Chandler
24. The Fireman by Joe Hill
25. The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware
26. Firefly Summer by Nan Rossiter
27. Before the Fall by Noah Hawley
28. End of Watch by Stephen King
29. The Book of Aron by Jim Shepard
30. The City of Mirrors by Justin Cronin
31. Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler
32. Leave Me by Gayle Forman
33. The Nest by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney
34. After the Parade by Lori Ostlund
35. The Girls in the Garden by Lisa Jewell
36. The Yard by Aliyyah Eniath
37. Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris
38. The Dogs of Littlefield by Suzanne Berne
39. The House Girl by Tara Conklin
40. Fractured by Catherine McKenzie
41. Searching For John Hughes by Jason Diamond
42. Summer of Night by Dan Simmons
43. Commonwealth by Ann Patchett

Commonwealth
By Ann Patchett
Harper, Hardcover, 9780062491794,September 2016, 336pp.

The Short of It:

This is a story about two families and how the actions of one night affect them for decades.

The Rest of It:

One Sunday afternoon in Southern California, Bert Cousins shows up at Franny Keating’s christening party uninvited. Before evening falls, he has kissed Franny’s mother, Beverly thus setting in motion the dissolution of their marriages and the joining of two families. (Indiebound)

Reading has been really difficult for me these past couple of months so I was really excited when I finally sat down to Commonwealth. As tragic as a story like this could be, it’s not. There’s some sadness but clearly, this is a family that loves each other and I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know these characters. Plus, much of it is set in Southern California, which I loved. The story spans decades but never once did I lose interest.

I’m not sure if I will ever get around to posting my “best of” list this year but Commonwealth is definitely on it.

Source: Review copy provided by the publisher.
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

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