My Top 10 Reads of the Decade

I first started tracking my reading in 2010.  Since that time, I've read more than 1,000 books.  Yearly, I've posted my top books of the year, but I thought as we are on the cusp of a new decade, I should post my top 10 reads of the decade (along with 30 runners up).

1.  The Art of Hearing Heartbeats by Jan-Philipp Sendker.   One of the most beautiful love stories I've read.  I was immediately fascinated by the story of a young woman searching for her missing father in his native Burma and with the story of her father's childhood and great love.  The audio book is beautifully read.

2.  Erin Morgenstern's The Night Circus, which is read by the fabulous Jim Dale, is a truly enchanting story.  I found it reminiscent of the movie "The Prestige," where two young magicians compete against each other in what becomes a battle of life or death.

3.  Being Mortal is probably the most important book I read this decade, changing the way I thought about medical care and death.  I truly believe this should be required reading for all humans.

4.  Another non-fiction selection, The Book of Joy changed the way I think about happiness vs. joy and how to find joy in life.  For five days, two of the greatest religious leaders of our time (and close friends) shared their thoughts on finding joy despite a life that includes suffering.  Their overall message?  Relationships with others are paramount and joy comes through relationship. 

5. I have three great reading loves - historical fiction, nonfiction, and young adult fiction.  The Hunger Games series tops by young adult reads this decade.  A primer on what government should never be.  et in America far in the future, the country has been divided into 12 Districts with the Capitol in the Rockies.  Because of a rebellion almost 75 years in the past, each district must send two children as tributes to the Captiol each year to compete in the Hunger Games.  Only 1 of the 24 children will survive the competition to the death.  Widely televised, the Hunger Games provide entertainment to those in the Captiol and a reminder to those in the Districts of the price of rebellion.  I loved the characters in this book, but particularly the protagonist, Katniss Everdeen.  While I enjoyed the whole series, this was my favorite of the three books.

6.  My Name is Mary Sutter is set during the Civil War, telling the story of Mary Sutter, who is determined to nove beyond her role as a midwife and become a doctor.  Women's empowerment!

7. Echo was the 2016 Newbery Honor book.  I knew the author from some simple chapter books Lily loved about Tony Baloney the macaroni penguin, and while those books were fun, I wasn't sure what to expect from Echo.  A single harmonica makes its way across the world to change the course of three young lives.  A simply beautiful story.

8.  Angie Thomas' The Hate U Give focuses on the aftermath of the shooting of an unarmed black youth by a white police officer.  A very timely and important read.

9.  I've read all of Robert Dugoni's Tracy Crosswhite thriller series, starting with My Sister's Grave, and have always enjoyed them.  Tracy Crosswhite is a Seattle police officer whose sister was murdered while they were teenagers.  While that entire series is worth reading, nothing about them prepared me for Sam Hell.  This book reminded me of A Prayer for Owen Meany, one of my all-time favorites.  Sam is born with ocular albinism, which makes his eyes appear red.  The book follows his life from childhood to his work as a doctor.  I loved the characters and was sad to leave them at the end of the book.

10.  Adverse Childhood Experiences (or ACEs) and trauma impact health for a lifetime.  More than 20 years after the initial study correlating trauma with long-term negative health consequences, research is finally emerging on how to counteract these impacts as an adult.  Dr. Burke Harris has an amazing TED talk on ACEs if you are interested!

Runners up by category

Fiction

The Institute by Stephen King
The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton

The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

Small Great Things by Jodi Picolut

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane by Lisa See

The Storyteller's Secret by Sejal Badani 

Cemetery Road by Greg Iles

Young Adult Fiction

Circus Mirandus by Cassie Beasley

Because of Mr. Terupt by Rob Buyea

Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick

Far from the Tree by Robin Benway

The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani

On the Come Up by Angie Thomas
Forever or a Long Long Time by  Caela Carter
The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh

Fiction Series

Bill Hodges trilogy (Mr. Mercedes, Finders Keepers, and End of Watch) by Stephen King
The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith

Natchez Burning trilogy by Greg Iles

Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes series by Laurie R King

FBI Profiler series by Lisa Gardner
Ruth Galloway series by Elly Griffiths

Nonfiction

A Secret Gift by Ted Gup

Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb

The Distance Between Us by Renya Grande

Zeitoun by Dave Eggers

My Beloved World by Justice Sonia Sotomayor

Becoming by Michelle Obama

Evicted by Matthew Diamond

Wishing you a decade of great reading!