My 2022 Book List

January 1, 2023

tags: best books, book, book list 2022, review

Here’s my list of the books I read in 2022, what I thought about them, and what they made me think about. I would have written shorter reviews if I’d had more time? Maybe.

It was a good year overall. My favorite reads were the two Jennifer Egan novels and Cormac McCarthy’s The Passenger. Those who know me know what a huge fan I am of McCarthy. This was a long-awaited novel and it delivered. I read it three times.

For nonfiction, a little scattershot. I think the most unique book I read was W.G. Sebald’s The Rings of Saturn. I wasn’t even sure how to classify it. Some other favorites listed below, if you just want the short list.

Looking back, it seems I grouped my reads in twos a lot more than I realized. I read Jennifer Egan’s two linked novels. Cormac McCarthy’s two linked novels. Emily St. John Mandel’s two linked novels. Two about the legacy of the Civil War. Two about authoritarian tendencies in America. Two of Chuck Klosterman’s. This wasn’t always intentional, but I did put some of those pairs together in the same review when it made sense.

This is my 23rd list. Thanks to my friend Greg for getting me started with this ritual. When I started 23 years ago, my reviews were a few sentences. I tell myself we just get more verbose with age.

And special thanks to my mom, who still reads every review and sends me typos and suggested edits, often leading to interesting (to us) sidebars on grammar rules.

Let me know what you read and what you thought of it. Happy new year, and happy reading in 2023!