A Year in Books | What I Read in 2024
Here we are into 2025 already and I feel like the last year passed by in a blink. What a year it was. I moved across the country (again), traveled around France, visited friends in Los Angeles and New York, and even made it home to my family in Ireland (after five long years).
I read 75 books last year, and per my usual habits, I flip-flopped between fiction and non-fiction depending on the mood. Here are some of my favourites.
Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar
Kaveh Akbar’s debut is on just about every ‘best of 2024’ list, and I finally picked up a copy last month for my long flight back to Dublin. Just a few pages in and I was totally engrossed.
Here we follow Cyrus Shams, a young man and recovering addict grappling with the loss of his mother, who died when her plane was shot down by the American government in a senseless accident. Cyrus develops an obsession with martyrs and while researching a book he dreams of writing, he meets a woman in a Brooklyn gallery who reveals more about his past than he ever knew. This is truly a magnificent book.
The Nix by Nathan Hill
This book (tome) came out in 2017, and I have to admit that I was intimidated by its length. Clocking in at more than 700 pages, I was actually surprised when I reached the end and wanted to start all over again. In fact, I started the audiobook, narrated by Ari Fliakos right after.
Following a young professor named Samuel who hasn’t seen his mother in decades, not since she abandoned him and his father when he was a child. When his mother is arrested at a political event, her lawyer calls Samuel for help. He’s reluctant at first, but decides to meet her when he realizes he can use it to his benefit. The Nix is a story of motherhood, fractured relationships, politics, and longing. It’s a sweeping accomplishment.
Alphabetical Diaries by Sheila Heti
Named a Best Book of the Year by The New Yorker and Los Angeles Times, Heti’s latest is a collection of more than 500,000 words from her journals spanning one decade, which she edited into sentences and sorted alphabetically.
This is my first Sheila Heti, and it’s one of the most unique books I’ve ever come across.
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
For fans of A Man Called Ove, this gorgeous debut is centred around a woman named Tova Sullivan and an octopus she encounters at the aquarium where she works as a cleaner.
Tova is widowed and still grieving her son who died thirty-years prior, and Marcellus is an octopus in captivity, fully aware of his surroundings and the fact that life is closing in on him. The two form an unlikely bond out of which grows an unexpected discovery. A meditation on friendship, loneliness, and grief, this wonderful book should be at the top of your list.
The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen
Here we follow a family of five in the lead-up to the holidays. Enid, a mother and wife of almost fifty years, would like nothing more than to have her entire family together for one last Christmas. Her husband’s health is deteriorating rapidly and her children are each facing catastrophes of their own.
Her son Chip has impulsively flown off to post-Soviet Lithuania to partake in illegal business activities. Denise, the youngest, is recently divorced and jumping into a fling with a married man who also happens to be her boss. Meanwhile, Gary, the oldest, is trying to keep himself and his family afloat while struggling with depression.
One of the New York Times best books of the century, and one of the most humorous books I’ve ever read, The Corrections is a literary classic that is not to be missed. It’s recently been announced that Meryl Streep will star in the TV adaptation.
Intermezzo by Sally Rooney
From the author of Normal People and Conversations with Friends, comes a contemplative new novel. We follow two very different brothers who come together for their father’s funeral. Peter is a lawyer in his thirties and Ivan is a twenty-two year old renowned chess player.
Peter and Ivan are in the depths of grief following the death of their father, while at the same time they’re each grappling with complex romantic relationships that may just tear them apart for good. Intermezzo is Sally Rooney at her best. I highly recommend the audiobook narrated by Éanna Hardwicke.
Long Island Compromise by Taffy Brodesser-Akner
Inspired by the kidnapping of her father's friend who was held at gunpoint in Long Island fifty years ago, this is an excellent read. Spanning the entirety of one family's history, Long Island Compromise explores complex family relationships and intergenerational trauma.
If you enjoyed the author's debut, Fleishman is in Trouble, you'll love this. I highly recommend the audiobook narrated by Edoardo Ballerini.
All Fours by Miranda July
My first Miranda July and let me tell you this lives up to the hype. It’s laugh out loud hilarious. Here we follow a semi-famous artist with a plan to drive from Los Angeles to New York, however she actually ends up spending her time up at a nondescript motel thirty minutes after leaving her house.
She pays an interior decorator to renovate her room so that it resembles a suite at Le Bristol in Paris, and what is supposed to be a cross country road trip turns into an epic journey of the self. I loved every moment of this.
The Age of Magical Overthinking by Amanda Montell
In her latest work, Amanda Montell, the author of Cultish and Wordslut, turns her focus to our cognitive biases. She dives into the reasons we see ourselves and others the way we do, how we fall prey to misinformation, and why we turn to magical thinking.
Just like her previous books, this is packed with expert insights and is digestible for all readers. The Age of Magical Overthinking is a fascinating journey into human consciousness.
Grief is for People by Sloane Crosley
In her first memoir, multi-New York Times bestseller Sloane Crosley reflects on the grief she feels following the death of her closest friend. This is one of the most affecting books in this category since Joan Didion's The Year of Magical Thinking.
Crosley reminds us of the importance of the present. “If I desire the kind of life you wanted me to live, one of expansion over retraction,” she reflects, “I must learn to be on the side of the living.”
Foster Dade Explores the Cosmos by Nash Jenkins
I'll admit that I only bought this book for two reasons: it was on sale and it has a great cover. It sat unopened on my bookshelf for months, until a few days into a reading slump, I picked it up at random. I’m so glad I did as this is a campus novel at its best.
We follow a teenager named Foster Dade who arrives at Kennedy, an elite boarding school in New Jersey in 2008. His life is upended when he befriends two students at the top of the social ladder. In an exploration of wealth, power, and privilege, Jenkins paints a haunting picture of adolescence.
I read many more wonderful books not listed here. Check out the full list over on my GoodReads. Happy 2025!
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