I’m not here to recommend books. I won’t say which books on this list I loved and which I found disappointing. But I will say that even books that fall flat in places have something they can teach us. So here’s a list of the random novels and creative nonfiction I’ve read throughout the year and one thing I thought each did well:
2026
- The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store (James McBride): efficiently crafting clear characters
- Murder at Sommerset House (Andrea Penrose): balancing historical detail with effective pacing
- Bryony and Roses (T. Kingfisher): narrative voice and dialogue
- The Guncle series (Steven Rowley): modulating tone
- Good Bad Girl (Alice Feeney): grounding unreliable narration with psychological motivations
- Calypso (David Sedaris): engaging with flawed characters
- A Swim in a Pond in the Rain (George Saunders): teaching without preaching (okay, this is technically just straight up nonfiction, but it teaches you about writing, so it counts. What are rules?)
- What the Lady’s Maid Knew (E. E. Homes): exploring the villain
- The Hollow Places (T. Kingfisher): holding mundanity and the horrific surreal in the same space
- Book Lovers (Emily Henry): engaging with (and embracing) tropes while subverting them
- Wayward (Dana Spiotta): exploring the cringiest parts of ourselves
- The Chaosweaver’s Daughter (M. A. Lakewood): writing neurospicy characters without resorting to stereotypes
Two Cats and a Draft 