Thread by @joymwhyte

In 2014, I resolved to read 50 books a year. It's generally a delight and a great discipline, but it's been a struggle this year, due to a pandemic-induced months-long collapse in my concentration. However this is - drumroll - the normal time for my top 10... Thread /1

I read about 50/50 fiction/non-fiction, so my top 10 reflects that split. And this list is in the order I read the books in 2020 /2

First in the non-fiction category @Jonathan_Rowson's "The Moves that Matter: a chess grandmaster on the game of life". An excellent, engaging read, and also a good accompaniment to The Queen's Gambit /3

Next in non-fiction "Dear Life: a doctor’s story of love and loss" @doctor_oxford Brilliantly written, deeply moving, and an excellent illustration of why we must continue to fund the NHS /4

After a long hiatus in reading, I found - via Twitter - @marinab52's "Garden Among Fires: a lockdown anthology", which as with Dahl's Matilda gave "a hopeful and comforting message: you are not alone". A meaningful read in an exhausting, unsettling year /5

Next a book that a friend recommended after I raved about Invisible Women in 2019: @sara_ann_marie's "Technically Wrong: sexist apps, biased algorithms and other threats of toxic tech". Serious, shocking and accessible. A (much better) companion piece to The Social Dilemma /6

Finally - in non-fiction - @Sab_CohenHatton's "The Heat of the Moment" - I bought this after hearing her on #DesertIslandDiscs and my adrenaline rose just reading the book. The Trolley Problem writ large, and much else besides - from neuroscience to major incident management /7

Honourable mentions in non-fiction for the following:
- More than a woman - Caitlin Moran
- The Body - Bill Bryson
- The Wild Silence - Raynor Winn
- All that remains - Sue Black

And one which I haven't finished, which is likely to make next year's list. Fiction next.. /8

Fiction choices are again in order of reading. I can't remember anything I read pre-lockdown, though my @goodreads scores are unenthusiastic. The book that brought me back to fiction this year was @PhilipPullman's The Secret Commonwealth - fully absorbing and brilliant as ever /9

Then rapidly on to "Where the Crawdads Sing" by Delia Owens. The kind of book I'd continue reading walking to and from the tube (if I still got the tube). Vividly drawn landscapes, and a story that kept me awake well into the night, & stayed in my mind long after I'd finished /10

Next in fiction: "Hamnet" by Maggie O'Farrell - I've read all her books, and this was a treasure. Almost too painful to read in places, but always perfectly judged, and evocative of Hamnet and Hamlet's lives /11

Finally, in fiction, two books by the same author. First Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's "Zikora" - a slender novella that packed more punch than many other much longer books /12

And finally - in fiction - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's "The Thing Around Your Neck" - a collection of short stories that engaged, challenged and surprised me. Each tale perfectly crafted and each offering an elegant sufficiency /13

Honorable mentions in fiction for:
- The mothers: Brit Bennett
- Summerwater: Sarah Moss
- The Midnight Library: Matt Haig
/14

Finding time to read again has helped me hugely - creating space in worlds of delight, escape, and discovery. Small plug: I'm walking 125km early next May, in aid of @Booktrust If you're able to do so, I'd love it if you'd consider sponsoring me: justgiving.com/fundraising/jo… /ends

@threadreaderapp unroll please

Many thanks for your sponsorship @CatherineSmale