The Best Books I Read in 2023
I don’t read books the same way a voracious reader normally would. Instead, I seek out interesting titles, authors, and genres from a variety of avenues based on what’s available at the time. A lot of what I read is neither a new release nor is it consumed by the masses. I read 15 books in 2023 and have dedicated myself to completing one title per week since publishing Losing Lee back in September. If that pace holds true in 2024, I will have read 52 books. Theoretically speaking, next year’s rendition of this post will be significantly longer. With that said, let’s look at the five best I personally read in 2023. Remember, this is not an accurate list of recent releases. In fact, none of the five were released last year, but I loved them all.
ORDINARY GRACE BY WILLIAM KENT KRUEGER
A preacher’s son, Frank Drum is a thirteen-year-old living in 1961 small town New Bremen, Minnesota who has no idea the hectic summer he has in store. Life is all fine and dandy for the teen until death strikes every which way in New Bremen. Ordinary Grace is a fantastic coming-of-age story about a boy who is forced to grow up in the span of a few chapters. I have always been fond of Krueger and his work, but it wasn’t until I met him while presenting this past fall at the Deep Valley Book Festival in Mankato, Minnesota that I decided to finally give Ordinary Grace a go. You will not be disappointed if you read it, either. As one Goodreads reviewer named Christine aptly put it, “I feel bad for the next book I plan to read, because Ordinary Grace is a very hard act to follow.” Those are strong words, but the story lives up to the sentiment.
THE GREAT ALONE BY KRISTIN HANNAH
My best Free Little Library score of the year, The Great Alone is the story of Leni Albright, a teenage girl with an abusive father and ignorant, lovestruck mother. Leni’s father, a Vietnam veteran suffering from PTSD, uproots the family’s life impulsively—again—to the remote wilderness of Alaska in the early 1970s. Hannah does a wonderful job drawing on her own personal experience with the Last Frontier, which ends playing the role of character more than setting. The incredibly detailed descriptions make it easy to picture exactly the where and what of fictional Kaneq, Alaska. The previous owner of the copy I picked up inscribed a signed note on a post-it attached to the inside of the back cover that said, “This is so good, but has a slow start. Give it a go!” I’m so glad I heeded to her advice. If you for some reason come across this article, thank you Julie from Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
THE LEGEND OF BAGGER VANCE BY STEVEN PRESSFIELD
If you follow my blog extensively, you know most posts are golf related. Unapologetically, I love golf. Golf is the best game in the world, and I have yet to see a worthy argument to prove otherwise. So, when I was given a copy of The Legend of Bagger Vance, the book shot straight to the top of my reading list. The story, which takes place in the 1930s, details a fictional golf match on the Georgia coast between two real-life golfing giants, Walter Hagen and Bobby Jones, and a local champion named Rannulph Junah. Several thousand patrons attend, one of which is our main character Hardy. Hardy and Junah start to notice the wondrous capabilities of Junah’s mysterious caddy, Bagger Vance, and his knowledge of the “true authentic swing”. If The Legend of Bagger Vance is read the way it should be—as a fairytale, a work of fiction—I guarantee you will enjoy it. Vance’s methods are interesting and Pressfield does a great job toeing the line between the real and the supernatural. Many readers might even consider this a fantasy novel. Take a trip to Krewe Island, indulge in this match, and find out for yourself.
ANXIOUS PEOPLE BY FREDRIK BACKMAN
A clumsy robber in Sweden doesn’t realize the bank they’re robbing is a cashless facility, and so they sprint across the street into an apartment showing to subsequently take the prospective buyers hostage. Meanwhile, as the arc moves back and forth to past and present, two policemen, who are father and son, are scratching their heads wondering how they let the robber get away. Anxious People follows the group inside the apartment and gives each character a unique voice during the hostage saga. Among the five stories I am highlighting, Anxious People is easily the funniest. If it wasn’t clear before this, Backman is also great at character development, so good in fact that you can’t help but dislike all the hostages at the beginning and then wish some of them were your friends by the finale. This is my second favorite title of his after A Man Called Ove.
MURDER IN WINNEBAGO COUNTY BY CHRISTINE HUSOM
The first in Christine Husom’s Winnebago County series, Murder in Winnebago County follows a serial killer, Alvie, who intends to avenge her late son Nolan by taking down everyone “involved” in his death. This revenge tour involves tracking down the police officer, attorney, judge, and parole officer, marking them as "responsible" targets. The setting, a small Minnesotan town, is incredibly convincing, so much so that I found myself looking up Oak Lea, thinking it might be a real place. Husom draws on her own experience with the Wright County Sheriff’s Department to create very believable characters in Sergeant Corky Aleckson and Detective Smoke Dawes. Corky is immediately an affable protagonist, someone you can root for within pages of meeting her. I will be reading more of this series soon. It’s a no brainer if you like police detective mysteries. Think Craig Johnson’s Longmire series, but set in Minnesota.
(I want to hear from you! Let me know here in the comment section or send me an email at joe@joeeganbooks.com with your list of favorites from 2023. Thanks for reading!)