to all the books i've given 5 stars
or a list of my favourites (fiction & non-fiction)
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I’ve become a slightly picky reader over time. When I was a child, I was such a voracious reader and tore through books with such exhilaration that to me, every book I read was amazing and probably became a new favourite. You get 5 stars, you get 5 stars, and yep, you get 5 stars too! (insert Oprah Winfrey meme here). I would love to somehow gain access to my childhood Goodreads account and take a look at the absolute carnage that I’m sure exists on there.
When I was a teenager I went through the universal YA dystopian phase (I still have my battered copies of The Hunger Games, Divergent, and The Maze Runner) and I was a John Green fan, but my love for and interest in reading slowly began to wane. Who has time for reading when you’re dealing with so much teenage angst anyway?
I still read during my teenage years, but I usually picked up books that were currently popular, titles I saw people talking about on Tumblr or that were recommended by Booktubers I followed. It wasn’t until I fully got back into reading again during the Covid lockdowns that I really started to refine my reading taste. In the past two years, I’d say I’ve gotten it down to an (almost) exact science.
Nevertheless, I am still particularly stingy with my 5 star ratings, evidenced by this graph of my 2024 star ratings (so far):
When I share reading statistics like these I’m often asked why I rarely rate books low (you’ll notice on this graph the lack of one-star ratings), and the answer to that is a case of Occam’s razor: I simply pick up books I know I’m likely to enjoy. But to be worthy of a coveted 5-star rating, a book has to become a new favourite, provide me with a amazing reading experience that I miss as soon as the book is over, have stunning writing and interesting themes, and be something I want to re-read over and over again. But above all, a 5 star book simply has to remind me why I love to read.
As you make your way through this list you may start to think: “Leah, you said you’re stingy with your 5 stars yet this is a mammoth list?” But as someone who’s (surely) read over a thousand books so far in their life, there are 50 books on this list, which percentage wise, I’d say is still quite stingy. But I hope by reading some more about my favourite books, you find a new favourite too.
FICTION
The Secret History - Donna Tartt
The first on the list as it’s my favourite book of all-time. It was a book that I could hardly put down from the moment I picked it up. Every single character is captivating, the dark academia aesthetic is so well done, it’s deftly humorous, full of intelligence, is hauntingly atmospheric, and the writing is some of the most beautiful I’ve ever read. I’ve re-read this multiple times and I love it each time. It’s a masterclass in pacing, and even though the book is over 600 pages, I can’t think of a single sentence that doesn’t need to be there.
Conversations With Friends - Sally Rooney
On days when I don’t choose The Secret History as my favourite book of all-time, I choose this one. This novel is one of the first I read as an adult where I felt like the author had plucked the thoughts straight out of my head and written them on the page. If I had to pick a fictional character that I relate the most to, I’d have to say Frances from this book (although this is potentially a big red flag). It’s also just such a well-written novel, with nuanced explorations of relationship dynamics and power, and also a beautiful love story, just not in the ways you may think.
Girl, Woman, Other - Bernardine Evaristo
This book follows the interconnected lives of twelve characters, primarily Black British women, across generations and social class. It’s a beautiful love letter to Black womanhood where language is used as a vehicle to explore power, along with delving into themes of identity, gender, race, sexuality, and family.
The Girls - Emma Cline
Based on the infamous Manson family cult and murders, this book tells the story of Californian teenager Evie Boyd as she becomes entangled with a cult at a nearby ranch. Cline perfectly paints a portrait of the infamous summer of 1969 California, conveying the oppressive heat so viscerally that you can almost feel the sun beating down on your back as you read. It also perfectly captures the complex coming of age of a teenage girl and the toxicity of female friendships.
My Year of Rest and Relaxation - Ottessa Moshfegh
Set in pre-9/11 New York, this book follows a privileged and beautiful unnamed protagonist who uses prescription medication to sleep for an entire year, hoping to be renewed when she wakes up. Beneath it all, the novel is largely about grief, following a young woman who self-medicates as she is unable to cope with the pain of losing both parents in quick succession.
No Exit - Taylor Adams
This was one of the first thrillers I read and I’ve never been so stressed while reading a book. There are so many twists, one after the other so you literally don’t have time to properly process it because you just have to keep reading. It is expertly-paced with an eerie, claustrophobic feeling that only grows the more you read. A perfect book for winter.
A Woman is No Man - Etaf Rum
A mix of family saga and historical fiction, this book is a multi-generational tale following Palestinian-American women and their history of arranged marriages. It’s a powerful and painful novel, delving into the struggles of immigration and the haunts of generational trauma.
My Dark Vanessa - Kate Elizabeth Russell
This book offers a deep exploration into the complexities of abusive relationships and its subsequent trauma. Although obviously uncomfortable at times, it’s interesting to be inside Vanessa’s head throughout the story, as it becomes clear how years of grooming and abuse have warped her perspective and made her prone to denial, not able to recognise that her so-called ‘love story’ was actually just abuse.
Boy Parts - Eliza Clark
In Boy Parts, Clark turns the infamous male gaze on its head, with a main character who points her camera lens at men she scouts on the streets of Newcastle as models for her fetish photography. The book is dark and twisted, but simultaneously humorous and incredibly captivating, with an unreliable narrator to defeat them all.
Betty - Tiffany McDaniel
Betty is a fictionalised account of McDaniel’s real family history and Cherokee heritage, placing her mother Betty Carpenter at the forefront. Along with a haunting coming of age tale, it’s also a story about survival against racism, poverty, patriarchy, and the cycle of abuse that runs throughout generations of women. I can count on one hand the number of books I’ve cried at, and this is the most recent one.
Norwegian Wood - Haruki Murakami (translated by Jay Rubin)
This book is Murakami’s version of the early 20s, coming of age novel, exploring the desperation and loneliness of youth, along with the existential crisis of being young and not understanding what life is all about, or what you’re supposed to be doing with it.
Acts of Desperation - Megan Nolan
A striking novel with an unflinching, raw, and oftentimes uncomfortable depiction of what it’s like to be a woman, and the complexities of female suffering. The narrator is clearly desperate for love and to be loved, but her desperation seems to speak to something deeper - perhaps the female urge to simply feel seen, to be perceived as a person, a whole being, instead of just the sum of parts that women are often reduced to.
Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
With the vivid setting, the mystery, the hint of the supernatural and some classic pathetic fallacy, Rebecca contains all the elements that have come to epitomise the gothic genre. Although the novel is arguably a more subtle mystery/thriller, that doesn’t make it any less enthralling. Every twist is expertly crafted and unexpected, and as a reader you happily let Du Maurier lure you into complicity.
A Very Nice Girl - Imogen Crimp
This debut forefronts a young woman’s relationship with an older, richer man, exploring the power dynamics and financial inequalities that begin to seep into the pairing. Desire is a prominent theme in the book - the desire to follow your dreams, to be loved, to be financially secure. While sometimes contradictory, these desires hold up a mirror to the plights of many young women today. Stripped back, the book provides a portrait of a young woman trying to figure out where she fits in the world.
Penance - Eliza Clark
Penance is a compulsive and unsettling examination of what has become the true-crime industrial complex. The setting of the northern seaside town, Crow-on-Sea, allows Clark to explore the decay of the north/seaside towns, and how dangerous the political and class divides of these towns can become when left to fester. She also perfectly, and horrifyingly, captures the cruelty of teenage female friendship groups and how awful teenagers can be to one another.
Vladimir - Julia May Jonas
A razor-sharp, post-#MeToo novel which shines a light onto some of the grey areas of the movement, before shifting into rather compelling thriller-esque territory towards the end. Along with a provocative exploration of power dynamics and the intersection of power and desire (especially how much desire is permitted with age), Jonas also provides some commentary on the ongoing, and seemingly unanswerable, conundrum of the place of mortality in art, or whether it even has a place at all.
Breasts and Eggs - Mieko Kawakami (translated by Sam Bett & David Boyd)
A tender yet unflinching exploration of womanhood, societal expectations, and the complex relationships between mothers and daughters. Kawakami examines the struggles of navigating patriarchal society as a woman, bodily autonomy, and what it means for a body to hold life. I read the majority of this during a train journey and was immersed, especially by Part One.
The Neapolitan Quartet - Elena Ferrante (translated by Ann Goldstein)
(I rated every book in this series 5 stars, so have included them as one)
The Neapolitan Quartet is made up of four novels which follows the complex and lifelong friendship between Elena and Lila, set in a working class neighbourhood in Naples. Through the lens of their friendship, Ferrante examines themes of social class, identity, power, and the struggles of women to navigate a patriarchal society. It’s one of the most incredible series I’ve ever read, I can’t wait to re-read it over and over in the future.
On Beauty - Zadie Smith
A campus novel that, rather than focusing on one character’s university experience and coming of age, examines academia as a whole and the political tensions between conservative and liberal ideologies. It also provides an examination of race and identity, the value of the family unit, and the aesthetics of beauty.
Big Swiss - Jen Beagin
A kooky, funny, and gripping romp of a novel, exploring the differences in processing trauma, a humorous look at new age psychology/therapy, and queerness. The absurd but witty humour and the characterisation definitely stand out as the strongest aspects of the book. While reading you’re constantly teetering on the edge of entertainment and discomfort, and it may not work for everyone, but it worked for me.
Play It As It Lays - Joan Didion
A searing portrait of American life and the female experience in the 1960s, an era characterised by its severe limitations placed on women’s autonomy. It is unequivocally an American novel, perfectly exemplifying the burnt-out cultural wasteland of 1960s California and its ennui. It’s bleak, nihilistic, and quite frankly depressing, but it’s worth it to experience the brilliance of Joan Didion’s fiction.
The White Book - Han Kang (translated by Deborah Smith)
Through meditations on the colour white, Kang imagines the life of her mother’s first child who died within 2 hours of being born, along with reflections on grief and the fragility of life. The book just scrapes 150 pages, but yet it’s full of such poignancy, such heart. A beautiful tribute to an older sister Kang never got to have, a life not given the chance to be lived. I personally connected with this very deeply.
Beach Read - Emily Henry
The only romance book on this list, as I would say it’s my favourite romance (although this can change depending on how I’m feeling). As well as an amazing, sweet romance (including 10/10 sarcastic banter and great chemistry), this book also has a lot of emotional depth, touching on issues like grief, relationship breakdowns, family relationships/father daughter relationships, childhood trauma, second chances - to name a few. Gus Everett is also a dream.
The Trio - Johanna Hedman (translated by Kira Josefsson)
A reflective meditation on friendship, love, class, and the complexities of human relationships. It’s one of those novels that I’d describe as ‘quiet’, focusing on three main characters as they drift in and out of each other’s lives. It feels like if Sally Rooney’s first two books ‘Conversations With Friends’ and ‘Normal People’ had a lovechild, which is probably why I loved it so much.
Jane Eyre - Charlotte Brontë
The Gothic Romance classic if there ever was one. Along with a compelling romance, Jane Eyre is ultimately a bildungsroman, centring on a young woman’s search for freedom under the constraints of Victorian society. I first read this in school when I was about 13, and I remember pretending to find it a bore like the rest of my classmates, when I was really having a great time. It’s definitely a classic that’s worth analysing and digging into deeper, even if just for fun.
Crossroads - Jonathan Franzen
Another sprawling family saga set against the backdrop of 1970s Chicago, following the Hildebrandt family at a pivotal moment of moral crisis. While most of the action unfolds on one day in the run-up to Christmas, the timeline jumps back and forth and the perspective shifts between each family member as they each grapple with their own relationships, identities, and beliefs.
Sorrow and Bliss - Meg Mason
This book contains one of the most painfully raw depictions of mental illness that I have ever read. It’s an absolute feat of a character study, and it is through the protagonist’s complexities that Mason is able to convey the pure reality and destruction of mental illness, the importance of correct diagnosis, and how mental illness can tear through an entire family. It’s a reminder that mental illness is only a part of who you are, it is not who you are.
Heartburn - Nora Ephron
A sharp and witty novel following a woman who, while 7 months pregnant, discovers her husband is having an affair. Nothing really happens, but in Ephron’s capable hands, the book strikes the perfect balance of biting humour with poignant reflections on love and heartbreak.
Pachinko - Min Jin Lee
A moving multigenerational tale following a Korean family through the turmoil of Japanese colonisation. It’s a novel rich with history, in fact I was shocked with how little I knew about Korean history while reading it. Jin Lee expertly intertwines the personal and the political, crafting compelling characters who continue to persevere in the face of historical injustices.
Orbital - Samantha Harvey
This slim novel contains some of the most poetic, awe-inspiring prose I’ve read in a very long time. It’s set in space but it’s really a novel about the earth. It’s a beautiful, reflective meditation of humanity, the recognition of our fragility but a celebration of our hope. The overarching message continues to ring true long after you’ve closed the book: perhaps all is not lost if we take a step back and realise what it is that we’d be losing.
The Bee Sting - Paul Murray
An incredible family saga which poses a warning about what can boil to the surface when secrets and tensions have been pushed down for so long. I was enthralled by every page and I can easily see this novel being lauded as a modern classic, with an ending that will leave you screaming or staring at the wall for a while, depending on the type of person you are. One of my favourite books I read in 2024 (if not the favourite).
NON-FICTION
Know My Name - Chanel Miller
Possibly one of the most powerful and beautifully-written memoirs I’ve ever read. Miller details her story of sexual assault and healing with unflinching honesty, delving into the common struggle of victims having to constantly relive their trauma and be revictimized all over again in order to seek justice. It’s incredibly sad and haunting, while simultaneously stunning and hopeful. I personally think it should be required reading for everyone.
In The Dream House - Carmen Maria Machado
Amidst stunning prose Machado pushes the boundaries of the usual memoir, telling her story in a series of vignettes written though the lens of different genres (romance novel, spy thriller) or literary tropes (unreliable narrator, pathetic fallacy). This book is a genre-bending, terrifying yet beautiful memoir which shines a light on the complexities of abuse in queer relationships.
Slow Days Fast Company - Eve Babitz
An auto-biographical essay collection capturing the 1970s L.A. scene, detailing Babitz’s days spent running around the city, bumping into the famous or the almost-famous. Her observations about the city and its culture are saturated with her quick-wit and dry humour. Her writing is so easygoing and gossipy that it just feels like one of your friends is catching you up on their latest escapades.
Unnatural Causes - Dr Richard Shepherd
Perfect for true-crime buffs or those interested in forensics, this book delves into some of Dr Shepherd’s most gripping moments from his career as a pathologist, with his cases involving massacres, 9/11, and Princess Diana.
Becoming - Michelle Obama
This was one of the first ‘celebrity’ memoirs I read a few years ago, and I remember being very pleasantly surprised by how captivating it was. As a rule I do not deify any political figures and while Michelle Obama obviously cannot be fully extricated from politics, she is still a person separate to that and has a right to tell her own story on her terms - and what an incredible story it is.
The Copenhagen Trilogy - Tove Ditlevsen (translated by Tiina Nunnally & Michael Favala Goldman)
A searingly honest and compulsive memoir, in which Ditlevsen details the experience of growing up in a working-class neighbourhood in Copenhagen (childhood), her desire for love and her journey to become a successful female writer in the 20th century (youth), and her dark struggles with addiction (dependency).
Wordslut - Amanda Montell
This book is educational and entertaining, which is something I often look for in non-fiction like this. Montell explains linguistics in such a clear, concise, and witty way, which makes it so accessible and actually fun to read. I learned so much about how language has been/still is used to marginalise women and other minority groups.
I Am, I Am, I Am - Maggie O’Farrell
I love a unique take on a memoir which plays around with the format, and that’s exactly what this book is: a memoir told through 17 near-death experiences. O’Farrell brings the reader face-to-face with the human condition: the mortality of it, the sheer fragility, reminding us how everyday we walk around on the precipice of death without even knowing it. I closed the book thinking 2 things: 1) what an extraordinary life this woman has lived and 2) she will always have a great dinner party story to tell.
Say Nothing - Patrick Radden Keefe
Say Nothing is an absolute feat of narrative non-fiction, delving into the Troubles conflict in Ireland which spanned decades. Like with most historical events, there are nuances and different sides to every story, which Radden Keefe exhaustively examines here. It’s a book which explores the old-age question of: can any change be enacted without violence?
Crying in H Mart - Michelle Zauner
A raw and beautiful memoir about family, grief, culture, identity, and food. Zauner details her experience of navigating her Korean identity and her difficult relationship with her mother with such frankness. Through intimate anecdotes, we follow Zauner’s adolescence to adulthood, with her relationship to her mother running as a thread throughout, until it’s severed when her mother passes away.
Born a Crime - Trevor Noah
In his memoir Trevor Noah details his upbringing in apartheid South Africa. With his signature wit, Noah recounts his experience as the mixed-race child of a Black mother and a white father, born during a time when such a union was illegal. Through his coming-of-age tale, Noah navigates themes of identity, systemic racism, and the enduring bond between mother and son, perfectly blending humour with heart.
The Glass Castle - Jeannette Walls
A beautifully-written and heart-wrenching memoir which details a childhood full of neglect and abuse, but also serves as a striking reminder that you can pull yourself out of a dark childhood and build an adulthood for yourself that you truly want and deserve.
Intimations - Zadie Smith
A collection of six essays, and although written during lockdown, it is definitely not a ‘Covid’ book. Instead, it is a series of reflections and musings Smith had during the first few months of the pandemic, particularly her attempts to try and make sense of the world during such a state of perpetual chaos. Incredibly powerful and full of Smith’s trademark stunning and intelligent prose.
a lot of reads that I’ve enjoyed — Betty, The Neapolitan Quartwt and Know My Name are absolute favorites always. I need to get to the rest that are on my tbr but my only disagreement would probably be A Very Nice Girl, which I thought of as too repetitive/cliche.
Uh, we have a lot of 5 stars in common! Not sure if I am thanking or not so much liking you now for making my "want to read" pile even longer!!! 😬😉