{"id":5588,"date":"2023-01-02T11:00:59","date_gmt":"2023-01-02T11:00:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.aussiepizzas.com\/PIZZADELIVERY\/my-top-5-books-of-2022\/"},"modified":"2023-01-02T11:00:59","modified_gmt":"2023-01-02T11:00:59","slug":"my-top-5-books-of-2022","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.aussiepizzas.com\/PIZZADELIVERY\/my-top-5-books-of-2022\/","title":{"rendered":"My Top 5 Books of 2022"},"content":{"rendered":"

Today, I am sharing my five favourite books from among those I read during 2022. I ended up reading fewer than 100 books in both 2020<\/a> and 2021<\/a> and to hold myself accountable, at the start of 2022<\/a> I started blogging every other month about my favourite books. I tailed off towards the end of the year due to a hectic travel schedule and getting stuck for a while on a few books I wasn’t enjoying, but I still achieved my target and read 102 books in 2022. Read on to find out which ones made my shortlist, as well as my full reading list for the year.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/a><\/p>\n

As usual, I’ve included links to Bookshop.org<\/a>, a UK-based online bookshop, although you should also be able to find them all in your local indie bookshop.<\/p>\n

1. Yerba Buena<\/a> <\/i>by Nina LaCour
The power of a great novel comes in its ability to transport you to another time or another place and Nina LaCour’s debut adult novel did just that, taking me back to coastal California, which holds a special place in my heart. Yerba Buena <\/i>is a richly evocative love story between two young women growing up in the Golden State who come from very different backgrounds, united by shared loneliness and a deep connection. LaCour’s writing tantalises all of the senses \u2014 I would love to drink the titular Yerba Buena cocktail at the (sadly fictional) depicted restaurant and I long to smell the fragrant redwoods again.<\/p>\n

2. We Are All Birds of Uganda<\/a> by Hafsa Zayyan
I was instantly drawn to Hafsa Zayyan’s novel in a bookshop after I happened upon it in a bookshop just after I returned from my first trip to Uganda<\/a> earlier this year. We Are All Birds of Uganda <\/i>is the story of Sameer, a successful young lawyer in London, who is at a crossroads after he is offered a new role in Singapore and is torn between the excitement of the new opportunity and duty to his South Asian family in Leicester. He travels to Uganda \u2013 his family’s home until they were forced to leave for the UK during the Idi Amin regime \u2014 and falls in love, prompting even more hard choices. Zayyan’s novel is a fascinating multigenerational story, with complex characters, a strong emotional core and enlightening insights into racial tensions, past and present.<\/p>\n

3. The It Gir<\/i>l<\/a> by Ruth Ware
Set in Oxford and Edinburgh, Ruth Ware’s latest novel sees Hannah \u2014 happily married and heavily pregnant \u2014 call into question the events leading up to the murder of her best friend, the titular It Girl April, during their first year at the University of Oxford. Ware is a master of the locked-room mystery and her suspenseful, well-plotted novel will keep you gripped \u2014 and keep you guessing right up until its dramatic conclusion. The It Girl <\/i>also perfectly captures the sense of place of both present-day Edinburgh and college life in Oxford.<\/p>\n

4. Detransition, Baby<\/a> <\/i>by Torrey Peters
Torrey Peters’ smart, witty and warm-hearted novel tells the story of Reese a trans woman who yearns for a baby and may get the opportunity when her ex-girlfriend Amy \u2014 who has since detransitioned to become Ames tells her that his new lover Katrina (a cis woman) is pregnant. Ames has a grand plan that the three of them could raise the baby together. Detransition, Baby<\/i> alternates between Reese and Ames’s perspectives and fills in the details of their romantic and sexual histories, how they got together and why it all went wrong. The novel’s characters are complex but Peters makes you root for them despite the sometimes frustrating decisions they make \u2014 especially Reese, whose often sharp tongue is offset by her big heart and her self-awareness. <\/p>\n

5. Reputation<\/a> <\/i>by Sarah Vaughan
After the success of Anatomy of a Scandal <\/i>\u2014 and its Netflix adaptation \u2014 Sarah Vaughan’s latest novel tackles some similar themes, with the perfect mix of politics, the media and domestic drama into a compelling legal thriller. The carefully constructed world of Emma Webster, former teacher and up-and-coming Labour MP, rapidly unravels after the reputation of her teenage daughter \u2014 and therefore her own \u2014 comes under threat. Before long, Emma is on trial for murder and everything that she thought she knew and believed is put to the test. Reputation <\/i>is compelling and provocative and is a fascinating character study of its strong but flawed protagonist.<\/p>\n

I also enjoyed the following five books, which didn’t quite make my top five this year:<\/p>\n<\/p>\n