I read 66 books in 2024, these are the ones I gave 5 stars!
I hit a small panic in late November. My friend and book club buddy Robs asked me what my book of 2024 was. And I didn’t know what to answer. “I’m not sure. I don’t think I can say The Fourth Wing can I?” As while The Fourth Wing was un put-downable, I don’t think it is ‘Book of the Year take me seriously as my usual read isn’t usually dragons and the porno actions of their riders’ top of the list worthy. Not sure that even makes sense. Although I have now mentioned them in the opening paragraph of this blog post, so who am I even trying to kid.
My 2023 books of the year came to me in an instant. I knew that The Covenant of Water and Demon Copperhead were my top two as I finished them. My 2022 book of the year was Hum if you don’t know the Words.
Thankfully in the final few days of 2024, whilst only half way through it, I KNEW, that All the Colours of the Dark was going to come in as my top read for 2024. I should have known it was going to be a cracker though as my friend Meg messaged me and told me to download it and I always love her recommendations.
2024 was the first year that I have actually kept track of everything I’ve read. Admin is not a strong point of mine and whilst I’ve tried various ways of recording my reads digitally over the years, I’ve never succeeded in doing so. Turns out writing it down on a piece of paper is more my style. I very ambitiously started the year with trying to record my reads on a new instagram account I created, @lululovesreading but that soon petered out and I didn’t manage to share more than the odd story occasionally of what I was currently reading.
So according my now rather rumpled looking piece of paper, I read 66 Books in 2024, and these are the ones I gave 5 stars. This is also the order I read them in.
Go as a River. A cracker to start 2024. If you enjoyed Where the Crawdads Sing and The Paper Palace, you will like this.
The Fourth Wing and the sequel Iron Flame. For someone who used to profess she didn’t like reading fantasy, I was reading this in the 1-2 minute gaps I had between patients! And I just love how many of you have messaged me saying you (and your husbands!) have loved them too!
Cutting for Stone (the same author as The Covenant of Water). If I could have anyone I wanted at a dinner party, I would invite Abraham. Imagine having a conversation with the mind that created these books?!
Outlive (even wrote a blog post about this one)
Project Hail Mary. I usually declare myself a non Sci-Fi fan, so I’m not sure why I even took this from book club, turns out I adored the little alien in this story.
Love at First Flight, I love a South African author and a romantic read, so this was GREAT.
The Little Liar. The latest book by Mitch Albom who also wrote Tuesdays with Morrie. How can something written so simply be so brilliantly profound?
Finding Endurance. Ernest Shackleton has a new super fan and I don’t know if it’s the Durban element of the story or that I had no idea a South African sea captain was involved in discovering Shackleton’s shipwreck in 2022, but there is something a little magic about this book. I even bought this for my Mum.
Karma Suture. A South African Doctor has written a novel that must be part autobiographical, and I don’t know if it’s because I have also worked in government hospitals but I just LOVED this.
Ultra Processed People, so I actually listened to this on audible and then bought it in hard copy and it has had a HUGE impact on the way me and my family eat and approach Ultra Processed Food.
The Women. The latest book by Kristen Hannah about the nurses in the Vietnam war was worth ALL the hype and more. So so good.
Super Communicators, another audible listen as my commute to work is now longer and it was really interesting. Why are some people better communicators than others? And what is the psychology and neuro-science behind how we communicate?
This Tender Land. I still think about these 4 orphan vagabonds. Such a great story. And just reflecting as I look at this picture on how many hours I spent reading in the school car park this year!
The Great Alone. An older one of Kristen Hannah’s. I think she would be incredible to meet too.
It Ends with Us. I read this a while ago and then re read it again just before watching the movie. So good. Even the second time.
My Favourite Mistake. Marian Keyes has never disappointed me before, and again she delivered with this.
Why has nobody told me this before? This listening on audible and then buying the actual book is at risk of bankrupting me. I feel like everyone could benefit from reading this book by psychologist and tik tok influencer Dr Julie Smith.
Keeper of the Lost Cities. So this I read at my 9 old year daughter’s insistence. She has just finished number 9.5 in the series, and while I haven’t continued with the series, I can see why she declares it her second favourite series after Harry Potter!
The Hand that first held mine. Art, love, betrayals and Motherhood. Cried at the end of this.
The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store. I enjoyed this more than Deacon King Kong by the same author. The characters from Chicken Hill still come to my mind frequently.
How not to be a Supermodel. Another audible. This by the model Ruth Crilly from the UK who I have followed online for the last 10 years and who I felt like I already knew before reading this. Ruth you are beautiful and funny and talented and I adored your book!
Everything I know about love. I think often a book resonates more deeply when you see your own past reflected back at you, and this account of living in London and house shares and precious female friendships was wonderful.
If you want to make God laugh. By the same author as my 2022 book of the year and so so good. Set in a township in Joburg when people were starting to die from HIV / AIDS and there was so much stigma and so little hope for anyone who got it. Bianca Marais is a genius.
Intermezzo. This would probably be my second favourite read of 2024 after All the Colours of the Dark. Two brothers navigating love and life and grief alongside the complicated relationship they have with each other.
All the Colours of the Dark. AKA Lulu’s book of 2024. Apparently it takes years for Chris Whittaker to write a book. And his time isn’t wasted. What an unbelievable story. I’ve just finished his other book All the Wicked Girls that will certainly feature on my 2025 5 star list too!
The Joy of Half a cookie. If you are interested at all in mindfulness and mindful eating like I am, I highly recommend this!
The Gift of Rain. I’ve since been googling Penang island and I still don’t know if I love or hate the sensei.
The God of the Woods. My final read of 2024 was also a 5 star one. Murder Mysteries aren’t usually my jam either, but the depth of these characters had me hooked and guessing until the end!
So that makes 28 five star books out of 66. I am always so grateful for the people and worlds I get to explore on the pages I read. I am also super grateful for the ladies in my bookclub. What a gift to get to belong to this tribe <3