It’s been quite the different year. (You can quote me on that!). Going to live theatre came to a stop in early March. Sitting in a Cineplex seems to be a thing of the past. Watched more Netflix than I ever have before. Tried to catch some theatre events being streamed (some were readings of plays). Being stuck inside, I accomplished a LOT of reading… over 160 books, a majority was children’s literature, but lots of grown-up reads too. In the middle of the night, I kept ordering stuff from Amazon and though I was hoping that the pandemic would reduce my ‘to read’ stacks, I have piles to go before I sleep.
The following is an attempt to highlight some of my favourites. Though I tried to keep up with new releases, not all literature came from 2020 titles. Items are listed alphabetically, and because most novels were targeted for Middle Years, my list is a bit longer for those titles.
I gave up limiting each list to five titles. I gave up choosing the best of the best, but I’ve put an asterisk beside some titles that were some of my favourite favourite things.
PICTURE BOOKS
If You Come to Earth by Sophie Blackall
Wild Symphony Dan Brown (illus. Susan Batori (poetry)
All Because You Matter by Tami Charles; illus Bryan Collier
I Talk Like a River Jordan Scott; illus. Sydney Smith *
I Am Every Good Thing Derrick Barnes; illus Gordon C. James
Outside In Deborah Underwood; illus. Cindy Derby *
We Are All Water Protectors Carole Lindstrom; illus. Michaela Goade *
NOVELS: MIDDLE YEARS
The Colour of the Sun David Almond
Fighting Words Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
Class Act Jerry Craft
The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise Dan Gemeinhart
How to Bee Brin MacDibble *
Prairie Lotus Linda Sue Park
Loretta Little Looks Back: Three Voices Go Tell It Andrea Davis Pinkney and Brian Pinkney
Becoming Mohammad Ali by James Patterson and Kwame Alexander *
Ghost Boys Jewell Parker Rhodes (reread) *
Three Keys Kelly Yang
NOVELS: CANADIAN
The Case of Missing Auntie Michael Hutchinson
The Greats Deborah Ellis
The Brushmaker’s Daughter Kathy Kacer
Don’t Stand So Close to Me by Eric Walters
The King of Jam Sandwiches Eric Walters
GRAPHIC TEXTS
Dancing at the Pity Party Tyler Feder
When Stars Are Scattered Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed *
A Long Way Down: The Graphic Novel Jason Reynolds *
Dragon Hoops Gene Luen Yang *
The Wanderer (wordless) Peter Van den Ende
GROWN-UP READS
Anxious People by Frederik Backman
The Man in the Red Coat by Julian Barnes (NF)
Apeirogon by Colum McCann *
Let the Great World Spin by Column McCann
Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell *
Is This Anything? by Jerry Seinfeld (NF)
NETFLIX (Series)
Fauda
Flowers
La Casa de Los Flores (House of Flowers)
The Crown, Season 4
Midnight Diner *
Ozark
The Queen’s Gambit
Rita
AMAZON PRIME
The Amazing Mrs. Maisel
Flesh and Blood
Friday Night Dinner
Normal People
Small Axe (5 films)
MOVIES
Burning
Mother *
The Personal History of David Copperfield (Cineplex)
Portrait of a Lady on Fire (Cineplex)
Sorry We Missed You (Cineplex) *
Da 5 Blood
Another Round
DOCUMENTARIES
Botero
Father, Soldier, Son
Filthy Rich: Jeffrey Epstein
The Octopus Teacher (Netflix) *
What She Said: The Art of Pauline Kael
PLAYS: Streaming
Barbecue
The Flying Lovers of Vitebsk
Lips Together, Teeth Apart
The Men From the Boys
A Monster Calls
Pipeline
Sea / Wall
Three Kings *
PLAYS AS FILMS (TV)
American Utopia *
The Boys in the Band
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
What the Constitution Means to Me
PLAYS: LIVE…(January-March)
Adrenaline
Midsummer’s Night Dream (Theatre Rusticle)
Box 4901
Caroline or Change (The Musical Stage Company)
My Name is Lucy Barton (NY)
Sunday in the Park with George (Eclipse Theatre)
West Side Story (NY) *
CD’s (yes, CD’s)
THE DREAM OF YOU Diana Krall
RENDEZVOUS WITH MARLENE Ute Lemper
SOMEWHERE ELSE: West Side Story Songs Ted Nash
DEBUSSY/RAMEAU Vikingur Olaffsson
DOLLY PARTON: Greatest Hits Dolly Parton
WOMAN CHILD Cecile McLorin Salvant *
IN THE HEART OF THE MOON Ali Farka Toure
ETC. / SHOUT OUTS
TELEPHONE TALES Gianni Rodari; illus. Valerio Vidali (70 short stories translated from the Italian)
TAKE ME TO THE WORLD: A SONDHEIM 90th BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION
CECILE McLORIN SALVANT (all 5 CD’s)