Our favorite books of 2021! — Writing Classes in Raleigh, Durham & Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Arshia and Emily rounded up our favorite books of 2021 (note: this list will not necessarily include books that were published in 2021, but books that we happened to read during the year).

Want to buy one or more of these books? Can we recommend Quail Ridge Books, So&So Books, Flyleaf Books, Epilogue Books, Golden Fig Books, or any indie bookstore in your area? Or your local library? And do let us know if you end up reading one of them; we’d love to hear what you think!

Anyway, without further ado, here is our list.

Matrix by Lauren Groff

It was not the plot that drew me into this book about medieval nuns. (There is, if I may be so bold, very little on the plot side of things.) Rather, it was the luminous prose, the haunting atmosphere, the stunning details about life in the abbey. The Guardian notes: “From mystical visions that may or may not be divine, to the earthy business of abbey pigs, diseases and account books, Groff does it all with purpose and panache.” For me, the novel casts a strange, meditative spell: while reading it, I felt transported, calm, and absorbed in a way I hadn’t felt in a long time. Ron Charles, for the The Washington Post, concludes: “Although there are no clunky contemporary allusions in ‘Matrix,’ it seems clear that Groff is using this ancient story as a way of reflecting on how women might survive and thrive in a culture increasingly violent and irrational.”