Allow Me to Share #94: Wrapping Up

You may (or may not) have noticed that I’ve been largely absent from this space for the better part of this year. I started a new full-time job in April, and while it’s a quite different type of writing, it seems to scratch my creative itch. So I’ve found myself unmotivated to send out weekly (or even monthly) newsletters. I think it’s time to close up shop for now, and the end of the year seemed a fitting time to do it.

You know I love an end-of-year list, so I’ll share a few of my favorites from this year before saying goodbye.

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Favorite Books of 2024

I read 105 books this year, which is quite a solid reading year for me. Of those, 46 were on audio, and the rest were split between ebooks or print books. My goal is to read at least as much in print as I listen because I really enjoy the experience of print books. So, I feel like there was a pretty good balance this year, though several of my print books were books I read aloud to the kids, so I could probably devote even more time to reading rather than listening in 2025.

Favorite Literary Fiction: Shark Heart by Emily Habeck

Favorite Mystery: Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson

Favorite Romance: The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center

Favorite Historical Fiction: The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon

Favorite Nonfiction: This Is So Awkward: Modern Puberty Explained by Cara Natterson and Vanessa Kroll Bennett

Favorite Spiritual/Religious: God Speaks Through Wombs by Drew Jackson (poetry)

Other Favorites: The God of the Woods by Liz Moore (literary suspense/mystery), Piranesi by Susanna Clarke (speculative fiction), Sandwich by Catherine Newman (contemporary fiction), Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra (thriller), James by Percival Everett (literary fiction, reimagining of Huckleberry Finn)

What were your favorite books this year?

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Other 2024 Favorites

TV show: Succession (HBO Max)

Movie: Inside Out 2 (I don’t watch many movies)

Podcast: Dear Shandy

Song: I relived my late high school days by attending a Dashboard Confessional concert and subsequently listening to all of their albums on repeat. So emo … so absolutely perfect.

Olive & June nail polish colors: Flowerpot (terracotta orange, for fall), One for You, Two for Me (dark green, for winter), Perfect Pinwheel (coral, for spring and summer)

Beauty product: Pixi +C Vit Brightening Perfector. My friend Erin gave this to me last Christmas, and I love it. It is so light but completely evens out my skin tone. I use it most days instead of a tinted moisturizer now.

Clothing item: Spanx Air Essentials wide leg pants. The (somehow even more expensive?) successor to my beloved Vuori joggers. These feel like Squishmallows. I love them. And they often have good sales, so don’t buy them at full price.

Recipe: Triple Ginger Chocolate Chunk Cookies

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My word of the year for 2024 was “savor,” and it was a good reminder to me to enjoy the good that is in front of me, a somewhat constant challenge for my personality type. For 2025, I’m choosing “space.” I’m really wanting to focus on my physical space. Now that I spend basically 24/7 at home, having that in order has become more important to me. I also want to think about creating metaphorical space in my schedule for the things that bring me joy. If you choose a word of the year, let me know what yours is!

I am playing with the idea of sharing in a more short-form, sporadic way on Instagram. I created a separate handle from my personal account, allow.me.to.share. Follow me over there for recommendations, manicure pictures, etc. We’ll see how long I keep it up!

Thanks for reading along for the past 4 years! I love the conversations it’s started and hope to continue those in real life.

Happy New Year!

Kayla