I’ve borrowed over a 100 books from my local library this year. The one I’m reading right now is Nobody’s Girl by Virginia Roberts Giuffre. Trigger warning for anyone who has been sexually abused, which is about a fourth to a third of us depending on whose’s stats you follow. I’m among that group so there are places in this book that I have to move through quickly. I think this book should be required reading for every single member of the Trump administration, every federal employee and every member of Congress. I can’t decide which is more horrific the abuse Virginia suffered, or the people who continue to cover up for the abusers like Donald J. Trump. As the Epstein files makes clear and as has been reported for years, Epstein and Trump raped a young girl. A girl like Virginia. The number of people who have participated in the abuse and/or bore witness to it and did nothing is relentless, many of them named in this book. I can’t hardly stomach the telling of the story. How these people – the rich, the powerful, the celebrities, the politicians, the law enforcement – could witness it and/or participate in it is simply inhumane. And for the record, I believe Virginia. Every word of her story.

I love Beth Macy. You may know her from her previous book Dopesick. I had the honor of hearing Macy speak at the Southern Festival of Books in Nashville recently. Macy is highly regarded in Appalachian Studies community for her dogged reporting and love of Appalachia. In this book, a memoir, Macy tackles the complexities of the forces set in motion to tear this country apart, family member by family member, friend by former friend. Macy’s reporting here is stellar; her analysis even more insightful. Any journalist/writer is only as good as their curiosity and Macy’s compels her to brave deep waters. One of the finest books I’ve read about the political/religious climate we struggle with daily.

This is the book that has convinced me to leave Facebook for good. I read it before summer and have thought about it since. Wynn-Williams worked at Facebook. She has testified before Congress. She documents the many ways Zuckerberg is infiltrating our lives and more importantly the lives of our children and grandchildren. And with AI ruse coming onboard, it is going to get more and more difficult to have any semblance of a private life. I confess to being caught up in this grift of Zuckerberg. His wealth comes entirely from content you and I create for free, but he is using that wealth to do us all great harm. The longer we passively go along with him, the less autonomy we have over our lives.

When I was in the UK in August and Sept. nearly every person reading a book on the trains or in the cafes, were reading this book. I finally approached a young woman and asked her what the book is about. It’s a compelling read about a reporter working on a story about a food blogger turned murderess. But it’s about so much more, especially about the expectations placed upon women in different cultures. Patriarchy is not just an American-bred problem. We’ve imported it and exported it. This is a fascinating read that is best consumed at your favorite cafe where you can order something to eat.

If you are not yet a fan of Colm, you are missing one of this generation’s finest writers. I love everything he writes. I started the year with Long Island and followed with Brooklyn and Nora Webster. In other words, trying to read all of his works because I love Colm’s character-driven work and his quiet style. Nothing in Colm’s work shouts “Pay Attention.” There’s just the whispered approach of “Hey did you notice this thing about the neighbor?”

I’ve got several books I’m looking forward to reading in the new year. What about you? What did you read that you loved? What are you reading now?