A lot of people had a difficult time reading in 2020. With the world in such a mess, it can be hard to concentrate. I wasn’t one of those people. I got through a LOT of books of 2020. I bought them from independent bookstores. I read them in sweats on my couch. I listened to them on long walks around my neighborhood and at a nearby lake.

One hundred and fourteen of them, to be exact. They were a respite from pandemic, a window into real and imagined places, and a way to educate myself about ...