Every January, it seems that there’s an abundance of recommended reading lists that populate the blogosphere. “Tis the season. I love reading these lists.

I used to read book lists while trying to file away a few ideas in my memory. Sadly, I probably missed out on quite a few great books this way. My memory isn’t the most reliable filing system. Things get lost in there.

Then I started using Amazon’s “wish list” feature. Whenever I found out about a book I was interested in, I would save it to that list. I’ve never had the intent of buying all the books I put on there (I would pull up the list on my phone when I went to the library and get what I could there). It has been a practical and easy way to keep track of what I want to read.

This past year, for my Birthday, my husband surprised me by getting every book on my wish list. I had been keeping that list for several years! It wasn’t a small list. This was one of my favorite presents. Ever.

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I felt so loved. It showed that he obviously knows me, well. Not only did this present acknowledge my love for reading, but also, my love for getting packages in the mail! The books didn’t arrive all at once. Nope. They trickled in over several weeks. Every day I would look forward to going out to the mailbox and seeing what had arrived.

There’s another list I keep. I keep track of books as I finish reading them. I do this with Pinterest boards. I’ve been doing it since 2012…a board for each year. This has been helpful, too, as it’s much easier to recommend books to other people when I can look back on these lists.

I like to read a little of everything, but since I write in the Christian Living genre, I naturally read those books the most. I also like to read books that challenge my thinking (even if I don’t agree). I don’t think I read enough fiction. I’d like to change that in 2017 (so I’d love to hear your suggestions in the comments).

Now that I’ve started a new board for 2017’s books, I’d like to share @@16 of-of my favorite books from my 2016 reading list@@. You can click on any of the titles to read further information and reviews.

Christian Living
• How’s Your Soul, Judah Smith
• Encounters With Jesus, Timothy Keller
• Surprised by Joy, C.S. Lewis
• Jesus Outside the Lines, by Scott Sauls
• People to Be Loved, by Preston Sprinkle

Writing
• On Writing, by Stephen King
• The War of Art, by Steven Pressfield

Biography
• Bonhoeffer, by Eric Metaxas

Memoir
• Kirabo, by Kveta Rose
• Let Justice Roll Down, by John M. Perkins
• All the Pretty Things, by Edie Wadsworth
• Falling Free, by Shannan Martin

Fiction
• Little Bee, by Chris Cleave

Parenting
• How To Win Your Child’s Heart for Life, by Melanie Redd
• Count to Nine, by Ruthie Gray

I wrote this one (so maybe I’m a little biased) but I do love it and I’m happy to tell you about it.

· Look to Jesus: How to Let Go of Worry and Trust God, by Dawn Klinge

For the sake of time and brevity, I only chose 16 books. That was hard to do! There are more books on my 2016 Pinterest book board that I also really liked.

Finally, here are 5 more bonus books (not yet read), that are on my wishlist for 2017 reading…

• Fear Fighting, by Kelly Balarie
• The Great Divorce, by C.S. Lewis
• The Writing Life, by Annie Dillard
• Lilac Girls, by Martha Hall Kelly
• The Nightingale, by Kristin Hannah

What have you been reading? If you’re a blogger, have you published a recommended book list? If so, I’d love to know so I can check it out!

Happy reading in 2017!

Note…Amazon affiliate links are used throughout this post. If you click on a link and buy a book, I receive a small portion of the proceeds at no additional cost to you. Thank you!

16 of the Best Books I Read in 2016