Pop the Champagne, because it's time to reveal the first-ever POPSUGAR Book Club Award winners! After two lively rounds of voting in the POPSUGAR Book Club Facebook group [1], the most voracious readers on the internet have crowned the best reads of 2020. From moving dramas detailing complicated sibling relationships to juicy memoirs that demystified celebrity life, you'll want to add each of these to your reading bucket list.
Before you check out the reader-selected winners list ahead, be sure to join our nearly 15,000-member strong POPSUGAR Book Club Facebook group [2] to get the first look at the annual POPSUGAR Reading Challenge, dropping Dec. 1. Congratulations to all the winners, and a heartfelt thank you to every bookworm in our community for being a bright spot through a challenging year.
Best Romance Book of 2020: Beach Read by Emily Henry
POPSUGAR Book Club member Jennifer Renae Allen said Beach Read by Emily Henry [3] earned her vote as the top romance read of 2020 because of its "witty dialogue, laugh out loud moments, the [side] characters in the story, and the background stories of the main characters."
Fellow group member Cynthia Parten said she expected a "light and fluffy" read when she cracked this one open, but its depth surprised her. "This is one of the best romances I have read in a while," Parten said.
Best Young Adult Book of 2020: Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo
Elizabeth Acevedo's Clap When You Land [4] was a fan favourite in the POPSUGAR Book Club all year long. Group member Mandy Reilly said she "devoured" the story in one sitting "and wanted to stand up and clap for Elizabeth Acevedo when I was done!"
Best Thriller or Mystery Book of 2020: The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James
According to POPSUGAR Book Club group member Rachel Hurd, The Sun Down Motel [5]'s double-layered story made it a uniquely creepy page-turner: "It was like two mystery-thrillers in one!"
Best Memoir of 2020: Open Book by Jessica Simpson
Voters chose Jessica Simpson's revealing debut Open Book [6] as the best memoir of the year.
Best Book Cover of 2020: Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
The striking colours of Mexican Gothic [7]'s cover were a can't-miss on bookshelves this year. POPSUGAR Book Club group member Rachel Hurd said the design "was simple but it expressed so much at the same time."
Best Audiobook of 2020: The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett (narrated by Shayna Small)
POPSUGAR Book Club members voted The Vanishing Half, narrated by Shayna Small [8], as the best audiobook of the year.
Favourite 2020 POPSUGAR Reading Challenge Prompt: Book on a Subject You Know Nothing About
Readers expanded their horizons with each 2020 POPSUGAR Reading challenge prompt [9], but "book on a subject you know nothing about" won out as the fan favourite this year. POPSUGAR Book Club member Kelly Bloom Barbieri said this one "encouraged me to take on a period and history of a country that I knew very little about."
Best 2020 TV Show or Movie Adapted From a Book: Little Fires Everywhere
"Each actress took their characterisations in different directions for the show, which made [the TV adaptation of Little Fires Everywhere] a new experience that still felt like an old friend," POPSUGAR Book Club group member Ellie Cousineau explained.
Best Book of 2020: The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
Voters awarded The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett [11] with the top prize. POPSUGAR Book Club group member Jennifer McWhinnie described it as "an incredibly engrossing story."
"The last 25 percent totally gutted me, and while I was satisfied with the ending, I was so sad that it was over. The depth of the characters written by Brit Bennett was unmatched by any other author that I read in 2020," McWhinnie explained.