I don’t think I will top Books 13 and 14 for this year. Two of my favorite authors both delivered books that go far beyond my very high expectations.

Warning: I am in no way objective about this first book.

Donuts and Other Proclamations of Love by my friend Jared Reck may be classified as a young adult book, but everyone with a heart will appreciate this engaging story. I have extra love for it because it touches on so many things I love in the community where we live. Since the characters are seniors in high school and my daughter was in the same graduating class (and was close friends) with Jared’s daughter just a few years ago, some of the details struck special chords with me.

But it goes beyond the familiarity. I love Jared’s characters – he has a special insight into kids this age group as a middle school teacher and father of two. Plus, he’s still a big kid. That shows in how we get inside the minds of these kids struggling with pressures that they really don’t need at this time of life.

I teared up on multiple occasions, just like when I read A Short History of the Girl Next Door, his first book. But these were different kinds of tears because this is a different kind of story. You won’t regret it.

After that, I jumped immediately into All Together Now by Matthew Norman. I forget how I first found him, but now I am all in on his work. He is based in Baltimore, and we have connected a little on Twitter. I am a sucker for how he weaves my birthplace into his stories.

This book takes us to the Delaware beaches, a place I have vacationed for most of my life so it sucked me in even more. But again, it’s the depth of the characters in his stories that makes me lobe his books so much.

The folks in this story are messy and real. You can feel the history between them as they navigate a hectic Memorial Day weekend, confronting the past, present and future.

I can’t recommend these books highly enough. And, man, do both have amazing covers as well.