I'd really hoped I could just cut and paste my list from the side column but, of course, that didn't really work so goodness knows whether I managed to get all the proper links aligned here. If not, there's always google for the truly interested.
It turns out I read more than I thought I might in 2020; like many people, I found I lacked focus at various parts of the year. That resulted in my not blacking out my Seattle Public Library/Arts and Lectures bingo card--or maybe it's just that I found some of the categories particularly uninspiring. But looking through the list now, I find that I remember a great many of these titles quite fondly; I read some truly excellent books in 2020! It shouldn't be a surprise, but--by gosh--The Grapes of Wrath is phenomenally good. Like amazingly good. I'm so glad Paper Boat Booksellers had a nice-looking edition that caught my eye. Other stand-outs of the year were Circe, Three Things About Elsie, A Burning, and As Always, Julia. Particularly surprising to find fine was Pasta for Nightingales--a Christmas gift that looked like it would fall into the "pretty pictures but not such fascinating text" school. The text turned out to be quite fascinating and weird.
I read quite a number of Louise Penny's "Gamache" series and, in fact, a Gamache is my first book for 2021 as well. They aren't profound but they are somehow comforting. I cheat by quoting the last bit of the Acknowledgments for Glass Houses (which will be on next year's list, should we all survive that long): Three Pines is a state of mind. When we choose tolerance over hate. Kindness over cruelty. Goodness over bullying. When we choose to be hopeful, not cynical. Then we live in Three Pines. I don't always make those choices, but I do know when I'm in the wilderness, and when I'm in the bistro. I know where I want to be, and I know how to get there.
Some numbers: 54 books total including 11 re-reads, roughly 10 non-fiction (depending on how you want to categorize The Book of Mark, Maus II, and perhaps a few others), more or less 6 children's books. Some books this year were admittedly very short indeed (Cat Heaven had perhaps the fewest words on the fewest pages); others were quite long (The Levant Trilogy and The Balkan Trilogy are, as their names imply, actually each three not-short volumes).
As usual, the children's books were almost uniformly outstanding; Charlotte's Web never disappoints, though Jack and Jill was not exactly spellbinding. Anthony Trollope (Rachel Ray, The Claverings, and The Kellys and O'Kellys) is also always reliable and comforting. I admit Gingerbread left me a little baffled, How Long 'Til Black Future Month and My Purple Scented Novel were both a bit "meh," and The Thirteen Clocks was distinctly underwhelming, but there were very few outright stinkers this year. Utopia Avenue got some pretty lousy reviews, but it was a sweet, if predictable story (and oh! so much better than Slade House). I had some doubts about Piransi but it also turned out to be quite decent. Some of the books I've had to look at the links to remember--Homegoing, The Yield, Signs Preceding the End of the World--were truly excellent, but somehow just failed to stick with me; I blame my mental state, not the books themselves.
In reverse order of reading, the books of 2020 (indents, if they survive, indicate re-reads):
The Mysterious Affair at Styles
How Long 'Til Black Future Month?
How the South Won the Civil War
Signs Preceding the End of the World
You outpaced me -- my grand total was 46, and every single work of fiction was a reread. I've been searching fruitlessly for something new to read in that area. Glad to hear you are still enjoying Louise Penny.
ReplyDeleteYou did a lot of art in 2020; I can see how that would cut into your reading time. I'm taking it Louise Penny didn't resonate as much with you as she does with me. I'm also increasingly finding children's books to be a relatively safe bet. And Trollope, of course. After today, I may be picking up another Trollope though there is a lot of politics in them.
DeleteYup, and I also wrote 250,000 words of Good Omens fanfiction. Little bit obsessed there.
DeleteIt was around book 7 of the Gamache series where I felt she was manipulating the characters for the sake of melodrama rather than drama in a way that didn't feel true to those characters. But I should probably try another one, since it's been long enough now that I've probably forgotten why I felt that way, and I did enjoy them.
Re: Trollope. I tried once, starting in proper order with The Warden, and got only about 30 pages in before being bored to tears. Is there another one I would like better? Would my opinions of Dickens help you decide? Loved Copperfield, Expectations, Nickleby, and especially Bleak House. Could never get into Pickwick or Dorritt. LOATHED Our Mutual Friend with a fiery passion. Also adore Collins' Moonstone and Woman in White. Is there any hope for me with Trollope? Politics is not really my thing. I can handle the church stuff though, given that I thoroughly enjoyed Joanna Trollope's The Choir. Any advice would be greatly appreciated--thanks!
Hello? Is this thing turned on? See above unanswered query, please....pretty please? Thank you kindly!
ReplyDeleteSorry! Google no longer tells me if I get a comment and I so rarely get them that I don't look for them. And I'm going to say that if you loathed "Our Mutual Friend" then Trollope is probably not for you. What the two have in common is a lot about British politics which I'm okay with. But I'll agree that "The Warden" is not a particularly easy read. I didn't find it so much boring as stressful; all the worry about having signed a note for someone else and interest building up on the loan and gah! the inescapability of debt. I took it personally. I also take your point about Gamache; some characters do take some absurd personality twists, but somehow I'm willing to put up with it. I ask myself if you'd like "Three Things About Elsie"; how are you with dementia? I also really like "The Trouble with Sheep and Goats" by the same author.
DeleteI have had issues with the comment thing too. When I'm in the Blogger reading window, I click on "POSTS" in the left column, and a list appears where a wee comment icon on the far right of each post tells you if there are any. Of course, I have to remember to go to that page once in a while.
DeleteThank you for the Trollope assessment. I suspected as much.
Not keen on dementia. Goats and Sheep looks more promising. Am going to give Gamache another try, after I get through my Holmes Canon Reread. Halfway there!
And I've only stumbled across this today--a week after you sent it. Perhaps it's not the best way to communicate if one isn't regular about checking. I don't think I could handle a Holmesathon, but I hope you're enjoying it.
Delete