2023 Reading Challenge
- Thread starter Selaws
- Start date
Bull Shannon
Well-Known Member
Book 34: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, by Taylor Jenkins Reid
I'm a sucker for Taylor Jenkins Reid, and this novel seems like the inflection point in her career, the book booktok adores (if every Criterion Closet video includes one mention of Being There, every booktok suggestion video must flash Seven Husbands). I enjoyed it for the most part; a journalist is invited into a reclusive Hollywood starlet's home to write her tell-all biography, with her seven highly-publicized marriages as the skeleton of the tale. The ending was rather silly imo; I prefer Daisy Jones and the Six.
Book 35: Chain-Gang All-Stars, by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
In rare form and spurred on by my utter unfamiliarity with anything on the yearly goodreads poll, I have picked up a buzzy new release. In a not-so-unfamiliar (elbows you slyly) near-future, prisoners can compete in televised gladiatorial battles for their freedom. This felt like a short story or novella padded out to novel length, and while there are many characters and perspectives shared, there's kind of just one story here. The writing is sharp and propulsive, but there's an emphasis on worldbuilding over story and didactic circumstances take precedence over character.
Book 36: Foucault's Pendulum, by Umberto Eco
I read this in the background of the previous two, as it was work to get through. I don't mean to be dismissive, and maybe I should have been flipping through wikipedia to verse myself on some of the subjects discussed, but it felt like the point was to throw the reader into discursive discussions of historical theory and have a bit of a laugh over the imperceptible line between a logical conclusion and a fantabulist conspiracy. The bulk of the text consists of long discussions about history and is quite dry.
avecigrec
Well-Known Member
Book 44
Star Wars: The High Republic - The Eye of Darkness by George Mann
Phase 3 has officially begun! We're nearly two years from the end of the saga now, and it's gonna be a long ride. George Mann is probably my least favourite of all the writers involved with The High Republic initiative, but he turns in a solid effort with this one, picking up the pieces one year after the end of The Fallen Star. It took me a little bit to get my momentum going with this one, which I think was as much life circumstance as it was settling into Mann's story but the back two thirds of the book moved briskly! This one's a pretty grim outing, and I'm here for it.
Star Wars: The High Republic - The Eye of Darkness by George Mann
Phase 3 has officially begun! We're nearly two years from the end of the saga now, and it's gonna be a long ride. George Mann is probably my least favourite of all the writers involved with The High Republic initiative, but he turns in a solid effort with this one, picking up the pieces one year after the end of The Fallen Star. It took me a little bit to get my momentum going with this one, which I think was as much life circumstance as it was settling into Mann's story but the back two thirds of the book moved briskly! This one's a pretty grim outing, and I'm here for it.
Selaws
Well-Known Member
Book 32: Jack Reacher: Gone Tomorrow by Lee Child (Bantam, 2010)
Book 33: Colour by Victoria Finlay (Random House Inc, 2002)
I might have time to squeeze 1 or 2 more books in before the new year, but for now here are my last 2 reads. Jack Reacher is my go-to easy read and im pretty sure this is the last one of the 29 books that I had to read (apart from the latest release). Colour follows Victoria Finlay's adventures across the world finding the origins or rare colours, and its a lot more interesting than it might sound
Book 33: Colour by Victoria Finlay (Random House Inc, 2002)
I might have time to squeeze 1 or 2 more books in before the new year, but for now here are my last 2 reads. Jack Reacher is my go-to easy read and im pretty sure this is the last one of the 29 books that I had to read (apart from the latest release). Colour follows Victoria Finlay's adventures across the world finding the origins or rare colours, and its a lot more interesting than it might sound
jamieanderson1968
ninniest jackaninny
So I am part way through book #43 of the year. I actually finished book 43 earlier this week (Michael Palin's Great Uncle Harry) while at my in-laws. And I am back to book #42 which I am about half way through. I will definitely finish it before the end of the year, and will start something else but not sure if I will make it through #44 by the end of 2023. Either way, a much higher total than I had hoped for this year which was 26 books. In 2024 I am going to give myself a target of 35 books.
According to my spreadsheet I have read about 13,000 pages this year. I really think a big part of this has been the Kobo, with only 5 of the 43 books being physical books. I am able to pick up the Kobo without any other distractions. But also another part of being able to read (and enjoy) more books this year has been kicking social media. Not having that siren song calling me every time I see my phone sitting on the coffee table has been liberating as hell.
According to my spreadsheet I have read about 13,000 pages this year. I really think a big part of this has been the Kobo, with only 5 of the 43 books being physical books. I am able to pick up the Kobo without any other distractions. But also another part of being able to read (and enjoy) more books this year has been kicking social media. Not having that siren song calling me every time I see my phone sitting on the coffee table has been liberating as hell.
avecigrec
Well-Known Member
Book 45
Rum, Sodomy & The Lash by Jeffrey T. Roesgen
Easily the most conceptual entry I've yet to read in the 33 1/3 series, this one is a hybrid of fiction and fact. The fictional narrative inserts The Pogues into the story behind the sailing that led to the raft depicted in the painting used for the album cover, while the factual bits examine one song at a time interspersed through the narrative, then tie everything together in the end. I can see why a lot of people on Goodreads might hate it, but I thought the conceit was interesting and the author did a fine enough job of pulling it together. It certainly isn't the most biographical book about The Pogues you can read, but it's a fun little tome that explores an amazing album in a somewhat unique way.
Book 46
Transitions: A Mother's Journey by Élodie Durand
An intimate and uncompromising exploration of a mother's coming to terms with and understanding of her child's transition as she "loses" a daughter and "gains" a son. Often uncomfortable and at times ugly, this graphic novel is wonderfully illustrated and lovingly translated from its original French.
Rum, Sodomy & The Lash by Jeffrey T. Roesgen
Easily the most conceptual entry I've yet to read in the 33 1/3 series, this one is a hybrid of fiction and fact. The fictional narrative inserts The Pogues into the story behind the sailing that led to the raft depicted in the painting used for the album cover, while the factual bits examine one song at a time interspersed through the narrative, then tie everything together in the end. I can see why a lot of people on Goodreads might hate it, but I thought the conceit was interesting and the author did a fine enough job of pulling it together. It certainly isn't the most biographical book about The Pogues you can read, but it's a fun little tome that explores an amazing album in a somewhat unique way.
Book 46
Transitions: A Mother's Journey by Élodie Durand
An intimate and uncompromising exploration of a mother's coming to terms with and understanding of her child's transition as she "loses" a daughter and "gains" a son. Often uncomfortable and at times ugly, this graphic novel is wonderfully illustrated and lovingly translated from its original French.
Thackeraye
Well-Known Member
Fancied something easier to read after a book about mental health in the music business, so I started what turned out to be a book about mental health and video games…
avecigrec
Well-Known Member
Book 47
The Upcycled Self: A Memoir on the Art of Becoming Who We Are by Tariq 'Black Thought' Trotter
Of course he would write a thought-provoking memoir - it's in the namesake! Incredibly great read. While I consider 'riq to be the #1 emcee of all-time I've never delved too deeply into his personal story, but he lays it all out here and it's an intense and wild ride! No tell-all about that rock star life, The Roots barely feature in the book at all. Instead it's a love letter to the people and places that helped him become the man that he is. A compelling enough read for the casual listener or non-fan, and an absolute must for fans.
The Upcycled Self: A Memoir on the Art of Becoming Who We Are by Tariq 'Black Thought' Trotter
Of course he would write a thought-provoking memoir - it's in the namesake! Incredibly great read. While I consider 'riq to be the #1 emcee of all-time I've never delved too deeply into his personal story, but he lays it all out here and it's an intense and wild ride! No tell-all about that rock star life, The Roots barely feature in the book at all. Instead it's a love letter to the people and places that helped him become the man that he is. A compelling enough read for the casual listener or non-fan, and an absolute must for fans.
avecigrec
Well-Known Member
Book 48
Things You May Find Hidden In My Ear by Mosab Abu Toha
Some of these poems are devastatingly beautiful and some are simply devastating. Born in a refugee camp in Gaza to a father who was born in a refugee camp in Gaza, Abu Toha's poems are vivid dispatches of life in a place under siege. An extra timely time to read this book given the current state of things in Gaza. I recall seeing headlines sometime over the past few months about a Palestinian poet being detained (possibly one being killed as well) sure enough, upon looking it up once I finished this book, it was Mosab. His harrowing account was published online by The New Yorker just today:
www.newyorker.com
Things You May Find Hidden In My Ear by Mosab Abu Toha
Some of these poems are devastatingly beautiful and some are simply devastating. Born in a refugee camp in Gaza to a father who was born in a refugee camp in Gaza, Abu Toha's poems are vivid dispatches of life in a place under siege. An extra timely time to read this book given the current state of things in Gaza. I recall seeing headlines sometime over the past few months about a Palestinian poet being detained (possibly one being killed as well) sure enough, upon looking it up once I finished this book, it was Mosab. His harrowing account was published online by The New Yorker just today:
A Palestinian Poet’s Perilous Journey Out of Gaza
Following Hamas’s October 7th attack and Israel’s invasion, Mosab Abu Toha fled his home with his wife and three children. Then I.D.F. soldiers took him into custody.
Selaws
Well-Known Member
Book 34: Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt (Sceptre, 2009)
I was recommended and borrowed this book and went in blind. It really captivated me throughout. It's split into 2 parts with the first being slices of lives of different people living in Savannah from the 1960's onwards. The second half centres around a murder trial of one of those characters (the victim being another) which is spread across 10 years or so. I thoroughly enjoyed it and it wasnt until after I read it that I found out that its based upon true events.
I was recommended and borrowed this book and went in blind. It really captivated me throughout. It's split into 2 parts with the first being slices of lives of different people living in Savannah from the 1960's onwards. The second half centres around a murder trial of one of those characters (the victim being another) which is spread across 10 years or so. I thoroughly enjoyed it and it wasnt until after I read it that I found out that its based upon true events.
avecigrec
Well-Known Member
Book 49
Falling Back In Love With Being Human: Letters to Lost Souls by Kai Cheng Thom
This was a perfect light read through the holidays. Thom wrote these letters during the pandemic as a means to help maintain sanity and humanity in isolation. Also an incredible exercise in her belief that everybody is deserving of love, even people who do and have done horrific things (of which there are certainly some in this book!) A nice little word balm through the darker days.
Book 50
My Soft Response To The Wars by RC Weslowski
This one's a re-read. I actually own a copy, but requested my local library pick it up and decided to read it again once it arrived. This is an all-timer book from an all-timer writer/performer for me. I realized while reading it that 20 years ago this past April was when I'd attended my first spoken word poetry show, and RC was one of the performers that night (in fact, he performed the title poem of this book that night, as well as another one included here) - in the two decades since he's become a friend, a mentor, and my favourite weird uncle (he is actually Uncle RC to my son!) With a background in broadcasting and training in clown, RC's writings and performances are laced with heavy doses of surrealism and mirth (in one piece he refers to himself as a "sacrilegious trickster," and I think that title is quite apt), taking readers/listeners on wild journeys of discovery that ultimately reveal great beauty and heart - taking the time to remind us that we are all BEAUTY BA BO!
Falling Back In Love With Being Human: Letters to Lost Souls by Kai Cheng Thom
This was a perfect light read through the holidays. Thom wrote these letters during the pandemic as a means to help maintain sanity and humanity in isolation. Also an incredible exercise in her belief that everybody is deserving of love, even people who do and have done horrific things (of which there are certainly some in this book!) A nice little word balm through the darker days.
Book 50
My Soft Response To The Wars by RC Weslowski
This one's a re-read. I actually own a copy, but requested my local library pick it up and decided to read it again once it arrived. This is an all-timer book from an all-timer writer/performer for me. I realized while reading it that 20 years ago this past April was when I'd attended my first spoken word poetry show, and RC was one of the performers that night (in fact, he performed the title poem of this book that night, as well as another one included here) - in the two decades since he's become a friend, a mentor, and my favourite weird uncle (he is actually Uncle RC to my son!) With a background in broadcasting and training in clown, RC's writings and performances are laced with heavy doses of surrealism and mirth (in one piece he refers to himself as a "sacrilegious trickster," and I think that title is quite apt), taking readers/listeners on wild journeys of discovery that ultimately reveal great beauty and heart - taking the time to remind us that we are all BEAUTY BA BO!
jamieanderson1968
ninniest jackaninny
Book 45 - Really Good, Actually / Monica Heisey
Monica Heisey is a Canadian author, now living in the UK. She was a writer on Schitt's Creek and new UK tv show, Smothered. Normally this is not the type of book I would pick up (modern dating/rom-com with 20s Torontonians) but my sister-in-law really talked it up when I saw her a few weeks ago. So far about a hundred pages and I am enjoying it. Also happy not to be a Gen-Z living in the Big Smoke.
Monica Heisey is a Canadian author, now living in the UK. She was a writer on Schitt's Creek and new UK tv show, Smothered. Normally this is not the type of book I would pick up (modern dating/rom-com with 20s Torontonians) but my sister-in-law really talked it up when I saw her a few weeks ago. So far about a hundred pages and I am enjoying it. Also happy not to be a Gen-Z living in the Big Smoke.
Mr Moore
Well-Known Member
This one is in my 2024 list to read. I bought a copy for my Ma and Pa before their trip to Savannah a few weeks ago and my dad liked it. I feel like I saw the film 20 years or so ago but can’t fully remember it.
Just picked this up on a kindle 99p daily deal. Seems to be getting generally positive reader reviews. I’ll try and add this one to 2024’s to read list too.
Selaws
Well-Known Member
It was a fun read, I’m sure you will enjoy it. There’s a few architectural bits of info in there which I found really interesting, I actually checked online to see if they were true and it seems to hold up.
I read a few reviews that say the first half is disjointed and it does feel like a series of character profiles to be fair, but I actually quite liked that. It meant that once I got to the second half, the story ran smoother as I knew a bit of background info to each character.
avecigrec
Well-Known Member
Book 51
Krautrock by Marshall Gu
This is my second dip into the 33 1/3 GENRE series (Trip-Hop is in queue for the presumably near future) and I'm a big fan so far. This book, in particular, is the better of the two I've read so far, though it's not without faults and an occasional typo. Rather than a chronological exploration, Gu breaks the chapters down by band and briefly explores their own histories while contextualizing them into the bigger picture. Not the most comprehensive look at krautrock in the world, but a great digestible overview that I found well worth the read.
Book 52
Friends Without Bodies by Brendan McLeod
A pandemic diary in poetry form. I've been following McLeod's work as a performing poet and musician (and one-time winner of the 3-Day Novel contest!) for many years now, so his is a comfortable voice to slip into reading, even in moments that are clearly uncomfortable for him. I find great joy in his humour and wonderment.
Krautrock by Marshall Gu
This is my second dip into the 33 1/3 GENRE series (Trip-Hop is in queue for the presumably near future) and I'm a big fan so far. This book, in particular, is the better of the two I've read so far, though it's not without faults and an occasional typo. Rather than a chronological exploration, Gu breaks the chapters down by band and briefly explores their own histories while contextualizing them into the bigger picture. Not the most comprehensive look at krautrock in the world, but a great digestible overview that I found well worth the read.
Book 52
Friends Without Bodies by Brendan McLeod
A pandemic diary in poetry form. I've been following McLeod's work as a performing poet and musician (and one-time winner of the 3-Day Novel contest!) for many years now, so his is a comfortable voice to slip into reading, even in moments that are clearly uncomfortable for him. I find great joy in his humour and wonderment.
Mr Moore
Well-Known Member
December 2023
Book 57: Girl, Woman, Other - Bernardine Evaristo
Collection of 12 short stories about 12 women of African ancestry ranging multiple ages, backgrounds, class, sexuality and gender identity, their lives intersecting to form a novel. Truly lovely writing, poetic and moving and worthy of the myriad awards it won.
Book 58: Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World - Haruki Murakami
My fourth but least favourite Murakami to date. This one was too heavy on the sci-fi angle and the parallel storylines just happened to be the third or fourth book this year with a similar technique adopted, the others being more enjoyable I think. Norwegian Wood is next in the sequence which I'm looking forward to.
Book 59: Night Shift - Stephen King
This was brilliant, a really great compendium of short stories. A couple, I'd already read as addendums to 'Salem's Lot but both benefitted on this second read from a little time since reading the main feature. So many others I was sort of familiar from movie adaptations but all were a real treat to read.
Book 60: Small Things Like These - Claire Keegan
Following the recommendation from @Ericj32 I gave this one a whirl and I concur, it is a really impressive piece of succinct but serious writing. The Magdalene Laundries were something I was totally unaware of but it comes as no surprise that this was allowed to go on. The short tale ends with an uncertain but hopeful note for just one of the poor girls made to suffer at the hands of the Catholic nuns.
Book 61-63: L.A. Noir - The Lloyd Hopkins Trilogy - Blood on the Moon; Because the Night; Suicide Hill - James Ellroy
I honestly only intended to tackle one of these this year but found myself enjoying the first one so much I just ploughed through to the finale. Very enjoyable cat and mouse stories of a morally questionable cop and his adversaries. I like Ellroy's writing and his characterisations but I do wonder sometimes whether he gets just a little too much pleasure from his racist and misogynistic characters (of which there are many), or whether he simply does a really good job of writing them. They're all largely despicable though, either way.
Book 64: An Island - Karen Jennings
Another succinct but serious novella, this one a post-colonial story from an unnamed African nation. A solitary lighthouse keeper finds a body washed up and takes him in. Our protagonist's years of struggle fighting dictatorships, serving decades incarcerated and then ultimately nearly three decades as the sole inhabitant of this small island have left a very unsociable, paranoid old soul who struggles with his Man Friday's presence. Really good, quick read.
Book 57: Girl, Woman, Other - Bernardine Evaristo
Collection of 12 short stories about 12 women of African ancestry ranging multiple ages, backgrounds, class, sexuality and gender identity, their lives intersecting to form a novel. Truly lovely writing, poetic and moving and worthy of the myriad awards it won.
Book 58: Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World - Haruki Murakami
My fourth but least favourite Murakami to date. This one was too heavy on the sci-fi angle and the parallel storylines just happened to be the third or fourth book this year with a similar technique adopted, the others being more enjoyable I think. Norwegian Wood is next in the sequence which I'm looking forward to.
Book 59: Night Shift - Stephen King
This was brilliant, a really great compendium of short stories. A couple, I'd already read as addendums to 'Salem's Lot but both benefitted on this second read from a little time since reading the main feature. So many others I was sort of familiar from movie adaptations but all were a real treat to read.
Book 60: Small Things Like These - Claire Keegan
Following the recommendation from @Ericj32 I gave this one a whirl and I concur, it is a really impressive piece of succinct but serious writing. The Magdalene Laundries were something I was totally unaware of but it comes as no surprise that this was allowed to go on. The short tale ends with an uncertain but hopeful note for just one of the poor girls made to suffer at the hands of the Catholic nuns.
Book 61-63: L.A. Noir - The Lloyd Hopkins Trilogy - Blood on the Moon; Because the Night; Suicide Hill - James Ellroy
I honestly only intended to tackle one of these this year but found myself enjoying the first one so much I just ploughed through to the finale. Very enjoyable cat and mouse stories of a morally questionable cop and his adversaries. I like Ellroy's writing and his characterisations but I do wonder sometimes whether he gets just a little too much pleasure from his racist and misogynistic characters (of which there are many), or whether he simply does a really good job of writing them. They're all largely despicable though, either way.
Book 64: An Island - Karen Jennings
Another succinct but serious novella, this one a post-colonial story from an unnamed African nation. A solitary lighthouse keeper finds a body washed up and takes him in. Our protagonist's years of struggle fighting dictatorships, serving decades incarcerated and then ultimately nearly three decades as the sole inhabitant of this small island have left a very unsociable, paranoid old soul who struggles with his Man Friday's presence. Really good, quick read.
Mr Moore
Well-Known Member
2023 in Review
Solid year, not too many duds and a whole lot of belters.
Real stand-outs:
Booth, The Agony and the Ecstasy and The Mirror & The Light were all superb examples of historical fiction detailing fascinating people.
Luster, The Shards and Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow were my favourite contemporary books.
Stephen King blew me away with the epic The Stand and then impressed me equally with the succinctness of his short stories in Night Shift.
Franzen, Perrotta and Russo offered up quite differing slices of American Pie but all left me hungry to sample more.
But, if pushed to pick a top spot, I think it would have to go to the quirky experimental world of George Saunders' Lincoln in the Bardo. I feel like this will remain in my thoughts longer than any others, although ironically, only just pipping Booth which I also tell anyone who'll listen is a bona fide modern masterpiece.
Solid year, not too many duds and a whole lot of belters.
Real stand-outs:
Booth, The Agony and the Ecstasy and The Mirror & The Light were all superb examples of historical fiction detailing fascinating people.
Luster, The Shards and Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow were my favourite contemporary books.
Stephen King blew me away with the epic The Stand and then impressed me equally with the succinctness of his short stories in Night Shift.
Franzen, Perrotta and Russo offered up quite differing slices of American Pie but all left me hungry to sample more.
But, if pushed to pick a top spot, I think it would have to go to the quirky experimental world of George Saunders' Lincoln in the Bardo. I feel like this will remain in my thoughts longer than any others, although ironically, only just pipping Booth which I also tell anyone who'll listen is a bona fide modern masterpiece.
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Selaws
Well-Known Member
Well this was a super fun reading year!
Hard to choose my favourites but the last entry "Midnight In The Garden Of Good And Evil" was good. "The Bear Comes Home" was an unexpected pleasure. "The Underground Railroad" was a fantastic read and made all the more impactful considering it was based on actual events. The autobiography of Nike's Phil Knight, "Shoe Dog", was a fantastic book too. I read plenty of jazz books this year too with the Joe Harriott profile "Sketches From Life" being a nice short read. I also read a few more Murakami books this year, with "Colourless Tsukuru Tazaki" being very different to the others I have read, but enjoyable all the same!
For those of you that want to start afresh this year, heres a link to the new 2024 Reading Challenge thread!
Hard to choose my favourites but the last entry "Midnight In The Garden Of Good And Evil" was good. "The Bear Comes Home" was an unexpected pleasure. "The Underground Railroad" was a fantastic read and made all the more impactful considering it was based on actual events. The autobiography of Nike's Phil Knight, "Shoe Dog", was a fantastic book too. I read plenty of jazz books this year too with the Joe Harriott profile "Sketches From Life" being a nice short read. I also read a few more Murakami books this year, with "Colourless Tsukuru Tazaki" being very different to the others I have read, but enjoyable all the same!
For those of you that want to start afresh this year, heres a link to the new 2024 Reading Challenge thread!
jamieanderson1968
ninniest jackaninny
A few standouts for me this year were all music memoirs, Steve Turner - Mud Ride, Miki Berenyi - Fingers Crossed and Stuart Braithwaite - Spaceships Over Scotland.
Hardly a dud book this year fiction-wise. Nothing that really blew my socks off but only one book that I started and then stopped after 100 pages.
Hardly a dud book this year fiction-wise. Nothing that really blew my socks off but only one book that I started and then stopped after 100 pages.