Top Books of the Year 2018

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Just like 2017, I had a difficult year reading-wise in 2018. I didn’t read many bad books, but at the same time, nothing genuinely "wowed" me. However, there were quite a few books I really enjoyed. Here are the five I enjoyed the most:

5. The Unexpected President by Scott S. Greenberger
Non-Fiction

I became interested in President Chester Arthur when I read a book about James Garfield’s assassination. Arthur was Garfield’s vice-president, which means he became president when Garfield was assassinated. Initially, when Arthur was chosen as Garfield’s veep, he was a “machine” man, deep in the pockets of the Republican party’s powerful ruling class. Garfield was not; he was a reformer. Many expected that Arthur would follow the machine’s orders when he unexpectedly became president. Instead, he chose to honor Garfield by continuing many of his policies. I was interested to learn what prompted this change of heart. I can’t say that this book truly answered this question (it is perhaps unanswerable; Arthur ordered much of his personal papers destroyed upon his death) but it was still an excellent biography of a little-remembered President.

4. Shah of Shahs by Ryszard Kapuściński
Non-Fiction

An in-depth look at the rise and fall of the last shah of Iran. This is the second book of Kapuściński’s I’ve read. There are two things that I really love about him. The first is his ability to write compelling, informative non-fiction that includes beautiful, vivid language. I often find myself moved by him & have even copied down passages to re-read at a later date. The second thing I love is that so much of it is written based upon his personal experience. A Polish journalist during the time that Poland was ruled by the USSR, he covered some of the most turbulent times in modern African history (1950s onward). A truly fascinating author that deserves more recognition in the USA.

3. The Bedlam Stacks by Natasha Pulley
Fantasy Fiction

Set in the 1850s, a young man still recovering from a life-altering injury is sent to Peru by the British East India Company. His quest is to find a grove of cinchona trees and take cuttings, so that Britain can save money by growing its own trees. This is important, as quinine, a drug that treats malaria, comes from cinchona bark, and Britain is deeply mired in India, where malaria is rampant. This book is full of both mystery and mysticism while also including lots of interesting details about Peru. It’s a fantasy that somehow doesn’t feel like a fantasy. After I finished it, I read online that it’s considered a prequel to another of Pulley’s works. Being unfamiliar with her other work didn’t impact my enjoyment of this book in the slightest.

2. River of Teeth by Sarah Gailey
Fantasy Fiction

Set in the 1890s, this novel asks he question: What would have happened if, in the early 19th century, the U.S. government had imported hippos into its marshlands to be bred as an alternative meat source? The answer is: nothing much good. When a wronged man is hired to do something about the hippo problem, he assembles a rag-tag team to help him finish the deal. This slim book is inventive. I’m amazed by how Gailey was able to build such a rich world in so few words. I really enjoyed the characters, and was particularly pleased by the inclusion of a non-gendered person. I thought it was a fast-paced, fun romp (it’s also quite violent). I enjoyed it so much that I was genuinely surprised to discover online that others don’t feel the same way.

1. The Immortal Irishman by Timothy Egan
Non-Fiction

Thomas Meagher may not be well-known today, but he was extremely popular in his time. Born in 1823 to a wealthy Irish family, he suffered under the oppressive British rule of the time despite that wealth. After taking part in one of Ireland’s many unsuccessful revolutions, he was exiled to Tasmania, which he later escaped. He then made his way to America, where he became a famous orator before jumping in to command one of the fiercest Union brigades of the Civil War. After the war, he moved to Montana and unexpectedly became one of its first governors. All of this before his mysterious death at the age of 43. Timothy Egan is hands down, without question, one of the finest non-fiction authors alive. I’ve never read a single one of his books that hasn’t been interesting, informative, and thoroughly engaging. This one, however, is definitely a highlight. Don’t skip out on it - give non-fiction a chance!

Top Books of the Year 2017

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I had a difficult year reading-wise. Nearly every book I completed ended up being just okay. Nothing really "wowed" me, but here are the 5 books I enjoyed the most:

5. Eruption by Steve Olson
Non-Fiction

An in-depth look at the May 18, 1980 eruption of Mt. St. Helens. The specific focus of this book is to dispel the erroneous notion that the 57 people who died in the eruption were in the area "illegally" and thus "deserved" their deaths. (In fact, only the famous Harry R. Truman was illegally in the "red zone." The other 2 people killed in the red zone had permission to be there. All of the other victims were in the "blue zone," which was perfectly legal to be in.) Olson does a good job of explaining the history of logging in the area, and the political climate of the time, both of which directly led to the establishment of the loosey-goosey blue zone, and thus the deaths of far too many people. I also appreciated how thorough he was at explaining the various ways people can be killed in a volcanic eruption, even a dozen miles away from the blast.

4. 438 Days by Jonathan Franklin
Non-Fiction

The nearly unbelievable story of Salvador Alvarenga, a fisherman who, after getting caught in a terrible storm, spent 438 days adrift at sea, traveling all the way from Mexico to Marshall Islands. Alvarenga's boat was small; nearly all of his supplies were washed overboard in the storm, including food, water, and tools. His creativity in ensuring his own survival made it difficult to put this book down. He even made his own entertainment! I particularly enjoyed the "soccer game" he played with all of the birds he captured (by hand!). I'm not sure that I've ever read anything more inspiring than this story.

3. The Electrifying Fall of Rainbow City by Margaret Creighton
Non-Fiction

An exploration of the assassination of President William McKinley in September 1901, set against the backdrop of the World's Fair in Buffalo, NY. Creighton does a good job of setting the stage. It's just as much about Buffalo (and the surrounding area, including Niagra Falls) & the Fair as it is about McKinley & his assassin. Creighton uses quite a few contemporary accounts, really bringing this time period to life. I have a strange fascination with the World's Fair & wish it was something we still did in modern times.

2. Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
Fantasy Fiction

When I started reading this book, a co-worker fretted that I wouldn't be able to enjoy it, because it's set in the same universe as Bardugo's other books (but is an independent story) and I've read nothing else of Bardugo's. This wasn't a problem for me. Although I'm unfamiliar with her universe, I never felt lost or confused. In fact, I found her universe imaginative, her characters interesting and complex, and the story entertaining. In particular, I thought that the "heist" portion of the tale was very well done. My only complaint is that I didn't realize that it's the first book of a series. I loved the heck out of it right until the last two chapters, when I realized that the story wasn't going to be resolved. It was hugely disappointing. I may be the only person on the planet who prefers standalone books, but I do. I'll probably never read the sequels, so I'll never know where the story goes.

1. Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
Fiction

The only book this year that I truly loved. An excerpt from my review: "Simon is the tale of a closeted teenaged gay boy named Simon whose secret is discovered by a classmate, leading to blackmail. Which sounds pretty serious, and while there are some serious undertones to the story, overall it’s very lighthearted and sweet and fun.

The thing I liked most about this book was the characterization. I read a lot of young adult fiction and tend to find that teenagers don’t really act like teenagers in YA books. This is probably because most YA books are written by adults. I thought Albetalli did a fantastic job with writing realistic teenaged characters. I thought she did a fantastic job of writing nuanced adult characters as well."

I really can't gush enough about this book. I read it in 3 hours. It's now an all-time favorite!

Top Books of the Year 2016

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Here are my favorite books of 2016:

5. Callings by Dave Isay
Non-Fiction
Isay is the founder of StoryCorps, an ongoing oral history project. The mission of StoryCorps "is to preserve and share humanity’s stories in order to build connections between people and create a more just and compassionate world." To that end, they provide booths throughout the country where people can share & record their histories. Amongst other things, Isay has published several books of these stories. Usually these books are themed. I've read most of them & find them incredibly moving. I wasn't expecting Callings, which is about peoples' careers, to be as moving. I was a fool. It brought me to tears more than once. Truly touching and inspiring.

4. This Love is Not for Cowards by Robert Andrew Powell
Non-Fiction
Journalist Powell spent a year living in Ciudad Juarez, one of Mexico's most dangerous cities, in order to follow the trajectory of the city's beloved soccer team, the Indios. Mexico's soccer federation runs on a promotion/relegation system. The Indios, newly promoted to the top tier, were fighting to stay there. At the same time, the city was experiencing a surge in drug cartel-related violence. This book is about so much more than soccer. It's about the history of Mexico and of Juarez. It's about drugs and gangs and violence. And it's about love, love for club and city and country. So interesting that it made me want to learn more about Mexico.

3. We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
Young Adult Fiction
Well-to-do teenager Cadence spends each summer with her extended family on a private island off Cape Cod. One summer, tragedy occurs, but it is a tragedy that Cadence cannot remember. Fragile and unstable, Cadence returns to the island to piece her past together, but the truth may be too much for her to bear. Before reading this book, I'd heard that I would never see the ending coming. They were right about that. This one was a gut punch. It broke my heart. I was depressed for days after finishing it. Maybe that makes it sound unappealing, but you have to believe me that this book is really lovely.

2. Dead Presidents by Brady Carlson
Non-Fiction
What happens to presidents after they die? Do their bodies lie in state or do they take a trip around the country? Where are they buried? How are they remembered? And how are those legacies formed? Carlson covers all of those questions and more in this immensely entertaining and informative book about the U.S. Presidents. I particularly appreciated that Carlson traveled around the country to visit each president's gravesite. Visiting a president's grave is literally something I'd never considered before. I enjoyed his descriptions of all of those places I will likely never see. This book inspired me; I've added a bunch of presidential biographies to my reading list.

1. Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan
Young Adult Fiction
Ostensibly this book is about two boys, former boyfriends, trying to break the world record for longest kiss. In reality, it's about much more. Levithan intertwines several connecting stories to build a beautiful tapestry about love and acceptance, fear and bravery, longing and connection. Initially, I found the "Greek chorus" of HIV victims off-putting, but as I kept reading, I began to recognize how beautiful it was. This book touched me deeply.

Top Books of the Year 2015

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Here are my favorite books of 2015. I had a very difficult time ordering these. You can basically consider them equal, except for #1, which slightly edges out the others. I actually read a lot of good books this year. It wasn’t easy to narrow this list down to five.

5. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
Young Adult Fiction
This novel revolves around the lives of four boys, Gansey, Ronan, Adam, and Noah, all students at the fictional Aglionby Academy in Virginia, and their local-girl friend, Blue. It’s essentially fantasy, involving psychics, magic, and the quest to find a long-dead (But is he really?) Welsh king. At the same time, it explores some very sensitive topics, such as child abuse and economic gaps between friends, with an impressive amount of understanding. It’s the first book in a series of four. I finished it right at the close of the year, immediately put the second on hold at the library, and have been unable to read anything else while I wait for it to come in, because I’m too distracted by this beautiful, intricate tale.

4. A Thousand Lives by Julia Scheeres
Non-Fiction
In 1978, over 900 members of an American cult called Peoples Temple committed mass suicide in Guyana. This book explores the history of the cult, including the background of its charismatic leader, Jim Jones, taking you on a journey through its hopeful, well-meaning beginning to the depressing, heartbreaking end. It’s not the first book I’ve read about this cult but I would say it’s the best. Scheeres used the files that the FBI collected on Peoples Temple, which include journals of those involved, and interviewed survivors, so you feel like you really get to know these misguided people. A truly gripping read.

3. The Skies Belong to Us by Brendan I. Koerner
Non-Fiction
In the tumultuous America of the 1960s and 1970s, skyjacking was used as a form of mostly non-violent protest. In fact, it was so common that travelers could buy insurance for it. Pressured by the powerful airline lobby, the American government was slow to react, although the issue ultimately led to the security measures that stayed in place from the mid 1970s to 2001 (when they were tightened). This book covers a particular skyjacking case, interweaving its tale with a history of skyjacking in general. It’s a piece of American history that I previously knew nothing about (I was familiar with maybe a handful of these cases; I had no idea that there used to be dozens per year). I could hardly put it down.

2. The Big Truck That Went By by Jonathan M. Katz
Non-Fiction
The January 2010 earthquake that struck Haiti was bad enough, killing over 100,000 people and leaving many more homeless and jobless, an unimaginable disaster in a country where daily life was already a struggle for survival. Unfortunately, the international response to the disaster only made things worse. This book is an incredibly frustrating read in that you want to bang your head against a wall every time the international community patronized the Haitian people and shut them out of the recovery process . . . so, basically, the whole book. It’s infuriating. It’s also an important read. Written by the only full-time American reporter in Haiti at the time, it restored some of my faith in modern-day journalism. It was going to be my top book of the year until I remembered that I read the below in 2015.

1. The Destiny of the Republic by Candice Millard
Non-Fiction
A book about James Garfield, the second U.S. President to be assassinated (after only six months in office), is probably a tough sell. What would motivate you to read this? Perhaps the fact that he was a really amazing human being. Completely self-made, intelligent, well-read, little-known for his Civil War heroism, humble, and thoroughly uninterested in being President. He was nominated as a compromise, at a time when his party was rife with corruption. Although he didn’t want the role, he embraced both it and reform, immediately angering everyone who expected him to continue the corruption game. By the end of the book, I was truly mourning the loss of a man who would’ve likely made a great president (a loss that could’ve been prevented on so many levels). I credit Millard’s excellent writing for bringing this forgotten President to life. After finishing it, I realized that I already had another of her books on my reading list. I can’t wait to get to it.

Top Books of the Year 2014

Here are the posts for 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2012. I didn't do this feature for 2013.

And here are the top 5* books I read in 2014. I enthusiastically recommend them:

5. The Curse of the Wendigo by Rick Yancey

Young Adult Fiction

This is book 2 of Yancey’s “Monstrumologist” series. Unaware of that, I purchased it before reading the first. I was able to follow it without trouble, and while I later in the year went back to read the first book, I ended up preferring this one. The Monstrumologist series follows the life and times of Will Henry, young apprentice to Pellinore Warthrop, world-famous “monstrumologist” (a man steeped in the science and study of monsters). In this book, they’re hot on the trail of a wendigo, a monster that eats human flesh. It’s full of foul language, gore, and distressing amounts of life-threatening danger for Will Henry. I enjoyed it thoroughly.

4. Hidden America by Jeanne Marie Laskas

Non-Fiction

Journalist Laskas travelled the country to interview people involved in a variety of jobs that most Americans give little thought to, from coal miners to waste management technicians to ranch hands to pro football cheerleaders. The results are mixed. Some chapters are only so-so, a bit boring to be honest, but most of them are really interesting, chock full of odd tidbits and new-to-me information. It was a unique way to look at the melting pot that is America.

3. The Bookseller of Kabul by Asne Seierstad

Non-Fiction

After the fall of the Taliban in 2001, journalist Seierstad spent some time living with a bookseller and his family in Kabul. This book discusses what that time was like. As a Westerner, I found this book incredibly difficult to read. This family’s way of life was completely foreign to me, and I couldn’t help but to feel bad for these people, who had virtually no freedom compared to me and the people I know. However, it was really fascinating. I felt like I learned a lot about Afghan culture and history. A truly interesting read.

2. The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan

Non-Fiction

This book is Egan’s exploration of the Dust Bowl, America’s greatest ecological disaster. I liked it because it's about the people who stayed during the Dust Bowl (rather than the ones who fled). It had a lot of interesting information about how the disaster came about, its effects, and how humans ultimately prevailed. It also included first-hand accounts. Although it could be a little repetitious, I read the whole thing completely spell-bound, amazed that I spent my whole life knowing so little about this devastating piece of American history. It was also a great reminder that previous generations were a lot more bad-ass than my own.

1. Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence

Fantasy Fiction

This is the tale of Prince Honorious Jorg, a foul-mouthed 14-year-old who’s spent the last 4 years of his life raping, pillaging, and killing his way across the land in order to exact revenge for the death of his mother and lay a claim on the throne. The brilliant thing about Lawrence’s novel, other than some innovative plot twists that injected life into what could have been a tired plot, is that Jorg is the king of anti-heroes. In fact, I spent the first few chapters of the book wondering why I kept reading it, why I hadn’t put it down in disgust. By the end of the book, Lawrence had managed to make Jorg sympathetic, and I found myself rooting for him to win. I thought it was a brilliant piece of writing, and I can’t wait to read the sequels.

*Honorable Mention 6th place goes to The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker, an intricate and lovely tale.

Top Books of the Year 2012

This year, I’m listing my favorite books with some amount of trepidation. It hasn’t been a good year for reading. Normally, I love to read. It’s one of my favorite pastimes. But this year, I found it incredibly difficult to focus on practically any book that I picked up. I think a combination of factors led me to this state. I won’t go into them here. As we speak, I’m trying to get back into the reading groove.

My total for the year came in at an abysmal 24 books. That’s an average of two books per month. However, I finished the vast majority of those books in the first half of the year. Of these 24 books, 14 were fiction; 10 were non-fiction.

None of the ones listed here gripped me, but they were all books that I enjoyed immensely. I should note that I’m currently reading The Lost City of Z by David Grann. I don’t anticipate finishing it before midnight tomorrow, so it will have to go in with my 2013 books. However, if that weren’t the case, it would be my top book of the year.

So, without further hedging, here are my top books of 2012:

5.  Nothing Daunted by Dorothy Wickenden

The true story of two young, unmarried society women who, in 1916, traveled to the wilds of Colorado (and they were the wilds back then) to teach in a one-room schoolhouse. The courage, pluck, and resourcefulness of our ancestors never cease to amaze me.

4.  The Poisoner’s Handbook by Deborah Blum

A book about all the delightful ways we used to poison each other and ourselves (both unintentionally and not), set against the backdrop of Jazz Age NYC, an era that gave birth to modern forensic science. This one satisfies us morbid folk while also explaining the science of poisons in an easy, accessible manner.

3.  Isaac’s Storm by Erik Larson

The true story of the September 8, 1900 hurricane that devastated Galveston, Texas. Written in interesting detail & chilling.

2.  The Ice Balloon by Alec Wilkinson

I honestly don’t know how anyone wouldn’t want to read this book. In 1897, a Swedish adventurer by the name of S.A. Andree tried to fly a hydrogen balloon to the North Pole. Aren’t you just dying of curiosity to see how that turned out for him? Luckily for you, this book is short, easily readable, and utterly fascinating.

1.  Coroner’s Journal by Louis Cataldie

Cataldie served as chief coroner of Baton Rouge for a number of years, including during the mid-1990s, when the city was terrorized by not one, but two serial killers at the same time. During his years of service, Cataldie kept extensive notes in a journal, and this book is the result. I found his writing style very accessible, and I liked the way the book was laid out: crazy accidental deaths in one chapter; suicides in another; child deaths in another, etc. You knew what you were going to get with each chapter. Really interesting stuff. I think I finished this book in two days.

So, there you have it. All non-fiction books again this year. I also see now that, with the exception of #1, they all fall within my favorite historical time period, 1890s-1920s. What am I going to do if I ever run out of things to read about that era? Let’s hope we never find out.

Bookworm Bash 2012

Yesterday I went with a friend to Addison's Bookworm Bash, a two-day book sale. The proceeds benefitted Senior Adult Services, a non-profit that assists senior citizens and those who work in the caregiving field.

I was a little concerned because we were hitting the sale on the second day. I thought the pickings might be slim. Luckily, the sale was very well run. The tables were fully stocked with books and other media of all subjects. They were also well-organized, so it was easy to find the section you were looking for and browse for books to your personal taste.

We had a great time. My friend came away with two full bags. Afterward, we explored the quiet little corner of Addison (around Circle Park) where the sale was held. It's a really nice area that reminded me a lot of the Pearl District in Portland. This sale seems to occur every year in Addison. I'm already looking forward to next year's sale!

Below are pictures of the five books I bought for just $6.00:

This is urban fantasy. Could be fun. Could suck.

I liked the movie of This Boy's Life.

Reminds me of Mad Men. Should be good.

Non-fiction from my favorite time period of history. Sold.

See caption for The Lost City of Z.

Finally Got My Dallas Library Card

I'm so excited!

Okay, so it's a little underwhelming. Definitely not the best-looking library card I've ever seen. However, I'm still thrilled to be back in book-borrowing business, especially since our budget doesn't allow for much book buying these days.

I picked up two books while I was there: The Ice Balloon by Alec Wilkinson (non-fiction) and The Monsters of Templeton by Lauren Groff (fiction). I looked for some of the books on my ever-growing list, but sadly they were not available at that branch. I'll have to order them from other branches.

Top Books of the Year 2011

My goal for 2011 was to read 7 books per month, and to read more non-fiction books than fiction. I achieved my goal, with a total of 86 books read, or an average of 7.2 books per month. Of those 86 books, 49 were non-fiction and 37 were fiction.

While reading this much has been tremendous for speeding through my reading list, ultimately I found it to be a bit too much like "work." I often found myself rushing through books or pressuring myself to read books that I didn't really want to finish, just so I could achieve my goal.

So, for 2012, I am scaling back considerably. I want to regain my love for reading. I am hoping to read only 4 books per month. I don't care how many are fiction or non-fiction. If I read more than that, great.

That having been said, here are my top 5 books for 2011:

5. The Help by Kathryn Stockett

If you're a book lover and you've never heard of this book, then apparently you've been living under a rock. It's about black servants and the white people they work for in the segregated South of the 1950s. Perhaps it's cliche to have this book on my list, but I really, really loved it. It's an excellent read.

4. American Lightning by Howard Blum

A non-fiction book about the 1910 bombing of the LA Times building. This book is fantastic! I think it particularly struck me because of how many parallels there are between what was happening in America in the early 20th century and what is happening now, exactly 100 years later. I cannot stress enough how great this book is.

3. Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake

Holy cow, a second fiction book makes it into my top 5! This is a YA novel about a young man who is a ghost hunter, which isn't even remotely as lame as it sounds. This book is genuinely scary in parts (and I don't scare easily). It is also violent and beautiful and full of twists that I wasn't necessarily expecting. The author is female but the main character is male and I think she does an excellent job of portraying him. When the sequel (ohpleaseohplease) comes out, I will be on it like a ghost trying to rip the warm flesh from human bones! :)

2. The Last True Story I'll Ever Tell by John Cameron

One man's memoir of his time serving in Iraq. This book is raw and angry and visceral and real. And, oh god, is it good.

1. Soccer in Sun and Shadow by Eduardo Galeano

It feels almost wrong to put a book about soccer as my top book of the year, mostly because I know that 99.9% of people who ever read this blog won't give a crap about soccer. But it's the first book I read this year and it remains my favorite as well. Part history of soccer, part history of South America, and part unashamed worship of the sport, it's as beautiful as the beautiful game itself. Mr. Galeano is truly a talented author.

Books Not Read 2.0

Here are a couple of more books that I couldn't slog my way through recently.

The Court of the Air by Stephen Hunt

A fantasy novel about two teenaged orphans on an adventure. Sounds fun, right? This book was anything but fun. In fact, at a whopping 592 pages, I'm not sure how I ever imagined I'd find the time to get through it in the first place. My general problem with a lot of fantasy novels is that they're over descriptive to the point of tedium. I had the opposite problem with this book - the author introduced many new concepts and creatures without any explanation at all of what they were, exactly, as though I was already supposed to know.

I think I made it maybe 150-200 pages in before I just got irrationally angry. Seriously, it really pissed me off that I never seemed to know what was going on ever. I'd find myself thinking, "Wait, who the hell is this character? What the F is going on?" Now, to be fair to Mr. Hunt, I was trying to read this book while my mother was dying of cancer, so I may have been funneling some unresolved feelings about that into an easy target. But who wants to read a book that makes no sense?

I see that this book has only 3.5 stars on Amazon, which doesn't surprise me. What does surprise me is how many 5-star reviews it got. Were those courtesy of the author's friends?

Prisoner of the State by Bao Pu, Renee Chiang, and Adi Ignatius

One day, maybe a year or so ago, I was passing some time at the library by reading magazines - copies of Newsweek, I believe. I happened to stumble across an article about modern-day influential books that everyone should read. This book was on the list. It is a translation of the secret journal kept by Zhao Ziyang, the former premier of China who was placed under house arrest following the Tiananmen Square massacre.

I really wanted to like this book for a lot of reasons. I love to read about China. I think it would be fascinating to see into the mind of a man who was neck deep in the leadership of the Communist Party. And this book is supposed to be very good. But I just couldn't get into it. For a secret journal, it is shockingly dry, the language painfully formal. I love non-fiction, but the language absolutely has to be readable or I can't do it.

I set it aside with regret. Maybe I could try it at a different time, but I don't really feel like it.

As an aside, so far I've read three other books from that magazine list. I absolutely loved two of them and liked the other pretty well. So I still consider it a good list!

Books Not Read

Well, with my access to free books cut off, it seems like I don't have a lot to say about books anymore. I have an account on Goodreads, where I post ratings and reviews for the books I've read. Since most of the handful of people who actually read this blog are also my friends on Goodreads, I would feel like I was repeating myself to also put my book reviews on here.

I realized the other day, however, that I never put books that I don't finish on Goodreads. So I thought this might be a good place to do that. Following is a list of books that were on my "to read" list, but which I never ended up finishing & am unlikely to ever pick up again.

The World Without Us by Alan Weisman (non-fiction)

I'm pretty sure everyone's heard of this book, so it needs no explanation. I read the first chapter & really wanted to like it. I hear it's interesting. But I just couldn't get into it. I might give this one another shot at some point; it could have just been my mood at the time.

A Summer Affair by Elin Hilderbrand (fiction)

Why, oh why, did I ever put a book about a woman having an affair on my "to-read" list? People having affairs annoys me. And so did everything about this book, especially the main character. I got maybe 50 pages into it before giving up.

Somewhere Towards the End by Diana Athill (non-fiction)

A memoir by a woman in her 90s. Another book that I desperately wanted to like but couldn't get into. I could never put my finger on why. I think I wasn't particularly enamored of her writing style. I think I made it maybe 20 or 30 pages in?

The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet by Reif Larsen (fiction)

Another book that I desperately wanted to like. It's an adventure tale about a boy traveling across the country to accept a prestigious award. It was just too much. Too many diagrams and drawings and things in the margins. Too many attempts at cleverness. Too "twee." I think I read a few chapters.

Admission by Jean Hanff Korelitz (fiction)

A book about an admissions counselor at Princeton. I read maybe 3 pages. Zzzzzzz. If a book bores me in 3 pages, you know it's got to be bad.

The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe (fiction)

This was something about a PhD candidate and witches and a magic book or something. I read a few chapters. Sadly, it was very slow and boring. How can a book about witches be boring? You tell me.

Skippy Dies by Paul Murray (fiction)

I really gave this book - about a young man at a boarding school in Scotland - the old college try. I got to about page 160, at which time I flipped to the back to see how much more I had to read and saw that this book is 650 pages long! 650 pages! I'm sorry, but this isn't an epic like Lord of the Rings, so that's pretty ridiculous.

I actually did like a lot about this book. But it suffered from what a lot of modern books suffer from (in my opinion): too long, too much detail, too many plot lines, too many characters. It got to the point where I couldn't keep any character straight, except for Skippy. It's like editors don't even edit anymore. When I realized I still had 500 pages to go and it was due back at the library in 3 days, I had to call it quits. I doubt I'll ever pick it up again.

Citizen Girl by Emma McLaughlin & Nicola Kraus (fiction)

I put this book on my to-read list and then realized that it was written by the same women who wrote The Nanny Diaries, one of my most hated books of all time. So I took it back off.

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Oh no, I see a trend. I don't like fiction very much, do I?

Bookstore Books: A Reflection

Now that I no longer live on Maui, it seems doubtful that I will continue to have access to a free supply of books. (There is a friends of the library here, of course, and they actually run a used bookstore. I am contemplating signing up to volunteer, but would like to go and check out the place first. Even if I do volunteer, however, there are no guarantees that free books will be a perk of the job.)

At any rate, with the free supply of books at least temporarily cut off (and most of my books returned to the bookstore), I thought now would be a good time to reflect on the free books I brought home in September & October of 2010. How many did I read? And did I like them?

September:

Life in a Medieval Village - I read the first two chapters but never finished it. I took it back to the bookstore and didn't add it to my "to read" list.

Nathaniel's Nutmeg - Didn't read it. Returned it to the bookstore. Didn't add it to the list.

October:

Knockdown - Read it. Didn't really like it.

Collapse - Didn't read it. Returned it to the bookstore. Didn't add it to the list.

I Was Told There'd Be Cake - Read a little bit. Didn't like it. Returned it to the bookstore.

Eccentrics - Never got around to reading it. Ultimately decided not to include it on my "to read" list because said list is so long already. Took it back to the bookstore, where it was immediately snatched up.

The Last Lecture - Didn't read it. Returned it to the bookstore. Didn't add it to the list.

House Rules - Didn't read it. Returned it to the bookstore. Didn't add it to the list.

Three Weeks with My Brother - Read it. Loved it.

The Secret Life of Bees - Read it. Loved it.

On Fortune's Wheel - Read it. Liked it.

The Serpent & the Moon - Didn't read it, but still want to. Put it on my "to read" list.

The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets - Read it. Loved it.

Coroner's Journal - Haven't read it yet; brought it with me from Maui.

The Victorian Internet - Read it. Liked it.

Furies of Calderon - Read it. Loved it.

So, of the 16 books I brought home, I read 7 and still intend to read 2. So about half? Hmmm...not sure if that's good or bad.

Top Books of the Year 2010

My goal for 2010 was to read an average of 6 books per month, with a majority in the "non-fiction" category. Despite a not-entirely-anticipated end-of-the-year major move that disrupted my reading time, I still managed to achieve my goal: I read 77 books in 2010, for an average of 6.4 books per month. Of those, 43 were non-fiction and 34 were fiction.

I plan to up my goal to an average of 7 per month in 2011 and continue to try to read more non-fiction than fiction. I think this goal will be more difficult to attain now that I've returned to living in a city, where I have a larger variety of things to do.

So without further ado, here are my Top 5 Books of 2010:

5. Going Up the River by Joseph Hallinen

An investigation (and, I feel, an indictment) of the U.S. penal system. A little outdated and one-sided, but fascinating and riveting nonetheless.

4. Secrets to Happiness by Sarah Dunn

The only fiction book in my Top 5, but, hey, a fiction book makes it into my Top 5! I'm hard-pressed to tell you what this book is *really* about because there's not a strong plot per se. Suffice it to say that it's about people learning to be happy. And it's delightful.

3. The Longest Winter by Alex Kershaw

About a company of Army men who held a key hill in the Battle of the Bulge long enough allow the Allies to win the day. The men were all either killed or captured and those captured spent long months as POWs. Will make you feel like a lazy cry-baby in comparison.

2. Patriotic Treason by Evan Carton

The life and death of militant abolitionist John Brown. This book was eye-opening. Fascinating to read about a man whose religious fervor led him to help his fellow man rather than oppress him.

1. The Murder of Nikolai Vavilov by Peter Pringle

This is one of those books that I will recommend until I'm blue in the face. Vavilov was a famous Russian botanist in his day, a man who held dreams of ending famine not only in his home country, but around the world. Sadly, as Communism put a stranglehold on Russia, Vavilov ran afoul of Stalin. This book makes you fall in love with this man, only to be left haunted by his fate. A truly phenomenal read!

Bookstore Books 10/23/10

Furies of Calderon by Jim Butcher

A fantasy novel about a young man who, despite lacking the power of "furycrafting" (unlike most people in his world), may just be the one person who can save them all from a terrible war.

I haven't started reading this book yet. I just noticed that it's "Book One" of a series. I hate getting sucked into series, but I'll give it a shot anyway.

The Victorian Internet by Tom Standage

A non-fiction book about the invention, rise, and eventual fall of the electric telegraph.

I've read two chapters of this book. Have found it a touch dry so far, but will continue reading. It's pretty short and I think it gets a lot better.

Coroner's Journal by Louis Cataldie, M.D.

The jacket description of this book has got to be the longest and most complex I've ever seen, hahaha. But I found one sentence that sums up what this non-fiction book is about: "Not for the faint of heart, this is a close-up look at the world of a coroner in a small southern city with big-city problems."

I haven't started this book yet but I'm really looking forward to it.

The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets by Eva Rice

A novel of the young British upper class in 1950s London.

I haven't started this book yet. I'm hoping it's really good.

And finally (a lot of great stuff came my way this week!).....

The Serpent and the Moon by Her Royal Highness Princess Michael of Kent

The true story of King Henri II of France, who spent most of his life in love with Diane de Poitiers (an aristocrat 19 years his senior), even through his politically advantageous marriage to Catherine de Medici. The author is a descendant of both Catherine and Diane. The book includes a truly dizzying family tree of all the key players and lots of sumptuous pictures.

I haven't started reading this book yet.

Bookstore Books 10/16/10

I've been feeling too lazy to take pictures of the books I've picked up recently, which has kept me from posting to the blog. So I decided that all posts today will be picture-free. Here are the books that I picked up on 10/16:

On Fortune's Wheel by Cynthia Voigt

A fantasy (possibly in the YA category?) novel about a young woman who tries to stop a thief in the night and finds herself thrown into the journey of a lifetime.

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

Probably best known to most people from the recent movie version. This is the story of a young teenaged girl who runs away from home only to find both herself and the real home she'd always desired.

Three Weeks with My Brother by Nicholas Sparks and Micah Sparks

Nicholas Sparks is a famous novelist who typically turns out schmaltzy fair such as A Walk to Remember and Nights in Rodanthe. I've never read any of his books before because, frankly, they seem a bit cheesy to me. But this book is a memoir that he wrote with his brother. It describes both the three-week world tour the brothers took together in 2002 and their lives growing up together.

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I have already read all three of these books and enjoyed them all thoroughly.

Books from the Bookstore 10/9/10

House Rules by Rachel Sontag. It's a memoir by a woman who grew up with a very controlling father and a mentally ill mother. I read the first few pages the other day and decided that I didn't want to read this book after all.

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch. Perhaps you've heard of this one. It's written by this college professor who was invited to do a "last lecture" (apparently such lectures are common on college campuses these days; college professors are invited to think about their death and lecture on all the things they'd want to say). Only after accepting the gig, Pausch found out that he really was dying of pancreatic cancer and had only a few months to live.

I read the first few pages, couldn't get into it, and set it aside to take back. But I've decided that I want to give it another shot.

Eccentrics: A Study of Sanity and Strangeness by Dr. David Weeks and Jamie James. This one should be fairly self-explanatory. It's a study of eccentrics. I'm excited about this one! Does anybody else find it funny that one of the authors of this book is Jamie James or am I just a nerd?

Bunny Suicides

Ah yes, the very rare bookstore purchase.

(I get most of my books from there for free because I take them back when I'm done with them. It's one of the perks of being a volunteer. I buy them when I know I'm not going to bring them back, but since we're moving back to the mainland in the not-too-distant future, I try not to buy too many.)

As stated in my previous post, I'm rather morbid, a trait that extends to my sense of humor. And that is why I love this series:

I was just telling someone this week about the bunny suicides. I don't remember who, but I do remember that they looked more confused than amused. Oh well. To each their own. At any rate, since I was just talking about it, I was thrilled to stumble across the "box of bunny suicides" at the bookstore and I had to buy it.

If you don't know what they are, the title is pretty self-explanatory. It's a bunch of cartoons depicting these cute little bunnies committing suicide through various clever methods. I suppose when I explain it, it doesn't sound very funny, but believe me, it is. I laughed and laughed while flipping through the books last night.

Two of my favorites (warning: nerd alert):

A bunny standing on a transporter pad next to two Stark Trek guys, only he's only half on the pad, so when the transporter is energized, only half the bunny gets beamed up.

A bunny pouring pepper in Sauron's (Lord of the Rings) all-seeing eye.

I love that just 20 cents bought me so much entertainment.

Bookstore Books 10/02/10

I Was Told There'd Be Cake by Sloane Crossley. I've wanted to read this book for a long time; since before we moved to Hawaii, in fact. So I was pleased to see it finally come through the bookstore. However, I read the first essay in the book last night and started to read a second but got bored. I intend to give it another go at a later date, but I'm beginning to suspect that I don't like "essay books," especially those written by people who think they're vastly more clever than they actually are.

As an aside, it really bugs me when people buy sale books at Borders or Barnes & Noble or whatever and can't be bothered to take the stickers off of them. Why would you want to carry around a book with a sticker on it that says "Buy one, get the second one half price"?

Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed by Jared Diamond. I also have his book Guns, Germs, and Steel, which has been sitting in the "to read" pile for quite some time. I don't anticipate reading either any time particularly soon.

Knockdown: The Harrowing True Account of a Yacht Race Turned Deadly by Martin Dugard. This is the account of the disaster that befell the 1998 Sydney to Hobart yacht race, when a freak storm paralyzed several of the boats, causing multiple deaths. I actually remember hearing about this disaster when it occurred.

I'm rather morbid. I love a good disaster story, so this is the one I'm most likely to delve into first, along with my European village book (see 9/26/10 blog post) and my Genghis Khan book (which had been in the "to read" pile for a very long time until recently).

Bookstore Books 9/26/10

I've decided to add a new feature to my blog: books that I've brought home from the bookstore where I volunteer.

Maybe if I add enough features, I'll finally persuade myself to update my blog more than once a month, hahaha.

Due to the stacks and stacks of books that now sit around the house, accumulating faster than I can read them, I've tried to limit the amount of books that I bring home. But when books are both free and interesting, I have a hard time resisting. Nonetheless, I brought home just two last weekend:

Life in a Medieval Village by Frances and Joseph Gies. The title is self-explanatory. It's a non-fiction work describing what life was like in medieval English villages. So far, I have read the prologue and first chapter of this book. I have to admit that they were a little dry. However, I'm hoping the book gets a bit more engaging now that I'm past the anthropological "how villages arose" part and getting into the "what life was like" part.

Nathaniel's Nutmeg: How One Man's Courage Changed the Course of History by Giles Milton. This is one of those maddening books where it gives you absolutely no synopsis of what it's about anywhere on the jacket. Seriously, why do publishers do this? I don't want to read critics' praises on the jacket; I want to know what the damn book is about!

At any rate, judging by the cover (!) and a glimpse at the first few pages, I gather that this book is NOT about the man who invented the soccer move of kicking the ball between an opponent's legs and instead about the European (possibly Englishman?) who discovered the spice nutmeg being used by foreigners in some distant land and brought it back to Europe. It is a non-fiction book. I have not yet started this book and probably will not for some time.

A Sad Little Library Book: The Update

I gave it the old college try, but I just couldn't get into The Sword of Shannara.

The book was in such a sad state that I felt bad taking it back to the library largely unread. Several years ago, I had tried reading the book for the first time as an adult and had found it too wordy. But with my love for reading recently rekindled, I thought maybe I'd have a different experience this time around.

Not so. I still found the book too wordy. In fact, I often found myself thinking, "Good God, man, get to the point already!" And this from a person who reads lots of dense, wordy non-fiction books.

I'm not quite sure how I zipped through these books as a teenager, but I guess the Shannara series will have to remain a love affair of my 15-year-old self. Thanks for the memories, Terry Brooks.