2017 happened, I read some books, and I wrote blog posts about some of them. I also made sure that half of all the books I read were in translation, but I have another upcoming post about that. Below the Read More is the list of books I read (with links to reviews) and some commentary on what I read and some hopes for 2018.
Not a Review
Short Stories: Where to Start?
“I wish I could read more, but I don’t have time.” I hear this a lot, and I sympathise completely. I gave up on A Song of Ice and Fire in university when I put aside A Feast for Crows during a busy period, didn’t pick it up for four months, and had forgotten the plot of the entire series so far when I picked it back up. What I found great to tide me over – and I still enjoy – was reading short stories. They’re a whole story by themselves! You can read it and not worry about forgetting the plot the next time you go back to it (a.k.a. me with too many murder mysteries)! They don’t have the side-plots and digressions of a novel and get straight to the point! Perfect for the internet age, to be honest.
But the world of the short story can be strange and confusing, and if you were introduced to the form in high-school English it can be hard to shake that initial bias. I love short stories: they exist in every genre, and I think if there is a perfect piece of literature in this world it is probably a short story, or a novella at the longest. What short stories do well is communicate a single idea and focus on and develop it. Because they work on and develop one theme or idea, they can offer a strong and coherent narrative that, if the writer is good, can often deliver a devastating ending.
Six Months of 50% Translated Books
In corporate speak, what’s the takeaway from this?
I’ve found myself reading a lot of books that I previously would look at on my shelves and think, “Oh, I’m not in the mood for those.” I’ve also borrowed books from the library that I’ve been thinking about reading for years but, you guessed it, didn’t feel like it. It’s not that I only read light reads, but rather that I fall very easily into ruts where I don’t want to broaden my reading experience. If I’ve been reading lots of historical mysteries or fantasy novels, I’m unlikely to pick up that book about a multi-generational family in Soviet Russia, because it doesn’t “go” with the other books I’ve been reading, and sits on the shelf for another few months.
2016 Reading Year in Review
It’s 2017! And as such, I think some navel-gazing about my reading habits are in order. This was the first year I kept a record of all the books I read, which allowed me to look at how many books I was reading, what genres, etc. Below the Read More is the full list of books (with link to reviews), plus some thoughts about what I want to do in the coming year.
Best and Worst Book Covers
Well, the title is slightly misleading, since what I really mean by this is the best and worst book covers of books I own. But rest assured, I have both beautiful and hideous book covers. A lot of the books with awful covers are my favourites, but I certainly didn’t pick them up for the design choices… Continue reading
In Honour of World Book Day
I’d like to talk about my favourite books at the moment. I always have to qualify that, because I have so many favourites and these are just the ones that come to mind at the moment.
Sporadically, Books 