Last year I did a facial expression review for every book I read! It looked like this:
I've decided not to do them this year - there are only so many facial expression I can think of!
I read 64 books during 2022. Again, a slight drop from my highest levels
of a few years ago. I blame brain fog, but I have also discovered audio
dramas and Star Trek, so perhaps that is taking some of my attention.
Average rating was 3.5 stars, which is par for the course recently.
The author gender split was bang on 50-50. It looks like my trend of reading more women has eased off - I've been making less of a concerted effort on this front.
On the other hand the proportion of 'diverse' (i.e. non-white/straight/cis) authors has hit an all-time high of 45%!
Fiction vs non-fiction split has been consistent for the past few years.
Proportion of books that are Sci-Fi/Fantasy has been creeping up lately, particularly Sci-Fi, but not as high as in earlier years.
Special mentions:
- Most snuggly:" A Psalm for the Wild-Built" Becky Chambers
- Best re-read: "The Colour of Magic" Terry Pratchett
- Worst re-read: "The Eye of the World" Robert Jordan
- Most gob-smacking: "Return of a King" William Dalrymple
- Most bewildering: "When We Cease to Understand the World" Benjamin Labetut
- Most outrageous: "Gideon the Ninth" Tamsyn Muir
- Most unexpected: "A Swim in a Pond in the Rain" George Saunders
- Most nap-inducing: "Peter Pan" JM Barrie
5 stars (1 book, 1.5%)
A Psalm For The Wild-Built,Becky Chambers,"Despite living in a utopia, a dissatisfied monk embarks upon a journey of self-discovery, illuminated by a charmingly inquisitive robot. Felt like a perfect cup of tea, served by a best friend with a warm embrace. *This* is #solarpunk."
4.5 stars (6 books, 9%)
My Year Without Matches,Claire Dunn,A year roughing it in the bush and the traumatic transformation from human doing into human being. Surprising parallels with chronic illness & housebound life.
How Decent Folk Behave,Maxine Beneba Clarke,"Poetry for our times, through climate breakdown, pandemic, and #metoo: red-hot frustration & withering exhaustion."
The Traitor Baru Cormorant,Seth Dickinson,"An expanding empire brings modernity, but 'social hygiene' breeds rebellion. Subtle power games, creative financial warfare, uncertain allegiances, devastating sacrifices."
The Colour Of Magic,Terry Pratchett,"Re-read after 25+ yrs. A rollicking adventure, bogglingly imaginative. A hopeless wizard and a naive tourist* become pawns of bickering gods, leaving a comical trail of Lucky close-shaves. * and his Luggage!** ** surprising lack of footnotes"
Betty,Tiffany McDaniel,"A family tumbles through a cascade of tragedies: death, sexual abuse, prejudice. Gentle loving father and determined daughter stay sane through connection to imagination, nature & Cherokee heritage. Both chilling & beautiful."
Return of a King,William Dalrymple,"The horrifying debacle of Britain's mid-19th century invasion of Afghanistan. Astoundingly arrogant, conceited, complacent, incompetent & pointless. Superb synthesis of primary sources, from both sides."
4 stars (14 books, 22%)
A Memory Called Empire,Arkady Martine,"Rookie ambassador from distant space station scrabbles desperately through political upheaval of galactic empire. Effortless world-building, well-paced & balanced plot, innovative memory implant."
When We Cease To Understand The World,Benjamin Labatut,"The creative madness of genius scientists. Evolves from fact through to terrifying fabulation, without straying from the essence. Strikingly original."
A Closed and Common Orbit,Becky Chambers,A freshly (re)hatched AI seeks identity & purpose. Wonderfully realised world with rich relationships. Understated; seeps in leaving warm & fuzzy feels.
Ministry of the Future,Kim Stanley Robinson,"A messy but optimistic guess at how the climate crisis might play out. Lefty policy nirvana. Starts with a harrowing gut punch, but loses its immediacy in bureaucratic wrangling."
Americanah,Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie,"Life & love, race & culture for Nigerians at home, abroad & home again. Skewers US peculiarities. Uncomfortable immigrant experience."
Summertime,Danielle Celermajer,"Meditations on the 2019/20 bushfires. Captures well the colossal scale, and the interminable fear. Coins the useful term ""omnicide"" for the destruction that we are all responsible for, and which permeates everything."
A Swim in a Pond in the Rain,George Saunders,"A masterclass dissecting some classic Russian short stories. They often didn't strike me, but further examination revealed complex depths that I usually skim blithely over. Written with infectious enthusiasm & love for the craft."
Born-Again Blakfella,Jack Charles,"Blooody hell, what a life! Copped the worst of colonialism, but maintained remarkable cheekiness & generosity, despite some deeply dark times. Much respect."
Wild Seed,Octavia Butler,"Two immortals, a man losing his humanity and a woman dedicated to hers, struggle with their inevitable interdependence. Allegory for patriarchy, slavery, racism. Pretty messed up. Never read anything quite like it."
Unbroken,Laura Hillenbrand,"Plane crash survivor rafts across Pacific only to become a POW in Japan. Ludicrous odds. Dwells on the viciousness of the prison guards, but not the horror of firebombing by US. A testament to forgiveness. Written while with #MECFS!"
Entangled Life,Merlin Sheldrake,Passionate & engaging exploration of the astounding world of fungi. A beguiling enigma with much potential.
Tiger Daughter,Rebecca Lim,"Wilful migrant girl straddles Western and Chinese cultures to care for her friend, and reform her family."
The Happiness Trap,Russ Harris,
Gideon the Ninth,Tamsyn Muir,Queer & cranky necromancers unravel a mystery of puzzles & murders in order to become leaders of an intergalactic empire. Nicely executed 'show don't tell'. Highly original genre smush. Wild!
3.5 stars (22 books, 34%)
Peter Pan,JM Barrie,Fun adventures with the vindictive trickster. Teasing towards children & adults alike. Origin of the name Wendy! A perfect accompanient into Neverland for my afternoon naps.
Born Into This,Adam Thompson,Shorts on life as a Tasmanian Aboriginal. The usual themes; hurts most on denial & undermining of identity through appropriation.
The Uncommon Reader,Alan Bennett,"The Queen discovers the absorbing joy of reading, revealing worlds beyond her staid duties, much to the disapproval of the Palace. Charming & amusing."
The Hate U Give,Angie Thomas,#BlackLivesMatter in fictionalised YA form. Predictable but effective. Sharp family banter.
The Happiest Refugee,Anh Do,"From the trauma of displacement to gratitude for the good life. Gobsmacking tales from Vietnam War, alarming (but typical) boat journey, hard grind of disadvantage. Told with love & good humour."
Growing Up Queer In Australia,Benjamin Law (ed),"An awfully hard road, but getting less so. Consistently excellent writing, perhaps at the cost of some diversity (eg. a lot of bullying of effeminate arty types - what about the sporty queers?). Very explicit!"
Rhythm of War,Brandon Sanderson,"A #fantasy where mental health takes centre stage! Shallan's dissociative disorder is particularly well done. Solid fare as usual, with some interesting sciencing, though the cosmic machinations are overly obscure. Very inefficient at 1200 pages."
CFS Unravelled,Dan Neuffer,"A useful (hopeful?) framework for approaching treatment of #MECFS. Underlying mechanism (ANS dysfunction) is debatable, but I say pull all the levers. The worry is the threat!"
Shield of Thunder,David Gemmell,"Heroic fantasy based on Homer's legends. Kings with egos, good/bad & plain evil. Raw deal for everyone else, especially women. Solid & straightforward, engaging & energising, but not dumb."
The Secret History,Donna Tartt,A languid murder un-mystery that nevertheless manages to engage & build tension but doesn't quite climax.
The Travelling Cat Chronicles,Hiro Arikawa,A life & its friendships told from the perspective of a pet cat. Heart warming.
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society,Mary Ann Shaffer,Firm bonds formed during Nazi occupation make for an appealing & supportive community. Amusing & lively.
Smokehouse,Melissa Manning,"Poignant depictions of the grief of love, separation & loss. Heart-breaking portrayal of dementia."
A River Called Time,Mia Couto,An incomplete death reveals the buried truths of a Mozambican family caught on the cusp of tradition and modernity. Surreal & distinctive.
Activate Your Vagus Nerve,Navaz Habib,Accessible dive into the anatomy & wide-ranging physiology of the vagus nerve. A bit 'silver bullet'-y but not too much woo-woo (despite being a chiropractor ...). Very useful summary of self-help techniques for vagus activation.
For The Love Of Soil,Nicole Masters,"Concepts & case studies from a world-leading regenerative agronomist. Soil biology for the win! Focus on broadscale ag in damaged landscapes, benefits for intensive ag less clear. We have much to learn. Poor, punctuation."
The Great Believers,Rebecca Makkai,"HIV rips through the gay community of 1980s Chicago. Tortured anxiety, horrifying loss. Otherwise unremarkable."
The Selected Works of TS Spivet,Reif Larsen,"Wyoming ranch kid with obsession for scientific illustration embarks on journey to accept Smithsonian award. Difficulties ensue, the world is slightly mad. Nicely drawn, but drawn out."
The Eye of the World,Robert Jordan,"Reread after 25 yrs. A classic from when the fastasy genre leaned heavily on Tolkien tropes. Far from sophisticated, but provides an easy enjoyability & immersion."
The Plum-Rain Scroll,Ruth Manley,A whimsical fusion of Japanese folklore with a light seasoning of Western references.
Of Marriageable Age,Sharon Maas,A sprawling romance across generations & hemispheres (Guyana!). Nicely captures colonial/migrant conflict between Western & Indian values. Protagonists a little too good. Gets rather soap operatic.
Fresh Water for Flowers,Valerie Perrin,"A search for solace & self, found in the calm routines & magic of a cemetary, generous friends and the garden."
3 stars (19 books, 30%)
"Olive, Mabel & Me",Andrew Cotter,"A humour-filled ode to the loving companionship, and joyful ridiculousness, of dogs. In life, up mountains, and in viral videos. Helps to know a labrador."
Sword of Destiny,Andrzej Sapkowski,"Emotionally stunted monster slayer begrudgingly discovers his soft side: lovelorn for his ex (an obstinate sorceress), and dedicated accidental guardian to a dauntless princess, destiny's fulcrum."
Dawnshard,Brandon Sanderson,"A decent side-show to the main series, with Cosmere-scale implications. Good disability representation. 'Funny' character a bit too Jar Jar Binks ..."
The Vanishing Half,Brit Bennett,"A light-skinned Black twin abandons family & culture for an easy White life. Is the price worth it, and does the next generation benefit? Doesn't quite hit the mark. Overly coincidental."
Girt Nation,David Hunt,"Third in his irreverent Australian histories. Covers the (very) oddball Deakin (spiritualist!), women's suffrage & federation. A bit Labored this time round. The degree of racism & sexism still shocks me."
Station Eleven,Emily St John Mandel,"Post-pandemic apocalypse, with focus on least interesting bits (Hollywood star? Boring!). Realistic (more world-building please!) but vague on its purpose."
Dune Messiah,Frank Herbert,"Prophet-emperor is all powerful, except in determining his own destiny. Frustratingly obtuse. Writing not good enough to convey subtle concepts. All politics, no fun."
Sunvault,Wagner & Wieland (eds),"A #SolarPunk collection. The tragedy of a broken, polluted world far outweighs the skein of optimism. Poignant finale."
Friday's Child,Georgette Heyer,My first. Such melodrama! Copious quick dialogue but slow progression. Feels surprisingly modern.
The Secret Diaries of Miss Anne Lister,Helene Whitbread (ed),"Lesbian (trans? neurodiverse?) ultra-conservative landowner in 1820s Yorkshire. Haughty intellectual, considers imperfect behaviour 'vulgar', but keen to 'agreeableize' in good society. Incorrigible flirt, hopeless romantic."
The Last Lighthouse Keeper,John Cook,"A life that calls to those searching for escape, but the punishing schedule, isolation, wild weather and fraught companionship leaves minds in tatters. Alas, he never really seems to grow out of his problems."
The Diemenois,JW Clennett,"An alternative history where the French colonised Tasmania, with a remnant enclave harbouring a mysterious recluse. Fantastic idea, but drawn out, and illustrations not my style."
Trinity,Leon Uris,"Captures the first crack in the English colonial project, in Ireland. Very accessible history, if one-sided. The heroic protagonist is too good at everything, and the ending is awkwardly sudden. Poor bastards."
Pachinko,Min Jin Lee,"A Korean family struggles under Japanese occupation & emigration. A worthwhile & revealing history, but like a gambler doesn't know when to stop. Perfectly executes a stunning jaw-dropping moment!"
Disoriental,Negar Djavadi,Fictionalised autobiography of a family of revolutionary Iranian intellectuals who end up exiled in France. A worthwhile history but disjointed & aimless.
Red Rising,Pierce Brown,"Recycled ideas: hierarchical oppression, revolution, infiltration, proving ground. Reasonably done, but takes time to build up a good head of steam."
Under the Whispering Door,TJ Klune,Death gives a chance to make up for a misspent life. I liked the idea but just couldn't get invested in the characters.
2.5 stars (2 books, 3%)
Bila Yarrudhanggalangdhuray,Anita Heiss,Wiradjuri life in settler times. Valuable perspective but otherwise unremarkable & lacks momentum. Seamless use of language.
The Great Hunt,Robert Jordan,Misses so many chances for subtlety. And no bosoms! Don't think I'll bother with the rest.
2 stars (2 books, 3%)
The Moth Catcher,Ann Cleeves,"Unsatisfying murder mystery. All dawdle, no suspense."
The Borribles,Michael de Larrabeiti,"Kid-like hoodlums run rampant through London's nooks & crannies, launching a gang war with their arch enemies. Apparently a kids book, but dripping in casual violence."
