One of our most popular episodes of Close Reads is the one in which we discuss the books that meant the most to us during the previous twelve months. And once again that episode is coming soon (December 26th, to be precise). We’re excited to share titles we loved with you. But we also want to hear from you! So let’s use this thread to build our ever-growing TBR lists. What were your favorite books of 2022? Bonus points if you provide a one-sentence reason why…
I can’t wait to see what you were reading this year!
I really loved Tess of the d’Urbervilles. I found Hardy’s prose beautiful, the book turned me inside out emotionally, and I’ve thought about it for months after finishing it.
I also loved The Power and the Glory, which I read during Lent. It was difficult to read but just so powerful, and once again it stayed with me long after I finished it.
This year my favorite reads were Jayber Crow (second time), a Man called Ove, All the Light You Cannot See, and Hannah Coulter. I am currently reading We Were the Lucky Ones and I can tell it will stick with me for a long time to come!
Classic Fiction: I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith (A touch of The Blue Castle and Jane Eyre with whimsy. Such a delightful read!)
Autobiography/Memoir: 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff (loved the wit, humor, and humanity of this short epistolary read! I also LOVED all the book titles/authors mentioned throughout....one of our book club's 2023 picks is from this book)
Fantasy/Gothic: Dracula by Bram Stoker (not at all what I expected- so much to dig in to and definitely want to re-read again soon. All the symbolism was fantastic!)
Mystery/Detective: Strong Poison by Dorothy Sayers (I am not usually a fan of mystery/detective novels but this one had so much wonderful British humor that I enjoyed it thoroughly for that reason alone)
Philosophy/Religion: Counterfeit Kingdom by Holly Pevic (this one resonated as someone who has experienced some of the things encountered in this book- I appreciate the alarm she is sounding to not fall captive to false teachings)
Children's Lit: On the Banks of Plum Creek by Laura Ingalls Wilder (I have lost track how many times I have read this series...my favorite from childhood. I am reading now with my youngest child and we thoroughly enjoyed this one as I read from it while we were camping on the Ingalls Homestead in De Smet, SD this summer. An epic memory for sure!)
Historical Fiction: Hannah Coulter by Wendell Berry (we read this as a book club read and the writing style captured me. I enjoyed the first half of the novel more than the second half).
Gilead by Marilynne Robinson is a new heart book for me. The exploration of generational memory and legacy was timely, as the last of the elder generation of my own family passed away and the very next day the first child of a new generation was born. As soon as I finished it, I went back to reread it from the beginning.
Lila spoke to me of beautiful mysterious unexpected grace. It was wonderful to get to know Lila, a character who seemed so enigmatic in Gilead.
And a special thanks to David Kern and CloseReads for the introduction to A Month in the Country. I also reread this and it’s another new favourite that I can see myself returning to in summer.
My favorite read was one that has been compared with TLoTR. The first, The Deeds of Paksenarrion,Sheepfarmer’s Daughter, is smaller in focus. In the other two, Divided Allegiance and Oath of Gold the scope is broader, including Dwarves and Elves all involved in battles of good against evil.
The Armourer’s House by Rosemary Sutcliff: This is a beautifully told story of a young orphan girl who moves from Devon to London during Henry VIII’s reign to live with her uncle’s lively, loving family. (Bonus is that Manderley Press has re-published a beautiful edition!)
The World My Wilderness by Rose Macaulay: This tells the story of desolation and consolation in post WWII London and France. Sad and moving.
Drawn from Memory and Drawn from Life by Ernest Shepard: Ernest Shepard writes about his childhood in late Victorian London and then about his coming-of-age as a young artist. Charming, funny, insightful.
The Odd Women by George Gissing: A page-turning story about the lives of five women in late Victorian England and the age-old conflict for women between marriage and an independent life.
Some favorites from this year included both "hold in my hand" and audiobooks.
South to America by Imani Perry Nuanced, searching, loving, indicting thoughts on the south, beautifully written (and beautifully read by the author for the audiobook)
All That She Carried: The Journey of Ashley's Sack, A Black Family Keepsake by Tiya Alicia Miles. Slavery, love, loss, culture - this book is riveting and gut wrenching.
All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren - fictionalized account of Louisiana's Huey Long. I especially loved Penn Warren's use of simile and metaphor and his descriptions of places, elegant writing and a fascinating story. Also another excellent audiobook narrated by Michael Emerson.
Bomb Shelter by Mary Laura Philpott - essays that made me laugh and cry about life and how it is out of our control and beautiful all the time.
and a sort of wacko but delightful read, Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson. This short novel about twins who spontaneously combust and Lillian, who comes to take care of them, is a witty, weird, funny, tender story about parental love. (Another audiobook favorite, brilliantly narrated by Marin Ireland.
My favorite audiobook was Taste, read by the author, Stanley Tucci. A memoir about family, food, and funny situations. I was always eager to pop my earbuds in!
My favorite novel was Sea of Tranquillity by Emily St. John Mandel. I adore her writing style, and I loved the structure of this novel. This was the second novel I’ve read by her after Station Eleven, which I adore, and it was a very satisfying read.
I read North and South and discovered Elizabeth Gaskell, a shrewd chronicler of society and creator of true men and women of both virtue and weakness and with whom I fell in love.
My favorite book in this year was Laurus and I want to thank the Close Reads team for including it in the podcast. I would probably never pick it up myself. I started listening your podcast this year and I really enjoyed listening your comments while I was reading the books. It's quite a new experience for me. Thanks again and all the best in the New Year.
Jane Eyre was new to me this year and quite good, but my absolute favorite book in 2022 was A Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett. No plot, but the place and characters were wonderful!
Bar none, my favorite was a book called Father Arseny about a priest who survived the Bolshevik Revolution. Incredible story. I also thoroughly enjoyed (in no particular order) Everything Sad is Untrue, Laurus (again), East of Eden, Richard II, and a little book on prayer called The Way of a Pilgrim.
I really enjoyed The End of Your Life Book Club because it touches on so much of what makes us human and what we live most about books--life and death, love and loss--and how we relate to all of it through great literature. My favorite Close Reads book was probably Asher Lev, but my favorite book ever is still Anna Karenina--has been since I was 14 and probably always will be.
East of Eden, Anna Karenina, Laurus, and Asher Lev were all new-to-me favorites for this year thanks to Close Reads, along with some favorites I got to reread like A Gentleman In Moscow and Till We Have Faces.
A non-Close reads favorites for the year was Evening in the Palace of Reason by James R Gaines. It was such an interesting side by side biography of Bach (my favorite) and Frederick the Great, comparing the very different worldviews of the pre- and post- Enlightenment, and including some really really well written passages about Bach’s music.
I also read Norms and Nobility and loved it, but I’ll have to read it many times to really get everything out of it. Pretty much every sentence had me wanting to stop and think about it because it was so insightful.
I also loved the poetry collection Olives by A E Stallings. I really enjoy her work, and the blend of so many classical themes with so many modern day scenes and contemplations.
I had a wonderful year of reading. Thank you to Close Reads for bringing such remarkable books in to my reading life, as well as joy as I get to walk through them with you!
For fiction I would say my favorites were: "My Name is Asher Lev", "East Of Eden", "The Goldfinch". And also "Lavinia", which I read right after finishing "The Aeneid" and it was such a fabulous flight pick.
For Nonfiction: "How to Inhabit Time" by James K. Smith and "Faith, Hope, and Poetry" by Malcolm Guite. The amount of book darts I ended up with in both of these books led to hand cramps copying them in to my commonplace book 🤣.
Dec 14, 2022·edited Dec 14, 2022Liked by David Kern
I just finished The Medieval Mind of C.S. Lewis. I must have read the space trilogy and Narnia dozens of times over the last 30-40 years, and Till We Have Faces several times, but this shed a whole new light on some of my best book-friends. It made me want to delve deeper into medieval writings. I'm already working my way (slowly) through City of God. It's probably been a year or more journey through that. I read a few pages most nights before bed.
I also just finished Gentle & Lowly by Dane C. Ortlund. It was a huge perspective-shift. As it happens, I've been reading through the Psalms (again, very slowly) and was already seeing what G&L brings forward about the heart of God.
As for fiction, I really liked Precious Bane, by Mary Webb. I know that's old. From my Goodreads review:
"The narrator's voice, a voice that endures adversity without losing love or loyalty, just draws the reader straight to her side. I could so relate to the way Prue took strength and peace from the natural world. I could also relate to the surprise of contentment and joy showing up unannounced, and how their appearance is connected to place. My experience of this is, I think, drawn from my childhood experience of the rural South. To this day, when I drive past a certain type of scenery, a place with a sort of hiddenness or obscurity about it, I feel that loveliness well up inside. It's the feeling that blessedness isn't found in a spotlight, in popularity, in worldly attention and wealth, but in those tucked-away places. I think it's in part because I was truly happy as a child, and never happier than when I'd found a little hideaway."
Something newer: I also appreciated Everything Sad is Untrue.
I’m halfway through a rereading of Dennis Lehane’s Joe Coughlin series- biggest regret is how short it is. One of his big themes is father/son relationship or lack thereof. I found it in new places on rereading. It’s very readable historical fiction, with extensive character development, a poetic touch that says just enough while the rest is understood, and a good examination of right and wrong in difficult circumstances. I love his portrayal of the love of a father - the watch scene really got me! -and the man with the absent father- the drunkard. Family and loyalty are explored, but still take a back seat to doing what’s right.
Finishing up Dorothy Dunnett's Lymond Chronicles was a high-point for me. Having been recommended the series by a close friend years ago, I initially read the first couple of books , then set the series down. This year, I devoured the remaining titles, allowing myself to be immersed in the meticulously-constructed universe Dunnett offers her readers. The characters were rich and their lives unfolded meaningfully, the pacing was tight, and the dialogue was as sharp and quick as the sword fights. For lovers of historical fiction and adventure, this series is exemplary. If you have an attraction to Scotland, even better.
Anna Karenina, Jayber Crow, Rules of Civility, The Vanished Days (Susanna Kearsley), and Son of the Deep (KB Hoyle) were my favorite fiction of the year. James Herriot's All Creatures Great and Small memoir series was my favorite comfort reading find of the year. I don't know how I didn't grow up with them like so many of my peers, but I'm so glad to be reading them now. Malcolm Guite's Advent and Christmas poetry collection, Waiting on the Word, was probably my favorite spiritual read.
Besides all the CR books we read this year, I really loved A Lesson Before Dying (Ernest Gaines), These Precious Days (Ann Patchett), Project Hail Mary (Andy Weir), and Sea of Tranquility (Emily St John Mandel).
Willa Cather’s Death Comes for the Archbishop, Laurus, Gentleman in Moscow (though the excessive allusions almost got me at the beginning), I Am Asher Lev.
A Word in the Wilderness by Malcolm Guite gave me new perspectives and nuggets to contemplate in this collection of poetry that walks through Lent.
Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird, though about the writing life, was unexpectedly funny. I appreciated the honesty about how hard it is and how much failure it first takes to write something good.
Hardy's Tess of the D'Urbervilles - I've never yelled so often at a character, "No! Don't listen to them!" This book haunted me and became a page-turner since I was desperate to see how the main character would be rescued.
Steinbeck’s description of the Salinas Valley is exquisite. Harsh, gentle, good when it’s good and bad when it’s bad. A man has to have a lot of patience to get through the years with no harvest of crops to show for his effort. The weather is not forgiving or some of the people who lived in this era and had moved here for a better living. Small towns were rough and so were the families if they were to make a go at farming. Evilness abounded in this farming valley. The book keeps your nose in its pages waiting for the next turn, maybe something unexpected, like goodness out of it all!
I’ve been reading the new translation of Sigurd Undset’s Olav Audunsson. The third volume was recently released. Waiting for the final one to come out. What a gripping story and a fascinating portrayal of medieval life in Norway! Unset does not pull her punches!
I read like mad tonight to finish this book because I knew I would want to add it:
- Poison Penmanship: The Gentle Art of Muckraking by Jessica Mitford.
Not edifying by any means, but extremely interesting. Here’s a long sentence from the afterword: “After all the self-congratulation and self-serving drivel about the public’s right to know, the law and the press, the press and the law, and the emerging pseudo-science of “investigative reporting,” Jessica Mitford has reminded us again of some of the dormant essentials of our craft: Use common sense. Write well. Make a joyful noise- after all, journalism can be fun. Hallelujah.”
- On Writing by Stephen King. Another book of writing but from a fiction standpoint, also part memoir. Excellent and often hilarious.
- the Cormoran Strike series by Robert Galbraith (Rowling). Sometime rather vulgar and grotesque, which was a bit shocking, but the writing! The twists and turns! The way she dove headlong into modern society with all its foibles and dark corners. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend the series if asked, but really enjoyed them myself.
- lastly, but not least, and certainly more edifying than the others: The Hiding Place. An honest look into the life of Corrie Ten Boom before and during the occupation, written in such a way as to stretch the emotions from mirth to sadness and back again. I cried more reading it than any other book.
My favorites this year were Finding Me (Viola Davis’ memoir), The Cartographers (Peng Shepherd), Black Cake (Charmaine Wilkerson) and Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand (Helen Simonson).
Favorite new read is Anna Karenina. Amazing, amazing book. My favorite EVERY year is Jane Eyre. Read it again and loved it just as much. Two wonderful reads.
My 2 favorites this year were In this House of Brede and Anna Karenina... Both new to me, and they blew me away. Brede especially, it's one of those books that gave insight and perspective that I think back on constantly in my day to day life. It's changed me, in a good way :)
My favorite books this year were:"Lessons in Chemistry" by Bonnie Garmus, "Anatomy: A Love Story" by Dana Schwartz and "Garlic and the Vampire" by Bree Paulsen.
My favorite book this year was a nonfiction book written by an author who has only written fiction up to this point: Wastelands by Corban Addison. One of the many heroes is an attorney just up the road from me named Mona Lisa Wallace. She won the largest settlenent in NC history.
Anna Karenina - Both because I’d never read it before and because it was such a gorgeous book and conversation.
A Gentleman In Moscow - I needed it’s “relentlessly charming” tone at the time it came along.
A Dog on Barkham Street - This was a read-aloud for my kids but it is a gem. Beautiful parent/kid relationship, adventure and growing up. It was a gorgeous book and now I want to get the sequel.
I loved The Big Rock Candy Mountain by Wallace Stegner. Published in 1943, and covering the same time period as East of Eden, it should be a candidate for the Great American Novel.
1. My Name is Asher Lev because the contemplation about the intersection of art and faith is something I have been thinking a lot about lately and it gave me even more to consider.
2. The Supper of the Lamb because it helped pull me out of a cooking funk and enjoy creating meals again.
3. Rembrandt is in the Wind, also because of the art and faith themes.
4. East of Eden because I enjoyed the discussion with community about a book I’ve wanted to read for so long.
5. Cold Sassy Tree because it made me laugh out loud and also cry. It felt so familiar to me of what it is like growing up in a small southern town.
One sentence is tough, but this book manages to make global economics and geopolitics engaging and interesting even to the casual reader because, if he is to be believed, we are coming to the end of globalization as we've come to know it for almost a century and no one is exactly sure what is on the other side.
Copied from Graeme’s thread on Facebook with some additions:
Church History in Plain Language by Bruce Shelley - short chapters and accessibly written. Lots of brief individual stories as examples for each time period.
Orion and the Starborn by KB Hoyle - enchanted and loved reading this sci-fi/fantasy combo from a favorite author. First in a series - going to be a long wait for the rest 😭
Back to Virtue by Peter Kreeft - convicting. Got this from the library and decided I needed my own copy, since it’s worth reading more than once.
Laurus enchanted me at first, but did fascinate me.
Jayber Crow - my first Wendell Berry. It took me several months, but I’m glad I went slow. Really enjoyed the old podcast episodes on it too.
Strange New World - Carl Trueman - shorter version of the Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self (own, but TBR). Accessible overview of the chain of various ideas that helps explain our current culture.
Everything Sad is Untrue - again, just captivated me and swept me up in the drama. High stakes and profound testimony. Immediately recommended to others. Will probably use audio for the re-read next year.
So top 7? Several others that I’ve enjoyed and am glad I read. It’s been a good reading year for me ❤️
I really loved Tess of the d’Urbervilles. I found Hardy’s prose beautiful, the book turned me inside out emotionally, and I’ve thought about it for months after finishing it.
I also loved The Power and the Glory, which I read during Lent. It was difficult to read but just so powerful, and once again it stayed with me long after I finished it.
A Gathering of Old Men was an unexpected favorite. I also enjoyed A Gentleman in Moscow. They were both books I wouldn't have chosen on my own.
This year my favorite reads were Laurus, When Strivings Cease, and The Code Breaker.
This year my favorite reads were Jayber Crow (second time), a Man called Ove, All the Light You Cannot See, and Hannah Coulter. I am currently reading We Were the Lucky Ones and I can tell it will stick with me for a long time to come!
Here are a few of my favorites:
Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier
Tess of the d’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy
A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
Nonfiction:
Booked: Literature in the Soul of Me by Karen Swallow Prior
The Indifferent Stars Above by Daniel James Brown
Classic Fiction: I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith (A touch of The Blue Castle and Jane Eyre with whimsy. Such a delightful read!)
Autobiography/Memoir: 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff (loved the wit, humor, and humanity of this short epistolary read! I also LOVED all the book titles/authors mentioned throughout....one of our book club's 2023 picks is from this book)
Fantasy/Gothic: Dracula by Bram Stoker (not at all what I expected- so much to dig in to and definitely want to re-read again soon. All the symbolism was fantastic!)
Mystery/Detective: Strong Poison by Dorothy Sayers (I am not usually a fan of mystery/detective novels but this one had so much wonderful British humor that I enjoyed it thoroughly for that reason alone)
Philosophy/Religion: Counterfeit Kingdom by Holly Pevic (this one resonated as someone who has experienced some of the things encountered in this book- I appreciate the alarm she is sounding to not fall captive to false teachings)
Children's Lit: On the Banks of Plum Creek by Laura Ingalls Wilder (I have lost track how many times I have read this series...my favorite from childhood. I am reading now with my youngest child and we thoroughly enjoyed this one as I read from it while we were camping on the Ingalls Homestead in De Smet, SD this summer. An epic memory for sure!)
Historical Fiction: Hannah Coulter by Wendell Berry (we read this as a book club read and the writing style captured me. I enjoyed the first half of the novel more than the second half).
Favorite high brow read: The Tenant of Wildfell Hall. It was like getting to read Jane Eyre again for the first time.
Favorite low brow read: Magpie Murders. I’m rarely surprised by the direction a plot takes, and this one did it in the best way possible.
Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
Lila by Marilynne Robinson.
A Month in the Country by J L Carr
Gilead by Marilynne Robinson is a new heart book for me. The exploration of generational memory and legacy was timely, as the last of the elder generation of my own family passed away and the very next day the first child of a new generation was born. As soon as I finished it, I went back to reread it from the beginning.
Lila spoke to me of beautiful mysterious unexpected grace. It was wonderful to get to know Lila, a character who seemed so enigmatic in Gilead.
And a special thanks to David Kern and CloseReads for the introduction to A Month in the Country. I also reread this and it’s another new favourite that I can see myself returning to in summer.
Honourable Mentions:
Home by Marilynne Robinson
Jack by Marilynne Robinson
East of Eden by John Steinbeck
Everything Sad is Untrue
So many great titles on this thread!
My favorites for this year:
The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
Quicksand by Malin Persson Giolito
The It Girl by Ruth Ware
Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng** (number one favorite)
Four Thousand Weeks** (favorite nonfiction)
A great reading year for me 🙂
My favorite read was one that has been compared with TLoTR. The first, The Deeds of Paksenarrion,Sheepfarmer’s Daughter, is smaller in focus. In the other two, Divided Allegiance and Oath of Gold the scope is broader, including Dwarves and Elves all involved in battles of good against evil.
The Armourer’s House by Rosemary Sutcliff: This is a beautifully told story of a young orphan girl who moves from Devon to London during Henry VIII’s reign to live with her uncle’s lively, loving family. (Bonus is that Manderley Press has re-published a beautiful edition!)
The World My Wilderness by Rose Macaulay: This tells the story of desolation and consolation in post WWII London and France. Sad and moving.
Drawn from Memory and Drawn from Life by Ernest Shepard: Ernest Shepard writes about his childhood in late Victorian London and then about his coming-of-age as a young artist. Charming, funny, insightful.
The Odd Women by George Gissing: A page-turning story about the lives of five women in late Victorian England and the age-old conflict for women between marriage and an independent life.
Most Moving: Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan
Most Surprising: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
Most Comfortable: The Cleaner of Chartres by Sally Vickers
Most Inspiring: Unruly Saint by D.L. Mayfield
Most Life-Giving: Inciting Joy by Ross Gay
Most Self-Illuminating: The Electricity of Every Living Thing
Most Wild & Unexpected: A Canticle for Leibowitz
Some favorites from this year included both "hold in my hand" and audiobooks.
South to America by Imani Perry Nuanced, searching, loving, indicting thoughts on the south, beautifully written (and beautifully read by the author for the audiobook)
All That She Carried: The Journey of Ashley's Sack, A Black Family Keepsake by Tiya Alicia Miles. Slavery, love, loss, culture - this book is riveting and gut wrenching.
All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren - fictionalized account of Louisiana's Huey Long. I especially loved Penn Warren's use of simile and metaphor and his descriptions of places, elegant writing and a fascinating story. Also another excellent audiobook narrated by Michael Emerson.
Bomb Shelter by Mary Laura Philpott - essays that made me laugh and cry about life and how it is out of our control and beautiful all the time.
and a sort of wacko but delightful read, Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson. This short novel about twins who spontaneously combust and Lillian, who comes to take care of them, is a witty, weird, funny, tender story about parental love. (Another audiobook favorite, brilliantly narrated by Marin Ireland.
My favorite audiobook was Taste, read by the author, Stanley Tucci. A memoir about family, food, and funny situations. I was always eager to pop my earbuds in!
My favorite novel was Sea of Tranquillity by Emily St. John Mandel. I adore her writing style, and I loved the structure of this novel. This was the second novel I’ve read by her after Station Eleven, which I adore, and it was a very satisfying read.
I read North and South and discovered Elizabeth Gaskell, a shrewd chronicler of society and creator of true men and women of both virtue and weakness and with whom I fell in love.
My favorite book in this year was Laurus and I want to thank the Close Reads team for including it in the podcast. I would probably never pick it up myself. I started listening your podcast this year and I really enjoyed listening your comments while I was reading the books. It's quite a new experience for me. Thanks again and all the best in the New Year.
Jane Eyre was new to me this year and quite good, but my absolute favorite book in 2022 was A Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett. No plot, but the place and characters were wonderful!
A reread of All the Kings Men. Homeland Elegies by Ayad Akhtar
Bar none, my favorite was a book called Father Arseny about a priest who survived the Bolshevik Revolution. Incredible story. I also thoroughly enjoyed (in no particular order) Everything Sad is Untrue, Laurus (again), East of Eden, Richard II, and a little book on prayer called The Way of a Pilgrim.
I really enjoyed The End of Your Life Book Club because it touches on so much of what makes us human and what we live most about books--life and death, love and loss--and how we relate to all of it through great literature. My favorite Close Reads book was probably Asher Lev, but my favorite book ever is still Anna Karenina--has been since I was 14 and probably always will be.
From Close Reads, "A Gathering of Old Men." Holy wow.
From the sorta-classics, the new "Beowulf" translated by Maria Dahvana Headley.
From new & fun, "Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow" by Gabrielle Zevin
From YA, "The Last True Poets of the Sea" by Julia Drake, kinda a retelling of "Twelfth Night"
East of Eden, Anna Karenina, Laurus, and Asher Lev were all new-to-me favorites for this year thanks to Close Reads, along with some favorites I got to reread like A Gentleman In Moscow and Till We Have Faces.
A non-Close reads favorites for the year was Evening in the Palace of Reason by James R Gaines. It was such an interesting side by side biography of Bach (my favorite) and Frederick the Great, comparing the very different worldviews of the pre- and post- Enlightenment, and including some really really well written passages about Bach’s music.
I also read Norms and Nobility and loved it, but I’ll have to read it many times to really get everything out of it. Pretty much every sentence had me wanting to stop and think about it because it was so insightful.
I also loved the poetry collection Olives by A E Stallings. I really enjoy her work, and the blend of so many classical themes with so many modern day scenes and contemplations.
I enjoyed "My Glorious Brothers" by Howard Fast.
About the brothers at the center of the Maccabean revolt.
My favorite reads of 2022 that weren't CR books were:
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel (still need to watch the HBO show!)
Gaudy Night by Dorothy Sayers
Trust by Hernan Diaz
I had a wonderful year of reading. Thank you to Close Reads for bringing such remarkable books in to my reading life, as well as joy as I get to walk through them with you!
For fiction I would say my favorites were: "My Name is Asher Lev", "East Of Eden", "The Goldfinch". And also "Lavinia", which I read right after finishing "The Aeneid" and it was such a fabulous flight pick.
For Nonfiction: "How to Inhabit Time" by James K. Smith and "Faith, Hope, and Poetry" by Malcolm Guite. The amount of book darts I ended up with in both of these books led to hand cramps copying them in to my commonplace book 🤣.
I just finished The Medieval Mind of C.S. Lewis. I must have read the space trilogy and Narnia dozens of times over the last 30-40 years, and Till We Have Faces several times, but this shed a whole new light on some of my best book-friends. It made me want to delve deeper into medieval writings. I'm already working my way (slowly) through City of God. It's probably been a year or more journey through that. I read a few pages most nights before bed.
I also just finished Gentle & Lowly by Dane C. Ortlund. It was a huge perspective-shift. As it happens, I've been reading through the Psalms (again, very slowly) and was already seeing what G&L brings forward about the heart of God.
As for fiction, I really liked Precious Bane, by Mary Webb. I know that's old. From my Goodreads review:
"The narrator's voice, a voice that endures adversity without losing love or loyalty, just draws the reader straight to her side. I could so relate to the way Prue took strength and peace from the natural world. I could also relate to the surprise of contentment and joy showing up unannounced, and how their appearance is connected to place. My experience of this is, I think, drawn from my childhood experience of the rural South. To this day, when I drive past a certain type of scenery, a place with a sort of hiddenness or obscurity about it, I feel that loveliness well up inside. It's the feeling that blessedness isn't found in a spotlight, in popularity, in worldly attention and wealth, but in those tucked-away places. I think it's in part because I was truly happy as a child, and never happier than when I'd found a little hideaway."
Something newer: I also appreciated Everything Sad is Untrue.
I’m halfway through a rereading of Dennis Lehane’s Joe Coughlin series- biggest regret is how short it is. One of his big themes is father/son relationship or lack thereof. I found it in new places on rereading. It’s very readable historical fiction, with extensive character development, a poetic touch that says just enough while the rest is understood, and a good examination of right and wrong in difficult circumstances. I love his portrayal of the love of a father - the watch scene really got me! -and the man with the absent father- the drunkard. Family and loyalty are explored, but still take a back seat to doing what’s right.
Finishing up Dorothy Dunnett's Lymond Chronicles was a high-point for me. Having been recommended the series by a close friend years ago, I initially read the first couple of books , then set the series down. This year, I devoured the remaining titles, allowing myself to be immersed in the meticulously-constructed universe Dunnett offers her readers. The characters were rich and their lives unfolded meaningfully, the pacing was tight, and the dialogue was as sharp and quick as the sword fights. For lovers of historical fiction and adventure, this series is exemplary. If you have an attraction to Scotland, even better.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/112077
Anna Karenina, Jayber Crow, Rules of Civility, The Vanished Days (Susanna Kearsley), and Son of the Deep (KB Hoyle) were my favorite fiction of the year. James Herriot's All Creatures Great and Small memoir series was my favorite comfort reading find of the year. I don't know how I didn't grow up with them like so many of my peers, but I'm so glad to be reading them now. Malcolm Guite's Advent and Christmas poetry collection, Waiting on the Word, was probably my favorite spiritual read.
Besides all the CR books we read this year, I really loved A Lesson Before Dying (Ernest Gaines), These Precious Days (Ann Patchett), Project Hail Mary (Andy Weir), and Sea of Tranquility (Emily St John Mandel).
A Gentleman in Moscow was my hands-down favorite of the year. I loved it.
A Place to Hang the Moon was my favorite children’s book. It was a sweet little story.
Willa Cather’s Death Comes for the Archbishop, Laurus, Gentleman in Moscow (though the excessive allusions almost got me at the beginning), I Am Asher Lev.
A Word in the Wilderness by Malcolm Guite gave me new perspectives and nuggets to contemplate in this collection of poetry that walks through Lent.
Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird, though about the writing life, was unexpectedly funny. I appreciated the honesty about how hard it is and how much failure it first takes to write something good.
Hardy's Tess of the D'Urbervilles - I've never yelled so often at a character, "No! Don't listen to them!" This book haunted me and became a page-turner since I was desperate to see how the main character would be rescued.
East of Eden
Steinbeck’s description of the Salinas Valley is exquisite. Harsh, gentle, good when it’s good and bad when it’s bad. A man has to have a lot of patience to get through the years with no harvest of crops to show for his effort. The weather is not forgiving or some of the people who lived in this era and had moved here for a better living. Small towns were rough and so were the families if they were to make a go at farming. Evilness abounded in this farming valley. The book keeps your nose in its pages waiting for the next turn, maybe something unexpected, like goodness out of it all!
I’ve been reading the new translation of Sigurd Undset’s Olav Audunsson. The third volume was recently released. Waiting for the final one to come out. What a gripping story and a fascinating portrayal of medieval life in Norway! Unset does not pull her punches!
I read like mad tonight to finish this book because I knew I would want to add it:
- Poison Penmanship: The Gentle Art of Muckraking by Jessica Mitford.
Not edifying by any means, but extremely interesting. Here’s a long sentence from the afterword: “After all the self-congratulation and self-serving drivel about the public’s right to know, the law and the press, the press and the law, and the emerging pseudo-science of “investigative reporting,” Jessica Mitford has reminded us again of some of the dormant essentials of our craft: Use common sense. Write well. Make a joyful noise- after all, journalism can be fun. Hallelujah.”
- On Writing by Stephen King. Another book of writing but from a fiction standpoint, also part memoir. Excellent and often hilarious.
- the Cormoran Strike series by Robert Galbraith (Rowling). Sometime rather vulgar and grotesque, which was a bit shocking, but the writing! The twists and turns! The way she dove headlong into modern society with all its foibles and dark corners. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend the series if asked, but really enjoyed them myself.
- lastly, but not least, and certainly more edifying than the others: The Hiding Place. An honest look into the life of Corrie Ten Boom before and during the occupation, written in such a way as to stretch the emotions from mirth to sadness and back again. I cried more reading it than any other book.
My favorites this year were Finding Me (Viola Davis’ memoir), The Cartographers (Peng Shepherd), Black Cake (Charmaine Wilkerson) and Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand (Helen Simonson).
Favorite new read is Anna Karenina. Amazing, amazing book. My favorite EVERY year is Jane Eyre. Read it again and loved it just as much. Two wonderful reads.
My 2 favorites this year were In this House of Brede and Anna Karenina... Both new to me, and they blew me away. Brede especially, it's one of those books that gave insight and perspective that I think back on constantly in my day to day life. It's changed me, in a good way :)
My favorite books this year were:"Lessons in Chemistry" by Bonnie Garmus, "Anatomy: A Love Story" by Dana Schwartz and "Garlic and the Vampire" by Bree Paulsen.
I have read A Christmas Carol to each of my English classes this year and have fallen in love with it all over again.
My favorite book this year was a nonfiction book written by an author who has only written fiction up to this point: Wastelands by Corban Addison. One of the many heroes is an attorney just up the road from me named Mona Lisa Wallace. She won the largest settlenent in NC history.
Anna Karenina - Both because I’d never read it before and because it was such a gorgeous book and conversation.
A Gentleman In Moscow - I needed it’s “relentlessly charming” tone at the time it came along.
A Dog on Barkham Street - This was a read-aloud for my kids but it is a gem. Beautiful parent/kid relationship, adventure and growing up. It was a gorgeous book and now I want to get the sequel.
I loved The Big Rock Candy Mountain by Wallace Stegner. Published in 1943, and covering the same time period as East of Eden, it should be a candidate for the Great American Novel.
Quo Vadis and East of Eden were also favorites. :)
I had several favorites.
1. My Name is Asher Lev because the contemplation about the intersection of art and faith is something I have been thinking a lot about lately and it gave me even more to consider.
2. The Supper of the Lamb because it helped pull me out of a cooking funk and enjoy creating meals again.
3. Rembrandt is in the Wind, also because of the art and faith themes.
4. East of Eden because I enjoyed the discussion with community about a book I’ve wanted to read for so long.
5. Cold Sassy Tree because it made me laugh out loud and also cry. It felt so familiar to me of what it is like growing up in a small southern town.
The Lord of the World by Fr. Robert Hugh Benson! Most chilling (realistic?) yet hopeful apocalyptic book I’ve ever read.
The End of The World is Just The Beginning
One sentence is tough, but this book manages to make global economics and geopolitics engaging and interesting even to the casual reader because, if he is to be believed, we are coming to the end of globalization as we've come to know it for almost a century and no one is exactly sure what is on the other side.
Copied from Graeme’s thread on Facebook with some additions:
Church History in Plain Language by Bruce Shelley - short chapters and accessibly written. Lots of brief individual stories as examples for each time period.
Orion and the Starborn by KB Hoyle - enchanted and loved reading this sci-fi/fantasy combo from a favorite author. First in a series - going to be a long wait for the rest 😭
Back to Virtue by Peter Kreeft - convicting. Got this from the library and decided I needed my own copy, since it’s worth reading more than once.
Laurus enchanted me at first, but did fascinate me.
Jayber Crow - my first Wendell Berry. It took me several months, but I’m glad I went slow. Really enjoyed the old podcast episodes on it too.
Strange New World - Carl Trueman - shorter version of the Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self (own, but TBR). Accessible overview of the chain of various ideas that helps explain our current culture.
Everything Sad is Untrue - again, just captivated me and swept me up in the drama. High stakes and profound testimony. Immediately recommended to others. Will probably use audio for the re-read next year.
So top 7? Several others that I’ve enjoyed and am glad I read. It’s been a good reading year for me ❤️