I read 153 books this year in a 50/50 split between audiobooks and other formats. Being unemployed helped that along, didn’t do much for me in terms of my mental health. But there were so many good reads consumed and published this year, I had to make two lists. Enjoy!
The Blade Between is a horror ghost story about Hudson, New York, where ghosts of Hudson’s past join the fight against gentrification. Terrifying and moving, this is a book so nice, I read it twice. Author Sam J. Miller took some time to talk me about the inspiration behind the book, writing process, and books he’s looking forward to next.
In November, I attempted NaNoWriMo, and I did not win. Which is fine. Work was wild. I’m not on any contractual deadline. I read a lot, but I feel like this month had more duds in it than usual. It happens.
Read an ARC via NetGalley Trigger warnings: Arson, stabbing, suicide, eviction, drug addiction, sexual assault (implied)
The city of Hudson, New York is rich in a history that’s about to be erased by the gears of gentrification and corporate interests. The community fights back, but it isn’t until the whale gods and ghosts of Hudson’s past join the fray, feasting on hate and unleashing violence upon this already-tense community.
Happy 2020! Welcome to the first addition of what I learned by reading. This month felt like it was a million years long, which is fine in terms of reading because I read 12 books so far, well ahead of my 100 book goal for 2020.
Some books get better upon a reread. But when you’re rereading your favorite book, how could it possibly get better? Well, let me tell you the ways.
In my first read, I was so enraptured with the dystopian whimsy of Qannaaq that I didn’t get a chance to dwell in many of the other levels. The specific way the world fell apart to create this near-future has not as much to do with climate change as much as it does with manufactured inequality and the evils of landlords and apartment economics. Being from New York City and seeing the story of how the stockholders gained power, the parallels were so easy to spot.
I’ve changed myself in the two years since I read this book, and wow, SOQ’s POV hit me differently upon reexamination. They are just so unapologetically themselves, but there’s a drive for human connection and fixing your own circumstances that are quite universal. The misfortune in the middle of the second act strikes a bit differently. Finding new appreciation for different facets is just part of the rereading experience.
Beautiful prose in a bleak cold comes a tale of finding family and standing up to the forces which broke the world in the first place.
I read 118 books this year, mostly thanks to an aggressive ARC schedule and audiobooks. The list here are 19 books which I read this year that I loved, but weren’t necessarily published in 2019.
I DID IT. I am on track for finishing my reading goal (100 books in 2019, displayed as 101 because of a DNF). I decided to break this month’s round-up into two entries because dear lord, I read so many things in July. Continue reading →
This December recap is the last one for 2017, mostly because of the 12 Days of Reading that closes out the year and kicks of my 2018 in books. I am already hype for the things to come next year, as a reader, a writer, and a professional.