1. The Gunners, Rebecca Kauffman - A really interesting novel about a group of childhood friends - one of the friends breaks off from the group and then years later commits suicide. The group reunites for her funeral - and the story slowly reveals what happened to this girl. They each feel responsible for different reasons, and have hid their guilt for years. It was a book that I couldn't put down because the mystery was building and building with such great detail. And the characters were really fleshed out - faults and all.
2. Sometimes I Lie, Alice Feeney - Holy shit, you guys. I haven't been surprised by an ending like this in a while. It's so twisty and turny, and you think you know exactly how it's going to end but it defies expectations. I guarantee that you will not guess the end - and not because it's ridiculous, but because you can't trust the person telling the story. That's all I'm going to say. And if you're not a book person, then just wait for the mini-series (I read Sarah Michelle Geller is attached, which is perfect casting).
3. Something Wicked This Way Comes, Ray Bradbury - A revisit for me, but it's been a really long time since I've read it so it was a wonderful revisit. I have such a greater appreciation for sci-fi, than I did when I first read Bradbury stories so I am planning to revisit most of his work over the next few years.
4. The Glass Castle, Jeannette Walls - So much better than the movie. This book was recommended to me years ago, but it was so much easier to just watch the movie but that's a big regret. I wish I went into this book not knowing how it was going to end. It's also uncanny how many of her stories are so similar to my mom's childhood stories (for instance: my mom has 3rd degree burn scars across her stomach from trying to drain pasta when she was way too young to be doing such a task).
5. Born to Run, Bruce Springsteen - Highly recommend if you're a Bruce fan (and if you're not, we probably wouldn't be friends). Bruce is one of the best story-tellers in the world. I was lucky enough to see his Broadway show (after a grueling wait-list debacle), and it was so wonderful just to sit and hear him tell stories about his life. I felt like I could hear him as I read each chapter of this book and it was delightful.
6. Sherlock Holmes: Volume 1, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - I've never read a Sherlock Holmes story before, so I thought I would start from the beginning. I'm a big fan of the many visual iterations (although I think Elementary is my favorite. However, it was recently pointed out to me that House is also a Sherlock Holmes iteration and my mind was blown). I'm excited to read more.
7. The Good Father, Noah Hawley - My favorite book that I read in 2018 was Before the Fall by Hawley, and guess what? My favorite book that I read in 2019 was this one. He's just an incredible writer. And this story cuts deep. Just like Before the Fall, I can easily see this being made into a mini-series.
8. The Great Believers, Rebecca Makkai - Centered during the AIDS crisis during the late 80s, this book is a wonderful story about living with loss. It jumps back and forth in time, and is told from two different character perspectives, which keeps it interesting.
9. Desert Solitaire, Edward Abbey - I'm fascinated by people who enjoy nature. It's not really for me, although I wish it was. I do love being alone, though. It would be an amazing experience to just go into the middle of the desert and be one with the Earth. But, I need stuff. Like music, tv, internet, etc. I just do. I like Abbey's passion for preserving natural spaces, and his disdain for what the future looks like.
10. Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe - I try really hard to incorporate art and narratives that I'm not familiar with, something that is a little bit hard for me to relate to. This couldn't be further from my world view - a novel about pre-colonial Nigeria. It's wonderfully written, and poetic. Not necessarily my favorite among what I've read this year, but I understand why it's considered a "classic of world literature".
11. Atonement, Ian McEwan - I've said this many times, but the first half of Atonement is one of my favorite movies ever. I just have such a hard time with the second half. I didn't find that as much with the book. I felt really invested for the whole thing. I like the way it's told from different perspectives. Also, I obviously pictured James McAvoy looking super hot, the entire time I read the book so that's always a plus.
12. The Remains of the Day, Kazuo Ishiguro - I really like how Ishiguro writes - he gets into the mind of the characters really well, and explains their motivation in a believable and realistic way. This isn't my favorite story (told from the perspective of the Head Butler - it reminds me of Downton Abby - a show I still haven't finished because it is a snoozefest), but it was still an enjoyable read. I had no idea it was made into a movie, that I am totally going to watch now.
13. Someday, Someday, Maybe, Lauren Graham - Really hopeful and cute. I like the way Graham writes. It's not pretentious in any way. It feels like a story that I would have really enjoyed reading when I was a teenager/young adult. Probably a little too cheesy for me to take seriously as an adult, but not everything is made for me to enjoy.
14. The Girl, Michelle Morgan - I'm fascinated by the legacy of Marilyn Monroe. She really started the whole "celebrity" thing, and I'm not exactly sure that's a good thing, but it's still really fascinating to see how it was all orchestrated. And how brilliant this woman was.
15. Goodbye, Darkness, William Manchester - A memoir about the Pacific War, something that I'm not as familiar with in regards to WWII (always more fascinated with the Nazi part), but this is really engaging and terrifying.
16. 11/22/63, Stephen King - King is one of those authors that is so well-known, it's instinctual to feel like you've read every story because it's all been made for movies/television. But, honestly, I think the only King novel that I read is Misery. I'm not sure why I chose this as my reintroduction, especially since it's not a horror story which is what he is known for. I watched the miniseries, and I wasn't really impressed. The book is great, though. I can't wait to read more King this year (I had It on my list next, but man, that sequel was so hard to sit through. I think I need some time before I can immerse myself in that story again).
17. What Maisie Knew, Henry James - I really loved this movie, so I added this book to my reading list years ago. Holy fuck, it's intense. Written in 1897, it's incredibly dense and just an overall tough read. It took me a very long time to get through it (and it's only like 100 pages long). If I didn't watch the movie, I'm not sure I would have even understood the book.
18. Into the Water, Paula Hawkins - Really great suspense novel, there's a mystery there that goes back for decades, but the focus is on one event. It kept me guessing (I guessed part of it right), and it had a very satisfying conclusion.
19. The Verdun Affair, Nick Dybek - Not my favorite - it's basically a romance novel about a love triangle during WWI. It's kind of boring, and predictable. It's not really my thing, unless it's told really, really well (like Atonement, for example).
20. The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho - Another one that's just not really my thing. It's part magical, part allegory, part fantasy sci-fi, and I think it's supposed to be inspirational, but it just bored me to death.
No comments:
Post a Comment