I’m already off to the races with some delicious 2014 reading, but I know I need to take a look back … so here are the books I read in 2013, with links to reviews (here on this blog or on Goodreads) where I have them. Again, as I’ve done in previous years, this is an exhaustive, “all of” list, not a “best of” list. (Have we had enough “best of” lists, perhaps?)
In addition to the interesting and often challenging complement of books I enjoyed this year, I continued my commitment in 2013 to a daily devotion to at least one poem … and usually more, as more and more friends on Twitter began to generously share their poem choices and reflections via the #todayspoem hashtag. Now two years in, it continues to be a truly revelatory and wonderfully communal experience. I’ve now pondered the works of over 450 unique poets, writers, songsmiths and wordsmiths I’ve revisited or unearthed myself, and countless more via others wielding that often eye-opening hashtag. I’m continuing with my #todayspoem habit every day heading into 2014, and I hope many will continue or join anew.
As I did in 2012, I also celebrated some beautifully built books in 2013, including:
- The Pope’s Bookbinder, by David Mason
- Seldom Seen Road, by Jenna Butler
- Correspondences, by Anne Michaels (portraits by Bernice Eisenstein)
The books I read and relished in 2013 …
-
The Age of Hope
by David Bergen -
May We Be Forgiven
by A.M. Homes -
CivilWarLand in Bad Decline
by George Saunders -
Pastoralia
by George Saunders -
Red Doc>
by Anne Carson -
Tenth of December
by George Saunders -
Traveling Light
by Peter Behrens -
Stories About Storytellers
by Douglas Gibson -
How Should A Person Be?
by Sheila Heti -
Seldom Seen Road
by Jenna Butler -
The April Poems
by Leon Rooke -
The Shore Girl
by Fran Kimmel -
Li’l Bastard
by David McGimpsey -
1996
by Sara Peters -
One Bird’s Choice
by Iain Reid -
Clear
by Nicola Barker -
Under the Keel
by Michael Crummey -
Coping with Emotions and Otters
by Dina Del Bucchia -
The Miracles of Ordinary Men
by Amanda Leduc -
What’s the Score?
by David W. McFadden -
Bone & Bread
by Saleema Nawaz -
Lyrics and Poems 1997-2012
by John K. Samson -
Journey with No Maps: A Life of PK Page
by Sandra Dwja -
Big Day Coming: Yo La Tengo and the Rise of Indie Rock
by Jesse Jarnow (read aloud) -
Rosina, the Midwife
by Jessica Kluthe -
October, 1970
by Louis Hamelin, translated by Wayne Grady -
Clear Skies, No Wind, 100% Visibility
by Theodora Armstrong -
All We Want is Everything
by Andrew F. Sullivan -
The Soul of Baseball – A Road Trip Through Buck O’Neil’s America
by Joe Posnanski (read aloud) -
Let Me Eat Cake
by Leslie F. Miller -
We So Seldom Look on Love
by Barbara Gowdy (reread) -
Minister Without Portfolio
by Michael Winter -
Hellgoing
by Lynn Coady -
Caught
by Lisa Moore -
How to Get Along With Women
by Elisabeth de Mariaffi -
The Old Lost Land of Newfoundland
by Wayne Johnston -
Leaving Howe Island
by Sadiqa de Meijer -
Cataract City
by Craig Davidson -
Going Home Again
by Dennis Bock -
The Embassy of Cambodia
by Zadie Smith -
A Fairy Tale
by Jonas T. Bengtsson, translated by Charlotte Barslund -
The Dove in Bathurst Station
by Patricia Westerhof -
Monoceros
by Suzette Mayr -
Correspondences
by Anne Michaels (portraits by Bernice Eisenstein) -
Knife Throwing Through Self-Hypnosis
by Robin Richardson
Notes
A read aloud book is a book that my husband Jason and I read aloud to each other, typically while one was, say, cooking dinner, doing dishes, driving, what have you … and the other was, well, reading aloud. Each read aloud book was read in its entirety. Other than the read aloud sessions that took place in cars, zesty beverages were often consumed. It’s a wonderful way to read and share a book.
A reread is a revisit with a previously read book. The book is completely read again, not just browsed. I try to reread at least one book every year … but I think I’d like to up that quotient, even just a bit.
Currently in progress, heading into 2014:
- Life After Life, by Kate Atkinson
- All the Rage, by A.L. Kennedy
- Penelope Fitzgerald: A Life, by Hermione Lee (read aloud)
Writer Pasha Malla made some interesting year-end observations about achieving balance in one’s reading (be it gender, genre, region and more), which should remind us to expand our reading horizons by being aware of our defaults (Globe Books 2013: How can you change what (and who) you read? Globe and Mail December 27, 2013). Inspired by his books “numbers game” (male/female author split in reading), I checked my own 2013 reading. I read 45 books, with two in translation, so 47 writers and translators: 22 men and 25 women. In terms of gender, that looks like a pretty balanced reading selection in 2013. I suppose I could tip and turn that list a few more ways: between fiction (novels and short stories), non-fiction and poetry; author nationality and race, and more. I don’t want to get overly conscious but I do want to be aware of the balance of choices I’m making, while still going with the lovely flow of natural discovery and kismet and all the rest as I go from one book to the next.
Looking back fondly on my 2013 reading, looking forward eagerly and with anticipation to my 2014 reading, I’ll simply conclude (as I did last year) …
It’s not how many you read that counts. It’s that you read that counts.