The Best of 2014

Here’s my idiosyncratic list of what I liked in 2015.

Australia and Canada

Hands Down Best Fiction: All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr.

Best Non-Fiction: Savage Harvest by Carl Hoffman.

Best Book That I Wish I Had Written: Euphoria by Lily King.

Best Book I Should Have Read Sooner: A Visit From The Good Squad by Jennifer Egan.

Best Laugh Out Loud Funny Book: Dear Committee Members by Julie Schumacher.

Best New To Me Author: Christos Tsiolkas. I read Barracuda and am desperate to read more by him.

Best Allegedly Science Fiction: The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell.

Best Title: The Mother Who Loved All Her Children, Until They Moved Back In by Ludmilla Petrushevshaya.

 

 

Arctic Summer by Damon Galgut

Like the title Arctic Summer, my review of said book is going to be a little bit of a contradiction in terms. There was so much about this book that I loved, and yet at times I just found it so boring.

Cover Wars: Geek Sublime

This week’s Cover Wars is an interesting case: One book, two titles, three subtitles. Oh yes, you heard me correctly.

Cover 1 is the first one I saw. Cute Cover. Ho-hum subtitle. It seems to be the cover most widely adopted by foreign language versions as well.

Cover 2 is from North America. Ho-hum cover, but awesome subtitle. The Beauty of Code and the Code of Beauty. 

And I didn’t even know of Cover 3’s existence until writing this post. It’s the Indian version.

So what say you? You’re preferences please.

Geek Sublime by Vikram Chandra

I don’t even know where to start with talking about Geek Sublime. Vikram Chandra has long been a favorite author of mine, so I knew I was going to read this before I even knew what it was about. Then I found out that it was about computer coding and Sanskrit poetics and I was hooked.

The Confabulist by Steven Galloway

It’s getting to that time of the year when you’re seeing a lot of “Best Books” lists, and you’ll likely see The Confabulist by Steven Galloway on quite a few of them. I was a little hesitant about reading this book since I was not a huge fan of his previous book, The Cellist of Sarajevo. It was a little too brooding for my taste. By way of contrast, The Confabulist is anything but moody and brooding.

52 Books or Bust is 2 Years Old

Image Source: bookbank1.com

 

Hip hip hooray! My blog is 2 years old today! And that means two things: a (very) little bit of analysis and a GIVEAWAY.

The Boston Girl by Anita Diamant

I don’t know how it is possible that i’ve made it this far into life without having read Anita Diamant, but I have. It may be precisely because The Red Tent was so popular, that I never read it. So when I saw that she has a new book out, The Boston Girl, I thought, now is my time to read Diament without any preconceived conceptions.

Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin

Several people have recommended Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin to me over the years. Mindy from Minty Fresh Mysteries even gave me a copy. But it wasn’t until Amy at Read A Latte said it was worth reading if you are a fan of Serial, that i dove in. As an aside, if you’re not listening to Serial already, download the podcast today.

Little Free Library – Woodstock

Who among us is not obsessed with Little Free Libraries? They are the latest craze to sweep the nation and I for one could not be happier. How could I not support something that encourages and enables more people to read more often?

That is why I’m thrilled to announce that my mom has just unveiled a Little Free Library at her home in Woodstock, Ontario.

Woodstock-little-free-library

Needs a little help. Leave a book!

Mandatory shot of the librarian.

I know that I have fan base of loyal followers in Woodstock, so what are you waiting for? Go on over! Take a Book, Leave a Book!