Sunday, December 31, 2017

Books Read in 2017

It looks like 2017 wasn't a great year for reading—I managed to read only 15 books this year—26 fewer than 2016, and the fewest I have read in the last decade.

These are the books I tackled in 2017. You can follow the links to their journal entries on BookCrossing; those books without a link were either borrowed, or are in my permanent collection for the moment. (E) indicates they were read on my Kindle/Nook/iPhone; (A) means they were audiobooks; (L) means I borrowed them from my local library; (R) means I re-read some old friends.

My favorites this year? The Handmaid's Tale, by Margaret Atwood; Bel Canto, by Ann Patchett; and the three books that make up The Corfu Trilogy, by Gerald Durrell.

January
1. Maisie Dobbs, by Jacqueline Winspear

March
2. The Full Cupboard of Life, by Alexander McCall Smith (E)

April
3. Birds of a Feather, by Jacqueline Winspear (E) (L)

June
4. Everyone Brave Is Forgiven, by Chris Cleave (E) (L)

July
5. The Lioness of Morocco, by Julia Drosten (E)

August
6. The Gravity of Birds, by Tracy Guzeman
7. Death Comes As The End, by Agatha Christie
8. Fantastic Voyage, by Isaac Asimov
9. Funny Letters From Famous People, by Charles Osgood

September
10. My Family and Other Animals (The Corfu Trilogy), by Gerald Durrell (E)
11. Birds, Beasts and Relatives (The Corfu Trilogy), by Gerald Durrell (E)

October
12. The Garden of the Gods (The Corfu Trilogy), by Gerald Durrell (E)

November
13. The Handmaid's Tale, by Margaret Atwood

December
14. Bel Canto, by Ann Patchett
15. The Neil Gaiman Audio Collection, by Neil Gaiman (A) (L)

Tuesday, March 14, 2017

The Full Cupboard of Life, by Alexander McCall Smith

From the Kindle Kache. I am glad that story lines are moving forward. With each new-to-me book in this series, I have to wonder if the people of Botswana are OK with how they are being portrayed. The tone seems somewhat condescending and I wonder if it's just me. It makes me feel a bit guilty because I turn to this series when I am looking for something soothing to read: I know everything will turn out OK and that there are happy endings.