One of the best books I've read in the last 6 months is .

I follow this thread all the time, though have never posted.

@shawbridge I just wanted to say that to me it is no big deal that you duplicated, in fact I appreciate it. I can not remember what someone recommended months or years ago when I did not have time to read it and appreciate being reminded.

Also, my tastes and moods change and what I want to read now may be different than what interested me when a book was first mentioned. I may not have given it a thought in the past but now really want to read something that I have been reminded of.

8 Likes

@shawbridge I read that book years ago and agree, it is an excellent book. Beautiful yet haunting.

The author, Anthony Marra, just had a new book come out. I’m not sure the plot appeals to me, but I may give it a try.

I don’t mind repeat recommendations. It’s nice sometimes to see a theme. The titles shared on this thread are very helpful, and I’ve started to log into my library website put some of them on my ā€œlistā€ there.

4 Likes

My book group has some literary types and so authors sometimes join us. Marra joined us by Zoom. Very interesting and modest guy. I think my friends also loved Mercury Pictures Presents and we will read The Tsar and The Love of Techno.

1 Like

@shawbridge wow, that’s pretty cool. I would have loved to hear him discuss that book.

2 Likes

Just Finished ā€œA Beginners Guide to Murderā€ by Rosalind Stoppes. Another mystery with older women sleuths. Great read.

3 Likes

If you were like me and waiting for The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo to drop in price, it’s on sale today ($4.99) as a Kindle book of the day…there are also some others like Cloud Cuckoo Land if you haven’t read it yet.

4 Likes

Has Barbara Kingsolver’s newest, Demon Copperhead, been referenced yet?

Huge recommendation!

8 Likes

I liked The Midnight Library which I finished recently.

Maybe we should have top 5 books we read this year?

7 Likes

Top 5 for 2022:

Horse by Geraldine Brooks*
Carrie Soto is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Remarkable Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jeannette McCurdy (audio book version - wow!)
Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Rayburn (fun read)

*ranks up there as an all time favorite

8 Likes

Top 5 for 2022:

Chasing History: A Kid in the Newsroom by Carl Bernstein
Acceptance: A Memoir by Emi Nietfeld
The Latecomer by Jean Hanff Korelitz
I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jeannette McCurdy (the hardcover is also a wow!)
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

6 Likes

@garland, YES! I just finished Demon Copperhead. A good novel (although perhaps too tidy in the ending) in and of itself that also does a great job of creating place. It’d be a great book club choice, I think, as it’s not in your face but highlights a lot of social issues.

4 Likes

My top 5 this year
Twist of a Knife - Anthony Horowitz (part of a series - all of which are great)
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow - Gabrielle Zevin
This Time Tomorrow - Emma Straub
The Bullet that Missed - Richard Osman (again part of a great series)
Iona Iverson’s Rules of Commuting Clare Pooley

I read 104 books this year

10 Likes

I am retired and read 50 books this year… ended up marking these 6 as favorites in my Books log -
Braiding Sweetgrass - Robin Wall Kimmerer
The Four Winds - Kristin Hannah
The Paris Wife - Paula McLain
The Good Wife of Bath - Karen Brooks
The Storied Life of A.J. Fikrey - Gabrielle Zevin
Lessons in Chemistry - Bonnie Garmus

I really enjoyed most of what I read this year, often titles suggested here.

8 Likes

I just listed books released in 2022 - but The Four Winds is also a fav and one I recommend to friends. AJ Fikry is a fav of our family - tears shed by all. Need to check out others on your list. :slight_smile:

1 Like

I read 80 books in 2022.

My top five in 2022:

Foster by Claire Keegan
Horse by Geraldine Brooks
Mecca by Susan Straight
The Other Side of the Bridge by Mary Lawson
A Place for Us by Fatima Farheen Mirza

Favorite Audiobook:
Carrie Soto is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Others I Liked:
A Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell
The Girl in His Shadow by Audrey Blake
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

7 Likes

Absolutely loved The Heart’s Invisible Furies.

2 Likes

That is one of my favorite books I’ve ever read.

2 Likes

I only read 20 books this year. Moving impacted my reading in a big way this summer and now I am working a second gig that I love, but which leaves little time for reading. I want to read Lessons in Chemistry and Horse and maybe these positive comments will give me the kick in the pants I need to prioritize my reading again in 2023. Thanks for your posts!

2 Likes

One of these days I need to start keeping track of what I read so I can answer how many books read. I’ll guess 50 maybe? maybe more.

From what I can recall, and I’m sure I’m missing some, especially from earlier in the year, I liked:

The Latecomer–Korelitz
Less is Lost–Greer
Demon Copperhead–Kingsolver
Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow–Zevon
Iona Iverson’s Rules for Commuting – Claire Pooley
Edit: Narrowboat Summer–Youngson (so I guess that’s six, oops.)

I’m about to start Lessons in Chemistry which it sounds like everyone loves.

6 Likes