Tanya's Book List - 2015!

Happy New Year! (Wow! I haven't posted on my blog at all since last year's book list...) What are your book/reading related resolutions for 2016? Mine are to have more reading evenings and fewer TV evenings, and to listen to more audiobooks together with Boyd.

* = top picks
NF = non-fiction

Some quick facts:
Total Books = 41
Audiobooks = 16 (39%)
Non-fiction = 9 (22%)
500+ page books (this was part of my 2015 resolution) = 5
Nonfiction that was either about religion or sexuality = 77%

In order read...

1. All Our Names - Dinaw Mengestu - This book had so many elements that set me up to like it: social workers, stories from Eastern Africa, developing relationships. But in the end I just couldn't connect with any of the characters and all professions of emotion (joy, love, sorrow, longing) felt hollow.
2. Dear Life: Stories - Alice Munro - I keep trying short stories to see if I like them yet; still not a huge fan. I do like reading stories in the Canadian setting, and there was one story in the collection about a writer and a long walk in Vancouver that I can still recall the feeling of reading it.
3. Blame It on Bath (The Truth About the Duke, #2) - Caroline Linden - I read some straight romance books this year! I like the historical setting of this one, and there were some good sexy scenes. Not sold on the genre yet but they are fun to read on a Sunday night, or on my earbuds while I’m grocery shopping. Could it be true love? Will she end up pregnant? I'll let you guess… 
4. Agatha Raisin and the Walkers of Dembley (Agatha Raisin, #4) - M.C. Beaton -- Pretty silly cozy mystery. I read it purely for the fact that it included a English countryside hiking club. 
5. The Royal Family - William T. Vollmann - A true masterpiece. The beauty of long books is that I get to live with the characters for so long; to see them through so much change. There's so much time to develop compassion for them and their experiences. This book - about prostitutes in SF, community, love, drugs, respect - is gritty and dwells in dark places that are rarely explored in literary fiction. The language is stunning and some of the phrases took my breath away with their uniqueness, flow, accuracy, and wildness. It's not a pleasant book, and there are some vile characters and evil deeds. Still, I loved the experience of reading it and I know the characters and the setting will stay with me for a long time.
6. *Dept. of Speculation - Jenny Offill - A great short read. Beautiful writing. Wrenching emotions. Love. Everyday life. Relationships. Structure disjointed yet flowing.  I’d love to read more books in this kind of vignette structure.
   
7. Buried in a Bog (County Cork, #1) - Sheila Connolly - Was hoping this would have a bit more cozy Irish countryside and tea time. Instead the main character was uninteresting, annoying, and prickly. The mystery was flimsy and predictable.
8. *The Monogram Murders - Sophie Hannah - This is the new Poirot book – obviously not written by Agatha Christie. It brings up the same warm, fuzzy, happy, gray-cell tickling feelings as the original Christie mysteries though. This time without the explicit racism! Great mystery!
9. Lush Life - Richard Price - I can definitely see the similarities between this book and The Wire (which Price also helped write) though this didn't have nearly as much juicy complexity. It was a great cop story, with great writing, but it didn't hook me in completely.
10. Love Is a Mix Tape - Rob Sheffield - Really wanted to like this book more than I actually did. It was a good meditation of a love lost too soon. And fun recollections of courtship in the era of the mixed tape and grunge bands. Raw emotions.
    
11. The Boss (The Boss, #1) - Abigail Barnette -- Another romance book, with lots of spicy scenes! A secretary falls in lust with her older boss. Could it be true love? Will she end up pregnant? I'll let you guess… I liked this one!
    
12. The Ethical Slut - Dossie Easton, Catherine A. Liszt (NF) -- A classic, ground-breaking book about sexuality and ways to interact with people in many different kinds of relationships.
13. *Mortals - Norman Rush -- Another super long book that was really captivating. About an expat couple in 1990s Bostwana, marriage trouble and bush adventure and pseudo--science hacks. It's amazing to spend so long on the book and have it really only cover a few months of passing time in the story. 
14. Quaker Spirituality: Selected Writings - Douglas V. Steere -- A mix of absolutely beautiful writing about sitting in silence and listening for God and then some not-so-interesting details of the spread of early Quaker communities. Some of the history was interesting - I didn't realize how horribly they were persecuted by the British government.
15. In Cold Blood - Truman Capote (NF) -- This is the original true crime book. It was engaging and gripping. A fun one to listen to on audiobook.
16. The Circle - Dave Eggers -- Not sure if this is brilliant or over-played in its startling similarity to our own technology-filled world. I know it will continue to haunt my thoughts for months as we hear more and more often about how information wants to be free. (Update: It didn't stay with me as much as I thought it would.)
17. The Children Act - Ian McEwan -- A great story about a lawyer and a difficult case of ethics and religion and a young boy. Engaging, beautiful, heartache-y. A perfect mix. I couldn't put it down!
18. What Darkness Brings (Sebastian St. Cyr, #8) - C.S. Harris -- A perfectly interesting mystery and great gritty Regency England setting. A nice one to listen to on audiobook throughout my day.
19. Naked Lunch - William S. Burroughs -- A good read if you want to know what it might be like to be lost in drugs. I was surprised by how I was able to get into the flow of the words, even without a narrative or real coherence. A few perfectly masterful phrases and some disturbingly interesting scenes. Much better suited to the out-of-time space of airports and airplanes than the beach.
20. Everyday Grace: Having Hope, Finding Forgiveness And Making Miracles - Marianne Williamson -- This book had one or two great ideas about finding everyday joys and spaces of peace in your life. It would've been better in a shorter form, because there was a lot of repeating. And a lot that was too "woo-woo" spirituality, even for me.
21. Lawless (Loving Jack, #3) - Nora Roberts -- Saw a documentary about romance novel writers and so of course I had to try reading a Nora Roberts book. This one is set in the wild west. Mostly a cozy romance with only a few spicy scenes. Could it be true love? Will she end up pregnant? I'll let you guess… 
22. Outlander (Outlander, #1) - Diana Gabaldon -- Classic Romance with time travel, Scottish highlands, and impossible love. Could it be true love? Will she end up pregnant? I'll let you guess… I've heard this one be called a feminist romance. For me to call if feminist, though, you have to do more than just have female pleasure. 
23. Reading the Bible Again for the First Time: Taking the Bible Seriously but Not Literally - Marcus J. Borg -- Great overview of the whole Bible from the liberal Christian standpoint! It didn't have a whole lot of new information for me but I appreciated a reminder of all the history of the books and some more insight about how to interpret the Bible with a true social justice sensibility.
24. When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times - Pema Chodron -- Advice for life from a Buddhist perspective. Not everything worked for me though I really appreciated the challenge of learning how another religion navigates the challenges we face in our lives. I'd especially recommend it if you're dealing with big challenges. 
25. Death In Disguise (Chief Inspector Barnaby, #3) - Caroline Graham -- This is the series that my beloved BBC Midsomer Murders TV show is based on. I loved actually reading the book. A good mystery and great English Countryside setting.
26. *All the Old Knives - Olen Steinhauer -- A great mystery and spy novel! And set in Northern California!
27. The Girl on the Train - Paula Hawkins -- An engaging read. It's being marketed as similar to Gone Girl, and it definitely has the same feel, including the sense that it wasn't really all that good as soon as you finish tearing through the pages. I love the use of the passing trains in the plot.
28. Far from the Madding Crowd   - Thomas Hardy -- I love listening to these old classics on audiobook. Perfectly lovely novel and kinda weird love story. Beautifully written and nice countryside setting.
29. *Modern Romance - Aziz Ansari -- Fascinating book about dating in the era of text messages and online dating sites. He's a comedian and so it's a funny book, with some great pop social science data.
30. *The Magicians (The Magicians, #1) - Lev Grossman -- Really engaging story - like a Harry Potter & CS Lewis mash-up for adults. There's a magic school and it's university, instead of high school. I loved living in their world.
31. The Long Way Home (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, #10) - Louise Penny -- I keep reading this mystery series set in the Canadian countryside. I liked this one better than some of the other Penny books I've read recently, though the first books in the series are still the best.
32. Sex Outside the Lines: Authentic Sexuality in a Sexually Dysfunctional Culture - Chris Donaghue -- Fascinating book with a different way to look at our sexuality, challenging the dominant narrative about how to be sexual and what "normal sex" has to look like. 
33. The Golden Compass (His Dark Materials, #1) - Philip Pullman -- Great Young Adult fantasy story. I've started this book several times and this time I actually finished. I think because I loved the similarities it had to the Magicians. (Disclosure: I actually liked the movie too, when it came out all those years ago.)
34. The Sign of the Book (Cliff Janeway, #4) - John Dunning -- Pretty decent mystery about used books. Super long. Listened on audiobook.
35. Blackberry Pie Murder (Hannah Swensen, #17) - Joanne Fluke -- Ahhh audiobook fluff! My favorite series of terrible cozy mysteries - with recipes! 
36. *On Chesil Beach - Ian McEwan -- So much beauty, so much turmoil. The language is transporting. Being inside the thoughts and mind-wanderings of each side of this newlywed couple on their wedding night is fascinating and devastating. A great case for the importance of good sex-ed programs and communication skills.
37. Leading from the Emerging Future: From Ego-System to Eco-System Economies - C. Otto Scharmer -- I read this book in conjunction with the online course U.Lab: Transforming business, society and self. The course was great and inspiring; the book was pretty buzzword heavy and jargony. It was just a small part but I was disappointed with their discussion of the future of NGOs. Each chapter ended with interesting questions for journaling and internalizing the materials, which I liked doing.
38. *A Little Life - Hanya Yanagihara -- What an amazing story about male friendship and resilience. What a treat to follow these humans through their lives as they struggle and thrive. The language is straightforward but the story always fascinating. Set in NYC, which meant it had a bit of the struggling artist and liberal arts graduate feels of Magicians and Fates and Furies. 
39. Anne of Green Gables (Anne of Green Gables, #1) - L.M. Montgomery -- I'd never read this, only watched the movies as a kid! A lovely story - puffed sleeves are so exciting! Didn't approve of the ending. 
40. Pippi in the South Seas - Astrid Lindgren -- Pippi is such an awesome girl! I love her creativity and playful way of looking at the world. This book had some bad racist parts when she got to the "South Seas." I'm going to read more of her next year.
41. Fates and Furies - Lauren Groff -- So much of this book felt like tired tropes of artists in New York. I kept reading to the end to see if there would be some reveal that made me like it better. No such moment happened. If you want a book about artists in NYC, A Little Life is much much better.