Big Bookish Wrap-Up of the Year
December 29, 2014 Tags: Reading, REAL PAPER BOOKSWe had a sludgy brown Christmas here in Red Wing, but as I type this, snow is falling, and an untouched layer of whiteness covers the world outside my windows. AT LAST. I’ve been waiting–at first hopefully, then hungrily, then poutily, then trying to pretend that I didn’t care, even while using each evening’s early-falling darkness to imagine that everything outdoors was blanketed in snow–and now, with a cup of coffee beside me and Brom Bones snoring softly at the other end of the couch, I am content.
It’s been a strange year. And a speedy one. (My last post here had to do with All-Hallows Read, which shows how the final months of 2014 slipped away from me entirely.) The end of a five-book, thirteen-years-in-the-preparation series. Two cross-country tours. More school visits than I can count. New writing projects. Hard losses. One very big, slowly approaching gain. But whatever was happening around me or inside of me, written words kept me company, as they always have.
They’re a lot more reliable than snow.
Here’s what I read this year (rereads marked with asterisks, and read-alouds in bold):
WICKED PLANTS – Amy Stewart
MANHOOD FOR AMATEURS* – Michael Chabon
QUIDDITCH THROUGH THE AGES, THE TALES OF BEEDLE THE BARD, FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM – J.K. Rowling
THE VAMPIRE LESTAT* – Anne Rice
THE ELEGANCE OF THE HEDGEHOG – Muriel Barbery
THE STRANGE CASE OF EDWARD GOREY – Alexander Theroux
GOBLIN SECRETS – Will Alexander
BOXERS AND SAINTS – Gene Luen Yang
EMMY AND THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING RAT – Lynne Jonell
WONDER WOMAN 1 & 2 (Blood and Guts) – Brian Azzarello, Cliff Chiary
ADVENTURES OF A CAT-WHISKERED GIRL – Daniel Pinkwater
SPIN – Robert Charles Wilson
QUIET: THE POWER OF INTROVERTS IN A WORLD THAT WON’T STOP TALKING – Susan Cain
THE PLEASURES AND SORROWS OF WORK – Alain de Botton
SIN AND THE SECOND CITY – Karen Abbott
THE FOURTH STALL – Chris Rylander
A RELIABLE WIFE – Robert Goolrick
BAD MOTHER* – Ayelet Waldman
THE CHILDREN OF ODIN – Padraic Colum
CULTURE SHOCK: JAPAN – P. Sean Bramble
BRADBURY SPEAKS: TOO SOON FROM THE CAVE, TOO FAR FROM THE STARS – Ray Bradbury
COUNTRY GIRL – Edna O’Brien
THE MASTER BUTCHERS SINGING CLUB – Louise Erdrich
THE DROWNED WORLD – J.G. Ballard
TOM WAITS ON TOM WAITS: INTERVIEWS AND ENCOUNTERS – Paul Maher Jr., Ed.
VIRGINIA WOOLF: A BIOGRAPHY – Quentin Bell
DANSE MACABRE – Stephen King
THE BOOK OF JEZEBEL – Anna Holmes, Ed.
A WOLF AT THE TABLE – Augusten Burroughs
THE OCTOBER COUNTRY – Ray Bradbury
FIVE FLAVORS OF DUMB – Antony John
A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE: A GAME OF THRONES – George R. R. Martin
THE OLD WILLIS PLACE – Mary Downing Hahn
CAUTIONARY TALES FOR CHILDREN – Hilaire Belloc and Edward Gorey
THE GHOST IN THE GLASS HOUSE – Carey Wallace
ROOFTOPPERS – Katherine Rundell
SKELLIG – David Almond
THE HOUSE OF THE SEVEN GABLES* – Nathaniel Hawthorne
SONG WITHOUT WORDS: DISCOVERING MY DEAFNESS HALFWAY THROUGH LIFE – Gerald Shea
FAR FROM THE TREE: PARENTS, CHILDREN, AND THE SEARCH FOR IDENTITY – Andrew Solomon
COUNTY O – Robert Hedin
THE TRIP TO ECHO SPRING: ON WRITERS AND DRINKING – Olivia Laing
WHAT’S THAT PIG OUTDOORS: A MEMOIR OF DEAFNESS – Henry Kisor
THE APOTHECARY – Maile Meloy
SCARY, NO SCARY – Zachary Schomburg
DOLL BONES – Holly Black
WOULD COULD THAT BE AT THIS HOUR? – Lemony Snicket
THE CABINET OF EARTHS – Anne Nesbit
GALVESTON – Nic Pizzolatto
WE WERE LIARS – E. Lockhart
EON – Alison Goodman
A CROOKED KIND OF PERFECT – Linda Urban
HOW I LIVE NOW – Meg Rosoff
DOLL BABY – Laura Lane McNeal
CLEMENTINE – Sara Pennypacker
CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY* – Roald Dahl
PICTURES OF HOLLIS WOODS – Patricia Reilly Giff
DIAL-A-GHOST – Eva Ibbotson
WISCONSIN LORE – Robert E. Gard and L.G. Sorden, collectors
DANNY THE CHAMPION OF THE WORLD – Roald Dahl
ALABASTER: GRIMMER TALES – Caitlin R. Kiernan
WAIT TIL HELEN COMES* – Mary Downing Hahn
ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT – Erich Maria Remarque
THE GHOST OF CRUTCHFIELD HALL – Mary Downing Hahn
MADE FROM SCRATCH: DISCOVERING THE PLEASURES OF A HANDMADE LIFE – Jenna Woginrich
CHANGING MY MIND: OCCASIONAL ESSAYS – Zadie Smith
THE BLUE JAY’S DANCE: A BIRTH YEAR* – Louise Erdrich
DEMIAN – Herman Hesse
CARSICK – John Waters
DANIEL DERONDA – George Eliot
SEX, DRUGS, AND COCOA PUFFS: A LOW CULTURE MANIFESTO – Chuck Klosterman
CLASS MATTERS – Correspondents of the New York Times
SPLENDORS AND GLOOMS – Laura Amy Schlitz
THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO – Stieg Larsson
UNACCUSTOMED EARTH – Jhumpa Lahiri
THE MAN IN THE EMPTY BOAT – Mark Salzman
SEX & VIOLENCE – Carrie Mesrobian
OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS: A JOURNAL OF MY SON’S FIRST YEAR* – Anne Lamott
REIGN OF ERROR: THE HOAX OF THE PRIVATIZATION MOVEMENT AND THE DANGER TO AMERICA’S PUBLIC SCHOOLS – Diane Ravitch
THE BEST OF FRIENDS: MARTHA AND ME – Mariana Pasternak
SEXUAL POLITICS – Kate Millett
THE UNLIKELY ADVENTURES OF MABEL JONES: THE VOYAGE OF THE FERROSHUS MAGGOT – Will Mabbitt
NEW ORLEANS CITY GUIDE: AMERICAN GUIDE SERIES – Federal Writers’ Project/WPA, 1938
AN ACCIDENTAL ADVENTURE #3: WE GIVE A SQUID A WEDGIE – C. Alexander London
ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS – Stephanie Perkins
TALES FROM MOOMIN VALLEY – Tove Janssen
THROUGH THE WOODS – Emily Carroll
It’s crazy — as I type this list, I can suddenly recall exactly which book I was reading at the gate in Reagan International Airport, or Richmond, or Phoenix; which book was with me on a balcony on Jekyll Island, Georgia, or in a teeny white cottage in coastal New Hampshire, or in a patisserie in the French Quarter; which books I read to Ryan in the car on Thursday night trips between Minneapolis and Red Wing and which ones he read to me in the kitchen while I made dinner. Thank goodness for books. Without them, a lot more of this year would be a blur.
There are lots of wonderful things on this list, including some old favorites, but a few first-time reads that stand out in my mind are David Almond’s SKELLIG, a British children’s novel published in 1998 that is so spare and subtle and strange and beautiful I’ve had trouble describing it without getting teary, THE MASTER BUTCHERS SINGING CLUB, which is one of those books that is so perfectly constructed that you don’t even notice the complex, distinctive writing until it knocks you over with its beauty (and then does it again and again), and THROUGH THE WOODS, Emily Carroll’s 2014 graphic novel, which uses that increasingly well-worn trick of re-imagining fairy tales, but in a way that feels entirely sharp and fresh. Distinctive, rich, eerie, and lovely.
Wishing you a New Year full of good stories–both the true and the almost-true kind.
What a diverse selection of books, it’s fun to see a few I’ve read up there. I always love how books make for fun memories. Wait til you start re-reading picture books 🙂 I know exactly what you mean about the snow, I was so relieved when we finally had some snow falling. Something about the crisp air and sunlight hitting the snow making it sparkle makes Winter that much more beautiful. Wishing you and your family a Happy New Year!
Comment by Brenda on December 30, 2014 @ 5:48 pm
Thank you! And yes, I’m really looking forward to lots of picture book rereading and getting fully steeped in nostalgia. Happy New Year to you and your family too!
Comment by Jacqueline on December 31, 2014 @ 4:38 pm
My backyard is surrounded by woods, and it snowed recently and it looks magical outside… it’s gorgeous! I love to sit on my couch and look outside with a mug of hot chocolate wrapped in my hands and look at this blog… so much fun!
~Nicole 🙂 😉
Comment by Nicole on December 30, 2014 @ 9:58 pm
That’s beautiful… Glad to be part of your wintery, hot chocolatey day!
Comment by Jacqueline on December 31, 2014 @ 4:39 pm
5. 4. 3. 2. 1. Happy new year Jacqueline!!! 🙂 😉
Comment by Nicole :) on January 1, 2015 @ 12:01 am
And Happy New Year to you!
Comment by Jacqueline on January 2, 2015 @ 10:18 am
Thanks Jacqueline!!! Do you wanna build a snowman? (Guess what movie that line is from!) I am soooo excited! Today is only a month until my mom’s due date!!! YAY!!!
-Nicole 🙂 😉
Comment by Nicole :) on January 2, 2015 @ 1:58 pm
I’m guessing the line’s from “Frozen” — but I still haven’t seen the movie! (I’m really out of the loop with kids’ films…something else that I’m sure will change soon.)
Enjoy the last few weeks of baby anticipation!
Comment by Jacqueline on January 9, 2015 @ 9:27 am
You are……………………………………… correct!!! And yeah, your life will change a LOT when your child gets here… be prepared! Also, I can’t wait until my baby bro gets here!!!!! Every day is getting closer to my mom’s due date… I can’t even begin to explain how excited I am. Anyhoo, I hope you are having a good, healthy pregnancy! Good luck!
XOXO, Nicole 😉
Comment by Nicole on January 9, 2015 @ 4:55 pm
🙂
Comment by Jacqueline on January 21, 2015 @ 11:14 am
Hi Jacqueline! Something weird happened this morning. So I was in my bedroom getting ready, and I was looking upstairs and I didn’t see any lights on. I didn’t hear my mom upstairs, so I was mentally freaking out. I was like, “did mom go in to labor? Is she in the hospital?” And then my mom turned on the lights and stuff. I guess I overreacted… oh well.
And now I have “The Hanging Tree” stuck in my head. But I love that song. Just a little fun fact about Panem/the hunger games: District 12 would be where Wisconsin, the upper peninsula of Michigan, and part of Minnesota is.
Are you, are you, coming to the tree?
They strung up a man they say who murdered three.
Strange things did happen here, no stranger would it be
If we met at midnight in the hanging tree.
Are you, are you, coming to the tree?
Where the dead man called out for his love to flee.
Strange things did happen here, no stranger would it be
If we met at midnight in the hanging tree.
Are you, are you, coming to the tree?
Where I told you to run, so we’d both be free.
Strange things did happen here, no stranger would it be
If we met at midnight in the hanging tree.
Are you, are you, coming to the tree?
Wear a necklace of rope, side by side with me.
Strange things did happen here, no stranger would it be
If we met at midnight in the hanging tree.
Are you, are you, coming to the tree?
Where I told you to run, so we’d both be free.
Strange things did happen here, no stranger would it be
If we met at midnight in the hanging tree.
Are you, are you, coming to the tree?
They strung up a man they say who murdered three.
Strange things did happen here, no stranger would it be
If we met at midnight in the hanging tree.
Are you, are you, coming to the tree?
Where the dead man called out for his love to flee.
Strange things did happen here, no stranger would it be
If we met at midnight in the hanging tree.
If you haven’t heard the song yet, look it up. The tune is beautiful and yet has a more serious undercurrent to it. The song is chilling and hauntingly beautiful, and I like how the lyrics are kind of creepy. I was coming up with theories of the meaning of the song, and came up with a cool theory. This is it: in the book, Katniss says that her mother forbids Katniss, Prim, and their father to sing the song, presumably because they could get in trouble with officials for singing the song. Also, I’m guessing that commiting a crime could result in a hanging. And I think that the song is used against the Capitol because of what the Capitol did to the districts. Anyhoo, guess what movie the song is from! And tell me if you’ve seen the movie! Now my fingers are about to fall off from typing so much, so bye Jacqueline!!!!
XOXO, Nicole 🙂 😉
Comment by Nicole on January 12, 2015 @ 9:21 pm
Thanks for sharing all of that. I really enjoyed THE HUNGER GAMES (especially the first one) in book form, so I haven’t wanted to see the film versions — I’d like to keep the characters and settings just the way that I’ve imagined them! Of course, beautiful music is one of the things you miss when you avoid the movies… Maybe I’ll give them a chance someday.
Comment by Jacqueline on January 21, 2015 @ 11:16 am
By the way, the song is called The Hanging Tree. Seriously, look it up. It’s a cool song.
XOXO, Nicole 🙂 😉
Comment by Nicole on January 12, 2015 @ 9:23 pm
Yay!!!!!!!! My mom went to the hospital for a baby checkup on Friday and the doctor said that the baby is coming sometime this week!!!!!!!!!! Woohoo!!!!!!! I will tell you when the baby bro comes… And lol. I love your latest Instagram post. And I’m feeling vaguely astonished by some objects showing up around the house too. Good luck with the baby, and may the odds be ever in your favor. Also, I will be sending a letter and my books soon. Hopefully. Anyhoo, good luck! And be on the lookout for a letter and stuff from me. Bye Jacqueline! 🙂
XOXO, Nicole
Comment by Nicole :) on January 20, 2015 @ 4:44 pm
Woohoo indeed! Good luck to all of you, and I hope everything baby-related goes well! (And I’ll keep an eye out for your letter and books.)
Comment by Jacqueline on January 21, 2015 @ 11:17 am
Haha. Thanks Jacqueline. I LOVEEEEEEEEE the Hunger Games movies. am begging my parents to let me go to the midnight premiere of Mockingjay: Part Two. I really want to make a Katniss Everdeen costume and wear it to the premiere… and now all of my teachers at school are asking me, “Any news of the baby yet?” And I tell them, “No, not yet.” Also, at school today at lunch, I was walking to my table I normally sit at with my friends. All of a sudden, my milk carton falls off of my tray and I accidentally step on it. The milk sprays EVERYWHERE, and I set my tray down on the table and bend down and throw away the now empty milk carton. I can feel myself blushing (My friend Libby (short for Elizabeth) later told me that my face was tomato red.) and then one of the lunch ladies comes and mops up the milk. I grab a new milk carton. And when I went to pick up my tray after I had punched in my lunch number, I accidentally stuck my finger in my crushes mashed potatoes. I was mortified. And while the whole milk incident was happening, I could feel my crush watching me. I kept on thinking, ‘PLEASE just let me hide under a rock. PLEASE.’ And I still feel that way. WHY MUST I EMBARRASS MYSELF??????????????????? WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? And also, I have already written about a million starts to my letter, but I mess up… UGHHHHHHH. Writing letters is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO FRUSTRATING. Anyhoo, I will tell you when my baby brother gets here!!!!!!!! And by the way, Jennifer Lawrence plays Katniss Everdeen pretty good. So… yeah. Bye Jacqueline!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
XOXO, Nicole 🙂 😉
Comment by Nicole on January 21, 2015 @ 7:46 pm
Hello Jacqueline!!! I have awesome news for you… I’m a big sister!!! His name is Jack, he weighs 7 pounds and 1 ounce, is 20 inches long, and is SO ADORABLE!!!!! He has really strong lungs too. Seriously. Anyhoo… I gotta go. Bye Jacqueline!
XOXO, Nicole (who is now a big sister) 😉 🙂
Comment by Nicole :) on January 28, 2015 @ 6:48 am
Hooray!!! Congratulations, and I hope you and Jack and the rest of your family are all having a wonderful time getting to know each other. 🙂
Comment by Jacqueline on January 29, 2015 @ 2:32 pm
Aw, thanks Jacqueline. It wont be too long until your little one is here too.
Comment by Nicole :) on January 29, 2015 @ 3:28 pm
Aw, thanks Jacqueline. It wont be too long until your little one is here too.
XOXO, Nicole 🙂 😉
Comment by Nicole :) on January 29, 2015 @ 3:29 pm
Happy (late) Valentine’s Day Jacqueline!!!! Sorry for the lateness. I was SUPER busy yesterday… Yeah. Bye Jacqueline!!!! (Also, Jack says hi.)
XOXO, Nicole 🙂 😉
Comment by Nicole on February 15, 2015 @ 7:46 pm
Happy late Valentine’s Day to you (and Jack) too! And thanks for the invitation to your upcoming band concert. Traveling is about to get a lot trickier than it used to be, but it’s really sweet of you to think of me — and hopefully I’ll get to make another visit to Mosinee in the not-too-distant future. 🙂
Comment by Jacqueline on February 16, 2015 @ 2:05 pm
Awwwwww, thanks Jacqueline. And I’m guessing no baby yet? And yeah, traveling gets harder with a baby. My family normally has a yearly camping trip in a different area every year, but my parents decided we aren’t going this year because of Jack being so young. Maybe next year…
XOXO, Nicole (and Jack) 🙂 😉
Comment by Nicole on February 16, 2015 @ 7:37 pm