2014 has been another wonderful year for literature, a classic case of so many books, so little time. I ended the year having read 80 books, predominantly fiction novels, but including one play (Mike Bartlett’s perceptive and witty King Charles 111, works of non-fiction and collections of short stories.
An Unnecessary Woman by Rabih Alameddine (Text)
The UnAmericans by Molly Antopol (W.W.Norton)
The Sound of Things Falling by Juan Gabriel Vasquez (Bloomsbury)
Colourless Tsukuru Tazaki by Haruki Murakami (Alfred A Knopf)
Thank you For Your Service by David Finkle (Text)
Beyond the Beautiful Forever by Katherine Boo (Random House)
The Golden Age by Joan London (Random House Australia)
We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler (Allen & Unwin)
A Winter’s Book by Tove Jansson (A Sort of Book)
His Own Man by Ribeiro Edgard (Text):
The gender division was 66-44 per cent to the blokes, the authors came from 18 different nationalities and although America, Britain and Australia dominated, some of the South American authors definitely punched above their weight. My Top 10 isn’t in any particular order and is based on books I read during 2014, irrespective of when they were published. Similarly, the publisher reflects the edition I read.
This year was particularly hard to nominate just ten books so, below are the closest runners-up:
The Orphan Master’s Son by Adam Johnstone
All My Puny Sorrows by Miriam Tows
How to be Both by Ali Smith
The Betrayers by David Bezmozgis
All the Birds, Singing by Evie Wyld
Wishing everyone a happy, peaceful and book filled 2015. (Artwork by the always brilliant Sturt Krygsman)
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My read list in 2014 – The Tragedy of the Pike River Mine – Rebecca Macfie (the mine disaster on the west coast of NZ)The War that Ended Peace – Margaret MacmillanThe Bat – Jo NesboParade’s End – Ford Madox FordAll of These People – Fergal KeaneThe Shorter PepysThe Clash of Civilisations – Samuel P HuntingtonDona Flor e Seus Dois Maridos – Jorge AmadoIs This a Man/The Truce – Primo LeviHarvest – Jim CraceJane Eyre – Charlotte BronteBelieve & Destroy – Christian Ingrao (Story of Hitler’s scientists and the death camps)Measure for Measure – WSShort Stories by Russian AuthorsDesperate Remedies – Thomas HardyAustralian Explorers – Robert CoupeErnest Giles – Ray EricksenJourney to Horseshoe Bend – TGH StrehlowSchultz – JP DonleavyHis Own Man – Edgar Telles RibeiroOne Hundred Years of Solitude – Gabriel G MarquezCrossing the Dead Heart – CT MadiganThe Narrow Road to the Deep North – Matsuo BashoThe Letters of Noel Coward – compilationLong Walk to Freedom – Nelson MandelaJim Clark – Eric DymockStrut’s Desert Drama – Ivan RudolphThe Orphan Master’s Son – Adam JohnsonBetrayal – Simon BensonJohn Flynn – Ivan RudolphThe Narrow Road to the Deep North – Richard FlanneryWe Are All Completely Beside Ourselves – Karen Joy FowlerHow to be Both – Ali Smith”J” – Howard JohnsonTo Rise Again at a Decent Hour – Joshua FerrisLeichhardt – The Dauntless Explorer – Colin RoderickPackhorse & Waterhole – G BuchananCapitaes da Area – Jorge AmadoHeroes & Heroines – Thomas CarlyleMr Stuart’s Track – John BaileyThe Assassination of Mrs Thatcher – Hilary MantelFlynn of the Inland – Ion IdriessAmazon Throne – Bertita HardingCyrano de Bergerac – Edmund Rostand (play)The Dead Heart of Australia – JW GregoryThe Light Between Oceans – ML StedmanBig Red – Henry G LamondThe Symposium – PlatoThe Murranji Track – D LewisJoseph Andrews – Henry FieldingSpinifex & Sand – DW CarnegieThe Power of One – B CourtneyWest of Centre – Ray EricksenPuckoon – Spike MilliganWeary – The Life of Sir Edward Dunlop – S Ebury That’s my lot this year. My top 10 in red. Cheers Keith Date: Wed, 31 Dec 2014 01:31:54 +0000 To: keithdb5@hotmail.com
You’ve captured this pelyectrf. Thanks for taking the time!