This year I read 63 books - the same amount as last year. My goal had been to read 65. But, if Anna Karinina counted as three books, I would have met that goal. Is this an excuse?
My Favorites for 2022:
Matrix, Lauren Groff
Sea of Tranquility, Emily St. John Mandel
Fresh Water for Flowers, Valerie Perrin
In the Country of Women, Susan Straight
Honorable Mention: Ordinary Grace, William Kruger Kent, Hotel Nantucket, Elin Hilderbrand
What makes a favorite? I want to pick it up, I don't want to put it down, and I REMEMBER IT. With the exception of Lauren Groff (and Elin, of course), all the authors were new to me.
My takeaways from this reading year:
1) I read a considerable amount of memoirs. Is that because the new memoir section is downstairs in the library, and not as perused as the new fiction section? Do other people like memoirs as much as me?
2) I did not enjoy my reading content as much as last year. Still trying to discover why this happened. Was it because I didn't do enough background research? trusted the wrong critics?
3) I could have read more. Doom scrolling is still my number one time-killer. There are not many book ideas found on twitter. Yet, a "not great" book prevents me from returning to reading. How to end the time-wasting cycle???
Classics read this year: Anna Karinina, and The Supper of the Lamb
Non-Fiction (not memoir): The Supper of the Lamb by Robert Capon, All the Frequent Troubles of Our Days, by Rebecca Donner, Untangled, by Lisa D'Amour, and We Don't Know Ourselves, by Fintan O'Toole.
Reading goals for 2023:
1) Read three of the books I already own.
2) This year's classic selection: Crime and Punishment
3) Try reading 63 books (again), but with a better selection process.
4) Try to read some better non-fiction, non-memoir books.
