Hello!
This is what happens when you draft a blog post and forget to publish it! A bit late for this but hey, I still adore all these books :)
This is what happens when you draft a blog post and forget to publish it! A bit late for this but hey, I still adore all these books :)
I've been reading a lot more last year than I have the year before and I've been really pleased with how varied my reading has been.
I've done some stats over my reading year like the big geek I am and out of all the books I've read in 2014, more than 60% were by women writers. I've read more YA this year than I have last year (roughly 40%) as well as literary fiction (35%) and Fantasy/SF (25%). I've been reading more French books (and Italian) and have also been very interested in reading non-fiction titles so I'm really glad about that. What I am unhappy about is how diverse my reading was... only 25% of the books were diverse. Not great at all, considering diversity in books is something I'm extremely passionate about. There'll definitely be some improvement on that this year.
On to my favourite books of the year. I don't know if you're following me on twitter or not but I've been banging on about The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton since last January and this is definitely my favourite book this year. It is one of the best books I've ever read and I want to reread it soon. I loved the characters and the plot and the writing. You really really have to read it. None of this "too long" nonsense. Take a long weekend to read through the first few hundred pages and then you'll be hooked.
A special mention goes to the French book Charlotte by David Foenkinos. It's not (yet!) translated in English but I would urge you to read it if you can. So wonderfully written and Charlotte Salomon is a wonderful artist to read about. It was such an honour and a pleasure to discover her story and her work.
Other books which I've loved last year: Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichi, The Panopticon by Jenni Fagan and Burial Rites by Hannah Kent.
My absolute favourite discovery last year was the fantasy author Brandon Sanderson. He might be my new favourite fantasy author and I am planning to read all his books! The Mistborn trilogy is utterly wonderful and mind-blowingly good. Do read it!
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Favourite non-fiction book is Men Explain Things To Me by Rebecca Solnit. An author I kept seeing everywhere and hadn't read before. I love the writing and the topics of the essays and I'll be looking out for her backlist titles.
And then various backlist titles that I've discovered last year and that I can't believe it took me all that time to read.
My absolute favourite discovery last year was the fantasy author Brandon Sanderson. He might be my new favourite fantasy author and I am planning to read all his books! The Mistborn trilogy is utterly wonderful and mind-blowingly good. Do read it!
In terms of YA, I think my favourite in 2014 is Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan, I loved the writing and the perspective from the generation before.
I also loved Far From You by Tess Sharpe and Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo.
I've also discovered some AMAZING French YA books that the amazing French bloggers I've met have been recommending and these two are quite possibly some of my favourite YA books of all time: Frangine by Marion Brunet and Le Faire ou Mourir by Claire-Lise Marguier. Both books have LGBT characters (lesbian moms in Frangine and queer/questioning main character in Le Faire ou Mourir) and are FANTASTIC contemporary YA.
Favourite non-fiction book is Men Explain Things To Me by Rebecca Solnit. An author I kept seeing everywhere and hadn't read before. I love the writing and the topics of the essays and I'll be looking out for her backlist titles.
And then various backlist titles that I've discovered last year and that I can't believe it took me all that time to read.
