.png)
Page Chewing
Stories. Ideas. Conversations that stick. Page Chewing takes you beyond the page with authors, artists, and fellow readers.
Page Chewing
Our 2024 Wrap-Up | Reflecting on a Year in Books: Reading Journeys, Genre Exploration, and BookTube Influences
Ever wondered how a community of voracious readers reflects on a year's worth of literary adventures? Pull up a chair and lend an ear as I, Steve, joined by Chibipoe, Paromita, and YouTube's The Fantasy Thinker Jarrod, exchange tales from our individual reading odysseys. We traverse the landscape of our reading goals, the thrill of conquests across new genres, and the influence of Booktube on our ever-evolving bookshelves. Prepare to gather a treasure trove of reading strategies and an eclectic list of book recommendations that promise to pique your curiosity and expand your own reading horizons.
As we turn the pages of our discussion, you'll learn to balance the weighty epics with literary palate cleansers, savoring each genre's unique flavors. We don't shy away from the controversial either, as we debate the divisive fandom surrounding characters from the "Berserk" series, proving that characters can indeed warrant complex feelings. Amidst sharing our favorite reads—the hauntingly beautiful "The Drowning Girl" by Caitlin Kiernan and the timeless narrative of John Williams' "Stoner"—we unite in our gratitude for the companionship of fellow book lovers who've journeyed with us.
We wrap up with a look towards the future, gleaning insights from our re-readings of cherished tomes and anticipating the fresh excitement of discovering new authors like Daniel Abraham and Robin Hobb. The joy of reconnecting with familiar stories, the anticipation of future book club discussions, and the collective wisdom of our reading community are the bookmarks of our year-end roundup. Join us as we celebrate the pages turned and eagerly await the stories yet to be written in our literary lives.
Film Chewing Podcast
Speculative Speculations Podcast
Support the podcast via PayPal
Join Riverside.fm
Co-Hosts and friends:
Holly Tinsley (author)
Susana Imaginário (author)
Tim Hardie (author)
Thomas J. Devens (author)
Michael R. Fletcher (author)
Janny Wurts (author)
Hello friends, my name is Steve and we are here today to discuss 2023, kind of just our favorites of the year, how the year went for us. General Chit Chat you have some friends in ChibiPo. You start us off with an introduction.
Speaker 2:Okay, yeah, just ChibiPo, a lurker and participant on page chewing and folks around on Twitter and Goodreads.
Speaker 1:And glad you can make it and Paramita.
Speaker 3:Hello everyone, my name is Paramita. I read in a variety of genres and I'm a member of the Page Chewing Forum, and I'm excited to talk about my favorites of 2023.
Speaker 1:I have a question for you how you pick your favorites, but we'll get to that in a second, because you have a lot to choose from. And Jared.
Speaker 4:Hi, I'm Jared. I run the Fantasy Thinker YouTube channel and I also participate in the Page Chewing forums. And I do have a blog that I haven't done anything for a while but hoping to fix that soon, Awesome.
Speaker 1:The holidays are such a weird time, right, Because everything kind of gets. I mean, everything is upside down. But happy new year everyone. It's 2024, we made it. How was everyone's year? In a nutshell?
Speaker 4:Well, as far as reading goes, it was pretty good. Lots of cool stuff that. I read, so I'm sure you guys could probably say the same, based upon what I've seen, what you guys have read.
Speaker 1:Yeah, quite a bit. And it's your first year of Booktube, right, jared, first full year it is, yep, first full year, so that's been a real trip.
Speaker 4:I can honestly say this is probably the most I've ever read in one year. I wasn't a voracious reader. I read a lot of cool stuff, but not quantity, and so being starting a Booktube channel and also being involved with other people who are reading a lot inspired and motivated me to read a lot more.
Speaker 1:Because you mentioned Curie, you curate your list pretty carefully, what you decide to read. How has Booktube and content creation changed that process for you, if at all?
Speaker 4:It.
Speaker 4:Just what it did was it broadened my horizons as far as what I knew was available, because I never really followed any.
Speaker 4:I'm not a big social media person and so I wasn't ever signed up for any kind of list or whatever stuff coming out.
Speaker 4:What have you? I would occasionally just go to the bookstore and just pick something, and if it was something I liked, I would continue with that author, whereas Booktube getting involved in Booktube exposed me to a whole bunch of other authors, a whole bunch of other notifications of what was available, basically, and it also exposed me to getting to know certain. Booktube is because I liked what they were saying and so I was starting to trust their opinion when I knew they liked certain things that I do like, and so when they had something else that was newer or something like that, then I could say, all right, yeah, I can see why they liked that and that might be something that I like. And I've also gotten a lot more exposure to authors as well, which made me, if I like a certain author's writing, then I would watch an interview with them and that would make me more interested in their works and stuff like that. So it all fed into it each other.
Speaker 1:What have you Parmeetha? How was your year in general been?
Speaker 3:In terms of reading, similar to Jared. I think I have read more this year than I ever have, and I think that was both good, but also I've decided to take a little bit of a step back and enjoy more. So, just recalibrating a bit for 2024. Read lots of new things which I wouldn't have tried Just what I like and perhaps don't like so much a bit more and tried some new formats as well.
Speaker 3:For example, I got into reading more poetry, which I usually I still say this, that I'm absolutely hopeless when it comes to deciphering poetry, but it turns out that there are some poets whose works do speak to me more. So that was something I got into. And the other thing was graphic novels or manga, and in fact one of my now it's one of my all time favorite series was in manga, was a manga series that I read it very late in the year, in December. So we've been trying lots of new things, lots of rereads. Some stuff held up, some stuff didn't so much, but mostly it's been a very, very good year and it helped me to set some goals, for broad goals in terms of what I want to do with my reading for 2024.
Speaker 1:And so Berserk is a non your favorites list. Yes, that's true, wow, wow, didn't see that coming. That's cool. What about you, chibi Poe? How was your year? In a nutshell?
Speaker 2:It wasn't bad. I don't know. I think I'm going to try to read more this year, but this year than it did last. I think trying to set a definite goal meant I read less because I felt like I was pursuing this goal, and then I just like, ah, so I don't know, I'll see, I'll probably put a number in and then I'll just like start reading by grabbing things off my shelf instead of trying to, you know, meet some arbitrary goal.
Speaker 1:So yeah, I tried to set a goal for the year.
Speaker 2:I enjoyed what I read. Yeah, I was just kind of I didn't feel like I could have read more, but didn't so.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's those. Goals can snake up. Any rate, Can it affect you in ways you don't expect sometimes?
Speaker 2:Yeah, like I, there's one point where I had the goal and I didn't even set a particularly high, but it's like I, you know, breezed over to good reason. I saw what it said and I was like, oh okay. And then at some point I was behind, you know, like two or three books behind, and then I started grabbing books, trying to force myself to read them to you know, catch up to the, you know, or get ahead of it, and yeah, I think that detracted from my enjoyment.
Speaker 1:Yeah, those the sneaky goals. So who wants to go first with their favorites of the year? Not all at once.
Speaker 4:Well, hold on, steve. What about your reading year? Oh, good question.
Speaker 1:I forgot to mention my own.
Speaker 2:Honestly, he was trying to sneak me right on.
Speaker 1:He's trying to sneak on by this year. I think it's. I think I I've slowed down a little bit reading, taking my time more with what I'm reading, and I think I get it's. It's more of a, it's more of a rewarded experience for me when I just slow down and take my time and not worry so much about because it's hard to not be excited about stuff we want to read. You know it's hard to not be excited and want to get to it. We want to get to the next thing, but we also, you know I also would kind of forget what I'm reading now, and then the book that I'm I was excited to read a few months ago, I'm rushing through it now to get to the next thing that I'm excited to read. So I tried to stop doing that so much and just take my time, really kind of breathe it in. And I felt that it's a more of a reward and experience for me when I would just slow down.
Speaker 1:As as exciting as it is to start a new series or to read something else, just enjoy what you're currently reading first and then it'll. We have plenty of time, hopefully plenty of time to get to it. But so this year I'm going to try any any series. My goal for this year is any series that I don't already own book one. I won't start a new series because they have too many book ones that I own on my shelf. So no more book ones for 2024. I'm just going to read what I have on hand or what I've already started and I'm not going to start a new series. So I was racing at the end of the year to buy a few more so I can. I can have them in the bullpen. But yeah, I'm no new series for me. That's my goal for the year.
Speaker 4:That's interesting. Yeah, yeah, you have a. So do you have a lot of stuff on your shelf on red?
Speaker 1:I think I have. There's a few that I have. There is about four or five that I can think of that I have on red that I'm wanting to get to, like the bone ship is the bone ships, but I have a few others that I've been wanting to get to, just haven't. Or like children of time, is it the one I get to this year? So I'm hoping to get to those, but I so I was sure to get those, have them on hand before the year started, so okay you know, so I was kind of cheating, but kind of not.
Speaker 1:So that's my goal for the year.
Speaker 2:Alright, then then my goal for the year is to dig up all these really good series that aren't recent, and you know just in and date you with new number ones in the series and be like here. You know, now you have a gigantic pile.
Speaker 1:I have no doubts. Yeah, it's gonna be tough, because it's it's hard, you know, to not be excited about things, but if I just read what I have, I think I'll be plenty busy all year. So it's tough, though there's so many good ones out there.
Speaker 4:There is. There is a lot of good stuff out there. That's one thing that I noticed especially joining booktube was there's a lot of good stuff out there that that I never heard of or that I just didn't realize was as good as it as, as you know, glancing on a shelf would give the any idea of. So that was pretty good.
Speaker 4:You know, it's been revelatory really doing this whole book tube thing over the past year, just seeing how things go, because I didn't start with any kind of big plan. I just started recording videos and throwing them up there, and so I was basically still mood reading when I started, you know, reading what I wanted, and when I saw people having these big to be read lists and I was like, oh, I'll try to do that and I'll, and I started making lists and stuff like that, and then I was like that seems that wasn't for me. I still wanted to read what I wanted to read. You know, because as soon as I read Curse of the Misereth that was one, you know, back in March or whatever- it was.
Speaker 4:I was like Well, I know I want to continue on with that, so why am I going to make a list of a whole bunch of other stuff I want to read when I want to continue on with that? And it's kind of similar in that vein, you know, so I have. So I've been forcing myself not to have that kind of a must read list and just read what I want as it comes along and occasionally join a read along with other stuff, knowing that I only read three, three, maybe four books a month if I'm lucky, and knowing that I'm only going to join something that's going to fit into that, that regiment, rather than stressing myself out.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, definitely. Speaking of reading faster, pardon me, for what? For people who read slow, slower, like me, who want to read a little bit faster? Not that I want to, I don't want to, like you know, fly through books but just as, in terms of efficiency, what advice would you have for someone like me who wants to read a little bit faster not fast, but just? Do you have any tips for for those of us like that?
Speaker 3:Not, as I guess it depends a bit on the book. There are some books where the way the author writes it just flows. So for those I would say, I mean you will just know when you click with the author's writing style that you move through the pages automatically. And then for the ones which take a bit more effort, you know where you have to work a bit to revisit the lines, or something like that. So I guess the only thing I can think of is maybe alternate those two.
Speaker 3:If you know that an author's writing style clicks for you, then make sure you have let's say you're reading three books at the same time. Then you have two which are fast going, or fast going means you click with the style enough that there's momentum in when you read, and so that the one which takes more time you have that leisure of taking your time with it. Other than that, I don't really think I mean. One thing I would say is that if you know that an author like descriptions are redundant, I skim them and they are pretty common in a lot of epic fantasy and epic science fiction.
Speaker 3:So after some point when I see description, unless the descriptions are beautifully written. But if they are not beautifully written and you know they're just like hello, this is happening. Or another one which is the author is like I will build now and I'm like, yes, fine, that's, that's totally fine, that's the author's prerogative, but I would like to move on. So then I sort of go through those sections faster. But mainly, I think the best thing, especially even if you're not reading multiple books at one time, if you're doing one book at a time most of the people I have seen to avoid that sort of getting bogged down feeling is they switch between genres or even if they don't switch between genres, they put in a faster paced read or just in terms of length, psychologically a shorter read with a longer novel so that it balances itself out.
Speaker 3:And especially, I think, with epic fantasy and science fiction, the assumption seems to be things like 800 pages is pretty normal. So if you alternate it with something like literary fiction, where a lot of there are very some chunky literary fiction book but usually on the prize list, if they put two books which are longer than 600 pages, the people who are doing the reviews will complain Like whereas epic fantasy. It's like 600 pages, totally doable. Let's fit two of those in.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so actually I think, like people who read fantasy, is very well poised to read the long literary fiction works. But yeah, you can fit in shorter or mysteries, science fiction also. Actually, especially the earlier science fiction work, they used to have a lot of ideas packed in in very short time. I think sword and sorcery novels are also probably on the shorter. I still feel like going is an answer, maybe fitting in those instead of somebody I know who might be doing. Second, apocalyptic lives, wars of Light and Shadow and Malazan at the same.
Speaker 1:Who would do such a thing? Yeah, we have started Malazan yet, so I'm not I'm not quite there yet.
Speaker 4:Yeah, that's why I haven't started second apocalypse, because I'm doing Wars of Light and Shadow and I'm still rereading Malazan, so I was like I don't know if I can do another series like that at the same time. It's a lot.
Speaker 2:So once I have this did for wanting to start up, I'm like I'm glad these are only like four books. Yeah, Eventually they're large books. But you know, because I've got a whole bunch of I want to reread Memory, Sorrow and Thorn and big to then do follow through Last King of Elston Arts and see he's gonna finish it this year or the last book comes out in November, and then I've got like he's got like two or three other series that I want to start to. But you know he's always big, fond, fond of. You know, here's four books and then he's done when he moves on to something else. So I'm like, okay, that works. So I got a bunch of Tad Williams I don't want to get to and I want to finish the David bad and I don't know, maybe I'll finally try the Abercrombie on my shelf. If I don't decide that I'm like I don't, don't want these, they can go away.
Speaker 1:What's kept you from reading Abercrombie so far? Is it just timing or just haven't felt like it?
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's really just it. It's like I think it might have ended up. You know, there are people talk about it, good, and I was like, and then it was one of those you know cases of like, oh hey, I like the covers of these, I'm gonna grab them. And then they sat on my shelf.
Speaker 1:It happens.
Speaker 2:Well, they kind of came at the point where, you know, I ended up during, you know, stuck inside with COVID, ended up buying a lot of books.
Speaker 2:You know it's like I felt replaced stuff that I didn't have you know, and and then, just, you know, started looking at new authors and I was like, okay, I want this and I want this, and I want this and I want this. And it was especially handy because the local bookstore, during COVID, you know, she stayed open but she was basically, you know, either mailing or she would, you know, just drive up and, you know, drop them off. You know, while masked up, you know, so due delivery says like awesome.
Speaker 4:And.
Speaker 2:I, you know I don't know about anyone else, but you know for their customers. But I was, you know, buying books left and right because I didn't have anything else to do, and then I held a whole bunch and I didn't and I didn't read any of yeah, one of the things that I will not be doing this year that I did against my better judgment last year is readathons.
Speaker 1:I'm done with readathons. It's just not fun. The whole, the whole idea is to read as fast as you can as many books as you can, and I don't know why I agreed to do them. Oh, I just I'm done with readathons. Just, they're not fun for me.
Speaker 4:I know some people like it. Or is it like a contest?
Speaker 1:Yeah, it was. Was it the at the Indian courts? I forget? It was one of the I don't even use discord and it was one of the discords and I was asked to participate and so I was able to read enough. I think the team won. I didn't even keep up with I don't use discord, but yeah, it was. It just it wasn't fun.
Speaker 2:It just added an extra layer of it felt more like a job and for pleasure, so and yeah, like I like read alongs with other people, but I was always kind of baffled at readathons or like let's read as many things as you can, I'm like, but that's just gonna negatively impact all of them because you're just, you're just trying to rush through them to get to the next thing and I'm like, no, no, no, no, no, don't want to do that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I get the idea behind it, like you know, to read more. But when it's a competition, then you know it's not. It's more about how much you can read and not really you know who knows. But not my thing, yeah.
Speaker 4:How would they know that you didn't just speed read it and just they done it's all the honor system.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, so some people read like 40 books or 50 books in the month or whatever, and it's like I had like four, you know so it's like I don't know. So who knows? Not to imply anyone's lying, just you know, you never know so just curious.
Speaker 4:Yeah, it's one of those.
Speaker 1:I don't know. You never know who's who's really reading or not. But so anyway, onto the good stuff, the good stuff. Yeah, the good stuff. Who wants to, who has a list and who wants to go first? Tell us a little bit about their favorite reads Can be a rereader, a new reader.
Speaker 4:Well, I did my top five of the year and these were not rereads, not including rereads, but the my favorite last year was the killing God by Stephen Donaldson. That was book three and the Great God's War, because I finished up that series back in early February and it stuck with me the whole year as my favorite, my favorite read. He really stuck the landing and created a unique fantasy world in a trilogy, self contained and and I just thought he had a Donaldson has always had a pension for you know, psychological and philosophical discourse in his writing, but I thought he really focused it in a unique way in these books.
Speaker 1:And.
Speaker 4:I really like how he does it. Yeah, we did it and I really like how he finished it off. It was just a spectacular ending and he did do something he normally does in his writing is he gives you this super narrow focus in the first book and then in the second book he expands. That you know greatly from there, but which is which is really great, because the way he does it really surprises you when, when everything else is revealed. So I love how we, how he does that stuff, so that really really work.
Speaker 4:For me that was my favorite of the year and then right up, right on the heels of that is is cursed at the mystery and and that series, the four books we read for the read along last year. I really loved Warhost of Vast Mark Because I love how she ended, that one Spectacular ending. So I'm I'm an endingist person, if you haven't figured that out. I know some people like beginnings better what have you? But I really like a great ending and so those, those are really spectacular. Plus, you know Janie Wurz is writing as well, is her prose is impeccable. And I also really loved the book that wouldn't burn by Mark Lawrence. Oh, that was a big surprise for me Because that's a new was a new author to me this year too and I I hesitated wanting to read all his previous, any of his previous stuff, because it was like, more like you, like you would talk about series, you know getting the more series, and I was like I don't want to get into another series at this point. But he came out with a brand new book, the book that wouldn't burn, and I was like, okay, that that seems like a good way to start with him. And it got some good recommendations. Philip Chase recommended it and he he talked about it on his channel and I was like, okay, that sounds like it's up my alley, it's, it's got a magical library, which was cool. Remind to me of. To me it reminded me of something that gaming would come up with, maybe Neil Gaiman. But but then I read it, it's, it's not like gaming at all, it's, it's its own thing. But and I really enjoyed it I thought he had a get a couple characters in there. That was just a lot of joy to follow and a lot of fun to get to know and, in the end, a lot of neat ideas in there about what a magical library consists of, and so that was, you know, my number three book of the year.
Speaker 4:And then I read Stoner by John Williams and that's contemporary literature, so out of my fantasy wheelhouse, so to speak, but really love that book it was. It was a really nice change up from my normal reading and I just thought that book pretty much pretty much laid out why we love literature In a story about a professor of literature and so the character will love literature more than anything else, to his detriment. Unfortunately it's not the happiest story, but it was really really well done. And I also really loved.
Speaker 4:Forge of the High Mage came out by Ian Esselmont, so that was the latest in the Malzen series and I always loved those. So that was extremely a bunch of fun for me just revisiting those characters, because it's like a prequel or yes, it's a prequel series leading up to the main 10 books. And then I loved I love Philip Chase's series, the last one I thought being the best, the last one I really turned to it on was the best one out of the three. In my opinion. It once again because I like a really good ending and he had a really good ending and he did something a little different with a third book than what most trilogies do, and I really appreciate that. I thought it was well done.
Speaker 1:Cool, so that's my rundown. I have Stoner on my list too of books that's on my shelf. To get to it, Ah good.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I like to hear your thoughts on that one. That was a very interesting book. It's like the book where I bought a professor of literature. It doesn't sound exciting at all, but it's written really well and it ends up being a lot more than you bought it for.
Speaker 1:Interesting. So, parvita, you want to go next with your favorites of the year.
Speaker 3:Yes, sure. So I made a top 10 list and it is ranked, so I did not include rereads and I rate everything that I read in my personal scoring system, which then I convert to good reads, the five but usually I rate it on 10. So everything on this list is nine on 10 or above, and so the first five are pretty. I mean, number one is number one and number five is number five, and the last five are a bit more fluid, so I'll go through them in order.
Speaker 3:My book of the year was a book called the Book of Disquiet by Fernando Pessoa. It's a very, very strange novel. It's more like a collection of thoughts or musings, like the journal of the fictional character or characters, and it spoke to my heart very, very deeply and it's an all time favorite. I don't have enough words to express how good it is or how much it meant to me. I bought a physical copy along with my book and I just hope that I can reread excerpts from it regularly, even if I want to read maybe the whole book every year, like make it an annual thing, but at least I want to reread excerpts.
Speaker 4:Is it fictional stuff?
Speaker 3:It is, yeah, it is fiction, okay, cool. The second book that was again absolutely brilliant. So this would be Life and Fate by Vasily Grossman. It's actually part of a duology Book one is Stalingrad and book two is Life and Fate. Life and Fate can be read as a standalone, and usually, often is. But I mean, if you want the whole picture, then Stalingrad and Life and Fate should be read together.
Speaker 3:I just put one book by each author. That's why I have Life and Fate Beautifully written post World War II setting and the aftermath, what was going on in terms of ideological clashes, reflected through characters and very, very powerful character vignettes. I've since read, apart from Stalingrad and Life and Fate, I've read two other books by Vasily Grossman, and all fantastic. So he's again definitely a new favorite author I want to read. I'm rereading Life and Fate right now, like it's my 2024 first reread I chose. Was this one so wonderful, wonderful book? The third one was the Road by Kormak McCarthy. There's another book which I also loved, which I read this year, which is the Crossing. But I put only one book for author and the road was a 10 on 10 book for me. I it was absolutely immaculate, flawless. It was a post apocalyptic novel, very, very stark, very, very clinical prose, very, very heartfelt. I mean there were usually. I struggled with Kormak McCarthy, for example. I have not liked his novel like Blood Meridian or Child of God at all, but this one just resonated with me immediately and it was a wonderful, wonderful read.
Speaker 3:The fourth, one, very big surprise Red End of the Year maybe, with three, four days to go in the year I started on Christmas is the manga series Basak by Kentaro Mura. Storytelling is great, characters, a character, arcs are great. But what elevated this to just wow, I have no words, is the artwork. It's spectacular, it's jaw dropping. I don't know how someone achieves that, panel by panel, volume by volume. And he did right up to the very end. So the series is not over, but Mura tragically passed away after completing volume 41. It is being continued by his studio assistants under the supervision of his dear friend who is also a manga artist. But Mura's art is just. I'm amazed that this exists. So that was a huge positive surprise for me and it's definitely in my all time favorite series.
Speaker 3:The fifth book is called the Dying Grass by William T Woelman, new author for me. I've read one of his nonfiction books before, called Rising Up and Rising Down. It's very good. It's out of print, it's completely out of print and I managed to get a PDF. It's a book called Europe Central, which is one of his better known books, and didn't quite vibe with it. But this is about the Nespierre Choir and it is a blend of fiction and nonfiction.
Speaker 3:What Woelman tries to do in this book is reconstruct the history from different documents, different source documents, both official documents, which is recorded by the so-called victors, and also oral, the statements that have been passed on from generations, from the people, who sometimes do not have a voice or sometimes their voices get suppressed. So a very, very moving book, brilliantly alternating POVs between these two traditions the official documents and then the oral tradition of recording history, which is reflected in the way the book is written, and it also has a very comprehensive bibliography. At the end Anyone is interested, and the way Woelman writes about how he went about compiling this bibliography, even that was interesting to read. Usually when I get to the end of a book and there's a bibliography, I just keep, but here even that was very well written. So very lovely book.
Speaker 3:Number six is a classic called the Nun by Dennis Diderot. It's a French classic, I think, early 1900s published. It's about a woman who wants to live life on her own term and she has her own interpretation of faith. It's called the Nun, so she is in a monastare, in a ambi sort of, and she is not in conformity with what the religious beliefs are of that time. This does not mean that her faith is untrue, but just that she believes what she believes and she wants to be let be. And the book is all about whether that was ever possible, whether we can let someone be, even when they are not causing us any harm, just because their beliefs are not in conformity with us. And the reason why it hit me so hard is I felt this was very topical even today. Setting people be is not so easy or, frankly, frequent, even in today's day and age when we have come so far in other ways. So that was why the book was very impactful.
Speaker 3:Number seven was Clarissa by Samuel Richard Zan. Again, another huge surprise, this was somebody just suggested it to me. It's a 1500 page epistolary novel which was published in the late 1700s and it is absolutely brilliant. It is from a female POV and it's about mainly, it is true, clarissa and her best friend and they're writing letters to each other, and that's how the story was. Firstly, epistolary format done this brilliantly I have rarely seen, so I just loved going to maintain that for 1500 pages was amazing. And the other thing which really spoke to me in this novel, which is again from late 1700s I wasn't expecting it, we don't see it in 19th century novels or even in 20th, even 21st century novels. It is rare which is the theme of female friendship and it was very, very lovely to read that.
Speaker 3:Number eight is again historical fiction novel called Days Without End by Sebastian Barry. It was an award winning book. I think it came out in 2016 or 2018. It is about a particular, specific period of Irish history and again, the writing was brilliant, characters were brilliant and very, very hard hitting, moving. It's a very short book and it has a sequel, so it really is just. It spoke to my heart when I read it, so that's why it's on the list.
Speaker 3:Number nine is the amazing adventures of Cavalier and clay by Michael Shebon. I didn't expect this to like this at all, because I remember when I tried this last year, I think I DNF'd it and somehow this time the narrative was just clicked for me. It's beautiful. It's about these two boys who try to get into the comic business and this is in America, during the time when World War II is going on. And one of the boys is Jewish. He has escaped from a particular plight which his family has not been able to escape, and it's the interplay of all these historical elements, together with the history of how comics evolve, all blended together in a fictional narrative. Absolutely beautiful. It won the Pulitzer Prize in 2000. But, more importantly, anyone who likes comics or anyone who is interested in comics in any way, shape or form will love this novel.
Speaker 3:I think it's very, very simply written. Shabon doesn't show off, he doesn't have any sort of bombastic phrase, that prose, sorry, it's just letting simplicity speak for itself. And very, very endearing characters and all about how coming up with those scenes in comic book. So it was very and I'm not a comic book person and even then I found it so, so delightful. I think anybody who likes comics or who has an interest in that history of comics, how they evolve from how they were to how they are now, it was very, very endearing and intelligent conversation on that topic. Last one is a book called Poison for Breakfast by Lemony Snicket. It's a very sweet, heartfelt book about reading, about books. It's through the perspective of a fictional character and there's a little bit of a mystery going on, but deeply it's commentary on book, on reading and I think, very short read, again, very simple but very nice writing and anyone who just needs a bit of a how do I say? A pick me up and who loves books will enjoy this story, I think. So those are my top 10.
Speaker 4:Wow, yeah, I'm very interested in that Michael Chabon book. It sounds fascinating to me.
Speaker 3:It's really, really good, this one and the other one is the Yiddish Policeman's Union. That's like Neuer genre, but with a little twist of an alternate history. The alternate history part is really clever. Like I jaw drop English levas. I'm not going to spoil it for you, you'll know as soon as you started, but it's a very, very nice book. I think Cavalier and Clay's probably higher up there for me, but both these books are great, really really good.
Speaker 1:So, given all the books you read this year, was it hard to narrow down to 10?
Speaker 3:Because I excluded rereads, and then the second criteria that I applied was nine on 10. So there were lots of, so that means like excellent and or all time favorite status. There were lots of books which I gave like four stars, so those were very good and maybe some of them I would even read, but none of them are on that list. If I had included four stars it would have been difficult, but no, because it was five stars. So I think I had 14,. Then last time I counted, which was, I think, early December, and then I had Berserk and one more five star read. So out of 16, I had to narrow it down to 10, which was, and then, if I exclude the only one, I'm like only one book per author. Then it was. It was not too bad.
Speaker 4:Nice.
Speaker 1:That's an impressive list and I'm regretting the whole decision. I might go for the year to start a new series now After hearing everyone's favorites. It's only the first of January.
Speaker 3:But the fun thing, wait, let me check Other than Berserk. None of the things that I've said are on my list are series. Loophole, none of them are series. I was very surprised, I must confess to everyone, when I made the list, because when I was reading throughout the year of course we don't, I personally don't log so much or think so much about statistics I thought that I was reading equal genre fiction and classics, literary fiction. But if you look at the list, barring Berserk and maybe amazing adventures but amazing adventures is also literary fiction come you know, the comic book element Barring Berserk, there's nothing of all the fantasy and all the science fiction I read and even of the mysteries I read mysteries. I guess I didn't read so much. I was just very surprised by that Because I always consider myself like a 50-50, like I say, the top two genres of fantasy and literary fiction joined. So it was very surprising for me when I saw the favorite Berserk is representing everything.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's kind of neat. I'm glad it was your list. So, chibi Poe, what's in your list for the year?
Speaker 2:I don't know I really do a whole list because I do end up, you know, in a lot of times rereading stuff and you know some of my rereads I'm like these are so good that they just kind of would blow everything else out. But I'd say for something I didn't reread. This year probably my favorite has been PL Stewards you know Drunken Nip stuff working on that.
Speaker 4:Yeah, it's pretty good, I like it.
Speaker 2:I can't remember if it was the first of Dan's books this year or not, or did he put them?
Speaker 4:all out this year. They were all out this year.
Speaker 2:Yeah, okay, then I did read that one, so, yeah, that one would be there too. But I need to finish the other two, which I don't know. The stuff that I read that wasn't rereads. I was like this is okay, but it wasn't anything great. Chachofsky's, you know, started Shadows of the After. Really liked it, so that's on there. And Bone Ships really liked those too. Those are probably the ones for stuff I haven't that I hadn't read before.
Speaker 1:What about rereads? Which ones still got to you? Did you enjoy it? Because sometimes you can reread something and enjoy it even more the second time Rereads.
Speaker 2:well, that's just. You know, that's just gonna be Jenny Ward's. Those are things I did the most rereads of. I don't think I did rereads much else. You know, everything else this year that I read was stuff I hadn't read before. Yes, but yeah for rereads. I pretty much enjoy those wholeheartedly every time I reread them. So I can't wait for us to start to go to the next one. I see someone already started Jared yeah.
Speaker 1:He's always ahead, yeah, he's always ahead.
Speaker 4:Well, we're meeting in like two weeks. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:They're about to do too far. I know I'm already way ahead, but I'm just like, hey, I stopped and I was like I will wait. And the Goodreads, or the one person who's still paying attention in the Goodreads, you know, is you know chomping at the bit to. She finished up for Agent of Prints and is chomping to start you know Grand Conspiracy and she's like you know the rest of you can just catch up, you know, if you want to participate. So I'm looking forward to that.
Speaker 1:So, um, uh, for so any, any ones that you're looking forward to this year that you haven't read yet Chibipa.
Speaker 2:Um the world that you're finishing the day were bad because it just started. That, um, I'm going to. I've got a couple of over here. I want to start up Daniel Abraham's um Kithamar and I've got Mark Lawrence's book that wouldn't burn. I don't get through it to to, to, so um, and then just picking up, uh, starting on the left, kiegel, ostonard and um and maybe some Hobb. I've got a bunch of Hobb to read too. So, and you know which is Tat Williams, I might try something other and different from you know, the Ostonard stuff, because you got Otherland and um Shadow March and then the uh, urban Fantasy trilogy he's got so, um, let's see, um, so for my list, um, the ones that I didn't really spend a whole lot of time, I just sped out a few, just whatever came to my mind.
Speaker 1:Um, for, in no particular order, uh, a Congregation of Jackals by Craig S Zoller. It's a, it's a grim, dark Western, like it's not really a fantasy book, it's more of a of a gritty revenge tale. Um, it kind of poses questions about escaping your, your past. If you can't escape your past, or if it will always find a way back to you, if you can ever just get away from what you've done and start over again. It is, uh, it was pretty intense read For those of you who have seen Bone Tomahawk. He's the same author who wrote Bone Tomahawk. If you've seen that movie, that's kind of the same vibe for well, I think this one's even worse in some ways, but worse, like, more violent and uh bleak.
Speaker 1:The next one was a war to end, all by Michael R Fletcher, I think any any last book in the series. I was, I was really nervous about the end of uh, of, uh, the manifest delusions. I just figured it worked out but they Clayton Snyder and and Michael R Fletcher took, they co-wrote it and it ended up being a lot funnier than I expected and it's a. It's fun seeing the, the progression through the series of it starting off pretty ambitiously Like it. Yeah, I have one of them pretty bleak and pretty dark and pretty serious. So then it kind of viewers often to more of a poking fun at religion and some other things, but it pokes fun at everyone.
Speaker 1:So it's kind of you know, it's like it's everyone gets a turn, but that was, that was fun. The next one was the Last of the Atlanteans by PL Stuart, another great book, nice. There was a scene ed towards the end of that book. I won't spoil anything if you haven't read it, but there's a very intense scene at the end that was just done just masterfully.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I agree yeah.
Speaker 1:I want to see too much, but if you've read it you know what I'm talking about.
Speaker 4:Yeah, oh yeah.
Speaker 1:The next one was the Servitor of Sin by Christopher G Brenning. It's a, it was like a novella, but I was itching to get back into that world and something about Brenning's writing. It's very fast and action packed and it's it's. It reads like a, like a movie. It has that kind of feeling to it. The next one was I had to. I chose one from the second apocalypse and I just figured the in the in Holy Consult.
Speaker 1:I think the judging eye is probably close to one of my favorites of the year, one of my all time favorites. What a wild, wild ride. Second half of that series. So that's on my list. And of course, curse of the Mist.
Speaker 1:Curse of the Mist Wraith by Jenny Wirtz. I mean, what can you say about that? It just blew my mind. And again, it's another book that forces you to slow down and to to not, you know, to just enjoy it like to just, you know, take your time with it. And so it could.
Speaker 1:Every word is, is just full. Every there's like, no, every word means something. It's there's like, it doesn't feel like this fluff, you know. So it's one of the most memorable for me, and I did read down a couple of comic books, swan songs I don't know if anyone's into comics or it's an anthology series by W Maxwell Prince and he rotates artists through and every issue is a different story. Wonderful series. For those of you who aren't reading it, who want a comic book recommendation, of course Berserk. What can you say about Berserk? Getting me more into manga and and I was afraid to mention this one because of recency bias but somna, number one, I believe it's by Becky clunin and I forget the other, the other person's name, but somna, it's a. It's like a, it's like a historical horror, almost erotic really. It's like the witch and mid somna are mashed together and the artwork, everything is just stellar. So that one stuck with me a read it a few days ago when it made the list, because it's just so good.
Speaker 4:So those are that was my Becky. Becky clunin. Is that the artist Becky clunin? Is she from saga or is she from?
Speaker 1:I think it's things saga is paper girls right. Oh yeah, I forget which one.
Speaker 4:Yeah, maybe is saga.
Speaker 1:Fiona staples of saga. Right, that's right.
Speaker 4:Yeah, but I just I seen your name before, so yeah, she's been around for a while.
Speaker 1:It was.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I thought it was an association with with Brian, cave on and something.
Speaker 1:Oh, it's Becky clunin and tula lotte.
Speaker 4:Okay.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, pretty, pretty well dried, but yeah, but I'm looking forward to reading the road this year, since it's been mentioned here in a few lists, so, and I think we're going to be reading Sandman, looking forward to that swamp thing, ellen, more something, those are just top of my head, defeat up. Yes, yes, we need to plan a time for that.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 4:Good stuff.
Speaker 1:It's on my shelf just waiting. It's right there. Yeah, fun, good year. I didn't feel like it read as much this year, but I remember what I read better, so maybe that's not a bad thing.
Speaker 4:It's always a good thing. Yeah, yeah, that's paramedic you had out of your top 10. You see, you said these are the ones you, you would definitely want to reread, right, yes, but how? What were your fate? What was your favorite reread of the past year?
Speaker 3:Probably a lot of the ring, boring answer, but always work, that's legit though.
Speaker 3:Other than that Goldfinch by Donna Tat I think I read it twice. A lot of the rings. I think I overdid it last year, I think I read it twice, it could even be four times, but definitely at least price. So a lot of the rings is probably the answer. And then the Goldfinch to kill a mockingbird. I mean these are like tied. If I go by just share number of rereads because I was like I love this this much, then yes, but the picture of Dorian Gray, which is, if I'm forced to say what is your one favorite book All over, then I would probably say to the picture of Dorian Gray.
Speaker 4:Nice.
Speaker 3:Yeah, dickens, great expectations. But great expectations is like it lives rent free in my mind, so, but yeah, I love rereading that as well.
Speaker 4:Nice.
Speaker 3:In fantasy and I let. I read, reread a lot of Ursula K Laguin, I think, the left hand of darkness, the late of heaven and the birthday of the world and other stories. These three would be my favorite. I mean, I read a lot of stuff. I reread the song of ice and fire, which I liked a lot, and I think I reread it twice again. I like it that much. King, oh, king killer. I reread Rice. I'm just sad about it because I'm rereading now again. It's delightful I reread those tonight. So because actually I thought the final book would come out in November. So I started a reread and then I was like I'll let me finish it, only because it's so lovely those were. Those were some fun. But yeah, just short answer, one answer, one book is the lot of.
Speaker 1:I did pick up King killer.
Speaker 3:You're not going to like it, I think.
Speaker 4:Oh no.
Speaker 3:Like I am cautiously optimistic but I don't know, like maybe, maybe, like anything can happen. I think, after after I love Bustle this much, I think we all keep an open mind and anything is possible, but like I would be so surprised if you, if it like ends up becoming a top series or something possible, but it could also like really annoy or bore you, like it could go in either direction. I'm eager to see which.
Speaker 4:Wow, I find it fascinating that you can reread so much and then, when I like I hardly ever reread anything at all, I was always looking for that next thing, and until I finally, after the movies came out for the Lord of Rings, I finally reread Tolkien.
Speaker 4:And I was like, okay, this isn't so bad rereading something you know. And and then I so, after I reread those, I reread the first and second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant and then and that was right before he came out with the with the last Chronicles, so it was good timing actually. And then, and now this year I started or actually last year I started rereading Malism and so that's that's it in my life. I thought those I mean other than a few comics here and there, but those, those are like made from major series. Those are the only rereads I've ever done.
Speaker 3:I think for me, what happened a bit was I tried a lot of new stuff, and some of it I even read to completion, but I was disappointed or angry with myself or something, and so to recalibrate, the only thing that works at times are rereads, and that's, that's one reason, and the other reason is probably what again, I'm paraphrasing a bit about what Nabokov said that a true reader is not a reader but just a rereader, because you just get more and more, and I don't mean necessarily the physical act of picking up the book and reading it again from front to back, but even if a book had, that has that impact on us that lives in our mind, and there are passages which come, just come to us while we are doing something else and then we think about it from a different perspective. Even that is a kind of rereading for me.
Speaker 4:Sure, yeah, yeah. I can't say I haven't done that I've definitely gone back and looked at like things that I've underlined or something like that. But that's true and I have reread a lot of Howard stories, conan Howard stories. I read a lot of those.
Speaker 3:Those are short, you know, yeah, so that's not for me the author that I probably reread the most, and she's also my favorite author, is Agatha Christie, and there was, there was, a period of about eight to nine years in between where I didn't read anything new as it just fell out of reading, and so that time all that I read was there are some Bengali things which I won't mention because they are not translated, but in English, the only things that I'd reread over and over again voraciously is Agatha Christie, arthur Conan Doyle, the Sherlock Holmes complete collection, a lot of the rings and hobbit and Harry Potter.
Speaker 3:That's it. So for me, like, like I guess some part of my brain always tells me that if I'm getting getting bogged down or something, to just go and reread a favorite, and then when I hear something about Lord of the Rings, I guess, like there's always some enthusiasm, some corner of the internet where I lurk in for a lot of the rings, I see a post or I see something, and then I'm like oh, I want to read this again and it's quite joyous. I mean, I hesitate to ask this about Malazan because it's quite serious and what it says, but does the act of rereading, especially Malazan, did it bring you a sense of joy or peace?
Speaker 4:I don't know about peace, but joy, yeah it. No, I'm thoroughly enjoying it a lot because it, because I missed a lot the first time around and I'm just I guess it's like a puzzle you know, that the first time when I it took me a long time to put it together, and this time I'm assembling the pieces quicker.
Speaker 4:And that's bringing me joy, because I'm like I'm taking, I'm seeing certain things that I didn't see before, certain connections, and I'm just enjoying a hell of it. But I'm also I'm also enjoying his prose a lot more, because I think the first time I read it I was like I was like this is a big book and I want to get through it.
Speaker 3:And.
Speaker 4:I want to get to the next one because it's funny, because a lot of people say, you know his books are so deep and all that stuff, and but it is quite possible to read that series just for the action and get through it and just just have a good time, you know. And maybe a little little less likely with that on the last few of them because they're a bit more philosophical, but you can definitely do that and I think I did that a lot of that. The first time around I was just like, oh wow, look at that. You know there's these cool races and these, this cool battle on this, you know, and all these other stuff going on.
Speaker 4:But on the second read through, I mean I'm actually enjoying it more than the first time because I'm just connecting a lot more and I'm understanding a lot more what he was trying to do, rather than just reading it like another epic fantasy and and so it's been a big pleasure and it's also it is also the reason I actually discovered booktube, because I I actually just started by looking up an interview with Steven Erickson and and AP's channel popped up, you know, so the critical dragon and and so you know of course that only led me down a bigger rabbit hole into understanding more about what Erickson was trying to achieve with these books, and and that just it added to even more to the, to the pleasure of the reread that I'm doing now and and I'm I'm very good staying away from spoilers on anything, including for the books that I haven't reread yet, which is the last two in the main series.
Speaker 4:I actually have not watched any discussions on those at all because I still want to get my own impressions on my reread as I get to those books the Duster Dreams and the Cripple God, and and it's fun to, because I'm doing the F them on ones to, and and I'm finding stuff even in those books that that I was like, oh wow, ok, there's, there's puzzle pieces in those ones to that go right along with it. So it's, it's been fun, it's been a lot of fun with that, and it's that's different than the rereads I've done before where I, where I have this level of involvement, really participation, self participation, how about you, Chibi Po, because I know you have reread Wars of Light and Shadow.
Speaker 3:And yeah, same question for Steve actually, because now you're rereading Second Apocalypse. So yes, for both of you. I mean, how is it on a reread? I guess for Chibi Po this is an if reread, not the second reread, and I guess the Steve is the second reread, I mean, sorry, the second read through a second. So how has it been? Is it fulfilling, Is it? I don't know, are there parts where you find new things or are there parts where you're a little bit like this could have gone? I mean, just how in general, how is it?
Speaker 2:For the things I reread. For Wars of Light and Shadow, I find new things every time and so I've never been disappointed in a reread. You know, for those, some of the others I read, I'm not disappointed in them. But I don't reread them, you know, thinking I'm going to find anything in depth because I just read them, because they're fun and I really like the series. But it's just also a habit, it's like for follow along series. It's like, and it's a few years between books, I'm like, all right, I got to refresh myself.
Speaker 2:So time to reread everything and catch up to where, where, where the stuff is at which can be daunting, especially in. You know, jenny's not even the most egregious example of that, because you know Wars of Light and Shadow's, you know, in terms of how many books is, you know, not the longest series that I've been following, though that other series is broken up into, you know, smaller chunks, you know. So like here's two books, here's six books, here's eight books, so, but all collectively it's like oh look, 16 books, 17 with the new one, and there's still three or four more, possibly five more to go, so that one gets kind of daunting, but it's a lot of fun and it goes fast. So that's for the Michelle West. You know serious.
Speaker 2:So and yeah, anything I, anything I pick up usually to reread, is probably just because it's you know other than like you know Western or words, and is just, you know, it's like I've read it before and it's fun to read real quick. So you know, I never, I don't ever, run into being displeased or being like blah. If that ever happens, I end up, you know, probably ends up getting, you know, kicked off my shelf because I'm like, okay, I'm no longer interested in this. That is fairly, you know, a fairly sparing event.
Speaker 1:So for me. I'm not very smart. So the second time reading the second apocalypse, I'm finding I felt like I followed the story for the most part. But I'm noticing a lot more of the lore and what's going on in the background and I'm I'm noticing little breadcrumbs that he added in that pay off later in the series, even in the last couple of books. So it's pretty neat to see the little things that he planted very, very early, that sprouted later and that major well, they're major events later but they're just a quick mention in the first couple of books. So it's pretty neat to see that you know the setup, even if you would have never known. You'd never know in the first read. But going back and rereading you notice a few things. It's pretty neat. Cool. Well, I want to. So thanks everyone for coming by. It's a fantastic 2024. And yeah, it's fun to hear it. Now I'm regretting my decision to not start a new series.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I geez, were there any other interesting standouts that maybe they didn't make your top 10 or anything like that, but just stuff that surprised you or it was just interesting on the side? Yeah.
Speaker 3:I mean one, sorry, go ahead, no, go ahead. One was with Jared, recommended to me in our last forum hangout, the Drowning Girl by Caitlin Kiernan. It was a five star. Yeah, it was a five star read for me. I just got it because I made that, you know, like would I reread this because it's an incredibly good book but it's very depressing. It's not depressing as in you know it will. It will bog you down, but it is deep, deep, deep dive into someone's psyche and it's a bit. It's a bit tough, but it was. It was a real surprise because I was like, yeah, okay, I will read this. And then I was like, wow, so that was a wonderful surprise. This was not so much of a surprise. This happened earlier, this was earlier in the year, but I didn't expect to love it as much as I did.
Speaker 3:On a reread, which was Luden the Mist by Hope Mirli, jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, which I think I've talked 2000 times and everybody's sick of me mentioning this novel. It's like my all time favorite, one of my all time favorites. I love that book and Luden the Mist was like the precursor, published in 1926, this short standalone. When I read it the first time, I don't think I quite got the magic, but when I reread it this year I was just mesmerized, so I love that. I think I was pleasantly surprised by Sanita. I didn't expect to like it as much as I did and I enjoyed reading the books and I binge them. I totally binge a lot of fun and would you read a oh, go ahead.
Speaker 4:What was it?
Speaker 3:No, no, go ahead, chad.
Speaker 4:Would you read another Caitlyn Curranen book?
Speaker 3:Yes. I have it on my list.
Speaker 4:I totally have it on my list.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I mean I want to try some of her more out there stuff, but just need to be careful that I'm in the right head space. That's it. But other than that, absolutely I. This was not so much of a surprise because I like Hunchback of North of them, but Lam is Rebels by Victor Hugo. This one also I read early in the year and it was. It was very nice. Again. It would have made my top 15 or 16, but I had to cut it. I think crossing was a real surprise. Like all three of these are surprised because the amount that I complain about blood meridian and child of God, like I think they are yucky books. I can't stand them. But from there, when I read the crossing, I was just so moved I was speechless. And then road loved, and then recently I read no Country for Old Men, also really, really liked. Not quite in the five star status of road and crossing, but I loved it.
Speaker 4:Yeah because I like, I mean, I had some surprises there weren't like my top five or anything like that, but I was like like I was very interested with Paredito Street Station oh yeah. You know it wasn't one of my favorite books of all time, but I was glad I was very glad I read it. I found it very fascinating, and also the sci fi masterworks read along.
Speaker 4:None of those books would ever make my top 10. But I'm still having a good time reading them, reading them and talking about them, and they're fascinating pieces of science fiction history really, and so I'm having a good time with that series, you know so it's, and there have been a couple of other books during the year that have that have entertained me, but you know they didn't blow me away as far as like the best book ever, but there was something unique about them that made them interesting for what they were like see a poppy's.
Speaker 4:I read see a poppy's, and that was very interesting book. Yeah, and I was glad I read it because I was just like wow, that's just different. Anything like that for you, Steve.
Speaker 1:I was looking over the list of what I read. I the I. Nothing really stands out too much. There's a lot of good, but there wasn't anything that really was. I don't think was even in the I don't know. I mean I enjoyed Word Gods by Susanna Maginario. I was finishing up the the Dandelion dynasty at the end of the year, so those ones were on my on my list for last year, but the other ones were just kind of fine. Nothing that really stands out, though that was. I think my list is pretty much head and shoulders above. Yeah.
Speaker 3:Oh, I just remembered, because I want to mention this now, Anacrony. So the audiobook that Susanna Maginario, her channel, the Den of the Weird, she released this two hour something minute audiobook and I loved it. I really, really loved it. And I always had an impression of the series because I didn't really get American Gods. I was like I don't know enough mythology, especially western mythology, and the game she's going to be playing with those to get the series.
Speaker 3:But I loved Anacrony so much, which is like I think it's book 3.5. So it's like this bridge novella. I can't call it a novella, but it's like a novella and it was. It has such a unique character voice and so, yeah, that was a five star read for me. It was lovely. That really surprised me because I was like I'm not going to get anything in this series. I won't understand. When I say I'm not going to get it, I mean I won't understand anything because I don't know the source, mythologies, but it was. It was not a problem for me. I really enjoyed what I listened to, Listen to Nice.
Speaker 4:Nice.
Speaker 3:There must have been something I loved. I'm trying to think I like there are phases of my reading which were marred by like one star, one star, two stars, two stars. I'm trying to skip over those and remember of remember the fun things that I read. But I think I mentioned, I mentioned most of most of the ones that I that that has stayed with me. Others have been rereads. I think I got a lot more into translated literature and that is something that I want to keep going in 2024.
Speaker 3:So I guess this this clicked for me more on a reread is Borges, his short stories. So that was something that I didn't expect again to click for me. I was like I'm not smart enough for this and then I slowly, slowly read it with more patience and it clicked slowly, a little bit, little bit. I think that better than the first time. And another book which I really liked the first time it really disturbed me, but the second time it disturbed me but I also liked it is the bell jar by Sylvia Plath, and she was, incidentally, also the poet I was thinking about when I said that there are select poets whose works I do enjoy. Sylvia Plath poetry is actually something that spoke to me quite a bit.
Speaker 1:Hmm, such a tragic end for her, isn't it?
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's. It was very, very tough. There's a biography of her, steve and Jared and everyone everyone listening for which you might like. There have been many biographies, but this one is. It came out in 2020, I believe. It's called Red Comet. It's by Heather Clark and it's fairly comprehensive. But what makes it unique as compared to other biographies is there's a trigger warning for end of life thought.
Speaker 3:So I'll be speaking for, let's say, the next two minutes about a very tragic event in Sylvia Plath demise. Take care, listeners, maybe just two minutes. So Sylvia Plath took her own life and she was a lifelong patient of chronic depression. At that time, treatments were not what they were now. She was subject to a lot of treatments which did not agree with her, and so on and so forth. But the difference with this biography and the other biographies is other biographies seem to take her suicide as a given and reframe her entire literary contribution in the context of that, and this is something that apparently modern culture does as well. For example, if there is a neurotic character or psychotic character, often female, they'll be shown holding a copy of the bell jar, with all the associated implication. But what Heather Clark does is she tries to show the woman behind that.
Speaker 3:Sylvia Plath was a living, breathing entity. She was extremely talented. She had a lot of creativity. She had a lot of ideas. Yes, depression was a part of her personality, but it was a part of her personality. It was not her personality. She was not depression personified. She was a talented poet. She was very, very good in her studies, an excellent student, was a very good spouse. She tried her best. She was a very loving mother. Along with all this, she tried to keep her poetry going and, yes, this illness bogged her down, as many other people have been bogged down by the illness. So, from this perspective, if you want to read about her life, I would highly recommend the biography. And I got recommended this by a friend on Discord who listened to the audiobook and he also said that you know, because for nonfiction it is bit easier compared to fiction If you are doing something, let's say, like chores, or you're driving or something, just to have it going. And this audiobook is very well narrated. So I would highly recommend it.
Speaker 4:That's cool.
Speaker 1:And I get to my list List. So it looks good. Yeah, my list. But yeah, it's fascinating, brilliant poet though.
Speaker 3:She is, she is, and something we will all find in each of her poems. I think maybe that's where the brilliance comes from, that you're thinking of, steve, something very, very humane way of writing.
Speaker 1:Very vulnerable and yes. Yeah, honest.
Speaker 3:Yes, yes, I'm very, very fond of Sylvia Plas and, again, as I said, maybe a part of it is influenced by how much she tried and couldn't in the end, but it was very, very great artist. I'm always very saddened when the lives of artists are tragically cut short. There's perhaps a selfishness within us that at least within me that you know what else we could have got. Definitely, that aspect sounds another way. I mowned that with Kentaro Murah as well. Very, very tragically, he died of an aortic dissection. So medical causes, but, yeah, same thing.
Speaker 1:Well, on that note. So I want to thank all of you for coming by to hang out and talk about your favorites of the year and make me regret my decision I just made like a few days ago. But yeah, so in the meantime, jared Birken, people find you.
Speaker 4:You can find me on the Fendacy Thinker YouTube channel and you can find me on the page chewing forum, anytime almost.
Speaker 1:And Creative Crowdroads too.
Speaker 4:Yes.
Speaker 1:Looking forward to the next entry. And Parameetha, where can people find you?
Speaker 3:The best place to find me would be on the page chewing forum. I post there quite regularly and I respond to messages as soon as I see them. About daily, do you?
Speaker 1:get a lot of messages Not really Sometimes.
Speaker 4:I do.
Speaker 3:Sometimes I do. Sometimes it's like, oh no, again another two-star rate. Yeah.
Speaker 1:Nice and.
Speaker 3:I'm always happy to chat Sorry.
Speaker 1:No, I'm sorry, parameetha.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I was just saying I'm always happy to chat book so I can be found on the page chewing forum. Anything except very, very gory horror and splatter punks with like body parts. Other than that, I think I'm very happy to chat For that.
Speaker 2:You asked me, I'm still amazed that you made it through Berserk.
Speaker 3:I think the artwork won me over.
Speaker 2:Still amazed, it's like.
Speaker 2:I love the series, I can't say I care a lot for much for its fans, because they're crazy, because they're they're very much.
Speaker 2:There's a very vocal group of you know Griffith did nothing wrong and I'm like, no, just the world of no, you know Griffith did a lot wrong, but yeah, they'll, they'll just they're they're, they're crazy about it. They'll like defend them to. You know, to be like, oh, that was the only way that he could honor and you know, I've actually seen someone argue this that his sacrificing you know what happens in the eclipse is the only way he could honor the. You know, you know everything that they've done for him and I'm like, I'm like, it's like is he, is he well written? Yes, is he a good person? And no, yeah, so just people and Griffith. Yeah, a lot of fans are really crazy about him in not good ways. So, anyway, I can be found on page chewing, I look around on Twitter and I am on Blue Sky and if anybody needs Blue Sky codes, I have like a bunch of them, so I will happily give them out. That's all for me.
Speaker 4:You muted Steve.
Speaker 1:Geez, you figure by now I have the job. Anyway, just wanted to just want to thank everyone. I was taking a drink of my coffee. Just want to thank everyone for for coming by, hanging out and listening to us and turn my favorites of the year. It's always fun to look back and see what kind of what resonated over the course of a year or so and what stuck with us and how it changes sometimes changes our lives with things that we read and things we enjoy, so it inspires us to do something so awesome. Well, thanks everyone, and we will talk very soon.
Speaker 4:Thanks for having me.
