In the back of my daily journal I keep a list of books I read. I share it each year, not in a competitive spirit, but more as a tool for reflection.
This year I’m almost embarrassed by the length of this list. But then, as I reflect, I realize that it’s not surprising how highly reading figured in my list of relaxations. Covid-19 caused many things to grind to a halt, including substantial holiday trips, attending open stages, holding musical evenings in our home, and any real motivation for songwriting (I hate to admit it, but when I can’t share songs live and see people’s reaction to them, I find songwriting a little pointless).
One thing that stands out on this list for me was how much fiction I read this year. I would further define the parameters and say, how much easy reading fiction, including re-reads. I re-read a lot of Ursula LeGuin, Suzanne Collins, Catherine Fox, C.J. Sansom, and Jane Austen. I also read a lot of Bernard Cornwell (historical fiction with a lot of violence in it), and Ann Cleeves (murder mysteries). Conclusion? I wasn’t interested in working too hard at my reading. Daily life already required enough effort.
Some of the really good books I’ve read this year have been ones Marci and I read together. The best one was her choice: Camilla Townsend’s Fifth Sun: A New History of the Aztecs. We also enjoyed Pierre Berton’s The Arctic Grail, a re-read for me, but first time through for her. I also note that on December 22nd Marci and I, and our four kids, got together on Zoom for two hours and did a family read of Oscar Wilde’s brilliant play The Importance of Being Earnest, which was more fun than anything we’ve done together for a long time!
I’ve been using the little Bible commentaries in the ‘For Everyone’ series (Old Testament by John Goldingay, New Testament by N.T. Wright) in my devotional reading and as resource material for Bible study groups this year. I don’t always read them all the way through, but the ones I’ve finished, I’ve listed here.
Best reads? For fiction, I would probably list the two Richard Wagamese books I read this year: Medicine Walk and Starlight. If you haven’t yet read anything by the late Richard Wagamese, you’re in for a treat; in my opinion he was one of Canada’s finest authors of recent years, and also a great introduction to indigenous writing if you haven’t dipped into it yet. For non-fiction, my favourites were probably the two David Runcorn books: Love Means Love (on same-sex marriage and related issues) and The Language of Tears. On a side note, David and I have become friends this year, which adds a whole new dimension to reading an author’s work.
Also, I re-read Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina this year and I still think it’s the finest novel I’ve ever read.
Least enjoyable read? Probably Shane O’Mara’s In Praise of Walking, which was full of information but ultimately rather boring!
Interestingly (to me), fully 38 of these 75 books were read on my Kindle. Sometimes this is because books are so easy to get in the Kindle store, and are usually cheaper. But also, as I get older, I find my wrists get tired faster from holding a big book (I especially noticed this with Sansom’s Sovereign), and a Kindle is just lighter and easier to hold.
So, here’s the list, in the order in which they were read.
- Ann Cleeves: The Long Call
- Ann Cleeves: Raven Black
- Thomas Cahill: How the Irish Saved Civilization
- Ann Cleeves: White Nights
- Brené Brown: The Gifts of Imperfection
- Richard Wagamese: Medicine Walk
- Ann Cleeves: Red Bones
- Ursula K. LeGuin: The Tombs of Atuan
- Ursula K. LeGuin: The Farthest Shore
- Ursula K. LeGuin: Tehannu
- Ursula K. LeGuin: Tales of Earthsea
- N.T. Wright: John for Everyone: Part 1
- Ursula K. LeGuin: The Other Wind
- Rowan Williams: Tokens of Trust
- Ann Cleeves: Blue Lightning
- Philip Gulley: Home to Harmony
- Ann Cleeves: Dead Water
- Philip Gulley: Just Shy of Harmony
- John Goldingay: 1 & 2 Chronicles for Everyone
- Philip Gulley: Signs and Wonders
- Michael Frost: Keep Christianity Weird
- Shane O’Mara: In Praise of Walking
- Richard Wagamese: Starlight
- Eugene Peterson: Run with the Horses
- Pam Smith: Online Mission and Ministry
- Ann Cleeves: Thin Air
- Catherine Fox: Acts and Omissions
- Catherine Fox: Unseen Things Above
- Catherine Fox: Realms of Glory
- Catherine Fox: Angels and Men
- Ann Cleeves: Cold Earth
- Catherine Fox: Benefits of Passion
- Ann Cleeves: Wild Fire
- Marcus Green: The Possibility of Difference
- Suzanne Collins: The Hunger Games
- Suzanne Collins: Catching Fire
- Suzanne Collins: Mockingjay
- Camilla Townsend: Fifth Sun: A New History of the Aztecs
- Leo Tolstoy: Anna Karenina
- Natalie Jenner: The Jane Austen Society
- N.T. Wright: Paul for Everyone: Romans Part 2
- David Runcorn: Love Means Love
- Nicholas Sparks: The Lucky One
- C.J. Sansom: Dissolution
- Pierre Berton: The Arctic Grail
- C.J. Sansom: Dark Fire
- N.T. Wright: Acts for Everyone, Part 1
- Bernard Cornwell: The Last Kingdom
- James D.G. Dunn: Jesus, Paul, and the Gospels
- Bernard Cornwell: The Pale Horseman
- Bernard Cornwell: The Lords of the North
- Vicky Beeching: Undivided
- Bernard Cornwell: Sword Song
- Bernard Cornwell: The Burning Land
- Bernard Cornwell: The Pagan Lord
- Bernard Cornwell: The Death of Kings
- Bernard Cornwell: The Empty Throne
- L.C. Tyler: A Cruel Necessity
- N.T. Wright: Acts for Everyone, Part 2
- Bernard Cornwell: Warriors in the Storm
- Joanna Trollope: Sense and Sensibility
- Alexander McCall Smith: Emma: a Modern Retelling
- Jane Austen: Sense and Sensibility
- Jane Austen: Persuasion
- David Runcorn: The Language of Tears
- John Grisham: A Time for Mercy
- K.M. Elizabeth Murray: Caught in the Web of Words: James A.H. Murray and the Oxford English Dictionary
- N.T. Wright: Matthew for Everyone, Part 1
- Stephen R. Lawhead: Hood
- Julia Zarankin: Field Notes from an Unintentional Birder
- N.T. Wright: Revelation for Everyone
- Oscar Wilde: The Importance of Being Earnest
- Richelle Thompson, Ed.: Watching and Waiting: Advent Word Reflections
- C.J. Sansom: Sovereign
- Jonathan Evenson: The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving