Around the Year in 52 Books discussion

October is almost over! Can you believe it? As spooky season draws to a close, let us know which book you read this month that was your favorite!

Answer the following questions:

- Title
- Author
- Rating
- Format (Print, eBook, Audio)
- ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable)
- Brief reason why it was the best

I read mostly fiction but this month 2 nonfiction books stood out.

Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents
Isabel Wilkerson
5 stars
Print
Not used for any prompt since I finished the challenge, but would fit under "related to headlines/news story"

This is an important book for looking at the American system of race and class. The author compares it to India and to Nazi Germany, showing that in some ways America went farther than either of those. The reason it is so great is that it is beautifully written, even when covering tough material. Her use of metaphors, analogies and examples is outstanding. For example, she has a section about what would happen if caste/class was determined by a different random feature, such as height. She uses brief and effective anecdotes from real life, including her own as a black woman journalist. This is the same author who wrote the prize-winning The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration

Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis
J. D. Vance
4 stars
Print
Not used for any prompt, would work for book about survival, partially set in a rural area

I thought I was reading this book as a counter to the previous one, Caste. I knew the author calls himself a conservative and I thought this book would say that his people, white lower class and working class, deserve more respect and appreciation. In fact, he tells his people to shape up and shows how their values and choices are holding them back. His own story is very compelling. I started reading this book about 10pm and stayed up for 4 hours to finish it. (There is a movie coming out soon based on it.) It reminded me of Educated and The Glass Castle in showing how he was practically a foreigner when it came time to deal with mainstream society. He did not know how to dress for a job interview or how to deal with multiple forks at a recruiting dinner. The problems he finds with institutions (banks, the police, the courts) and culture (a machismo that into adulthood made him feel he had to physically confront anyone who offended him in the slightest) would apply equally to other marginalized groups.

Both books made me feel that one of the many tragedies of US history is that 2 groups who have so much in common, poor whites and blacks, have been taught to dislike and distrust each other. This slows down reforms that could help everyone.

★★★★★ // format; eARC

gorgeous writing style, fell instantly in love with the characters, another moral ambiguous/anti-heroine protagonist because i have a weakness for it, discusses colonialism, romance had the perfect level of angst, edge-of-your-seat action, engaging mystery, made me cry, diverse cast (mostly bipoc, #ov chinese mcs, trans & gay scs), atmospheric, just... so good


★★★★☆ // format; eARC

the first time i have read an 'origin story' of a villainous female protagonist, the author wrote this as a love letter to the 'unlikable female protagonist' and it shows. emanuela is brutal and extremely ambitious. some of the most unique world-building i have ever read, genuinely creeped me out, doesn't-stop-for-even-a-heartbeat level of action

Fiction
- Mornings in Jenin
- Susan Abulhawa
- 5 stars
- Print
- Fall 2020 - author initial in "mental health"
- An account of the Israel-Palestinian conflict from the perspective of a Palestinian family - heartbreaking.

Nonfiction
- Educated
- Tara Westover
- 4.5 stars
- Print
- Fall 2020 - title starts with a letter in Goosebumps
- as a college educator, this book made me rethink what my students might know, or not know, as a result of their previous education or lack thereof, and question whether or not that matters

October's been a great reading month for me, so far. I've had three books this month that weren't quite 5★ reads, but were easily 4.5★.

Title: Troubled Blood
Author: Robert Galbraith
Rating: 4.5★
Format (Print, eBook, Audio): Print
ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable): I didn't.
Brief reason why it was the best: I love the development of the two main characters, and I just found the pace of the story really good. I was surprised when I picked it up from the library to find it was over 900 pages, and I admit a little daunted! But the pages just flew by! I've worked out what was happening in previous books at times, but I didn't pick this one!

Title: The Lady of the Rivers
Author: Philippa Gregory
Rating: 4.5★
Format (Print, eBook, Audio): eBook
ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable): I didn't.
Brief reason why it was the best: I was a bit uncertain how much I'd like this one - I haven't read much Philippa Gregory, but did read Tidelands earlier this year. While I enjoyed it, it didn't grip me. But The Lady of the Rivers did! I couldn't stop looking up the various kings and queens and related families online while reading, and I was sucked in from the beginning. Can't wait to continue with this series!

Title: Where the Light Enters
Author: Sara Donati
Rating: 4.5★
Format (Print, eBook, Audio): Print
ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable): Again - I didn't!
Brief reason why it was the best: Another long book (although only 650-ish pages this time) that made me gulp when I picked it up from the library. This is the second in the series (I think the first might have been even longer, but I think I read it as an e-book, so it wasn't as noticeable!) and I shouldn't have left it so long between books, however I picked up the threads fairly easily, and I just really enjoyed being back in Anna and Jack's world, investigating homicides related to abortions in the New York of the 1880s.

Kathryn wrote: "October's been a great reading month for me, so far. I've had three books this month that weren't quite 5★ reads, but were easily 4.5★.

Title: Troubled Blood
Author: [author:Robert..."

Kathryn, do you feel like you have to read all the Galbraith books before reading this one? I have read the first one but not the others.

Jkmays wrote: "Kathryn wrote: "October's been a great reading month for me, so far. I've had three books this month that weren't quite 5★ reads, but were easily 4.5★.

Title: Troubled Blood
Author..."

Jkmays, I do feel like you should read them in order. I might not be the best person to ask, because I always like to read in order anyway. But I really feel as though, with these, there is definite character development, and this book would refer to things that you wouldn't understand if you haven't read the second, third or fourth.

I agree, there is lots of character development and things that happen in the lives of Robin and Strike that you would miss. Of course, I may not be the typical mystery reader. My enjoyment of mysteries is never about "whodunnit" and why. I often forget that part of the story. What I like is a book with interesting characters, a distinctive setting or time period (since I often read historical mysteries) and seeing how people interact. It's hard for me to stay interested in a detective like Poirot who never changes.

I had two this month. They were so different that I was unable to pick one book.


TitleThe Glass Lake
AuthorMaeve Binchy
Rating 5 stars
Format (Print, eBook, Audio) eBook
ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable): n/a
Brief reason why it was the best: I enjoyed the story.


TitleThe Godfather
AuthorMario Puzo
Rating 5 stars
Format (Print, eBook, Audio) eBook
ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable): n/a
Brief reason why it was the best: I think, it had to do with just wishing there was more leadership in this crazy world.

(I added it the the listopia).

- Title The Tsar of Love and Techno
- Author Anthony Marra
- Rating 5 stars
- Format Print
- ATY Prompt you used it for: Art (Painting, ballet, music (mix tape))
- Brief reason why it was the best: I heard about this book on the Strong Sense of Place podcast and then saw it on display at the library the next day. That was a sign that I had to read it. The book is a collection of short stories with a non-linear timeline, going from the 1930s to the future, whose characters are all interconnected to tell one story! The structure is brilliant! The stories move between a small mining town in Siberia near the Arctic Circle to Grozny, Chechnya and Leningrad/St Petersburg. There is a mixtape involved and this book is like a mixtape, each story being a different song but they all belong together to convey a message.

Kathryn wrote: "Jkmays wrote: "Kathryn wrote: "October's been a great reading month for me, so far. I've had three books this month that weren't quite 5★ reads, but were easily 4.5★.

Title: [book:Troubled Blood|5..."

Thanks Kathryn and Robin!

Wasn't sure I'd have one for this thread this month, but I just finished this book and thought it would be good here.

Title: A Burning
Author: Megha Majumdar
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Format: Print
ATY Prompt you used it for: Book I picked up on a whim
Brief reason why it was the best:

Well my other books this month kind of sucked, so this was the best of a not great group. Fair warning: This book did take a little while for me to really connect to, but I thought the ending was poignant and interesting and unexpected, and I think the message behind the story. Definitely made me think!

- Title Serpent & Dove
- Author Shelby Mahurin
- Rating 5 stars
- Format (Print, eBook, Audio) Audio
- ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable) A book related to witches
- Brief reason why it was the best I love this kind of book, fantastical with a touch of realism

I agree with reading the Galbraith books in order, or you would miss the storyline of Robin and Strike.

I had one 5 star read for a October. The Dearly Beloved by Cara Wall. Lovely story.

My best book for October was:

Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson, 5 Stars, Audio Edition.

The story is an interesting concept and kept my interest throughout. The narrator of the audio version was Marin Ireland, and I loved that she reads the story as if she is living it. The book does not have such high ratings by other readers, but something about it appealed to me.

Best book of October for me was:
Vesper Flights by Helen Macdonald

Really beautiful nature writing; nice collection of short essays for anybody looking for that

Not a great month for me. I usually have several 5-stars to choose from, but alas, none this month. However, this was a very satisfying read.

So Brave, Young, and Handsome

For October I re-read The Turn of the Screw by Henry James for another GR group, and it ended up jumping from a 3 star read (5 years ago) to a 5 star read. I wrote a longer review but my brain picked up some patterns and made fresh associations and interpretations this time around (it's a famously ambiguous story) that really shook me up emotionally. Interestingly, the story made so little impression on me the first time, it was like a completely new reading experience.

I slotted it into the "read a mystery" category.

My 5-stars this month were rereads of old favorites - Persuasion and The Screwtape Letters

Of new reads, my favorite was a 4 star

- Title A Wild Winter Swan
- Author Gregory Maguire
- Rating 4 stars
- Format (Print, eBook, Audio) Print
- ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable) Fall challenge October 3. World Mental Health Day - a. Read a book where one of the author's initials is found in MENTAL HEALTH.
- Brief reason why it was the best A fairy tale character crashes into the real world, turning a teenage girl's life into something weird, confusing, and magical

Jackie wrote: "Best book of October for me was:
Vesper Flights by Helen Macdonald

Really beautiful nature writing; nice collection of short essays for anybody looking for that"

I agree, but my best book this month was Empire of Wild, a new release by Cherie Dimaline. It was a bit creepy and had some great characters.

No 5-star reads for me this month but this one came closest.

- Title: Breaking and Mending: A memoir of burnout, recovery and the journey to become a doctor
- Author: Joanna Cannon
- Rating: 4 stars
- Format: Audio (read by the author)
- ATY Prompt you used it for: A book by an author who wrote one of your best reads in 2019
- Brief reason why it was the best: I enjoy medical memoirs and found this one very insightful, giving us snapshots into the life of a junior doctor in the NHS (UK). Cannon really opens up and takes us along her personal journey; it was very emotional and made me even more grateful for our doctors and medical staff who are so overwhelmed and unappreciated. I only wish this memoir was a little longer and went into some greater depth on certain subjects/experiences.

- Title: The Archive of the Forgotten (Hell's Library #2)
- Author: A.J. Hackwith
- Rating: 5 stars
- Format (Print, eBook, Audio): Ebook
- ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable): A book related to Maximilian Hell
- Brief reason why it was the best: This managed to be even better than the first book. Set in the after life where books can come to life.... and in this one, Hero (a living book) gets to shine.

My unexpected favourite read this month was Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld

l read it as my 2020 release. I really did not expect to like this so much as l did. l felt the concept was a bit creepy. I just loved the combination of how I came to see the appeal of Bill Clinton at the same time as fictional Hillary came to see how gross his behaviour was/is

Title Piranesi
Author Susanna Clarke
Rating 5 Stars
Format (Print, eBook, Audio) EBook
ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable) 48. Book published in 2020
Brief reason why it was the best Definitively the setting . It felt so real and it was amazing how the main character guided you through the world.

Title: The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
Author: V.E. Schwab
Rating: 5 stars
Format: Hardback
ATY Prompt: a book related to time

Beautifully written story about a girl who sells her soul, and her wish ends up being interpreted in a way that means no one remembers her, as she lives forever. Lots about loneliness and how important memory is, I just loved it.

Title: Home Before Dark
Author: Riley Sager
Rating: 5 stars
Format (Print, eBook, Audio): Print
ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable): A book published in 2020
Brief reason why it was the best: I loved the writing and the overall premise, and it had the perfect amount of horror for me, considering I get easily freaked out by ghost stories.

- Title I Was Their American Dream: A Graphic Memoir
- Author Malaka Gharib
- Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Format (Print, eBook, Audio) print
- ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable) Not applicable
- Brief reason why it was the best November was a very slow reading month for me. This graphic novel helped drag me out of a slump (somewhat).

- Title: The Autobiography of Malcolm X: As Told to Alex Haley
- Author: Malcolm X & Alex Haley
- Rating: 5 stars
- Format (Print, eBook, Audio): Audible Audio edition narrated by Laurence Fishburne
- ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable): Billy Joel's We Didn't Start the Fire Lyrics
- Brief reason why it was the best: Fishburne was the perfect narrator for this historical book that is still relevant today.

- Title: On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous
- Author: Ocean Vuong
- Rating: 5 stars
- Format eBook
- ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable): Autumn Challenge (a cover with leaves)
- Brief reason why it was the best: I can see why reviews call it overly literary but I found it well drawn and moving.

- Title: A Gentleman in Moscow
- Author: Amor Towles
- Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Format: Print paperback from Goodwill
- ATY Prompt you used it for: #45 "A book by the same author who wrote one of your best reads in 2019 or 2018". It would work as well for #40 "A book with a place name in the title" or #15 "A book set in a global city" or even #10 "A book that is between 400-600 pages".

- Brief reason why it was the best: The book gave me such a sense of character and place that I kept forgetting it's a contemporary novel.

Title: The Cabin at the End of the World
Author: Paul Tremblay
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Format: eBook from Libby/Overdrive
ATY Prompt you used it for: Fall Challenge - Read a book that won or was nominated for the Bram Stoker Award or the Shirley Jackson Award (Bram Stoker Award - 2018 winner).
Brief reason why it was the best: I don't normally read scary books, but this one was so horrifying and had me so on edge that I could not put it down. Is the world ending? Is it all just coincidence? What would you do to protect your loved ones?

Title: The Girl with the Louding Voice
- Author: Abi Dare
- Rating: 5
- Format (Print, eBook, Audio): Hardcover book from library (after a long hold period)
- ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable) NA... I have one prompt to go and this had nothing to do with trains.

- Brief reason why it was the best: Adunni, the 14 year old Nigerian teller of this story is a survivor. In addition to a great story, I learned a lot about Nigeria.

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- Title: 1Q84
- Author: Haruki Murakami
- Rating: 4 stars
- Format (Print, eBook, Audio): eBook
- ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable): 32. A book related to the 2020 Olympic Summer Games in Japan
- Brief reason why it was the best: Strangely but beautifully written.

I love 1Q84!

"Strangely but beautifully written" describes all of Murakami. I can't explain why I like him, or even what happens in some of his books. Actually 1Q84 isn't my favorite. It seemed rather repetitive, which I think has to do with the fact that it was published in parts in Japan.

Recipe for a Perfect Wife
Under rated book
5 stars 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟
A comparison of today's marriage to one from the 1950's. It was predictable while being creepy at the same time.

1Q84 is published in three books in Danish, so I didn't read them in one go. That worked well.

-Title
The Stone Angel
- Author
Margaret Laurence
- Rating
4.5 stars
- Format (Print, eBook, Audio)
Print
- ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable)
28. A book by an Australian, Canadian or New Zealand author
- Brief reason why it was the best
The character of Hagar Shipley is so memorable, even though she's exasperating. Hagar, at 90 years old, looks back on her life on the Canadian prairie.

- Title - The Submission
- Author Amy Waldman
- Rating - 4.5 stars
- Format - eBook
- ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable) - #42 -A book that was nominated for one of the 10 Most Coveted Literary Prizes in the World (2011 Guardian Shortlist)
- Brief reason why it was the best - A jury selects a Muslim architect to design a 9/11 memorial, leading to widespread controversy. A "what if" story that raises many important questions about our beliefs.

- Title - Three Weeks in December
- Author - Audrey Schulman
- Rating - 5 stars
- Format - Print
- ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable) - #45 - A book by the same author who wrote one of your best reads in 2019 or 2018
- Brief reason why it was the best - Two gripping stories run parallel: the first, in 1899, follows a young engineer helping to bring a railroad to British East Africa; the other, 100 years in the future, is about a female ethnobotonist searching for the perfect plant in Rwanda. The stories and characters are thrill-a-minute.

Title: This Is How You Lose the Time War
Author: Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone
Rating: 5 stars, definitely
Format: Print
ATY Prompt you used it for (if applicable): A book related to time (phew, that one was a stretch :) )
Brief reason why it was the best: Really enjoyed how the world was developed as the characters developed. So much happened in so few words. I had to slow my reading speed and absorb. Plus, the cover: once you read the book the cover means so much more!

- Title: Cloud Atlas
- Author: David Mitchell
- Rating: 5 Stars
- Format: Audiobook
- ATY Prompt you used it for: Side read
- Brief reason why it was the best: Simply a masterpiece. Each part could have stood as an entertaining stand-alone story, but flowing into and then out of them created a remarkable reading experience. I loved making the connections between the different characters and storylines.

Title: Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage: Stories
Author: Alice Munro
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Format: Audio
ATY Prompt you used it for: Reject Challenge: Any book by a winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature
Brief reason why it was the best: I read so many short story collections this year and disliked most of them. These short stories felt like short novels with her efficient use of language. The characters are beautifully drawn and their actions completely understandable.