desertvixen | Entries tagged with 2017 reading

Here's what I read in 2017. I won the reading challenge in our history major group with a grand total of 301, but did not count all of the books I read for that one.

These were, in my opinion, the best 17 reads of 2017 (no particular order):

1. Fantastic Creatures by HL Burke – Collection of SF/F stories that are a great mix. There are some REALLY good stories, including a flying squid in a steampunk story and the Pacific Tree Octopus, and a Nessie type creature.

2. They All Saw A Cat by Brendan Wenzel – This is a lovely children’s book that shows how different animals see the cat. The illustrations are great. I bought a copy for myself, but I think I’m going to buy one for my nephew’s birthday as well.

3.Brand X by Christianna Brand – Really good collection of short stories, some mysteries and some really trippy. The first two stories are pretty light - an entertaining one about a double or triple cross, and a light travel story. Then they start getting pretty dark. I don't recommend reading this one close to bedtime, because while not horror, some of them are unpleasant and are going to stick with you. The Kite, involving an old woman's relationship with a bird of prey on her territory, falls into this category - just enough detail for the conclusion to take shape in your mind. The Charm Farm is also light, with a twist I was expecting. A Bit of Bovver is just sad. The Blackthorn is interesting, and involves a little bit of magic and "being careful what you wish for". The Hilltop is probably the most graphic story, and you know exactly where it is going until the very end. Bless This House has a sad and unexpected twist - yet when you go back over it, it's perfectly obvious. Spring 1941 is drawn from her own experience. Murder Hath Charms is interesting. Pigeon Pie seems like it's going to go way dark - and while still super depressing, has a bit of light at the end. (If you're sensitive to animal violence and cruelty to children, you may want to do yourself a favor and skip Pigeon Pie.) Madame Thinks Quick and The Scapegoat are quite good, and a little lighter after the middle stories.

4. The War That Killed Achilles by Caroline Alexander – This was an excellent book on the Trojan War from a viewpoint I had not normally considered (usually focus on Odysseus myself) and I really enjoyed the connections the author made with modern warfare, and how war is portrayed in the Iliad. Definitely worth the read.

5. Cinnamon by Neil Gaiman – Lavishly illustrated kids’ book about a modern fairy-tale sort of story with a girl who won’t talk and the tiger who helps. Not sure if it’s based on an Indian story or not, but the Indian-inspired art is rich and gorgeous and wow.

6.The Amazons by Adrienne Mayor – This is a thick but entertaining read, looking at Amazons in art and myth, and at the real women that the Amazon stories were likely based on (Scythians and other nomadic tribes of that area) and a great look at some of the archaeology. I can’t recommend it enough.

7. War Letters to a Wife by Rowland Feilding – Written by a British officer in WW1, this is a very good read. It’s also proof that no matter how much times change, some things about war stay the same (like having to overwrite awards so they’ll get approved). Long but worth reading.

8. A Tangled Web by L. M. Montgomery – I don’t know where this book has been all my life, but I loved it. It had the very soap-opera small town feel going on, but for several characters there was quite a bit of heart. There was one scene that while I expected it, it got tears. (It involves feline death). Also, Sourcebooks has released a TPB with a lovely cover. I highly recommend. If you really enjoyed all the gossipy stories and family dynamics in the Anne books, you’ll enjoy this. Definitely aimed at a more adult audience

9. 1177 BC: The Year Civilization Collapsed by Eric H. Cline – Excellent scholarly look at the era of the fall of Troy and the general collapse of Bronze Age Civilization. Short but well done, worth reading if you are into the subject.

10. Live Alone and Like It by Marjorie Hillis – Excellent 1930s etiquette book for single women. Dated, but in a deliciously period way, illustrated with little case stories. It’s an amusing book, especially if you’re into the period.

11. Penric's Fox by Lois McMaster Bujold – Another delightful novella in the Five Gods world (also known as Chalion Saga), this time featuring more of the shaman/Hallowed Hunt related characters. And foxes, so you know I enjoyed it!

12. Six Against the Yard by the London Detection Club – This one was very good, with mystery writers coming up with a “perfect crime” and an actual Scotland Yard superintendant picking it apart.

13. Dance: Cinderella Retold by Demelza Carlton – This is a set the author is doing of retellings. Her last one was pretty good and this one is excellent. It has some Mulan-like elements, and it’s smashingly good. The shoes take a new turn in this one, but it really fits.

14. Bridge Daughter by Jim Nelson – Very interesting SF/F book about a society in which women give birth to “bridge daughters” who are pregnant with the actual child, takes 12 years to gestate. This focuses on a bridge daughter who doesn’t do what is expected of her. Have tissues.

15. Saxons v. Vikings by Ed West – This is a funny, snarky wander through England’s Dark Age. Example: The Frankish king Louis III chased out the Norsemen at Saucourt, close to the river Somme, in 881, but the following year he died after falling off his horse while chasing a girl he had amorous designs on, a quintessentially French death if ever there was one.

16. Ties That Bind by Cindy Woodsmall – Good book about an interesting subject. Cindy Woodsmall’s Amish books are generally a little more nuanced and complicated. This one involves an Amish family discovering that one of their children was swapped with a Englisch baby, and everyone tries to deal with it in their own way. Very absorbing read.

17. The Nutmeg Tree by Margery Sharp – I’m really starting to get into her writing, when it appears on the Daily Deal. This one features an improper mother who’s trying really hard to be proper. It’s a delightful romp.