Top Ten Books to Take on a Camping Trip

I absolutely love camping. Every year I await the chance to get away from all the noise and crowds of the city and just drive into the middle of nowhere for a week. My husband and I are avid campers who are both from “indoor” families. Growing up, my mother’s idea of camping would have been a night at the Motel 8. I think part of that may have been because we already lived in the country, where open space, fresh air, and solitude were readily available. As much as I adore living in the Toronto area, I feel more at home in the country.

My husband and I generally go camping rather early in the season, around the end of June. This means that the temperatures average in the low twenties (70*F). For comparison, today it was 33* (93*F) in my Midwestern hometown.  There are numerous benefits to camping at the start of summer in Canada. First of all, schools are still in session so we don’t have to deal with hoards of families crowding the area. We’re both teachers, so our vacations generally mean trying to avoid small children as much as possible. Also, the insects haven’t had the chance to truly come out in force. And my remarkably Day-Glo pale skin has a better chance of avoiding a blistering sunburn. There are a myriad of benefits to camping in cool weather.

Nevertheless, it does have its drawbacks, mainly in that it isn’t exactly bathing suit season yet. This year we are headed to the Bruce Peninsula, near Lake Huron. If you’ve ever wondered how Jack Dawson felt when he went into the waters with the Titanic, take a quick dip in Lake Huron in June. Due to the cooler temperatures, recreational swimming isn’t really an option. Instead, we spend our time kayaking, naming the squirrels that invade our campsite, drinking beer, and reading.

The reading is what has most likely brought you to this post. As I would hate to become one of those horrid cooking blogs which feel the need to bore you with two thousand words of personal nonsense before giving you what you came for, let’s get to the books!

I’ve put together a list of ten books that would be perfect for reading around a campfire or while relaxing in a tent on a rainy day. The first five are all horror novels, because being scared in the woods is fun for everyone. The next five are more family-friendly, in case you don’t want your children waking up at three in the morning because a stick cracked in the darkness and they’re certain it was a beast from the depths of hell.

1) The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon by Stephen King

Nine year old Trisha is separated from her family while hiking in the woods of northern New England. Lost for days, dehydrated and scared, Trisha relies on her small radio for solace, tuning into the Boston Red Sox and her hero, pitcher Tom Gordon. But hunger and insects aren’t Trisha’s only problems. Something is stalking the small girl as she wanders through the forest. Something hungry and unnatural.

No list of horror novels is complete without at least one addition from Stephen King . This book is short (for King), atmospheric, and draws on the readers’ fear of the small noises that seem huge when you’re alone in the dark woods.

How To Stay Alive in the Woods: Keep on the path!

2) The Ritual by Adam Nevill

A group of four middle-aged men reunite for a hiking trip in the wilds of northern Sweden. When they attempt to take a shortcut through a patch of untouched forest, they find more than they bargained for.

This novel was on my list of favorite books that I read last year. It is a masterpiece of suspense and dread as the four men realize that their formerly fit bodies are beginning to betray them, and they are unable to outrun that which is hunting them.

How To Stay Alive in the Woods: If you see a creepy cabin in the middle of the woods, keep walking!

3) The Ruins by Scott Smith

Hoping to find a lost friend in the jungles of Mexico, four friends stumble upon an ancient ruin and a creeping horror instead. As they become increasingly hungry and panicked, paranoia and hysteria begin to set in.

This novel is also a really great horror film by the same name. It is a creepy combination of psychological and physical horror. What is more dangerous, the jungle or each other?

How To Stay Alive in the Woods: Don’t touch unidentified plants! 

4) Through the Woods by Emily Carroll

Five short stories centered around the woods and the horrors within, combined with truly disturbing illustrations.

I wrote a review for this graphic novel just a few weeks ago, and I still can’t get it out of my head. The haunting prose and unsettling drawings come together to create a really creepy reading experience.

How To Stay Alive in the Woods: Curiosity killed the camper!

5) Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz

A collection of short folktakes from around the world. This is still a favorite with older and braver children, and continues to send shivers up the spine of many an adult. Make sure you get an edition with the original artwork by Stephen Gammell, as they are an integral part of this reading experience!

How To Stay Alive in the Woods: Close your eyes and hope for the best.

 

6) A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson

The Appalachian Trail stretches from Georgia to Maine, and is a bucket-list item for any avid hiker. Bill Bryson is not an avid hiker, yet he and an equally unfit companion set off to complete the AT in the course of one summer. Bryson details the ecology and history of the area as well as his encounters with the local people and wildlife.

Not so long ago, the Appalachian Trail was a relatively unknown area of the United States, favored only by experienced backpackers and campers. From what I hear, it is now overridden by idiot hipsters who think a hiking GPS makes them an expert. This book is a fun expedition through the woods from someone who knows the does not belong there.

How To Stay Alive in the Woods: A sense of humor is essential.

7) Hatchet by Gary Paulson

This ever-popular children’s novella centers on a boy named Brian who finds himself stranded in the wilderness of Northern Canada after his bush-plane crashes. Armed with only a small hatchet, Brian must find a way to survive until he can be rescued.

Hatchet has been a hit with people of all ages for more than thirty years because we as readers identify so strongly with Brian. His early cluelessness and mistakes are the results of a boy growing up away from nature, as so many of us do. This would be a fun novel to read with children.

How To Stay Alive in the Woods: Never give up.

8) The Call of the Wild by Jack London

Buck the dog is kidnapped from his easygoing life in Santa Clara and forced into work as a sled dog in the unforgiving winter of the Yukon. Faced with constant danger from the climate, the wildlife, and the cruelty of both his fellow dogs and man, Buck must struggle to survive and reclaim his position as master.

Another book that is very popular with young readers, The Call of the Wild is an enduring story of survival and spirit. Because the main character is a dog, he is easy to root for and we celebrate Buck’s victories as much as we weep for his setbacks.

How To Stay Alive in the Woods: Be kind to animals.

9) Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder

Laura Ingalls and her family live in a small wood cabin in the forests of Wisconsin in the mid 18th century. This book describes the struggle and successes of the Ingalls family as they work hard to make a life for themselves in a harsh and unforgiving environment.

Eternally beloved author Laura Ingalls Wilder as captured the imaginations of generations of children with her Little House books. They are a good reminder of how much the world has changed, and yet how many things remain the same.

How To Stay Alive in the Woods: Your family is there to love and protect you.

10) The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden

In the dense forests of medieval Russia, a small village is buried in snow for eight months out of the year. Vasilisa Petrovna grows up wild in the woods, giving offerings to the various sprites and spirits that inhabit the wilderness. When a Catholic priest begins to interfere with village life, Vasilisa must make a choice that will affect her entire future.

I reviewed this novel earlier in the year and I absolutely adored it. A dark fairy tale with religious undertones, The Bear and the Nightingale features a wonderful protagonist who never behaves quite as expected.

How To Stay Alive in the Woods: When in doubt, trust your instincts.

Well there you have it, folks! I hope that you enjoy some of these books on your next venture into the forests. Whether you are looking for a scare or for more tame entertainment, you can’t go wrong with a good book! I’ll be on hiatus next week while I am on a camping trip. I hope to return with more recommendations for our readers who love the woods.

Happy reading everyone!

 

 

Ten Most Disappointing Books I Read in 2017

I recently wrote a list of my favorite books of 2017. Continuing on with that theme, I now present to you a list of the ten most disappointing books that I read this year. This does not necessarily mean that they were bad or poorly written. Just that they left me feeling frustrated or unsatisfied in some way. I did manage to finish all of these, partially because my particular brand of perfectionism rarely allows me to walk away from a book before reaching the end.

 

Enjoy!

 

10. The Floating World by C. Morgan Babst (2017)

The Floating World follows the Boisdorė family as they reunite in New Orleans after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. Cora, who was left behind after refusing to evacuate, is struggling to come to grips with the horrors she witnessed during the flooding. Her sister Adelaide deals with survivor’s guilt after waiting out the storm in the comfort of New York City. Their parents, Joe and Tess are piecing through the rubble of their marriage. And Joe’s father battles the looming fog of Alzheimer’s as the New Orleans of his youth becomes confused with the present day destruction.

I put this novel on my most disappointing list because I waited for it to become available at my local library for nearly three months. I was so excited when I finally got to go pick it up. It was lovely and shiny and still had that gorgeous new book smell. I took it home, poured a glass of wine, opened it up and…was completely underwhelmed.

The Floating World is beautifully written with hauntingly elegant descriptions of the ruins of a once beautiful city and the struggles of a once happy family. However, Babst has a very jarring tendency to switch points of view from paragraph to paragraph with little warning, so it was difficult at times to know which character you were following. My main criticism is that none of Babst’s characters are terribly likable. Everyone is so wrapped up in their own struggles that they come across as unbearably selfish. There was no one I could root for and by the end I closed the book with a shrug.

 

9. Apartment 16 by Adam Nevill (2013)

Apartment 16 is the story of Apryl, an American girl who discovers that she has been named the heir to a mysterious apartment in England left to her by a mysterious great-aunt who has died mysteriously. Upon her arrival at the apartment, mysterious occurrences begin happening, seemingly connected to the mysteriously abandoned apartment downstairs from hers. It’s super mysterious you guys!

It came as a surprise that this book found itself on my most disappointing list, especially since Nevills’ The Ritual landed a place on my favorite books of the year. But all the suspense, claustrophobia, and creeping horror that seeped into The Ritual was sorely lacking here.

In the 1995 film Scream, Neve Campbell’s character describes her disdain for horror films by saying:

“What’s the point? They’re all the same. Some stupid killer stalking some big-breasted girl who can’t act who is always running up the stairs when she should be running out the front door. It’s insulting.”

That’s how I felt the entire time I was reading this book. Apryl is dumb. The character’s around her are equally dumb. The dialogue is stilted and painful. Not a single person behaves in a rational manner. There were some redeeming features, particularly in the vivid descriptions of the artwork decorating the titular aparment. I loved the idea of paintings that change when you’re not looking. I would be in line for that exhibit. But I was very happy to close the door on Apartment 16 and move on to something different.

 

8. The Hand That Feeds You by A. J. Rich (2015)

In this novel we are introduced to Morgan, a university student who is finishing her thesis on victim psychology. Her life is turned upside down when she enters her apartment to find her fiancé brutally murdered in her bedroom, apparently mauled to death by her beloved rescue pit bulls. Morgan must now race to try to prove her pets’ innocence, while also coming to terms with the fact that the man she loved may have been a stranger the entire time.

This novel had me at “rescue pit bulls”. I will never understand why this particular breed of smart, caring, and endlessly loving dogs has been so unfairly maligned. However, The Hand That Feeds You only dealt with this issue in the background, focusing instead on the dead fiancé who becomes increasingly enigmatic with every page. The problem is that the story of the fiancé is not compelling, nor is it suspenseful, nor does it make a lick of sense. The ending could be spotted a mile away and any sense of justice for the poor pitties was left behind long-ago in a tangle of needlessly convoluted nonsense.

 

7. Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman (1995)

Practical Magic follows the lives of the Owens sisters Gillian and Sally, as well as Sally’s children and their eccentric aunts as they deal with the everyday challenges of life and love with a little bit of magic.

It was probably my own fault that I didn’t like this book, because the 1998 film was one of my favorites when I was a teenager. Granted, it doesn’t hold up all that well after twenty years, but there was a strong nostalgia factor going in which perhaps set me up for disappointment.

The only thing that Practical Magic the book has in common with Practical Magic the film are the names of the characters and the broadest of plot points. The aunts are shadowy far-away figures instead of the zany fun-loving women I remembered. The entire plot with Gillian’s abusive boyfriend is relegated to the background. Sally and Gillian seem to hate one another and the spirit of female camaraderie that I identified with as a teenager watching the movie was completely lost here. Again, this is my fault for bringing my preconceptions with me when I read the novel but it was still a real let-down.

 

6. A Stranger in the House by Shari Lapena (2017)

Tom and Karen Krupp are the seemingly perfect married couple, until Tom comes home one evening to find his wife gone, with her purse, phone, and ID all left behind. Then the police come to knock on the door. That’s really all I can say without giving away the first quarter of the book.

I saw this novel on a list of best suspense novels of 2017 and had to check it out. And it wasn’t necessarily bad. It just wasn’t…suspenseful. The “shocks” and “twists” I had been expecting were more like gentle winding curves that could be spotted from the International Space Station. And while Tom is presented as this perfect husband who loves his wife so much, he sure manages to behave like an utter tool the majority of the time.

Sometimes there is a very fine line between suspense and frustration. With suspense you can’t wait to figure out what’s going to happen next, and you’re on the edge of your seat the entire time. Other books just leave you rolling your eyes and inwardly thinking “get to the point already”. A Stranger in the House definitely fell into the latter category for me.

 

5. Meddling Kids by Edgar Cantero (2017)

Meddling Kids catches up with the Blyton Summer Detective club and the descendant of their faithful dog twenty years after their adolescent sleuthing led to the capture of a man in a mask who was conning the locals of a small lake town. Now they must return to the sight of their previous victory in order to finally put to rest the nightmares that have haunted them since that fateful summer. Basically, picture Scooby-Doo gang if they’d all grown up and developed alcoholism, PTSD, or nymphomania.

This book made me legitimately angry because the premise is utterly, fantastically brilliant. I was so excited to explore how the teenage detectives dealt with the long-term repercussions of their summertime exploits. It sounded hysterically funny. The major problem was that Cantero’s writing style was essentially unreadable.

Cantero plays so fast and loose with the rules of the English language that I could never just sink my teeth into the story and enjoy. Writers can feel free to create new words and adapt dialogue to fit a real-life conversation. But when they just make shit up for the sake of making shit up, it is incredibly jarring. For example at one point a character “tragichuckled”. Another one “triviaed”. Later, a house is “howlretched”. There are ways to be hip and relevant without juxtaposing random ass portmanteau into your writing. What a waste of an amazing idea.

 

4. The Broken Ones by Stephen M. Irwin (2011)

On a seemingly normal day in the near future, the world descends into chaos in the blink of an eye. Every single person, all across the globe, suddenly becomes haunted by their own personal ghosts. Ghosts that are not capable of speaking or inflicting harm, but just stand silently, staring. Governments fall, the economy collapses, and crime skyrockets. Enter Detective Oscar Mariani who is working to solve the murder of a woman who was ritualistically murdered by a sadistic serial killer.

When I was scrolling through the books I read in 2017 in preparation for this list, I had to go back into Goodreads to remember even the smallest detail of the plot. I had completely and utterly forgotten reading it. And once I refreshed my memory, I still felt nothing for this novel. I didn’t connect to any of the characters. I didn’t get pulled into the plot. It was, apparently, completely forgettable.

I would recommend picking up Irwin’s The Dead Path instead. That one will stick with you.

3. The Girl Who Would Speak For the Dead by Paul Elwork

England, 1925. Emily and her twin brother Michael are caught up in a lie spinning out of control after Emily claims she can perform spirit-knocking. What begins as a game to frighten the local children becomes much more serious as the adults in the area ask her to begin communicating with the spirits of their lost loved ones.

I found this novel in a used book store and bought it primarily for the cover and the short excerpt in the back. I was expecting a novel about the dangers of pretending to communicate with ghosts. Instead, The Girl Who Would Speak for the Dead slogged through three hundred pages without ever quite getting to the point. The characters never move with any real purpose. What is the motivation behind Michael’s insistence that they continue? What is their mother’s motivation for anything that she does? Everyone seems to move from one rather dull situation to the next without any driving force.

Also, the plot device of Emily being able to crack her ankle to make a knocking sound was just silly. I can crack my ankle too, but it seemed utterly implausible that anyone could do it without perceptibly moving their ankle.

2. Cera’s Place by Elizabeth McKenna (2011)

Cera’s Place takes place in San Francisco, 1869. Our main character, Cera, owns a saloon that welcomes in women who are fleeing from any number of bad situations. She serves liquor and food, but anyone seeking out a more “personal” touch they must look elsewhere. One night a distraught Chinese girl appears at her doorstep with tales of kidnapping, prostitution, and murder. Together with battle-scarred Civil War veteran, Jack Tanner, Cera must work to unravel the mystery and end the prosecution of women in her town.

This is another novel that it’s probably my fault that I didn’t like it. I didn’t look carefully enough, or I would have noticed that it was a romance novel. Well written, as far as romance novels go, but still a romance novel with all of the inherited clichés of the genre. The tough-talking heroine with a heart of gold. The brooding male who conceals a wealth of love and feeling beneath a gruff exterior. The bare bones of a setting and the straw man of a plot. The very well described sex scene complete with creative euphemisms for the male genitalia.

None of this is necessarily bad. There are plenty of people who have rated this book very highly. It’s just definitely not my favorite genre and I had to grit my teeth to finish it.

1.The Women in the Walls by Amy Lukavics (2016)

After her Aunt Penelope wanders into the woods one day and doesn’t return, Lucy Acosta finds herself increasingly isolated and frightened in her Victorian manor home. Her cousin Margaret begins behaving strangely, claiming that she can hear her mother’s voice calling from within the walls. Lucy must now face up to the haunting legacy of the Acosta family before she too, is claimed.

I read this book because I really enjoyed Lukavic’s other novel, Daughters Unto Devils. However, The Women in the Walls fell short on almost every level. If you are going to write a “trapped in the house” narrative, it makes sense to explain at some point why any of these people are trapped. Why can’t Lucy just leave? This is only one of numerous plot holes that peppers this novel and makes it ultimately unbearable. There is zero suspense leading up to the big finish. And the conclusion was so confusing that I gave up trying to figure out what the hell was going on and just considered myself lucky to be finished with this book.

 

 

I had a hard time writing this list because I have so much respect for writers. It takes an incredible amount of courage for someone to bear their soul and put it out into the world in a book. It takes very little courage for me to criticize them from the safety of a blog. However, the truth is what it is. Not every novel is going to be a home-run for everyone.

Do you have a different opinion? Leave me a comment and let me know!

Up next, we gear up to begin the OneYear/OneHundredBooks Challenge! Happy reading everyone!

 

My Ten Favorite Books of 2017

Welcome everyone! I am officially kicking off my oneyearonehundred books project! The actual countdown won’t begin until January 1st, but I wanted to get in some practice before beginning this year-long enterprise. What better way to do that than to look all my favorite books that I read this year!

I love end of the year lists! They are such a lovely wrap-up of all the experiences that we’ve had over the course of the last twelve months. It’s also so much fun to think back to where I was at this time last year compared to where I am now.

Last January, I was living with my in-laws while working on collecting an exhaustive amount of background checks for my Canadian residency application. You guys, they needed a background check from every country I’d ever lived in. And that was just the tip of the paperwork iceberg. The entire process took a really long time and resulted in more than one bout of ugly crying while hiding in the bathroom.

Now I look around at my little apartment and I am so happy with everything that has been accomplished this year. I have explored the city a little more. I got to introduce my parents to Toronto. I went camping and kayaking and tried hard to be more active.

And I read a lot of really good books.

To be clear, this is not a list of my favorite books that were released this year. Just the books that I happened to read that stuck with me, opened my mind to new ideas, or that I had a lot of fun reading.

Enjoy!

 

 

10. Parasite (Parasitology #1) by Mira Grant (2013)

Parasite takes place in the near future, where most of mankind has willingly swallowed designer tapeworms that have been genetically engineered to prevent disease and increase lifespan. Sal Mitchell’s life is saved by her tapeworm after a traumatic motor accident. As she struggles to return to normal life, she notices people exhibiting unusual and violent behavior. Turns out that the tapeworms are beginning to test just how much control they have over their hosts.

A few years ago I stumbled across a little trilogy called Newsflesh which I devoured within a week. I fell in love with Mira Grant while reading those three books, and when I found out she had another trilogy called Parasitology I pounced on it like a kitten on a ball of yarn.

Mira Grant’s writing pulls you in from page one. Her characters are well-formed and behave in a believable manner. Parasite is a great example of true science fiction, a well-blended mix of academic science and fiction. I came away from this novel feeling as if I had actually learned something interesting about the field of bio-engineering. And in a more entertaining way than a textbook!

 

9. Fortune’s Pawn (Paradox #1) by Rachel Bach (2013)

Fortune’s Pawn is adventure/science fiction, set in the distant future where mankind has spread out to live on a multitude of planets. Devi Morris is an ambitious, no-nonsense space mercenary who takes a job as a security officer on board a small trade ship with a reputation for getting into trouble. This is the first installment in Bach’s Paradox trilogy and offers an exciting jumping-off point for the adventures of the crew of the Glorious Fool.

A good friend and fellow book-lover bought me this for Christmas and I read it in less than two days.

The setting is very reminiscent of Firefly, with a ragtag group of space explorers who just want to make an honest living and somehow keep getting sidetracked. As the heroine, Devi is fun and relatable. It was hilarious that her solution to every problem seems to lie either in a whiskey bottle, her fists, or under the sheets. And the descriptions of her suit of armor border on love poetry.

 

8. The Ritual by Adam Nevill (2011)

A group of friends hiking in the wilderness near the Arctic Circle encounter more than they bargained for when they go off trail. Exhausted and out of shape, their supposed shortcut quickly becomes a maddening descent into horror. The moral of this story – when you see a dilapidated cabin in the middle of the woods decorated with animal skulls – KEEP HIKING.

Some readers unwind with murder-mysteries. Others relax by reading travelogues. Or the unflatteringly labeled “chick lit”. For this reader, it’s always been horror novels. And this one is a doozy.

The Ritual freaked me out you guys. I love the whole “lost in the woods” vibe. Nevill’s prose creates a creepy feeling of suspense that doesn’t let you go for a second. Also, the characters aren’t completely moronic! They behave in a more or less rational manner. Which is a rarity in the horror genre.

Suspenseful, surprising, and genuinely spooky, The Ritual was a lovely bit of fun. I would not recommend bringing it on a camping trip.

 

7. The Trespasser (Dublin Murder Squad #6) by Tana French (2016)

The Trespasser follows Detective Antoinette Conway as she investigates the murder of a woman who is found dead in her home. It deals with the everyday sexism that a woman faces within a male-dominated field. The general armor of toughness that women in these fields feel the need in order to succeed, and the far-reaching consequences of that armor.

If you haven’t read any of the Dublin Murder Squad series, stop reading this and go find In the Woods. I’ll wait.

I generally can’t stand detective novels. They tend to be perfectly predictable, starring the “chain-smoking male that doesn’t play by the rules”. Tana French breaks all of those stereotypes and dances on their ashes. She never tries to trick the reader. Everything that happens in The Trespasser makes logical sense. She also stays away from the oh-so tedious “invincible villain” plot device. And at the end of the day, it’s just a really well written mystery.

 

6. A Court of Mist and Fury (A Court of Thorns and Roses #2) by Sarah J. Maas (2016)

The series follows Feyre, a human girl who lives near the boundary between the mortal realm and the immortal lands of the Fae. After killing a wolf on one winter day, she is visited by one of the Fae and her life changes forever.

I dove into Sarah J. Maas’ A Court of Thorns and Roses earlier this year and…meh. Honestly the first installment fell a little flat. As if the author had cherry-picked their favorite aspects of The Hunger Games and squished it together with the melodramatic romance of Twilight. I found it to be wildly okay.

The second novel is great. It’s darker, more mature, and stays away from the ewey-gooey teenage romance feeling of the first novel. The heroine, Feyre, grows from a dependent girl who is desperate to be protected into a capable woman who finds her inner strength. Her feelings and intentions are no longer tied solely to her relationships, and she is made to understand the consequences of her decisions. The descriptions of the Seven Fae Courts are gorgeously written and the overall plot moves forward at an exciting pace. And ultimately it is a YA novel, so reading it felt like an uncomplicated escape after a stressful day.

5. The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller (2011)

This novel centers around Patroclus, a young boy in ancient Greece who is sent to live and train with another youth by the name of Achilles. Achilles is a natural warrior, the son of a water goddess who is destined for greatness. What Patroclus lacks in fighting ability he makes up for in honesty and altruism. As Patroclus grows to love Achilles from afar, the events leading up to the Trojan War have lasting effects on both their lives.

Historical fiction is fun. Greek mythology is fun. Historical fiction based on a few lines of Homer’s Iliad? So much fun.

I had never expected a historical fiction novel set in ancient Greece to deal so sweetly with LGBT characters. Patroclus’ tender love and devotion for his friend is the most endearing part of this book. Simultaneously, the descriptions of early warfare are stunning in their brutality. I’ve always loved adaptations of Homer that continue to treat the Greek pantheon as immortal beings who affect the world around them on a whim. Even if you hate Homer or haven’t read The Iliad, The Song of Achilles will make you hungry to learn more.

 

4. Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (2013)

Ifemelu is a young Nigerian woman who moves to the United States to complete her university degree. Obinze is her boyfriend who is left behind. What follows is the story of two people trying to balance their perceptions of themselves and the perceptions of the world around them. My absolute favorite part was Ifemelu’s reaction when she is instructed that she needs to have “white” hair if she ever wants to find a job in America.

This is a fictional novel, but for me it almost reads as a series of essays on race in America. On the interactions between African immigrants and African-Americans. The idea that a person never thought of themselves as “black” until coming to America. On white privilege and class privilege and the privilege of being born in a first-world nation. And on top of everything else, it’s also a wonderful love story.

 

3. Beneath the Surface: Killer Whales, SeaWorld, and the Truth Beyond Blackfish by John Hargrove (2015)

The only nonfiction book on my favorites list is here for a reason. I watched the documentary Blackfish when it aired in 2013. When I found out that John Hargrove, a former SeaWorld trainer and one of the primary forces behind Blackfish had written a book, I read it as soon as I could.

This book broke my heart. Hargrove never really apologizes for his years of working as an orca trainer at SeaWorld. Instead, he writes with a fond nostalgia,  and the love he feels for the whales shines out of every sentence. We follow him through the early love and hero-worship of SeaWorld, to his work as an international orca trainer as he comes to realize the harm that the company is doing to the orcas. He earned the love and respect of these magnificent animals and learned that in order to help them, he had to stay away. The descriptions of the pain that the killer whales were enforced to endure were very difficult to read. Especially as you realize that this isn’t ancient history; the whales described by Hargrove are still alive and in pain and performing at SeaWorld.

I would love to see an orca whale. I will never go to SeaWorld. And if you read this book, neither will you.

 

2. Rosemary’s Baby by Ira Levin (1967)

Rosemary’s Baby follows a young woman and her husband who buy a highly sought after apartment in New York City. Rosemary becomes pregnant under mysterious circumstances and the novel details her experiences as she comes to realizes that her unborn child may not be the blessing she had anticipated.

How did it take me so long to read this? I borrowed it on a whim from my local library, went home, and did nothing else that day. I ate my dinner one-handed so I could continue reading. I was completely exhausted for work the next morning because I had to stay up until 2:00 am so I could finish this book. That’s how amazing it was.

 

1. Dark Matter by Blake Crouch (2016)

*drumroll please* My favorite book of the year. Similar to the aforementioned Rosemary’s Baby, this was a book that I devoured in a day. Then I was sad that I had finished it because it meant that I could never enjoy it again for the first time.

Jason Dessen leaves his wife and son at home and goes for a seemingly normal drink at his local pub. On his way home, his life changes in ways he could never have anticipated. That’s all I’m going to give you because to give anything away would be a crime.

This book was so much fun. A thoroughly engaging read with relatable characters and a very poignant romantic element that is a rarity in the science fiction genre. I was turning the pages with shaking hands because I needed to get to the end. Definitely recommend for lovers of science fiction and any reader in general.

 

Well that’s it. My top ten favorite reads of 2017. What did you think? Feel free to post your favorite books of the year in the comment section!

Coming up next, my most disappointing reads of 2017. See you then and happy reading everybody!