Favorite Books of 2017

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Reading-wise, it's been a pretty good year.  Let's hope other things improve too.  I wasn't as consistent with my blogging as I would like to be, but it all got there eventually, and I read lots of great stuff.   This is not a list of my top ten or anything, and it doesn't include all the best stuff; I'm sure I missed lots.  But here are some favorites of 2017:

While I didn't get to read as much medieval literature as I would have liked (I guess this is a constant theme in my life, I did have the great fun of re-reading Eneas.  Another favorite was The Treasure of the City of Ladies.  And Bovo-Buch!   And Merlin and the Grail ! 

I was in a kind of German mood and read some good history:  Germania and Stasiland were both excellent.


 Voices From Chernobyl -- well, there's not much to say about it.  A very important book that I'll never forget. 


 Their Eyes Were Watching God was a great novel, and probably the best American book I read all year.  It was fun to have my daughter read it in school some months later, too.

If you're looking for good writing and memoir,  The Burning Point is an incredible book.  I don't usually comment on writing too much, but Tracy McKay is an amazing writer.  Read this book. 


I got so much out of The Black Count  -- there's wonderful biography and history in here.  Just great stuff.

Celtic, Viking, and Anglo-Saxon Embroidery was one of the most inspiring books I read all year, as far as creativity goes.  I would like to be able to do all that stuff, please.

My #1 for 2017 is a book I'm still reading: Meetings With Remarkable Manuscripts.  This is my new favorite book, and I'm going very slowly because it's so great.  Wow.


Goodreads says I have read 177 books this year. 

May 2018 bring you, and the world, joy and peace.  And plenty of good books to read.

Comments

  1. AnonymousDecember 31, 2017 at 7:30 AM

    Meetings With Remarkable Manuscripts sounds wonderful! If you have a Twitter and you like odd/grotesque medieval marginalia, I recommend Damien Kempf, Medieval Manuscripts, and Discarding Images.

    ReplyDelete
  2. JeanDecember 31, 2017 at 1:20 PM

    Thanks! I am the WORST at Twitter, but I will follow them.

    ReplyDelete

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