Review of 2022 Reading Year

The return to normality after the worst effects of the pandemic resulted in a slight decrease in reading levels with 34 books read in the year. Again the majority (62%) were by ‘new to me’ authors. The gender balance tipped this year with a 60:40 preference for male authors, and the males dominate the best reads list by 6 to 2. The reading group was back on providing 7 titles (including 2 best reads) and the ‘bookpacking’ reading journey progressed through Asia in 5 books (though none of these get a place at the top table).

My eight best books of the year are: (Month of full review in brackets.)

 

Ella Minnow Pea – Mark Dunn: Clever, funny, and cautionary tale told in epistolatory form of how dogmatism can develop into totalitarianism, even in a small island with an educated and literate populace. (Jan)

 

The Shining – Stephen King: Rightly considered a classic of the horror genre, the storytelling skill of King making the unthinkable all too credible. (Feb)

 

American Dirt – Jeanine Cummins: Frenetic, tension-ridden ride through Mexico as a woman and her young son join the tragic flow of those fleeing crime, terror, and injustice to seek sanctuary in the US. (May)

 

The Rotters Club – Jonathan Coe: Ben Trotter’s life unfolds from adolescence to adulthood in 1970s suburban Birmingham, full of iconic references, humour, and pathos. (Jun)

 

The Miniaturist – Jessie Burton: Atmospheric and engrossing novel set in 17^th century Amsterdam about a young woman’s introduction (as wife) into an older merchant’s claustrophobic household. (Jul)

 

Sapiens – Yuval Noah Harari: A masterly and very readable account of human history with some original insights and thought-provoking ideas. (Aug)

 

There’s Only Two David Beckhams – John O’Farrell: Written years earlier but set at the 2022 Qatar world cup, a humour packed novel about football and parenthood, winning and doing the right thing, and the choices to be made between them. (Sep)

The Farther Corner – Harry Pearson: The author revisits the northeast football scene at all levels, the result as funny as the original Far Corner but underscored by a layer of personal reflection. (Sep)