YouLookFab Forum » Topic: 2022 wrap up

YouLookFab Forum » Topic: 2022 wrap up - reading https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/2022-wrap-up---reading Style Advice for Fashion Lovers en-US Sat, 18 Apr 2026 11:42:21 +0000 http://bbpress.org/?v=1.0.2 <![CDATA[Search]]> q https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/search.php Style Fan on "2022 wrap up - reading" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/2022-wrap-up---reading#post-2297333 Tue, 20 Dec 2022 02:30:01 +0000 Style Fan 2297333@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ I love mystery series. I plan on reading the Thursday Murder Club when I finish the series I am reading now. This year I read Louise Penny's Three Pines series. I enjoyed it, but I do have some mixed feelings about it. Her writing does improve over time. I also read Susie Steiner's three books. They were excellent. Sadly, there will be no more because she died. Currently, I am reading Elizabeth George's Lynley series. I enjoy them, but I have some mixed feelings. I am re-reading Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy. I read this 40 years ago, which is one of my favourite books. It is still on the top of my list. I am also reading Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin. Beautifully written and such a moving story. It will probably become one of my favourite books. I have read all of Jane Austen's books many times. I love them. Pride and Prejudice has always been my favourite.   UmmLila (Lisa) on "2022 wrap up - reading" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/2022-wrap-up---reading#post-2296159 Tue, 13 Dec 2022 13:34:37 +0000 UmmLila (Lisa) 2296159@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ I liked Babel (but felt that it lost steam) and Fairy Tale, too. MsMary on "2022 wrap up - reading" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/2022-wrap-up---reading#post-2296076 Mon, 12 Dec 2022 19:36:35 +0000 MsMary 2296076@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ I am halfway through Babel by R.F. Kuang and it is knocking my socks off. HIGHLY recommend. Just finished all three books in the Thursday Murder Club series by Richard Osman and loved them. In a similar vein, I adored Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn. Also just finished Cabinet of Curosities, the latest Inspector Gamache mystery by Lousie Penny, and dare I timidly suggest she's getting a tiny bit preachy for me? Also I guessed the twist earlier than perhaps she wanted me to. (I know this is heresy, but there you have it.) I did love State of Terror, the Louise Penny/Hillary Clinton collaboration that came out earlier this year. Don't know if I've already recommended The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd and Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng, but they were standouts for me this year. My favorite, though, may have been Sea of Tranquility because I love Emily St. John Mandel's writing just that much. Honorable mention: Fairy Tale by Stephen King, surprisingly! RoseandJoan on "2022 wrap up - reading" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/2022-wrap-up---reading#post-2296044 Mon, 12 Dec 2022 16:06:50 +0000 RoseandJoan 2296044@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ 2022 was the the year I started and finished the Colleen McCullough Master's of Rome series and with 7 books over a 1000 pages long it was quite the time investment. The writer brings the period to life in vivid technicolour but I am most definitely ready for something short and sparkling to see out the year. <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/43716-masters-of-rome" rel="nofollow">https://www.goodreads.com/seri.....rs-of-rome</a> Laurie on "2022 wrap up - reading" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/2022-wrap-up---reading#post-2296022 Mon, 12 Dec 2022 14:45:01 +0000 Laurie 2296022@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ I meant to add a note of gratitude to everyone for so many great suggestions this year. Quite a few of the things I read in 2022 were suggested right here on YLF. Suz - thank you for linking to reviews of the books on your list!! UmmLila (Lisa) on "2022 wrap up - reading" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/2022-wrap-up---reading#post-2295913 Sun, 11 Dec 2022 22:00:19 +0000 UmmLila (Lisa) 2295913@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ I have read sooo many books this year, many of them complete rubbish (I don't watch tv so I have to ingest bad media content elsewhere). Here are some of the ones I did like: <ul> <li>The Last Life, Claire Messud</li> <li>Other People's Clothes, Calla Henkel</li> <li>Conversations with Friends, Sally Rooney</li> <li>The Scholomance series, Naomi Novik</li> <li>Burning Girls and Other Stories, Veronica Schanoes</li> <li>The Ballad of Perilous Graves, Alex Jennings</li> <li>This Must Be the Place, Maggie O'Farrell</li> <li>Writers & Lovers, Lily King</li> <li>Two Nights in Lisbon, Chris Pavone</li> <li>Six Days in Rome, Francesca Giacco</li> <li>If An Egyptian Cannot Speak English, Noor Naga</li> <li>Sea of Tranquility, Emily St. John Mandel</li> <li>Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, Gabrielle Zevin</li> </ul> Absolute worst book of the year: <ul> <li>All Signs Point to Paris: A Memoir of Love, Loss and Destiny, by Natasha Sizlo</li> </ul> Sally on "2022 wrap up - reading" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/2022-wrap-up---reading#post-2295731 Sat, 10 Dec 2022 23:48:14 +0000 Sally 2295731@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ When I want a little bit of cozy comfort, I re-read Sue Grafton's alphabet series and imagine I"m back in the 80s.   I read a few non-fiction about walking recently, one of them being "Grandma Gatewood's walk" which was an old book but I found it really enjoyable and inspiring.   I think persuasion would also be my favourite Jane Austen as well but really enjoyed the recent television series Sanditon from the unfinished novel of Jane Austen's.  Great thread and some great ideas for future reading.   Anonymous on "2022 wrap up - reading" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/2022-wrap-up---reading#post-2295727 Sat, 10 Dec 2022 22:42:36 +0000 Anonymous 2295727@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ My favorite this year was Kiki Man Ray by Mark Braude.  It’s the story of Kiki of Montparnasse and Man Ray during their time together as artist and model/muse (and more) in Paris during the 1920s.  They lived life in the fast lane, for sure!  Very well written and hard to put down. Helena on "2022 wrap up - reading" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/2022-wrap-up---reading#post-2295642 Sat, 10 Dec 2022 15:38:48 +0000 Helena 2295642@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ My favourite and most enriching book from this year was Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi ... Her writing is perfect, not a word out of place, and the story spans generations without losing itself in the expansiveness of the effort ... IMHO at least kkards on "2022 wrap up - reading" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/2022-wrap-up---reading#post-2295622 Sat, 10 Dec 2022 14:08:47 +0000 kkards 2295622@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ Well, if I’m picking a favorite it would be “The Final Revival of Opal & Nev” by Dawnie Walton.  It’s a book that leaves you thinking and pondering the big questions around fame and fortune and what you are willing to do for each, around race and racism, around personal responsibility and beliefs, but its not a heavy read.  Laurie, thanks for starting this thread, I’m taking notes and adding titles to my reading list.   Suz on "2022 wrap up - reading" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/2022-wrap-up---reading#post-2295581 Sat, 10 Dec 2022 04:10:29 +0000 Suz 2295581@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ Oh, this is fascinating. I love the whole topic of re-reading, as you can probably guess from Big Reader! Our experiences of books definitely change if we go back to them years or decades later. And you know how they say education is wasted on the young? Some books are wasted on the young, too... I adore Didion's style. Brilliant! And Carla, I don't know that you can improve on Pride & Prejudice, really. I do love Persuasion, too, though, and Emma, and Northanger Abbey for a satirical romp,  I keep a list -- I have read (or mostly, listened to) 117 books this year, not including books read solely for research and/or partials. I just finished an Australian novel called <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.shondaland.com/inspire/books/a41300041/tracey-liens-all-thats-left-unsaid/">All That's Left Unsaid.</a>..I had mixed feelings about the book, but loved reading a book set in a specific neighbourhood of Sydney and hearing the Ozzie accents of the readers.  It is so hard for me to pick favourites. My best "discovery" this year was the British writer Tessa Hadley. She's no discovery, really -- she publishes stories regularly in the New Yorker -- but oh, I adored her book <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/aug/28/the-past-by-tessa-hadley-review">The Past</a>, in particular, but also The Latecomer, and Free Love, and I would gladly read anything she writes in future. Intelligent, beautifully calibrated, structurally interesting, deeply felt.  I've been on a bit of an Annie Ernaux kick, and just finished <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/jun/22/the-years-annie-ernaux-review">The Years.</a> Hers is an interesting project. I actually like the shorter books, especially Shame, better than The Years, I think, but I admire what she is up to there.  Speaking of autofiction or whatever it is, I loved <a rel="nofollow" href="https://bookhugpress.ca/shop/books/new-books/remnants-by-celine-huyghebaert-translated-by-aleshia-jensen/">Remnants</a>, newly translated from the French. I actually awarded it a prize -- here's my citation:  “Memoir, auto-fiction, documentary, dream—Céline Huyghebaert’s Le drap blanc, ably translated in English as Remnants by Aleshia Jensen, is all these and more—an original, probing, and deeply moving attempt to come to terms with the death of a parent and a family fractured by poverty, alcohol, and loss. Through overlapping and sometimes contradictory accounts, an image of the father emerges for writer and reader alike—one that can never be fixed and absolute but must always remain mutable, blurred, and incomplete.” —Susan Olding For a completely different, much more plot driven and hilarious read, I really enjoyed <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/25/books/review/the-latecomer-jean-hanff-korelitz.html">The Latecomer </a>by Jean Hanff Korelitz, and also <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/10/books/the-plot-jean-hanff-korelitz-group-text.html">The Plot.</a> She's sharp and observant and so smart about family dynamics. Another laugh out loud book was <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/fleishman-is-in-trouble-turns-the-marriage-novel-inside-out">Fleishman is in Trouble.</a> Not to mention Kevin Wilson's <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.npr.org/2019/11/02/775190787/kevin-wilson-is-on-fire-in-nothing-to-see-here">Nothing to See Here</a><a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.npr.org/2019/11/02/775190787/kevin-wilson-is-on-fire-in-nothing-to-see-here"> (and his latest, too, although it's more uneven.) </a> And <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/18/books/review/yiyun-li-book-of-goose.html">The Book of Goose </a>is peculiar and magical.  The <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/07/books/danielle-evans-office-of-historical-corrections.html">Office of Historical Corrections</a> is a fantastic story collection.  I also read a lot of really great nonfiction and poetry, from Braiding Sweetgrass and <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.randomhousebooks.com/books/9780525512486/">Lost & Found </a>to Whitemud Walking.  LJP on "2022 wrap up - reading" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/2022-wrap-up---reading#post-2295572 Sat, 10 Dec 2022 01:42:09 +0000 LJP 2295572@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ I’m the last third of Valerie Perrine’s Three ( translated from the French ) which is over 500 pages and frustratingly slow , with John Irving’s The Last Chairlift ( also over 500 pages ) tees up next . The latest from Stephen King and Michael Connelly are after that . My stack is high and I can’t keep up ! I’ve read like a fiend this fall . Carla on "2022 wrap up - reading" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/2022-wrap-up---reading#post-2295557 Sat, 10 Dec 2022 00:47:21 +0000 Carla 2295557@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ I re-read all the Jane Austen titles this year.  Persuasion had always been my favourite, and I have re-read it the most.  Funnily enough, after re-reading them all, Pride and Prejudice has moved up to first place.   <div>I asked my mother recently if she had read any Joan Didion and would she recommend her as an author for me to read?  However, my mother did not know her works! </div><div> </div><div>FWIW, 2021 and 2022 were rough.  (Older relatives dying.  Too many funerals)  I’ve been indulging in lighter fare with few redeeming characteristics, including romance   I did like ‘Peace by Chocolate’ <a rel="nofollow" href="https://peacebychocolate.ca/products/peace-by-chocolate-book">https://peacebychocolate.ca/pr.....olate-book</a>about the Hadad family, and understand the book has been made into a movie.</div><div> </div><div> </div> Jenni NZ on "2022 wrap up - reading" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/2022-wrap-up---reading#post-2295554 Sat, 10 Dec 2022 00:25:48 +0000 Jenni NZ 2295554@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ I don’t usually join these threads Laurie as much of my reading material is re-reading old faves- have just finished The Children of Hurin and also The Silmarillion. But interested what you say about reading something later into adult life. When she was 16 I gave my daughter Rebecca a copy of Daphne Du Maurier’s book Rebecca. I thought at the time the choice was inspired, but she never read it. Recently I had a Du Maurier estate approved sequel Rebecca’s Tale by Sally Beauman here which my daughter saw. She expressed interest in it and finally read the original then the sequel and enjoyed them. She said she thinks 16 was just too young to appreciate the original novel and that 31 with more life experience ( she is mother of a 16 month old daughter also) was a better age. I am happy she finally read her gift! Laurie on "2022 wrap up - reading" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/2022-wrap-up---reading#post-2295511 Fri, 09 Dec 2022 20:30:20 +0000 Laurie 2295511@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ Ok, let's bring it home for 2022. What are you reading, what was the best thing you read this year? I just finished Joan Didion's brilliant collection Slouching Towards Bethlehem. I know I read it in the '80's in an English class (merely 15 or 20 years after she wrote most of the stories) but could not have appreciated her writing style, or her topics - including the timelessness of her musings on the state of affairs in America - as a young adult. Also, she writes intensely about California where I had not yet visited at that time of my life, but have been to scores of times since then. My favorite book of the year was the audio book, The Love Songs of W.E.B. DuBois. So ironic because I normally cannot even bear listening to audio books, and this tops everything I read for the whole year. It's been great sharing our reading journey this year, and I look forward to continuing into 2023 and beyond!