2023 proved to be a great year for reading for me. There were so many stories that I read and learnt from, enriching my sense of wonder and appreciation for the authors’ imagination and sometimes, leaving me wishing that they had not bothered or had had help with writing. Some stories have stayed with me, almost hauntingly so, such a A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara. I listened to that novel with my Audible subscription and pieces of that story remain with me. I have not read/ listened to a more depressing and sad story than that of the protagonist of that novel. Halfway through it, I was appalled at how it was making me feel – sad and frustrated with the protagonist and his attitude towards those that he loved and those that loved him in return. I cheated on that one – reading up on reviews to see where the story was headed. In spite of that, I stuck with listening to the entire story till its sad and bitter end. I am left in awe of the story telling prowess of Hanya Yanagihara. If an author is able to incite emotions in the reader, be it positive of negative, they must be doing something right. I would recommend this book only to the strong of heart and open of mind.
I enjoyed reading the Empire of the Moghuls which traced the history of the Mughal emperors and presented it as a storyline full of intrigue, war and succession battles. It was particularly exciting for me to visit Agra and Jaipur soon after reading the books on Shah Jahan, his wife Arjemund (aka Mumtaz) and Aurangzeb. Fascinating stories and it was particularly good considering how little we learnt of it all in the history books at school. Other good books that provided an insight into the Irish society and a historic journey of a Jewish book were The Heart’s Invisible Furies and The People of the Book respectively.
A few of the books made for laborious reading/ listening such as the Seven Brief Lessons on Physics and We also make Policy. I ventured into some of these non-fiction books based on recommendations that came across in podcasts or in other forums. I found that these were best listened to in Blink – a 15 minutes summary would work just as well rather than attempt to listen or read the entire content. Another book that was disappointing only because of the style of writing was TheSeven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. It is a book written in the modern style and follows a predictable pattern. Although it has great reviews, I did not like it all that much.
Giving company to my daughter, I read through the Percy Jackson series and the Rangers Apprentice series. Both of these were light and easy-reads.
As the year draws to a close, I find myself listening to Hanya Yanagihara’s second book which has not been as gripping as her first. The story has been doing a good job putting me to sleep although she has maintained her brilliant method of writing. Adman Madman is an autobiography of the ad man Prahlad Kakkar. He is a good story teller and the book is full of anecdotes and stories. His recall of events that transpired some 40 years ago is remarkable for its clarity and detail. It has been good thus far.
So here is my list of books that I read this year:
- AdMan MadMan by Prahlad Kakkar
- The People in the Trees by Hanya Yanagihara
- Never Grow Up by Jackie Chan
- We also make Policy: An Insider’s Account of how the Finance Ministry functions by Subhash Chandra Garg
- Empire of the Moghul: Traitors in the Shadows by Alex Rutherford
- Small Steps (Holes Book 2) by Louis Sachar
- Striking Thoughts: Bruce Lee’s Wisdom for Daily Living by Bruce Lee
- Ranger’s Apprentice series (12 books in all) by John Flanagan
- Seven Brief Lessons on Physics by Carlo Rovelli
- The Complete Tarot: Learn the Tarot for Beginners & Advanced by Sofia Visconti
- The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations that Transform the World
- Empire of the Moghul: The Tainted Throne by Alex Rutherford
- Empire of the Moghul: The Serpent’s Tooth by Alex Rutherford
- Empire of the Moghul: Ruler of the World by Alex Rutherford
- Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss
- How to Build a Car by Adrian Newey
- Everything the Light Touches by Janice Pariat
- Percy Jackson series (5 books) by Rick Riordan
- The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
- People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks
- The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne
- The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
If you have any recommendations on books, I am all eyes and ears. Please leave your recommendations in the comments section below!
Mithun's Musings 