What I’ve read so far this year

March 31st, 2023Posted by Nancy

For whatever reason, the first 3 months of 2023 have been the months of reading non-fiction, though a couple of memorable novels did end up on my ereader.

NON-FICTION

Below the Edge of Darkness, Edith Widder. Another fascinating book about life in the ocean, this one focusing on creatures that inhabit the zone between light and dark.

1177 B.C. The Year Civilization Collapsed, Eric Cline. A great summary of the Bronze Age collapse.

Mastering the Process, From Idea to Novel, Elizabeth George. George breaks down the process of writing one of her mystery novels. I found some of the exercises very helpful and was also heartened by the fact that she doesn’t always know who the murderer is when she starts.

Kiki Man Ray: Art, Love, and Rivalry in 1920s Paris, Mark Braude. More grist for the Glass World mill.

Ways of Seeing, John Berger. Finally got around to reading this classic book about art and meanings.

Meander, Spiral, Explode, Design and Pattern in Narrative, Jane Alison. I’m definitely open to alternatives to the classic three-act story structure, because I suck at doing that whole “inciting incident, rising action, climax” stuff. I’m not sure I have the ability to carry off some of these alternatives, but it did make me feel better.

The Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration into the Wonder of Consciousness, Sy Montgomery. Lovely mix of personal experience and science fact.

The Republic for Which it Stands: The United States during Reconstruction and the Gilded Age, Richard White. I’d heard the author interviewed on a couple of podcasts and was very happy to finally be able to get this one from the library. It’s quite good but somewhat depressing.

FICTION

The Mountain in the Sea, Ray Nayler. Excellent SF book about intelligent octopuses and much more. Highly recommended.

In the Distance, Hernan Diaz. I didn’t love this as much as his more recent Trust but this tale of a Swedish immigrant on a picaresque journey through the American West in the 1800s reminded me how much history can be just as strange as fantasy.

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