2023 in Books, Part 2

 Two posts this year, and I'm already doing better than last year! 

Nonfiction was a hodgepodge of theology, cookbooks, biographies, and book about words and reading. Here are my favourites, in no particular order:

Hot Chocolate Comfort by Michael Turback: A cookbook, yes, but there is more to cooking than just the recipes.

The Precious Blood by Dustin Berge

The Heresy of Orthodoxy by Michael J. Kruger and Andreas J. Kostenberger

Becoming Free Indeed by Jinger Duggar Vuolo

Slave by John MacArthur: I have no idea how long that had been on my bookshelf, but I finally read it!

Redeeming Productivity by Reagan Rose: This was one of my favourites; it helped me understand the purpose behind productivity (to glorify God and to serve Him) and gave advice for becoming more organized and productive.

The Epistles of John by Joel Beeke: In my Sunday School planning, I actually read 4 commentaries on John's epistles, but this was my favourite (and the only one where I didn't skim over parts).

Non Nobis by Tom Garfield: The first years in one of the first classical Christian schools.

Home Work by Julie Andrews: The sequel to the first part of her autobiography.

Impossible Christianity by Kevin DeYoung

The Reading Life by C.S. Lewis: A collection of things C.S. Lewis said about books and reading.

Questions Women Asked by Simonetta Carr: Also a favourite; it talks about 30 Christian women throughout church history and the challenges they faced.

2023 in Books, Part 1

 Wow...I wrote exactly one post last year. I'll try to do better this year!

I managed to read 81 books this year. Hours on the bus for work helped a lot; with my job, I travel all over Edmonton and the surrounding area. The round trip from my house to Spruce Grove alone is good for about half a novel! The result of doing so much reading on the bus does mean that my fiction list largely outweighs nonfiction because "bus reading" is generally lighter; I'll need to keep a closer eye on that this year and be more intentional about mixing up my reading more.

To start, then, this year's top picks for fiction:

Historical Fiction:

The Daughter's Tale by Armando Lucas Correa: Trying to survive as a Jew in France in WWII.

The Paris Library by Janet Skeslien Charles: Trying to survive as a librarian in France in WWII.

Christmas Bells by Jennifer Chiaverini: A double story; one part takes place in the life of Wordsworth in the years leading up to and during the American Civil War, including him writing the poem "Christmas Bells", while the other looks at the stories of a group of people (wife, choir boy, choir girl, widow, priest, nun, music teacher, accompanist) and how their lives overlap in present-day Boston. It was one of my favourite stories this year.

The Flower of the Family by Elizabeth Prentiss: A lovely, older story about a girl and her family and her life; there's no great adventure, just life. (This could go under youth as well, or maybe young adult.)

Youth Fiction (there weren't many this year; these were both recommended by a friend):

The Heart of Arcrea by Nicole Sager: A story about a quest and the people who join on the way, and about trusting God. I'm currently reading the second in the trilogy and planning to start the third once I borrow it!

The Wilderking Trilogy by Jonathan Rogers: My previous blogpost (the only one of 2023) was a review and recommendation of this one.

Mysteries (I read a lot of them this year; they were excellent bus books)

The Bullet that Missed by Richard Osman: Part of the Thursday Murder Club series; I enjoy the series and am happy that there's a new one out (I am currently number 72 in line at the library, but there are 51 copies, so I should have it soon enough).

Chocoholic Mysteries by JoAnna Carl: I read 5 of them; the main character works at her aunt's chocolate store.

The Highland Bookshop Mystery Series by Molly MacRae: I read all 5 of them and am waiting for another one; these are probably my favourites and they involve a group of ladies who run a bookshop/tea shop in Scotland.

The Daughter of Sherlock Holmes series by Leonard Goldberg: I read 6 of them; the main character is the daughter of Sherlock Holmes and Irene Adler, and she solves mysteries alongside elderly John Watson and his son, the younger John Watson.

Kate Shackleton Mysteries by Frances Brody; I read 10 of them; they take place in the 1920s and star a war widow who started by trying to track down any record of her husband after he was "missing and presumed dead" and from there began solving other mysteries as well.

My only problem with the mystery series that I enjoyed is that I've read all of them (or, in the case of the Chocoholic books, all that the library has). I'm going to have to find new books this year!

The Wilderking Trilogy: A Book Review

 Friends of mine gave me The Bark of the Bog Owl by Jonathan Rogers for Christmas last year and assured me that I would love it. They had been reading the trilogy out loud to their children and everyone was enjoying it (and they were kind enough not to switch to a different read-aloud book when I was visiting until I had a chance to catch up). 

I started reading it and was enjoying the story. The young hero, Aidan, longs for adventure and wants to be part of a "quest, adventure, or dangerous mission" that might come along. A couple chapters in, I realized that I was reading a retelling of the story of King David, if David had lived on an island, on the frontier, near the swamp, and dealt with panthers and giant alligators. It does follow his life, to some extent: he's caring for the sheep, he's destined to be a king, and he fights a giant. There are also feechiefolk (the wild men of the swamp) to befriend, cannons to deal with, and miners helping him find his way to the enemy camp. Perhaps it is better to say that it's based on or inspired by the story of David.

While he enjoys the adventures that he eventually finds, Aidan also clings to his faith in the One True God. What I like about how the author includes the faith of many of the main characters is that it isn't forced into the story or seen as something irrelevant; rather, it is seen as a normal part of life that play an important role in dictating their decisions just as it does for many, many real Christians in my life. It is why Aidan does not try to force the prophecy or even worry about it, but rather learns to take the advice of the Bayard the Truthspeaker and prophet to "live the life that unfolds before you".

The Bark of the Bog Owl was a fun story to read, as were the sequels (which I eventually borrowed from the same friends). There's adventure, fighting, conflict, and (mostly) unexpected twists. It is written for the junior high age, but can be enjoyed by any age, as can all good stories.

The Books of 2022

I didn't read as much this year as I have in past years, but I did average about 1.2 books/week. These are the ones I enjoyed and/or learned from the most.

As always, these are the books that I enjoyed in 2022, not books that were published in 2022 (except for one, or maybe two, but you get my point).

Nonfiction

-About Learning/Teaching

The Core by Leigh A. Bortins

The Question by Leigh A Bortins

Recovering the Lost Tools of Learning by Douglas Wilson

King Alfred’s English by Laurie J. White

-About Current Issues

Christianity and Wokeness by Owen Strachan

fault lines by Voddie T. Baucham Jr.

God vs. Government by Nathan Busenitz and James Coates

-A Variety of Topics

Preaching and Hearing the Word by James Coates

Kiss the Wave by Dave Furman

The Enemy Within by Kris Lundgaard

2000 Years of Christ’s Power Volume 2 by Nick Needham

The King and His Glory (and part 2) by Greg Harris

The Art of Divine Contentment by Thomas Watson

The Doctrine of Repentance by Thomas Watson

-Biographies and Memoirs

Amazing Grace by Eric Metaxas

Home by Julie Andrews

Hudson Taylor: Deep in the Heart of China by Geoff and Janet Benge

Better Than We Dreamed by Simona Gorton

Shakespeare: The World as Stage by Bill Bryson

The Enchanted Places by Christopher Milne

Writing Places by William Zinsser

Mysteries

 Agatha Christie

    Mrs. McGinty’s Dead

    Midwinter Murder 

    Elephants Can Remember

    Five Little Pigs 

Frances Brody

    Death of an Avid Reader 

    The Body on the Train

    Dying in the Wool 

Richard Osman

    The Man Who Died Twice 

    The Thursday Murder Club 

JoAnna Carl

    The Chocolate Pirate Plot

    The Chocolate Book Bandit

    The Chocolate Racoon Rigmarole

WWII Historical Fiction

The Wives of Los Alamos by Tarashea Nesbit

The Book of Lost Names by Kristin Harmel

When We Were Young and Brave by Hazel Gaynor

The Last Bookshop in London by Madeline Martin 

The Librarian Spy by Madeline Martin

The Lost Girls of Paris by Pam Jenoff

Because Sometimes You Don't Feel Joyful and Triumphant...

Christmas!!!

 Yes, yes, it's been forever, but I'm starting to organize the Christmas concert, so it's time for....

Uncle Jim

 Last Saturday my sister called to tell me that my Uncle Jim had passed away suddenly and unexpectedly. I hadn't seem him in about 8 years, but I loved my uncle very much. He was so big and strong and happy and loving. I was the flower girl in his wedding to my Aunt Sarah many years ago. When he and Aunt Sarah were expecting their first child, they were visiting and he asked my opinion about the name they had chosen. I felt very grown up and special when he asked me, and I assured him that I liked the name. I never doubted that he enjoyed spending time with me whenever we go to see each other. He knew how to listen well and treated everyone with respect.

Grief is weird. When I hung up with my sister, I called my mom so we could cry together for a while. I cried on and off for the next couple days as the grief was huge, and then it settled a bit. Now I go through the days fairly well until I think, "Uncle Jim is dead," and then I cry again. It seems random; I have no idea what triggers the reminder and the tears. Sometimes the grief hits hard and it's difficult to focus on anything much for a while; sometimes I can keep doing whatever I was doing and the grief subsides quickly. I just accept that random tears are normal right now.

Sometimes I cry for myself, and sometimes I cry for my aunt and cousins (and my cousin's wee baby who will not remember her grandfather), and sometimes I cry for my mom who has outlived her parents and her brothers and is the last one in her immediate family (and I don't even want to imagine what that is like).

I loved my uncle very much. I wish I could tell him that again. I wish I could see him one more time.