Doroteyo 401 Posted December 23, 2021 Share Posted December 23, 2021 Queer Fiction I read this year: Trumpet, Jackie Kay Paul Takes the Form of a Mortal Girl, Andrea Lawlor Orlando, Virginia Woolf On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous, Ocean Voung The Vanishing Half, Brit Bennet The Song of Achilles, Madeline Miller Hot Milk, Deborah Levy Freshwater, Akwaeke Emezi Giovanni's Room, Baldwin Not specifically queer fiction: Portnoy's Complaint, Philip Roth The Importance of Music to Girls, Lavinia Greenlaw In the city of love's sleep, Lavinia Greenlaw The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho Circe, Madeline Miller Frankenstein, Shelley The Tin Drum, Gunter Grass Non-fiction: Dear Senthuran, Akwaeke Emezi more I can't think of rn My standouts: The Vanishing Half; Trumpet; Orlando; The Tin Drum; Portnoy's Complaint curious about other suggestions in the same vein! Have you read any of these and what were your thoughts? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlexanderMagno 10,746 Posted December 23, 2021 Share Posted December 23, 2021 I don't usually read books recently published, so not sure about new ones. But this year I've read The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Kundera and I was completely in love with it. Sometimes, like every two or three years, I get to read one author who totally blows me away and I end up immediately devouring every book he/she has written. This year was Kundera (two years ago was Gabriel García Marquez. There really is a reason why these writers are classics). Also re-read Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, by Susanna Clarke, and I think it was better than I remembered. Very good Fantasy book. Finally, read a translation of the oldest known manuscript of One Thousand and One Nights, and I just love these curiosities. Even if the book is not that good, just knowing how old it is and how its History is wrapped in mystery makes me love the reading itself. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RudraCNG 14,285 Posted December 23, 2021 Share Posted December 23, 2021 20 minutes ago, monster4life231 said: What were your thoughts on Animal Farm? I think Orwell has such amazing prose and I really enjoyed the tongue-in-cheek nature of the book. I really enjoyed it and yeah, Orwell has incredible ways to build a history from his political views, although sometimes it left me a bad taste in my mouth (Snowball, for example, or the fact that no matter how hard you fight against it, the system will always win). Of course it was completely intentional, as it was on 1984. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SharkmanthaC 111,552 Posted December 23, 2021 Share Posted December 23, 2021 The only book I've read that hasn't been about education this year is House of Gucci (actually not quite finished with it). It's a decent read if you're interested in the history of the family, etc. she/her/hers Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moonlight on Water 13,767 Posted December 23, 2021 Share Posted December 23, 2021 2 hours ago, monster4life231 said: I went to Haworth earlier this year which is where the Bronte sisters lived. I was going to buy Wuthering Heights while I was there, but I didn't end up getting it. However, I love the Kate Bush song so I might end up reading it! You have to!! It's such a fascinating book, and I envy you for going there she/her Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Born This Way 1,764 Posted December 23, 2021 Share Posted December 23, 2021 I didn't read any books this year even though I bought six of the most popular recommendations from gay book tiktok. Summer Sons by Lee Mandelo Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller Carry On by Rainbow Rowell Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas Maurice by E. M. Foster And the first book in the new Star Wars series Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule I think if I just make myself start Red, White, and Royal Blue, I'll be on a roll and read all of them. But I really want to read that first cuz it seems like the one that's most my type of book. Avada Kedavra I speak to destroy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nite 4,744 Posted December 23, 2021 Share Posted December 23, 2021 I had three favorites this year, none of them came out in 2021 though I think: Children of Time Spoiler Imagine a scientist trying to "re-do" evolution by dropping some apes and a virus to speed up evolution on a fresh, earth-like planet. Except something goes wrong and the virus hits spiders instead of apes. Jeder kann zum Mörder werden (English title would be something like "Everyone can become a murderer"; the book hasn't been translated that I know of) This one's written by a forensic psychologist and was fascinating. It explains some real cases where people turned into murderers and it makes clear that it could theoretically really be everyone. Anansi Boys I love Neil Gaiman so much and this one was so precious. The characters were adorable and different and I didn't see the plot coming. This quote from the book was one of my favorites: Spoiler Each person who ever was or is or will be has a song. It isn't a song that anybody else wrote. It has its own melody, it has its own words. Very few people get to sing their song. Most of us fear that we cannot do it justice with our voices, or that our words are too foolish or too honest, or too odd. So people live their song instead. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mother of Puppies 35,572 Posted December 23, 2021 Share Posted December 23, 2021 I only read 2 books this year during my summer vacation. One was House of Gucci, which was soooo interesting & I also read „an unquiet mind“ by Kay Redfield Jamison. I must say I enjoyed HOG way more than the other one which was kinda depressing tbh THEY CALL ME LADY MOP Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grace 346 Posted January 1, 2022 Share Posted January 1, 2022 On 12/23/2021 at 4:43 PM, Born This Way said: Carry On by Rainbow Rowell THIS IS MY SHIIIIIIIIIIIT ITS SO GOOD I REREAD THIS WHOLE SERIES THIS YEAR LOL Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SevenWonder 3,691 Posted January 1, 2022 Share Posted January 1, 2022 My friend's novel: "U, Up?" by Catie Disabato. It's an amazing read and was on the NY Times list of best mystery novels of the year. Fun fact: Not only is Catie a fantastic writer, she's the person who turned me into a Gaga stan during ARTPOP! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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