This was a busy year for me and my books. I read more and wrote more and shared a bit of both here with you. I’d been meaning to get more purposeful with my blogging for years, and this is the first time I’ve ever actually been able to commit to that goal long enough to do it.
I learned a lot–I’m still learning. I’m not sure how to personalize this site they way I want. I’m not sure how to best expand my repertoire of posts. I’m not sure if my reviews strike the right tone. I mean, if you think about it, it’s pretty daunting to try and review something 10, 30, or even 100 years old. What can I say that hasn’t been said?
But I’m doing my best to try and keep things interesting. Though I’m not sure how many of you I’m reaching, either. Another goal for 2015, I think.
Originally, I made it my goal with this site to review everything I read as I read it, and I’m sorry to say I failed there. Sometimes a book took me too long and sometimes I wasn’t sure what to say about it. Sometimes I forgot or I wanted to rewrite an older review instead. And sometimes I was just too excited about the newest book to have enough interest to go back.
Thus what you saw on the blog in 2014 is an incomplete list.
Here’s the full review of everything I read (and in some ways, a preview of what’s to come) from January to December:
- The Likeness by Tana French
- Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
- Hope: A Tragedy by Shalom Auslander
- Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates
- I Feel Bad About My Neck (and Other Thoughts on Being a Woman) by Nora Ephron
- Love Dishonor Marry Die Cherish Perish a novel by David Rakoff
- Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira
- The Secret History by Donna Tartt
- The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer 1 & 2 by Joss Whedon and Brian K. Vaughn
- The Good Girl by Mary Kubica
- The Giver by Lois Lowry
- Locke & Key: Vol. 1 & 2 by Joe Hill
- The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Vol. 1 by Alan Moore
- Boss by Mike Royko
- All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy (My only re-read of the year.)
- Hell House by Richard Matheson
- Ultimates 1 by Mark Millar
- Faithful Place by Tana French
- The Twelve Tribes of Hattie by Ayana Mathis
- Persuasion by Jane Austen
- House of Leaves by Mark Danielewski
- Kingdom Come by Mark Waid
- Ultimates 2: Vol. 1 by Mark Millar
- Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer
- Captain America: Man Out of Time by Mark Waid
Not too shabby. Well, not for me, anyway.
The comics are a recent interest and it seems I really took off with it this year. I’m still really struggling with how to review them. The art is every bit as essential as the text and sometimes I feel like I lack the vocabulary to explain how I feel about a work. I’ve been reading more, but maybe it’s time to seek out reviews, too, huh?
The point is, thanks for taking this ride with me. I’m hoping to work harder, read more, and write better in 2015. I hope you’ll stick with me.
Happy (Belated) New Year, readers!
Dammmmn girl! That’s a lot of books.