2017, a year in reading

It’s been quite some time since the last time I wrote an entry for the blog and all I can say is that it was a really busy year and I learned a really valuable lesson: “If you try to accomplish too much you will end up fulfilling too little”

This year, things are going to be a little different, instead of trying to write a blog entry and review of every book I read I will write only a really good and in depth review of my favorite books, I am not yet the talented writer I long to become and I don’t write as fast as I read, so, with that said here is my year in reading 2017:

The Favorites

I found “Eating Animals” by Jonathan Safran Foer and “The heart of the Buddha’s Teachings” by Thich Nhat Hanh to be two of the most beautiful books I have read in a long time, these two where so good I had to read them twice. Both have the potential to change your life dramatically for the better.

Best books

“Everything is Iluminated” by Jonathan Safran Foer was amazing, beautifully narrated and magically engaging it was mind blowing.

“The Penguin Lessons” by Tom Michell is a beautiful and heartbreaking story about kindness and empathy towards other people and nature, I loved it.

“1984” by George Orwell, it’s the ninth time I’ve read this book and each time it feels more relevant, it’s scary to admit that Oceania’s Ingsoc is looking more plausible each passing day.

“A brief history of time” by Stephen Hawking was an incredible trip in outer space and science, definitely will read it again and again.

The Best Graphic Novels

“Kingdom Come” by Mark Waid and Alex Ross is a masterpiece in every way, the juxtaposition of common people and the power of their faith against the super humans and the power of their might is amazing.

“The Umbrella Academy: The Apocalypse Suite” by Gerard Way and Garbiel Bá is one of my favorite graphic novels of all time, Way’s narrative and Bá’s Illustrations make it one captivating mind bending ride.

“Daytripper” by Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá is a beautiful story about life and the infinite possibilities that make life so frail and also so precious.

“Low: The Delirium of hope” by Rick Remender and Greg Tocchini is one incredibly compelling sci-fi story both visually and narratively exploring the depths of human nature in a world that is plummeting into it’s inevitable death.

The Strangest

The “Southern Reach Trilogy” by Jeff VanderMeer were the strangest books I read this past year. “Annihilation” The first one of the three is by far the best, VanderMeer has a luscious and beautiful narrative and his detailed descriptions make the strange environment of Area X come alive. “Authority” the second book is a little dull and slow paced but it is essential to learn about what the Southern Reach is. And finally “Acceptance” the third book is the strangest of the third, it will leave you wondering about what the hell have you just read. All in all the trilogy was very good and I enjoyed reading it very much.

The disappointment

After his Nobel Prize announcement my girlfriend and I decided to check out kazuo Ishiguro, because we hadn’t heard of him before. We went to our favorite book store and picked up “Never Let me go”. I am wondering if we picked up the wrong book to start reading Ishiguro because I found the book to be a total disappointment, the characters were so washed up and lifeless that everything seemed pointless, I couldn’t care less for the fate of Kathy or her two “friends”. The book lacked soul, purpose and passion. I specially disliked the dialogues because they felt so unnatural and fabricated, no character had a true voice of their own. I Guess I’ll have to read “Remains of the Day” to be absolutely sure if I dislike Ishiguro or not.

In total I read 30 books and 18 graphic novels in 12 months (48/12), somewhere around 3,804,694 words read in 317 hours, that’s less than just one hour a day. (My reading speed is 200 words per minute).

If your reading speed is slower, even as slow as 100 words per minute it means that you could potentially read 24 books in a year with just one hour of reading every day.

This is a good moment to pick up a book at your local book store and star reading every day. Let me know about your year in reading.

Happy readings!

The complete list

This is the complete list in descending rating order of all the books I read this year, If you want to discuss any of them feel free to contact me:

Rating Guide:
★★★★★ (Loved this book)
★★★★ (Liked this book a lot)
★★★ (Liked this book)
★★ (This book was ok)
★ (Didn’t like this book)
(hours:minutes estimated to read this book)

Books

1. The Penguin Lessons. Tom Michel ★★★★★ (6:12)
2. Everything is Illuminated. Jonathan Safran Foer ★★★★★ (7:26)
3. A Brief History of Time. Stephen Hawking ★★★★★ (5:28)
4. 1984. George Orwell ★★★★★ (7:24)
5. The Heart of the Buddha’s Teachings. Thich Nhat Hanh ★★★★★ (7:51)
6. Eating Animals. Jonathan Safran Foer ★★★★★ (9:05)
7. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. Jonathan Safran Foer ★★★★★ (9:30)
8. Here I am. Jonathan Safran Foer ★★★★★ (15:17)
9. The ONE Thing. Gary Keller ★★★★ (6:12)
10. Change by Design. Tim Brown ★★★★ (7:01)
11. Creative Confidence. Tom Kelley ★★★★ (7:51)
12. Spark Joy. Marie Kondo ★★★★ (7:51)
13. Annihilation. Jeff VanderMeer ★★★★ (5:22)
14. The Dharma Bums. Jack Kerouac ★★★★ (4:49)
15. The Satanic Verses. Salman Rushdie ★★★ (14:52)
16. Siddharta. Hermann Hesse ★★★ (4:08)
17. Knock-out (three short stories of boxing). Jack London ★★★ (1:37)
18. The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. Marie Kondo ★★★ (5:47)
19. My Spiritual Journey. Dalai Lama XIV ★★★ (7:51)
20. Big Magic. Elizabeth Gilbert ★★★ (7:51)
21. Stages of Meditation. Dalai Lama XIV ★★★ (5:34)
22. El Aleph. Jorge Luis Borges ★★★ (5:47)
23. Acceptance. Jeff VanderMeer ★★★ (9:05)
24. Beasts of No Nation. Uzodinma Iweala ★★ (3:40)
25. Minimalism: Live a Meaningful Life. Joshua Fields Millburn ★★ (3:37)
26. Cien años de soledad. Gabriel García Márquez ★★ (10:46)
27. Authority. Jeff VanderMeer ★★ (9:05)
28. Casa de los Espíritus. Isabel Allende ★ (12:48)
29. 100 Days of Happiness. Fausto Brizzi ★ (9:55)
30. Never Let Me Go. Kazuo Ishiguro ★ (7:26)

Graphic Novels

1. Kingdom Come. Mark Waid & Alex Ross ★★★★★ (5:59)
2. The Umbrella Academy, vol.1: The Apocalypse Suite. Gerard Way & Gabriel Bá ★★★★★ (4:45)
3. Daytripper. Fábio Moon & Gabriel Bá ★★★★★ (6:36)
4. Federal Bureau of Physics, Vol. 1: The Paradigm Shift. Simon Oliver & Robbi Rodriguez ★★★★★ (4:08)
5. Batman: The Dark Knight Returns. Frank Miller ★★★★★ (5:47)
6. Low, Vol. 1: The Delirium of Hope. Rick Remender & Greg Tocchini ★★★★★ (3:43)
7. Batman/Superman, Vol. 1: Cross World. Greg Pak & Jae Lee ★★★★★ (3:43)
8. Batman: The Dark Knight Strikes Again. Frank Miller ★★★★★ (6:36)
9. Fables, Vol. 2: Animal Farm. Bill Willingham & Mark Buckingham ★★★★★ (3:18)
10. Batman: The Black Mirror. Scott Snyder, Jock & Francesco Francavilla ★★★★ (7:51)
11. Saga of the Swamp Thing: Book One. Alan Moore & Stephen R. Bissette ★★★★ (5:22)
12. The Sandman, vol.1: Preludes & Nocturnes. Neil Gaiman & Sam Kieth ★★★★ (6:12)
13. American Vampire, Vol.1. Scott Snyder, Stephen King & Rafael Albuquerque ★★★★ (5:10)
14. Batman: The Killing Joke. Alan Moore & Brian Bolland ★★★★ (1:39)
15. Fables, Vol. 1: Legends in Exile. Bill Willingham & Lan Medina ★★★★ (3:43)
16. The Umbrella Academy, vol.2: Dallas. Gerard Way & Gabriel Bá ★★★ (4:45)
17. Hellblazer, Vol. 1: Original Sins. Jamie Delano & Rick Veitch ★★★ (7:51)
18. The Woods, Vol. 1: The Arrow. James Tynion IV & Michael Dialynas ★★ (2:28)

Thank you for reading.