If You Read Anything in 2023, Read These
My top five favourite books of 2022
The struggle to pick up a book this year was unreal. I won’t make the excuse that I had a lot going on because eBooks exist, and I’m always on my phone. I’ll probably get one or two more books read by the end of the year, so I wanted to wrap up 2022 with my top five favourite novels.
We Spread by Iain Reid
“This lie is one about life, that we need more of it, that we need to be more productive, produce more, that it has to be longer, that death is the enemy. It’s not true. Infinity is a breathtaking mystery, or so I used to believe. Now I know it’s not. Infinity is stagnant. It doesn’t expand. It can’t. It’s just immeasurable. It’s not a mystery, it’s simply endless.”
I had the honour of reading this early, thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Scout Press.
This one surprised me because I haven’t had much luck with Reid’s stories. It’s possible they go over my head, but the simplistic writing style makes me feel like it shouldn’t.
The topic of this book is actually quite interesting. It discusses what it feels like to be in a nursing home. The choppy prose makes you feel like whatever the main character is going through is a fever dream. You never know which conversations are real and which ones are in her head. I wouldn’t consider this horror, but the topic is definitely horrifying if you’re not prepared.
All the Broken Places by John Boyne
“It was … difficult at first,’ he said. ‘I am a person. But I seemed to forget in time …’ ‘Forget what?’ ‘That they were people too.”
I read this early, thanks to NetGalley and Pamela Dorman Books.
I read and watched The Boy in the Striped Pajamas back in 2019 for a readathon I was participating in, and as sad as the story is, I didn’t much care for it. However, I was interested in the follow-up to that story because it was adult historical fiction, which is more up my alley.
All the Broken Places follows Gretal Fernsby, now in her early nineties, whose father was the commandant of one of the Reich’s notorious extermination camps. She is trying to be a better person after discovering how awful her family was while she was a child. The characters in this novel are so fleshed out and intriguing, the writing is well-done, and the chapters are extremely short, which are all reasons I had to add it to this list.
The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon
“When history fails to shed light on the truth, myth creates its own.”
I don’t read a lot of fantasy, but I’ve had this book on my shelves since it came out, so I decided to buddy-read it with a few friends. I had to read at least three chapters to grasp what was going on and who was who, but it was smooth sailing from there.
The Priory of the Orange Tree is hard to describe to people, as there isn’t a single plot point. The reader follows multiple characters at different times in their lives and their placement in this specific universe. However, the fun part about this novel is that you never know which character will be your favourite. Shannon is not afraid to crush your soul, but that has not stopped me from requesting the early copy of the prequel, A Day of Fallen Night.
The Prettiest Star by Carter Sickels
“We live our lives not realizing which moments are special or which are ordinary — what will we remember, what memories will we try to grab onto, to hold close? All of these moments that make up a life.”
I picked this up after being recommended to me. The Prettiest Star is a story about Brian and his journey dealing with AIDS, set during the AIDS epidemic in the 80s, showcased to the reader through the eyes of Brian’s family.
You will hate almost everyone in this book. Your heart will shatter for Brian, but you must make it to the end. I’m sure most cried at the end, which was a selling point for me, but I didn’t. That doesn’t mean I didn’t love it, regardless.
The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
“It is dull enough to confuse the eye in following, pronounced enough to constantly irritate and provoke study, and when you follow the lame uncertain curves for a little distance, they suddenly commit suicide — plunge off at outrageous angles, destroy themselves in unheard of contradictions.”
The Yellow Wallpaper is less than 100 pages, but it is the only book I rated five stars this year. This magical, disturbing story left me wanting more. I know this won’t be for everyone, as the writing style is hard to get into, but I will recommend it until the cows come home.
If you’re unsure what this is about, I’ll give a brief description. A couple rents a house for the summer to get some rest, but it ends up a psychological nightmare for the woman.
If you get to the end of the book and hate it, read the Afterward that Elaine R. Hedges writes. It discusses Gilman’s life and how easy it was for women to descend into madness due to oppression and discouragement from men and sometimes women. A topic that will forever be relevant.
