2023 reading list

I here present, rather late, another instalment of my yearly reading list. Again, these are the books I finished reading this year, but I may have begun them previously.

• Sands and Starlight, Charlotte E. English
• Arm of the Sphinx, Josiah Bancroft
• The Crimes of England, G.K. Chesterton
• Call of the Bone Ships, R.J. Barker
• Rob Roy, Walter Scott
• Nevernight, Jay Kristoff
• Judah the Pious, Francine Prose
• Rumi, Farrukh Dhondy
• In Defense of Sanity, G.K. Chesterton, ed. Ahlquist, Mackie, and Pearce [reread]
• The Hod King, Josiah Bancroft
• Essays, G.K. Chesterton
• North! Or Be Eaten, Andrew Peterson
• Tigana, Guy Gavriel Kay
• The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More, Roald Dahl [reread]
• The Blade Itself, Joe Abercrombie
• The Art of Reading Poetry, Harold Bloom
• The Imagist Poem, ed. William Pratt
• The Victorian Age in Literature, G.K. Chesterton
• 101 Folktales from India, ed. Eunice de Souza
• House of Scepters, Anne Zoelle
• Shadow and Bone, Leigh Bardugo
• Pirates of the Levant, Arturo Pérez-Reverte, trans. Margaret Jull Costa
• Chesterton and Tolkien as Theologians, Allison Milbank
• Dune, Frank Herbert [reread]
• The Books of Great Alta, Jane Yolen
• The Innocence of Father Brown, G.K. Chesterton [reread]
• The Everlasting Man, G.K. Chesterton [reread]
• Three Hearts and Three Lions, Poul Anderson
• Caraval, Stephanie Garber
• Forge of the High Mage, Ian C. Esslemont
• Before They Are Hanged, Joe Abercrombie
• On the Study of Words, Richard Trench
• The Narrow Road Between Desires, Patrick Rothfuss
• Meeting the Protestant Response, Karlo Broussard
• Walking to Mojácar, Di Brandt

By my count, 38. Not as many as I had hoped, but there were a number of life circumstances which I will use as handy scapegoats.

As per usual, I apprend a few notes and highlights from the year:

• Quite a number of rereads again this year, but I’m not troubled by it. The re-experiencing of some of these books was a delight. Dune I barely remembered, and it was fascinating to compare it to the new Denis Villeneuve movie (plus, it makes me even more excited for Part Two this year!). Henry Sugar was just as good as I remembered, and I would recommend it to anyone and everyone.
• Ian Esslemont’s new book was a surprise—I hadn’t realized it was out until I saw it in a bookstore. Of course I bought it immediately. It was fun to return to the Malazan world.
• Joe Abercrombie’s First Law trilogy was exceptionally good. A review may be in order…stay tuned.
• Bancroft and Barker’s books were worthy continuations of their individual series. In fact, I read a lot of good fantasy this year. Garber’s Caraval was another—I admit I hadn’t expected it to be as great as it was. Highly recommended.
• There is of course much controversy over the whole Pat Rothfuss…thing. Leaving that aside here, I will only say that Narrow Road is very good. Quintessential Rothfussian prose, and it’s been too long since I’ve read any of that.
• There were a number of poetry books/books about poetry on this list. I feel my own writing has been lacking this year, but hopefully the reading I’ve done will be fuel for much more in 2024.
• I’m not sure I can pick a single favourite from the year, so I won’t.

All that said, thank you for reading. A very happy and book-filled 2024 to you all!

2022 reading list

Once again, I return to this blog to share my reads for 2022—all the books I finished last year. Without further ado, the list, roughly in order:

• Senlin Ascends, Josiah Bancroft
• Circe, Madeleine Miller
• Sidewinders, Robert V.S. Redick
• Father of Dragons, L.B. Graham
• Utopia of Usurers, G.K. Chesterton
• All My Holy Mountain, L.B. Graham
• Muse of Nightmares, Laini Taylor
• On the Sharp Edge of North, Walfried Jansen
• Children of Earth and Sky, Guy Gavriel Kay
• Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Laini Taylor
• Sherwood, Jane Yolen (editor)
• Poetic Diction, Owen Barfield
• Les Miserables, Victor Hugo
• The Slow Regard of Silent Things, Patrick Rothfuss (reread)
• The Court of the Air, Stephen Hunt
• The Story of Kullervo, J.R.R. Tolkien (edited by Verlyn Flieger)
• Hrolf Kraki’s Saga, Poul Anderson
• The Ruling Sea, Robert V.S. Redick
• The Idea of a University Defined and Illustrated, John Henry Newman
• The Bone Ships, R.J. Barker
• Bones of Faerie, Janni Lee Simner
• Down Among the Sticks and Bones, Seanan McGuire
• The Last Light of the Sun, Guy Gavriel Kay
• The New Jerusalem, G.K. Chesterton
• The Name of the Wind, Patrick Rothfuss (reread)
• The Wise Man’s Fear, Patrick Rothfuss (reread)
• Thoughts, Marcus Aurelius Antoninus
• The Kingless Crown, Sarah M. Cradit
• The Thousand Deaths of Ardor Benn, Tyler Whitesides
• The River of Shadows, Robert V.S. Redick
• The Waste Land and other poems, T.S. Eliot
• Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus, Ludwig Wittgenstein
• A Short History of England, G.K. Chesterton
• The Club of Queer Trades, G.K. Chesterton (reread)
• All the Seas of the World, Guy Gavriel Kay
• The Napoleon of Notting Hill, G.K. Chesterton (reread)
• The Man Who was Thursday, G.K. Chesterton (reread)
• On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness, Andrew Peterson (reread)
• The Language of Creation, Mathieu Pageau
• Keys to the Kingdom, Garth Nix (reread)
• Alarms and Discursions, G.K. Chesterton (reread)
• Li Po and Tu Fu, Arthur Cooper (translator)
• Soul of the World, David Mealing
• Tae Te Ching, Lao Tzu, translated by Victor H. Mair
• Meditations, Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, translated by J. Boulton and David Widger
• Spiritual Sayings, Kahlil Gibran
• What I Saw in America, G.K. Chesterton
• The Night of the Swarm, Robert V.S. Redick
• All Things Considered, G.K. Chesterton (reread)

As per usual, I append a few observations. Upon review, I noticed that there are quite a few rereads in last year’s list. I feel vaguely disappointed by this; while I feel the force of C.S. Lewis’ comment that no one enjoys a book and only reads it once, nevertheless I am sometimes plagued by the feeling that there are just so many more good reads out there, and that I can’t waste any time on rereading. I suppose a balance is needed, as it is in most things. We shall see what 2023 brings.

I won’t belabour this post with mini-reviews; it’s already late enough. Here, then, is a list of standout reads, for one reason or another:

• I started the year with a bang; the first three books of the year were all new books, and all fantastic.
• Robert V.S. Redick became a staple during 2022; everything I’ve read by him, I recommend. Well written, complex, dramatic high fantasy.
• Likewise, I will always recommend Patrick Rothfuss. Much needed rereads.
• Once again, a lot of G.K. Chesterton. Don’t expect this to change.
• In fact, probably my favourite book of the year was Chesterton’s The Napoleon of Notting Hill. I’d read it before, loved it, and wondered if it would hold up. It did. Wow. Possibly my favourite novel, bar none.
• That seems a crazy thing to say when I read Les Miserables this year. Also a phenomenal read. I understand how it can be called the best novel ever. Just unbelievable, powerful, emotional, dramatic, human, a pleasure to read.
• Poul Anderson’s Hrolf Kraki’s Saga was excellent. This seems to be a thing of Anderson’s—a retelling of a Nordic saga. So, a great starting point—and well executed. The prose fits the subject matter—I often found myself underlining novel words and great turns of phrase.
• Guy Gavriel Kay never disappoints. He is another of the few authors I will read without hesitation or concern for quality.
• Finally, a quick list of other memorable reads (some of whom may eventually show up in reviews on this site): Laini Taylor, R.J. Barker, Tyler Whitesides, Mathieu Pageau, Garth Nix, David Mealing.

Thank you all for reading; here’s to a bookfull 2023!

2021 reading list

As I have for the last four years now, I once again present the list of books I finished reading this year, plus some commentary at the end.

2020 reading list

As I have before, I once again present my reading list for 2020. I first list the books I read (in roughly chronological order), and then make a few observations and comments.

• The Ruin of Kings — Jenn Lyons
• The Sharded Boy — L. Darby Gibbs
• The Man Who was Orthodox — G.K. Chesterton
• Cards of Grief — Jane Yolen
• Frey — Melissa Wright
• Liberal Fascism — Jonah Goldberg
• Faerie Fruit — Charlotte E. English
• New Spring — Robert Jordan
• Tenured Radicals — Roger Kimball
• A God in Chains — Matthew Hughes
• Song of Blood and Stone — L. Penelope
• Sister Emily’s Lightship — Jane Yolen
• The Road — Cormac McCarthy
• Avowals and Denials — G.K. Chesterton
• The Laughing Prophet — Emile Cammaerts
• Sir Gawain and the Green Knight — J.R.R. Tolkien
• The Palace of Lost Memories — C.J. Archer
• Bringer of Storms — L.B. Graham [reread]
• Fire and Sword — Dylan Doose
• The Sounds of Poetry — Robert Pinsky [reread?]
• A Wind in the Door — Madeleine L’Engle
• The Saint’s Rise — Michael Grist
• The Four Gospels from a Lawyer’s Standpoint — Edmund Hatch Bennett
• Collected Works Vol. X: Collected Poetry Part 2 — G.K. Chesterton
• The Strongman and the Mermaid — Kathleen Shoop
• The Jews — Hilaire Belloc
• The Lay of Aotrou and Itroun — J.R.R. Tolkien, ed. Verlyn Flieger
• Good Day! — Paul J. Batura
• Beyond This Dark House — Guy Gavriel Kay
• St. Thomas Aquinas — G.K. Chesterton [reread]
• The Black Earth trilogy — M.S. Verish
• The Club of Queer Trades — G.K. Chesterton
• Tales from the Perilous Realm — J.R.R. Tolkien
• The Man Who Knew Too Much — G.K. Chesterton
• A Swiftly Tilting Planet — Madeleine L’Engle
• Collected Works Vol. X: Collected Poetry Part 3 — G.K. Chesterton
• To Kill a Fae — Jamie A. Waters
• Shadow in the Deep — L.B. Graham [reread]
• The Guns of Ivrea — Clifford Beal
• The Father Brown Stories — G.K. Chesterton
• Many Waters — Madeleine L’Engle
• An Acceptable Time — Madeleine L’Engle
• The Darker Road — L.B. Graham
• The Spice of Life — G.K. Chesterton
• Haiku Harvest — Peter Beilenson, editor/translator
• Poetry as Liturgy — Margo Swiss, editor

*

Now for some comments. I came just short of my low-key goal of 50 books. To be perfectly honest, this is due in large part to my increased amount of video-game consumption. I hope to get more good reading in this year, though.

Once again, and to no surprise, G.K. Chesterton tops my most-read authors list. This, I warn the reader, will likely continue for years to come. I intend to read all of GKC’s works by the time I die, and it might take that long. But more than that, he and his writing are always refreshing and encouraging to me; I sometimes find myself feeling down or disturbed, and realize I haven’t read any Chesterton in a while. And there’s always more GKC to read.

I was about to link to my post on Chesterton, when I realized I don’t have one yet. Shameful. I’ll get one up this year—call it a resolution.

As in the past few years, fantasy has been the most-read genre on my list. I do not mind this either. A number of these fantasy works have been rather obscure, one might say; this is due partly to my use of BookBub, which provides me with lists of discounted ebooks, and my possession of a Kobo e-reader. As an aside, I have thoughts on e-readers; I’ll have to make a post about that at some point as well.

Anyways, another significant part of my reading this year has been poetry. The larger part of this has been G.K. Chesterton again; the two volumes of collected poetry are hefty tomes. But some of the Tolkien, the Kay, and of course the last two entries on the list are also poetry. Plus there was Pinsky’s The Sounds of Poetry, which I may have previously read and forgotten, but which this time round was immensely helpful.

Another minor trend in my reading has been some non-fiction. In terms of books, particularly at the start of the year, but all throughout the year I have of course been reading academic articles for school and thesis research. I used to read almost exclusively non-fiction as a boy; last year I enjoyed the books I read, and hope to read more non-fiction this year.

Perhaps because of my increased rate of poetry consumption, I have suddenly started writing poetry this year. I’ve dabbled for years, but this year it suddenly became more serious, as it were. Since writing is rather the inverse of reading, I will not discuss it further here (I have already, for instance here, and I intend to post more poetry in the future).

A proper favourites-of-the-year post may come in the following days, but for now, I’ll just note a few of the standouts. Chesterton’s work, of course, but especially the poems, some of which are phenomenal. The Father Brown stories are classics that I thoroughly enjoyed. Jane Yolen’s writing is generally exceptional, especially the short-story collection Sister Emily’s Lightship. Revisiting Robert Jordan’s world via New Spring was particularly enjoyable as well. Clifford Beal’s The Guns of Ivrea was swashbuckling good fun. And on the theme of reading more poetry this year, I’ve really come to love haiku, such as those in Peter Beilenson’s edited volumes. Reading some new Tolkien was a delight, as well.

*

Well, that’s a random bunch of comments. But it was fun to revisit in memory this year’s reading. If you’ve made it this far, thank you! And all best wishes for a happy and reading-filled new year!

2019 reading list

Hello, I’m back! Happy New Year!

As I have done for the last few years, this year I kept a record of the books I read (or more precisely, that I finished from Jan. 1 through Dec. 31 of 2019). And as I have done for the last few years, I again present that list here, with a few comments afterwards.

• Truthwitch — Susan Dennard
• Twelve Types — G.K. Chesterton
• The Emperor’s Edge (Emperor’s Edge #1) — Lindsay Buroker
• Poems — G.K. Chesterton
• Dark Currents (Emperor’s Edge #2) — Lindsay Buroker
• Greybeards at Play — G.K. Chesterton
• The Philosophy of Tolkien — Peter Kreeft
• The Innocence of Father Brown — G.K. Chesterton
• Provocations — Sybil Bristowe
• Deadly Games (Emperor’s Edge #3) — Lindsay Buroker
• Eugenics and Other Evils — G.K. Chesterton (reread)
• Prayer: Why Our Words to God Matter — Corey Russell
• The Song of Achilles — Madeleine Miller
• Godhunter — Amy Sumida
• Scholastic Metaphysics — Edward Feser
• Dancer’s Lament (Path to Ascendancy #1) — Ian C. Esslemont (reread)
• Deadhouse Landing (Path to Ascendancy #2) — Ian C. Esslemont (reread)
• Kellanved’s Reach (Path to Ascendancy #3) — Ian C. Esslemont
• Analytic Philosophy: A Very Short Introduction — Michael Beaney
• On Nothing and Related Subjects — Hilaire Belloc
• The Weight of Glory — C.S. Lewis
• What We Can’t Not Know — J. Budzisziewski
• The Trees of Pride — G.K. Chesterton
• Duskfall — Christopher Husberg
• The Four Men: A Farrago — Hilaire Belloc
• The Fionavar Tapestry — Guy Gavriel Kay (reread)
• Pure: Philosophy, Modernity, and the One — Mark Anderson
• Hakon of Rogen’s Saga — Erik Christian Haugaard
• Fear of Knowledge — Paul Boghossian
• Labyrinth — Kate Mosse
• Heretics — G.K. Chesterton (reread)
• Beauty: A Very Short Introduction — Roger Scruton
• A Slave’s Tale — Erik Christian Haugaard
• String City — Graham Edwards
• Letter to a Suffering Church — Bishop Robert Barron
• Real Essentialism — David Oderberg
• Meditations on Middle-Earth — Karen Haber (ed.)
• Rejoice, a Knife to the Heart — Steven Erikson
• Five Proofs of the Existence of God — Edward Feser
• Making a Poem — Miller Williams
• The Half-Made World — Felix Gilman
• Feeling and Form — Susanne Langer
• Art and Scholasticism and The Frontiers of Poetry — Jacques Maritain (trans. Joseph Evans)
• The Rape of the Masters — Roger Kimball
• The Everlasting Man — G.K. Chesterton (reread)
• Essays by Modern Masters — E.V. Rieu (ed.)
• The Poetic World of Classic Korean Women Writers — Lee Hai-soon
• When the Heavens Fall — Marc Turner
• The League of the Long Bow — G.K. Chesterton
• A Wrinkle in Time — Madeleine L’Engle
• The Structure of Objects — Kathryn Koslicki
• Beyond the Summerland (The Binding of the Blade #1) — L.B. Graham (reread)

Once again, G.K. Chesterton leads the list of most-read authors. I doubt this will change any time soon. He wrote too much, and I love him too much, to expect it to change.
And again, fantasy is the top genre, although I think I read a wider range of genres this year than I typically have in the past. I also read a decent number of philosophy books, which I hope to continue doing.
(As an aside in a similar vein, it probably doesn’t need to be said, but just in case, I also read numerous articles, blog posts, and academic papers throughout the year. But for whatever reason, they don’t feel like they should make the list, whether because it seems like illegitimate list-padding, or because I don’t want to laboriously keep track of absolutely everything I read, or because you should read real books, darnit!)

Anyways, a few hit-and-run highlights and special mentions. Chesterton, obviously, was insightful, entertaining, and wise as ever. Lindsay Buroker’s Emperor’s Edge series was surprisingly fun, but I haven’t read past the first three books yet. The Fionavar Tapestry was as good as I remembered, and I’ll have a re-review posted soon. Miller’s The Song of Achilles was compelling; I blazed through it in short order—very much a “can’t-put-it-down” read. Esslemont’s Path to Ascendancy trilogy was everything I hoped it would be. Gilman’s The Half-Made World was dark, disturbing, but ultimately a good story with delightful world-building. I’d been wanting to read L’Engle’s Wrinkle in Time series for quite a while, and was glad to finally get started; I’ll be continuing it in during 2020. Mark Anderson’s Pure was also a delight to read, thoughtful and provocative. C.S. Lewis’ The Weight of Glory, a book of some of his sermons and lectures, was also dense with deep ideas and profundity—I’ll have to go back to both of these books and reread them.

One real surprise was Graham Edwards’ String City—a truly enjoyable read, in a genre that I don’t often read. Actually, a rather unique mash-up of genres that I doubt many read at all. String City is a kind of wild science-fiction detective story; that makes it sound like Sherlock Holmes in space, but trust me, it’s much more bizarre (and much more wonderful) than that. This was one of my top books of the year.

I also really enjoyed Erik Christian Haugaard’s two-book series, set on the fictional island of Rogen during the Viking period. But I have already written about those books elsewhere.

Also, I read more books than last year—finally getting that total over fifty again! While I don’t really need a goal to keep me reading, and while having a goal can cause me to focus less on enjoying the reading or make me hurry through a book too fast, it’s still fun to look back—it’s satisfying, and also makes for a short but enjoyable trip down memory lane.

Onwards! I have more reading to do—some of it planned, but most of it not. (I’ve already got one book down—and a pretty good one, too!) I’m excited to see what I’ll end up reading, and what treasures I’ll discover. Let’s meet up again next year!

2018 Reading List

As I did last year, I here post a list of the books I read in 2018. I didn’t read as many books as I had hoped; I was hoping to read more than 2017, but for various reasons, mostly involving busyness, it didn’t happen. Hopefully 2019 is an even more prolific year.

The books are listed roughly in chronological order by finish date.

Deadhouse Landing — Ian C. Esslemont

The Lightning Tree [reread] — Patrick Rothfuss

Oathbringer — Brandon Sanderson

Song of Susannah — Stephen King

Gilgamesh — trans. Herbert Mason

The Ballad of the White Horse — G.K. Chesterton

The Dark Tower — Stephen King

The Lies of Locke Lamora [reread] — Scott Lynch

Sword of the Rightful King — Jane Yolen

The Ball and the Cross — G.K. Chesterton

Discourse on Method and the Meditations — René Descartes, trans. F.E. Sutcliffe

The Dark Foundations (series) [reread] — Chris Walley

Harry Potter (series) — J.K. Rowling

Manalive — G.K. Chesterton

The Flying Inn — G.K. Chesterton

El Liberalismo es Peccado (Liberalism is a Sin) — Fr. Felix Sardà y Salvany, trans. Conde B. Pallen

Weaveworld — Clive Barker

On Tour (series) [reread] — Barb Huff

White as Milk, Red as Blood —Franz Xavier von Schönwerth, trans Shelley Tanaka

The Dhammapada — trans. Juan Mascaró

Martin Buber’s Ten Rungs — Martin Buber

Magical Symbols — Frederick Goodman

The Sarantine Mosaic (series) — Guy Gavriel Kay

The Ballad of the White Horse [reread] — G.K. Chesterton

Critique of Pure Music — James O. Young

In Defense of Sanity — G.K. Chesterton

Animal Farm — George Orwell

Defiant Joy — Kevin Belmonte

Philosophy in a New Key — Susanne K. Langer

The Defendant — G.K. Chesterton

The Lord of the Rings — J.R.R. Tolkien

Children of the Nameless — Brandon Sanderson

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As before, just a few comments and reflections on the list. My reading this year was dominated by three main trends, which reflect my interests nicely—fantasy, philosophy, and Chesterton. I intend to keep up my reading in all three of these areas.

This year was the first time that I’d ever read J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series. It was long overdue, I thought—I felt that I really needed to read works that had become such a cultural touchstone. And I very much enjoyed them! I was excited to read each book, more so than I’ve been for quite a while.

This year I also finished reading Stephen King’s Dark Tower series (began in 2017). Weird as it was, I enjoyed it as well. Somehow, King’s massively referential collage style works.

I read Clive Barker’s Weaveworld, which has long been on my radar—ever since I read an advertisement for it in the back pages of my copy of The Lord of the Rings when I was probably eleven or twelve. I finally got to reading it after finding it at a booksale, and while it wasn’t quite what I expected, it was decent.

A bit of a sleeper hit this year was Guy Gavriel Kay’s The Sarantine Mosaic. Upon finishing it, I knew I enjoyed it (I think I’ve enjoyed everything I’ve read from Kay so far), but it’s recently come back into my mind, and I’ve been thinking about it a bit more lately. I think I’m starting to appreciate it even more now, somehow. I don’t think I’ll reread it anytime soon, but I do want to read more from Kay. This year I hope to reread his Fionavar Tapestry, which I remember being very good.

One area in which I hope to read more is philosophy, especially given that I’m now officially in a university philosophy program. One difficulty I foresee is that most of the reading assigned in coursework is not books but articles, which I’m not including on my reading lists. Of course, this is a logical choice for assigned reading, but it does tend to reduce one’s free time that could be spent reading.

A second area in which I really should read more is just “old books.” C.S. Lewis once suggested that people should alternate reading old and new books, or at the least, one old book for every three new ones [from his Introduction to Athanasius’ On the Incarnation]. I read a handful of old books this last year, but not even close to one in four (I’m sorry, Professor Lewis).

Anyway, on to a new year of more reading, fun, learning, and truth!