Still in the rear view
mirror: lists of “best books of 2017.”
In early December, the New
York Times published choices of its regular book reviewers. Dwight Garner, Jennifer
Senior, and Parul Sehgal listed their top 10 books of the year. Janet Maslin, a
frequent reviewer, weighed in, too.
The month before, editors of
the New York Times Book Review came up with their list of the 10 best books of
2017. Some of their choices echoed those of the newspaper’s daily reviewers
lists.
All of this end-of-year
list-making made me wonder: what makes a book a “top” choice or a “best” book?
It’s not sales figures; some of the books are little known. It is literary
merit? A whopping good story? A unique setting? A fresh perspective on culture
and politics?
Reviewing a book is
subjective. I don’t know if professional reviewers have to justify their
choices or adhere to specific criteria. Fortunately, ordinary readers (like me
and my friends) just have to say that they liked or admired a particular book. So,
in addition to noting professional reviewers’ recommendations, I offer
suggestions from some of my reader friends, a pretty discerning lot. I pay
attention to the books they favor. Books in the list below is below are diverse and intriguing. As soon as
the snow melts, I’m heading to the library to check out a few of them…
Joyce G. – A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
Helen McC – Pachinko
by Min Jin Lee; Homegoing by Yaa
Gyasi
Katherine B – Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi; The Leavers by Lisa Ko
Nancy A – A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
Pat T— My Name is Lucy Barton by Elizabeth Strout; Paper Love by Sarah Wildman
Paulette W – The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth
Graham; Less by Andrew Sean Greer
Rachel B – Orphan
Train by Christina Baker Kline; A
Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
Rob W – A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles; My Name is Lucy Barton by Elizabeth
Strout
Shannon P – Turtles All the Way Down by John
Green; A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor
Towles
Steve S –Dry by Jane Harper
Susan P – In the Woods and Faithful Place by Tana French
Trip F – Los Alamos by Joseph Kanon; A
Short Walk in the Hindu Kush by Eric Newby
(Because of space constraints, I have not included
readers’ comments on their choices.)
And if you need even more reading inspiration for
the new year, here are links to recommendations from two men I greatly
admire—leaders who make time for reading: former President Barack Obama and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. The two have something in
common: they both love to read. A few years ago, Obama
said, "Reading is important. If you know how to read then the whole world
opens up to you." Last year, Gates told The New York Times that reading, "is one of the chief ways that I
learn, and has been since I was a kid."
Here, then, are
their favorites reads.
Barack
Obama:
The Power by Naomi Alderman
Grant by Ron Chernow
Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City by Matthew Desmond
Janesville: An American Story by Amy Goldstein
Exit West by Mohsin Hamid
Five-Carat Soul by James McBride
Anything Is Possible by Elizabeth Strout
Dying: A Memoir by Cory Taylor
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward
*Bonus for hoops fans: Coach Wooden and Me by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Basketball (and Other Things) by Shea Serrano
Grant by Ron Chernow
Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City by Matthew Desmond
Janesville: An American Story by Amy Goldstein
Exit West by Mohsin Hamid
Five-Carat Soul by James McBride
Anything Is Possible by Elizabeth Strout
Dying: A Memoir by Cory Taylor
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward
*Bonus for hoops fans: Coach Wooden and Me by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Basketball (and Other Things) by Shea Serrano
Bill
Gates: This list comes from Gates Notes, a blog that he publishes periodically https://www.gatesnotes.com I have included his commentary because—well, because
he is Bill Gates!
The Best We Could Do, by Thi Bui. This gorgeous graphic
novel is a deeply personal memoir that explores what it means to be a parent
and a refugee. The author’s family fled Vietnam in 1978. After giving birth to
her own child, she decides to learn more about her parents’ experiences growing
up in a country torn apart by foreign occupiers.
Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City, by Matthew Desmond. If you want a
good understanding of how the issues that cause poverty are intertwined, you
should read this book about the eviction crisis in Milwaukee. Desmond has
written a brilliant portrait of Americans living in poverty. He gave me a
better sense of what it is like to be poor in this country than anything else I
have read.
Believe Me: A Memoir of Love, Death, and Jazz Chickens, by Eddie Izzard. Izzard’s
personal story is fascinating: he survived a difficult childhood and worked
relentlessly to overcome his lack of natural talent and become an international
star. If you’re a huge fan of him like I am, you’ll love this book. His written
voice is very similar to his stage voice, and I found myself laughing out loud
several times while reading it.
The Sympathizer, by Viet Thanh Nguyen. Most of the
books I’ve read and movies I’ve seen about the Vietnam War focused on the
American perspective. Nguyen’s award-winning novel offers much-needed insight
into what it was like to be Vietnamese and caught between both sides. Despite
how dark it is, The
Sympathizer is a gripping
story about a double agent and the trouble he gets himself into.
Energy and Civilization: A History, by Vaclav Smil. Smil is one of my
favorite authors, and this is his masterpiece. He lays out how our need for
energy has shaped human history—from the era of donkey-powered mills to today’s
quest for renewable energy. It’s not the easiest book to read, but at the end
you’ll feel smarter and better informed about how energy innovation alters the
course of civilizations.
