Best Reads of 2017!!!

Yes, it's "Reads," because most of my books weren't from 2017. As I did last year, I won't be presenting a top 10 list or anything like that, but just have a little discussion about my books from the last year that were worth thinking about.

Fiction: My best novels published in 2017 were Autumn by Ali Smith, and Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders. Autumn had a prickly and somewhat unlovable main character (always a good thing), but was a subtle & delicately drawn book that I enjoyed. The key for me was the beautifully created relationship between a young girl and an old man. Perfect. I'm sure some of Lincoln in the Bardo went over my head, but I still recognized quality writing combined with ineffable creativity. Loved the weird! From two of my old favorites, wonderful were Memento Mori by Muriel Spark and Dark Tales (Penguin's new collection of previously published stories) by Shirley Jackson. Also read Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison. Blew my mind! American history as it needs to be understood.

Nonfiction: I went in for some books discussing American race relations, and they were fantastic. We Were Eight Years in Power and Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates were both amazing. At only 43 (as of last Monday) he's still a young man, and I expect so much more from him. I think he has the chops to justify my great expectations, to be the next James Baldwin (and that's not a black comparison, I can't think of anyone greater than Baldwin). I also read Baldwin's I Am Not Your Negro, which I only mention to praise the documentary of the same name, because it's required viewing and I wish every high school in America had 10 copies. Two quick additions: (1) Look for the poem "They Feed They Lion" by Philip Levine, the same sentiments in poetry; (2) Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achibe, which, although fiction, made me understand the effects of colonialism like nothing I've ever read. Lost in the shuffle was Mary Dearborn's biography of Ernest Hemingway, which told me more about the American author than I expected to ever know, and revealed the man had far more issues (beyond toxic masculinity) than we ever knew.

Poetry: Disappointingly, I didn't read much poetry this year. Two of my favorite poets died in 2014 and 2015, and their final works were published in 2017. I read three books by Philip Levine, and though his books aren't always consistent, he writes individual poems that just kill me. Bill Knott had a life-long collection of his poetry published, I Am Flying into Myself: Selected Poems 1960-2014, which has many of his brilliant and bizarre poems. A worthy commemoration of a largely unknown career. I also read Devotion by Patti Smith, which was a memoir about writing and creativity, and made me want to delve into her poetry in 2018. Also have to mention the gargantuan tome of Sylvia Plath's letters. Too large to actually read, but dipping into her letters reinforces what a talent she was.

Classics: A big year for classics. Read ten of Shakespeare's plays, which I didn't think I could. I got a lot more out of them than I thought I would, and was amazed how Shakespeare wrote so far ahead of his time, addressing race (Othello), anti-semitism (Merchant of Venice), and humanity in general. Beloved wasn't fun, but shows why Toni Morrison deserves her Nobel. Read most of Austen and the Bronte sisters, which reminded me how much I like their books. Okay, Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte is not a favorite, but her Tenant of Wildfell Hall is fantastic.

Forgotten Gems: Stumbled on two (new to me) authors, one Chinese (Qiu Miaojin), one Mexican (Juan Rulfo), this year, which emphasized how much undiscovered gold is out there. Both had tragically little output (Qiu suicide, Rulfo, politically self-imposed censorship), but Qiu's Notes of a Crocodile and Rulfo's Pedro Paramo were highlights of my year.

Read a short story at the end of the year, "Cat Person" by Kristen Roupenian, which was a breath of fresh air -- decidedly contemporary, and so decidedly creepy in its own way. A good, maybe not great, year in reading.  🐢