The best books I read in 2022

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The title says it all really!

January Books

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It’s been a slow start to the year in terms of reading, but I have nevertheless enjoyed all of the books I read this month, which doesn’t usually happen!

A Handful of Dates by Tayeb Salih

I read this super short story…like really super short (it’s 5 pages!) by Salih because I fell in love with his writing style last year after reading Seasons of Migration to the North, a powerful post-colonial novel set in Sudan. Again, he manages to evoke a sense of setting and lifestyle quite vividly, even in just 5 pages! Can’t wait to read The Wedding of Zein and any other translations I can get my hands on

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

I listened to The Bell Jar on audible, and I must say Maggie Gyllenhaal’s narration is perfection. I so was immersed in the story, and I really enjoyed her intonation and how she performed this very conversational and confessional text. As for the narrative itself, wow, it was dark…and uncomfortably relatable in some places. I’ve been through some dark times in my life and the toxic thought patterns and destructive behaviour that Esther partakes in felt a bit too close to home! But overall The Bell Jar is a powerful story and is perhaps overshadowed by the tragedy of Plath herself, she, unlike Esther, succeeded in taking her own life. Is succeeded even the right word here?

The Prose Edda by Snorri Sturluson - Book Club Pick

Norse Mythology has interested me for years, and it’s almost ridiculous that I have only just read it now. The main and one of the only surviving collections of Norse myths! Because Vikings, like the Greeks and other “ancient” civilisations, had a largely oral tradition, it is often many years later that the stories are written down. Such was the case with The Prose Edda; the believed author Sturlusson was a Christian and writing perhaps 400 years later! This makes the reading of Edda rather intriguing…or is that just my English Lit brain firing up again…ooh authorial intent…what can I infer from this.

It’s also worth noting that this text has inspired so much from J.R.R Tolkein’s legendary Middle Earth books (fun fact many names like Gandalf and Thorin (from The Hobbit) are taken from The Prose Edda!) to the wonderful American Gods by Neil Gaiman (and its fantastic TV adaptation which is currently airing its 3rd season on Amazon Prime). And, of course, you can’t forget Marvel, which with its hilarious and playful spin on the original mythology, has made Thor, Loki, Odin and Heimdall household names.

I enjoyed dipping in and out of The Prose Edda (which was the first Book Club pick, February’s selection will be announced soon!) while bundled under a blanket with a fire crackling…on my tv screen and sipping coffee. To borrow from the Danes, reading this book has been a wonderful dose of Hygge these past few weeks.

Disclaimer: The above links are affiliate links, so I do make a small commission if you make a purchase through them.

 
The Prose Edda
 

Let me know in the comments section what books and short stories you’ve read this month.

Book Club: July is Good Omens

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"‘Let’s start the book club again,’ Cate said for the fourth time with a knowing smile on her face.

Yes I am rebooting the Book Club because I need to force Charlotte (my sister who I used to share this blog with) to read as she only picks up a book once in a blue moon. So it goes without saying, I need to save her from the bookless life she is currently living! So each month we will pick a book to read and you can read along with us, on the first Sunday of each month we will then make a video about the past months book where we discuss what we think of it and you can join in with the discussion too!

Yay, sounds like fun? Stay tuned for the book reveal which has technically already been revealed in the title of this blog post.

This month we are reading…Good Omens!