Best and Worst reads of 2021

[StColumbofNavron]

I don’t think we have a thread yet. I love to see what people have read and rated.

Standouts for me:
Frenchman’s Creek, Daphne du Maurier
Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands, Jorge Amado
The Island of Missing Trees, Elif Shafak

Honourable mention
The Return of the Native, Thomas Hardy
Twenty Years Later, Alexander Dumas
The Autumn of the Ace, Louis de Bernieres

Not For Me
Where the Crawdads Sing, Delia Owens
Us, David Nichols

Lots of standouts for me this year:
The Only Plane in the Sky by Garrett M Graff
Some Kids I Taught and What They Taught Me by Kate Clanchy
Many Different Kinds of Love by Michael Rosen
The Girl With the Louding Voice by Abi Dare
Unsettled Ground by Claire Fuller
Nightingale Point by Luan Goldie
Paper Aeroplanes by Dawn O’Porter
Three Hours by Rosamund Lupton

Don’t really have much for worst, as I did not have a single “did not finish” this year. Twi that spring to mind that I didn’t really enjoy were The Mandibles and The Choice and although A Gentleman in Moscow is much loved on hear, I found it a slog - an issue of not meeting my expectations after so many recommendations rather than not being good though.

Standouts for me were....
A Gentleman in Moscow - Amor Towles
The Dutch House - Ann Pachett
My Dark Vanessa - Elizabeth Kate Russell

Honourable mention....

The Midnight Library - Matt Haig
Shuggie Bain - Douglas Stuart

Not keen on....

Skint Estate - Cash Carraway

My standouts this year:
Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel
The Crow Lake by Mary Lawson
Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld

Honourable Mention
The Pull of the Stars by Emma Donoghue

Couldn't finish
The Psychology of Time Travel by Kate Mascarenhas

Enjoyed
American Dirt Jeanine Cummins
Small Pleasures Glaire Chambers. Recommended on here.
The Girl in the Green Dress Cath Staincliffe,
Worst Idea Ever Jane Fallon Holiday read.
Lady in Waiting. Anne Glenconnor

Didn’t really enjoy
Hostage Claire Mackintosh. Shame because I was looking forward to her latest book.
A Gentleman in Moscow Amor Towles. Just couldn’t get into it.
The Dry Jane Harper. Too much blood!
Normal People. Sally Rooney. Dull.
Platform 7. Louise Doughty.
Crawdads.
Three Hours. Rosalind Lipton. Gave up halfway.

Last House on Needless Street was a very uneasy read. Can’t say whether I enjoyed it or not.

It looks as if I haven’t enjoyed much this year, but I’ve read lots of others that were obviously okay but not memorable.

My top reads this year:
Pachinko by Min Jee Lin
The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah
The Five by Halle Rubenhold
The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Dare

Special mention for Sarum by Edward Rutherfurd and Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follet (both rereads)

Didn't enjoy:
The Lady of the Ravens by Joanna Hickson
Dear Mrs. Bird by Aj Pearce

Enjoyed
The Girl With The Louding Voice Abi Dare
Troubled Blood Robert Galbraith
We Must Be Brave Frances Liardet
The Dictionary of Lost Words Pip Williams
Great Circle Maggie Shipstead
The Adventures of Miss Barbara Pym Paula Byrne

Honourable Mentions
Ducks, Newburyport Lucy Ellman
Terms and Conditions Ysenda Maxtone Graham
Florence Adler Swims Forever Rachel Beanland

Not For Me

Cathedral Ben Hopkins

Excellent thread

Loved this year:

The last thing to burn - Will Dean
Apples never fall - Liane Moriaty
The burning girls - C J Tudor
Imaginary friends - Stephen chbosky
Normal people - Sally Rooney
Olive Again- Elizabeth Strout

Didn't enjoy:

The midnight library - matt Haig
Book of two ways - Jodi picoult

My 3 favourites this year...

A Man Called Ove (Fredrik Backman)
Naughts & Crosses (Malorie Blackman)
Dark Matter (Michelle Paver)

I didn't enjoy...

The Midnight Library (Matt Haig)
The Glass Hotel (Emily St. John Mandel)

I haven't read so much this year so hoping for better in 2022. I got about 15 books for Christmas and have a to read pile of about 100 books now argh!

Oh my goodness @TheAnswerIsCake I didn't know anybody was admitting to having enjoyed the Kate Clanchy! Especially after her publishers have issued their apology statement and it's been withdrawn from print. She's had an horrific year and I feel really sorry for her, because she's clearly well-meaning and sweet. But it does show weirdly racist/ablist attitudes.....

And absolutely not meaning that as a criticism of you, by the way! It's clearly very possible to read the book without picking up on any of the negativity. It's just interesting that you've missed the controversy (or perhaps shows what a bubble I live in that I even think that's surprising!).

I read a bizarre number of duds this year. Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell was the worst read for me by a country mile. What a boring SLOG!

Close second in the shit stakes was The Animals at Lockwood Manor, which was unfinishable - like a really pants Sarah Waters pisstake.

Best was either Leave the World Behind (Rumaan Alam) or The Five (Hallie Rubenhold).

(Dis)honourable mention goes to History of a Drowning Boy, Nilsen’s autobiography. Fascinating but by its nature a bit grim.

Best: Pandora's Jar by (I think) Natalie Haynes. Highly recommended if you have even a passing interest in Greek mythology.

Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan.

The Mirror and The Light, which was magnificent.

Was Troubled Blood published this year? I definitely read it this year but not sure if that was a re-read or not. Anyway it was excellent.

Worst: none. Life's too short, so if I'm not enjoying a book I give myself permission to give up on it.

I think my year was mostly duds book wise. Resorted to re reading some old favourites. Must try harder in 2022 to read a few more books.

Enjoyed:The Midnight Library -Matt Haig

Didn't enjoy Where the Crawdads sing - Delia Owens. Still got a few chapters left to read but doubt I'll pick it up again.

Best:

The Song of Achilles - Madeline Miller
Circe - Madeline Miller
In Black and White - Alexandra Wilson

Also-rans:
A cheesemongers history of Britain's- Ned Palmer
Dark Matter - Michelle Paver

Disappointments:
Closing Time - Joseph Heller (I love Catch-22 but this was just boring and repetitive)
Cook, Eat, Repeat - Nigella Lawson

My top three favourites this year are Hamnet
My dark Vanessa
The Thursday murder club
I didn't like the midnight library or Away with the penguins
The only book I couldn't finish was Gone Girl...I just couldn't get into it.

It’s interesting to see The Midnight Library not working for people given it seemed to be everywhere and everyone was reading it. Perhaps that is in fact it’s downfall?!

Best:
Shuggie Bain
Mythos - Stephen Fry
His Dark Vanessa
Tsarina - Ellen Alpsten

Worst:
Piranesi

Sorry, that should be
My Dark Vanessa.

Also enjoyed Miss Benson's Beetle

Thank goodness others didn't like Hamnet or Piranesi. I've not been able to say it anywhere else

Laura Bates' Men Who Hate Women has been fascinating

Some of these were re reads:

There There - Tommy Orange
Telex from Cuba - Rachel Kushner
The Last Day - Andrew Hunter Murray
Robot Universe - Ana Matronic
And Away - Bob Mortimer
Passing - Nella Larson
Breakfast of Champions - Kurt Vonnegut

I liked Hamnett apart from the supernatural witchy stuff which seemed unnecessary.

Curioushorse, I find it interesting you're so surprised someone liked and admitted to liking Kate Clanchy's book. Thank goodness we are allowed to read whatever books we like, including ones that provoke controversy!

( FYI for anyone who missed it www.theguardian.com/books/2021/aug/10/kate-clanchy-to-rewrite-memoir-after-criticism-of-racist-and-ableist-tropes )

My favourite novel was Claire Fuller's Unsettled Ground.
Also really enjoyed Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss.

Least favourite book was Sally Rooney's Beautiful World, Where are You? Found it self satisfied and dull and gave up after a few chapters.

@dementedma Tsarina is on my list. I keep picking it up in bookshops.

@Curioushorse

Oh my goodness *@TheAnswerIsCake* I didn't know anybody was admitting to having enjoyed the Kate Clanchy! Especially after her publishers have issued their apology statement and it's been withdrawn from print. She's had an horrific year and I feel really sorry for her, because she's clearly well-meaning and sweet. But it does show weirdly racist/ablist attitudes.....

@curioushorse Oh dear. I had, in fact, completely missed this (although I know I am not the only one on MN who has rated it highly this year). Perhaps it is a symptom of my own white privilege that I did not pick up on the negative elements. I do still respect the work that she has done, and many of the points that she was trying to make - the idea of teachers learning from students is hugely important. The racist attitude seem strangely at odds with the aim of giving a voice to all of her students, especially those that traditionally struggle.

I feel bad that I may have missed this aspect to it. Ironically, this is why I often struggle to share my thoughts about books, in case I “get it wrong”. I’ve been trying to tell myself recently that that’s ridiculous, but as it turns out, perhaps not...

@dementedma

Best: Shuggie Bain Mythos - Stephen Fry His Dark Vanessa Tsarina - Ellen Alpsten

Worst:
Piranesi

I’ve got Tsarina to read next and I’m looking forward to it. Glad to see it rated.

Best:
My Sister The Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite

Honourable mentions:
10 Minutes 38 Seconds In This Strange World by Elif Shafak
Career Of Evil by Robert Galbraith
A Slip Of The Keyboard by Terry Pratchett
Black Narcissus by Rumer Godden

Worst:
Blackpool Sisters, can't remember who wrote it, I picked it because I like really Blackpool. It got more and more idiotic with every paragraph and I somehow lasted about 80 pages before it got binnned.

Dishonourable mentions:
Last House On Needless Street by Catriona Ward
The Obsession by Catherine Cookson
The Recovery Of Rose Gold by Stephanie Wrobel