What I read in 2017 and my top picks

My total this year, between reading to myself {for myself–you know what I mean} and reading aloud {the number of titles that I actually read is a little iffy because Steady Eddie and I share duties at night}, is somewhere in the neighborhood of sixty books.  This, of course, doesn’t include picture books.  The number is much higher than I thought.  You read see my list in its entirety here.

When I think about this year’s reading, two things comes to mind.  The first one is that I read a lot of nonfiction. In fact, about a third of what I read for my own enjoyment and edification was nonfiction! They are definitely the books that I remember the most.  I gravitate toward bibliotherapy, so I’m always looking for titles I “need” to read.  I feel like I’m still processing a lot of what I read, like maybe I need to go back and re-read a few of them and take notes.

The second thing that comes to mind regarding this year’s reading for me is that I rediscovered audiobooks.  I now appreciate them for myself, not just for my children.  Most of my audiobook consumption happened while I was exercising–during my brief stint of jogging and into my re-commitment to walk as often as possible.  I owe my new-found love for audiobooks to Jim Dale and his reading of the Harry Potter series.  Yes, this is the year I read Harry all the way through, from start to finish.  And yes, I loved it.

If you’re interested, you can see my whole list here.

And now on to my favorites.

Favorite novels of the year

Read my brief review of The Nightingale here.  This is really the only adult novel I read all year, but it’s a good one.

I read To Stay Alive by Skila Brown for last year’s Cybils and was positively haunted by it.  My thoughts about it are here.

Echo by Pam Muñoz Ryan in audio is just as good as you’ve heard.   It’s three separate stories about three different children in three settings but the story is united by a common object.  The genre here is iffy:  magical realism crossed with historical fiction, maybe.  The thing that makes the audiobook a standout is the musical component.  The common object that unites all the stories is a harmonica, and the music is just lovely.

Of course, Harry Potter is always a winner.

Nonfiction top picks

This is the year that Steady Eddie and I discovered Peter Scazzero.  I listened to Emotionally Healthy Spirituality in audio and went on to acquire the devotional that goes with it (Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day: A 40-Day Journey with the Daily Office).  I need a re-read on the original book.  So much of it seems like it should go without saying, but unfortunately, it doesn’t.

The Chemistry of Calm by Henry Emmons, M.D. is a book I learned about on the one and only What Should I Read Next podcast episode I’ve ever listened to.   I promptly purchased the Kindle version of the book and devoured it after I listened to that episode.  We’re well-versed in approaches to anxiety treatment in our home (understatement! ha!), and I appreciate this doctor’s hopeful attitude and science-based suggestions.  This is definitely one I need to re-read.

I have only recently come to embrace the fact that yes, I am indeed a HSP.  That is thanks largely to this book, The Highly Sensitive Person by Elaine N. Aron, Ph.D.  I’ve had it in my Kindle holdings for a few years but the time was finally right this year for me to realize some things about myself.  Aron fleshes out the idea of “overarousal” and what it means for those of us who have finely tuned systems.  The best thing I can say about this book is that it gives us HSPs permission to BE who we are, which is not something we’ll likely ever hear from the world at large.  ETA:  I finished this post before I had quite finished the book, and at the end it went off the rails a little bit for me.  However, I still stand by the fact that it is quite an important book for me personally, so I’m leaving it in as a top pick.

So as not to end on a navel-gazing note, I’ve ordered my nonfiction picks to end with the only biography I read this year:  Vincent and Theo by Deborah Heiligman.  However, since it’s a biography of Vincent Van Gogh and his brother Theo, one might argue that it still falls into the category of books about mental health.  😉  At any rate, both Louise and I found this YA biography engrossing, both beautiful and sad.

Sometimes I wish I kept up with all the books I dabble in, that I almost finish but don’t for one reason or another, ones that I read over long swaths of time.  That would boost my number considerably, but since I don’t, I’ll be satisfied that I did some quality reading (and listening) this year, even if most of it went unblogged.

Stay tuned for our top picks for this year’s read alouds.