At the end of each year, many of us reflect on who we are what we did and what goals we may have for the future.
I don’t tend to set new goals at the start of a new year. I’m not sure why. My life is pretty goal-oriented, so I feel like I just do what I do and try to be better when I can. We can always find time to improve. It doesn’t have to start at the beginning of each year.
I do, however, like to think about what I’ve read and narrow down that year’s reading to a best book. The best book I read in 2017 was A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles.
While I read it, I kept instagramming passages from its pages. It is full of delicious prose, witty insights, and marvelous truths about the human experience. I absolutely loved the experience of reading this book.
After this one, I picked up Towles’s first book Rules of Civility, thinking I was in for another treat. While the writing was good and the story was interesting, it just wasn’t the same as A Gentleman in Moscow.
A Gentleman in Moscow is a rare gem, an experience that I hope to repeat each time I pick up a new book, but that only comes along every once in a while.
What was the best book you read in 2017?
The Bookshelf of Emily J. 
LOVED that book- did not want it to end.
Me too!
I will have to give this one a read!
I hope you like it!
I was a little bothered by how cushioned the story was from the horrible things that were going on in the country at the time.
True. It was more about a very specific slice of life during that time, rather than covering t all, and that part was very privileged.
More of a fairy tale, really.
I already have this book on my list, but now I will be more committed to actually reading it. I love it when a book really stands out.
I don’t think I can choose a favourite, but I think the one I am most glad to have read is “Black Berry, Sweet Juice” by Lawrence Hill. It had been on my to-read list for a long time, and I ended up loving it.
Happy New Year to you and your family! 🙂
Thank you! Happy New Year to you and yours as well. I will check out the Lawrence Hill book!
My best book was Blue Steal by Marnie St. Clair. It was a riveting story!
Ooh! I have heard of that one. Thanks for telling me about it!
Mine was Homegoing. It was beautiful. But I did not read A Gentleman in Moscow – but love Amor Towles. So I need to get to it. So many books!
That was my best book last year! I loved Homegoing. 😊
Tough decision. Either In the Country We Love by Diane Guerrero or The Gunners by Rebecca Kauffman.
I need to read these!
I bought this book when I discovered my library’s single copy had a 40+ person wait queue. It did not disappoint, and landed at No 3 in my own Best Books list.
Glad to hear it! I was pleasantly surprised at how good this one was, and I felt like it is one of the best I have read in a long time.
So glad to see this – it’s next on my To Read list!
Enjoy!
I’ll definitely put this novel as one of my 2018 goals! I looked over my Goodreads list for 2017, and I had given 5 stars to four books. I read All the Light We Cannot See early in 2017, so I may have been later reading it than others, but I thought it was great–everything a novel should be, including external and internal conflict between Good and Evil, plus compelling new characters triumphing in imaginative, extreme circumstances. For enjoyment this summer, I indulged my inner child and read the first two Harry Potter books, finding out why my daughters had loved them so much. On a different tack, I also re-read the Fagles translation of the Odyssey, which I had taught to high school sophomores. The ancient narrative and poetry fed my soul once again.
It sounds like you read some great books this year! I am sad to learn that my daughter doesn’t love Harry Potter as much as I do. I hope you enjoyed reading those books!
Happy New year, Emily!
I am currently 172 pages into A Gentleman in Moscow and, like you, I am already planning to read Rules Of Civility.
I will be interested in hearing if you like Rules of Civility. I thought GinM was waaay better, but I appreciate the author. He is quite the writer.
The Art of thinking clearly by Rolf Dobelli
It sounds like a good one!
Thank you!
I agree with you! I loved this book. The other great book I read in 2017 was News of the World by Paulette Jiles.
I have been eyeing the Jiles book for a while. It sounds like I need to read it soon!
Child of the Jago, a 1897 novel by Arthur Morrison. An amazing story.
Thanks for sharing this!
The Ninth Hour, by Alice McDermott. One of my favorites ever.
I need to read that one!
My favorite from 2017 was “The Plot Against America”, Philip Roth. Although my favorite Roth is “The Human Stain”.
I’ve only read one of Roth’s books, and I can’t remember it well. I didn’t love it. I didn’t hate it. Maybe I should give him another try with your favorites.