Escaping, 50 books at a time
I finally completed the 50 book challenge this year. It's a challenge that I'd set myself for a few years now but finally got through it this time. Summer was where I really powered through because there was little else to do. I had a range of physical books, e-books, graphic novels, audio-books and audio series. I think this year I finally got through the challenge because I needed to escape. Books aren't an unusual way to get away from reality and they've been something I've turned to since childhood. I've really needed it this year as anxiety has been tough on me. The more I've worked through my anxiety, the less my bookshelf has been calling out to me; don't get me wrong, I've still been reading but far less often and more for work than for pleasure. Over the next year I plan on doing the 50 book challenge again and I want to use this blog as a way to review and talk about each one. In this first post I'm going to list the books I've read/listened to, make a top ten and talk briefly about why they've been my favourites of the year. The one listing with the unknown collection name was a library find and I only remembered to add it to the list once I'd returned it.
- A History of Heavy Metal - Andrew O'Neill
- What Does This Button Do? - Bruce Dickinson
- Parsnips, Buttered - Joe Lycett
- Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
- Mostly Harmless - Douglas Adams
- Unheard: The Story of Anna Winslow - Anthony Del Col
- Tranny: Confessions of Punk Rock's Most Infamous Anarchist Sellout - Laura Jane Grace
- Zoopedia - Sue Perkins
- The Dark Web - Multiple Authors
- Cemetery Girl - Multiple Authors
- Mrs Bradshaw's Handbook - Terry Pratchett
- Havocs - Jacob Polley
- The Visitors' Book - Sophie Hannah
- Minority Monsters - Tab Kimpton
- No More Jokes - Multiple Authors
- Despicable Deadpool (collection name unknown) - Multiple Authors
- Autumn - Ali Smith
- Railhead - Philip Reeve
- Moll Flanders - Daniel Defoe
- Cat Person - Kristen Roupenian
- The Bloody Chamber - Angela Carter
- Slaving Away - Miranda Kane
- Rivers of London - Ben Aaronovitch
- Straight Jacket: Overcoming Society's Legacy of Gay Shame - Matthew Todd
- There but for the - Ali Smith
- Fry's English Delight - Stephen Fry and others
- Dracula - Bram Stoker
- Public Library - Ali Smith and others
- The Lagoon - Lilli Carré
- This Damned Band - Paul Cornell
- Guardians of the Galaxy: Mother Entropy - Multiple Authors
- Dead Sea Poems - Simon Armitage
- A Far Cry From Kensington - Muriel Spark
- Cut Off - Mark Billingham
- Pure - Andrew Miller
- Persuasion - Jane Austen
- Despicable Deadpool: Deadpool Kills Cable - Multiple Authors
- Hard Times - Charles Dickens
- The Great Bazaar/ Brayan's Gold - Peter V. Brett
- Mrs Dalloway - Virginia Woolf
- Cirque Du Freak - Darren Shan
- The Vampire's Assistant - Darren Shan
- Tales of the City - Armistead Maupin
- The Butterfly Effect - Jon Ronson
- Red for Revenge - Fanny Blake
- The Other Side of You - Amanda Craig
- Tunnels of Blood - Darren Shan
- Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
- Art Matters - Neil Gaiman
- Classic Scrapes - James Acaster
There's a chance I'll get one or two more books in before the end of the year but here is everything I've got in so far. I've got a wide range in and rarely not enjoyed the books that I've read. I think there have only been three cases of not enjoying the books and they've been books that I've studied. There have been books that I've started and not finished and there are so many in my to be read pile. I'm sure I'll get to them eventually.
So, here's my top ten of the books I've read this year. I don't read enough new books to do a top ten of 2018 but I can do this.
10. Dracula - Bram Stoker
An old firm favourite of mine. I know that I've read it at least ten times and it never fails to make me fall in love over and over again. I know, by now, that this isn't ostensibly a good book. It isn't exactly well written and most of the characters are useless. I can't exactly say that I care. I have fun with this book and I love that the characters don't know what they're doing. It shouldn't be funny but it is, it so is. Jonathan Harker is a love of mine. He's basically told that he's off to the house of a hell beast but apparently it's still a surprise when he discovers that Dracula isn't all that he seems. When he's told not to go into the tower under any circumstances, guess where he goes. That's right, and he nearly gets killed by three vampires. He's not the only useless character but there is something particularly special about Jonathan's type of special. I'm likely to return to this in the future when I need to escape to a familiar world of idiots and vampires.
9. Cirque Du Freak - Darren Shan
This was revisiting an old favourite for me. I read Darren Shan, especially this series, a lot when I was younger. I wanted to see if the book had aged with me and I must say that it's aged brilliantly. There are moments that show clear signs of its demographic. There are parents who just don't get it and football at break is the most important thing to the character. It does, however, tackle something that not enough YA books tackle. I don't believe it ever says the age of the character but I've always thought he was about 13 or 14. This is not an unusual age for YA protagonists but rarely do authors in this genre remind you that these are children who should not be in the dangerous positions that they're put in. Darren Shan unnervingly reminds you that a child is in a life and death situation. It isn't comfortable and it shouldn't be. When I was 13 I wasn't made uncomfortable because it isn't so easy to see what's wrong with it but as an adult (I'm informed that 19 counts as an adult- it does not) I just want to protect all of the kids in the book. I thought Crepsley was an unreasonable adult holding the protagonist, Darren, back but now I'm right by his side. I'm so glad that I chose to revisit this book and continue my way through this series. Next year's posts are likely to contain reviews of later books in the series.
8. The Lagoon - Lilli Carré
This year I wanted to delve more into graphic novels. My local library started offering a large range of them and not just from Marvel and DC. There are independent brands and they're even doing manga. There's something for everyone. Though we're always taught not to judge a book by its cover, that's what drew me to this book. The art style looked beautiful and intriguing. I didn't even bother checking to see what it was about and I think going in blind was the best way to go with this. The art style held me as much as the story which was refreshingly beautiful. It felt old and new at the same time, like the stories of an elderly relative passed down the generations that the kids want to hear over and over again. I believe that if I ever find this in a store it will go straight onto my bookshelf because it is a beautiful piece that I could read forever.
7. Tales of the City - Armistead Maupin
In my local library they had a shelf for the 50 book challenge. They had a range of books in all sorts of genres for all age ranges. I'd passed this book on a couple of my library visits, even picking it up a couple of times. I don't know why, but I was never quite in the mood for it. When I did finally take it home, I rarely put it down. I fell in love in an instant. Every character is bright and colourful and there isn't anyone who isn't fleshed out or left behind. It tackles diversity better than many books released in recent years and this book was released in 1978. It tackles sexuality, gender and race and does so with brilliant realism. I highly recommend picking this up to see how diversity should be done. I feel that it does what it does well because it isn't reminding you that it's doing it. You're just following characters through their daily lives, rather than reading a book about diversity. Once I have a little more income, I'm sure this will make it onto my shelf and I'm hoping to find the rest of the series soon.
6. Railhead - Philip Reeve
Every month I get a credit from Audible to get myself an audio-book. I was sat in my flat with no clue of what to get. I decided to get a recommendation from one of my flatmates saying that I'd get whatever they recommended, as long as it was on Audible. They started telling me about Railhead and I was immediately hooked. It turns out, they barely scratched the surface of how brilliant this book is. Though this is the second YA book brought up in this list, I don't often find myself diving into YA books anymore unless I'm revisiting an old favourite. I could not get enough of this book. I was truly taken on an adventure in a way that not many books manage. I'd never read this book before but the way I was sucked into it felt like nostalgia. It was only in my childhood that I got to experience thrill like this. I feel like I need to start giving more YA fiction a chance. Either that or Philip Reeve captures something that I want to capture again. I bought myself a physical copy and I have the sequel on the audio version of my to be read pile. I look forward to my future adventures.
5. Straight Jacket: Overcoming Society's Legacy of Gay Shame - Matthew Todd
The non-fiction I read is often far different to this. I often read books by comedians or famous people that I follow. It was pride month, and my local library had their 50 book challenge shelf full of books about and by LGBTQ+ people. I picked this up at the same time as picking up Tales of the City and the only time I put that down was to read this. Summer was hot this year and I spent my whole time out in my local park reading. This was the book that stuck out in my memory more than most. It wasn't my favourite book from the year, and didn't quite make it as my favourite Summer read but there was so much from it that stuck with me. It contains a lot about the unfortunate side effects of what happens due to "society's legacy of gay shame" and it's the deaths that really stuck out. One line in particular really played on me (this is from recollection but I'm almost certain that it's correct): "some people just aren't going to make it". Through the shame that's put on people in the LGBTQ+ community, many people can't pull through it and end their own lives. The whole book isn't so bleak but it is the bleak stuff that will stay with you and remind you of how far we've come and how far we have to go. If you aren't a member of the LGBTQ+ community and want to know how to be a good ally, then get this book on your shelf.
4. There but for the - Ali Smith
This was the read (well, it was a listen) of the Summer for me. This was the second Ali Smith book I'd read and, even after reading more, I found that this book was my favourite of hers. The premise of someone locking themselves in a room at a dinner party and the havoc that it causes seemed ridiculous and it truly was. Brooke is certainly my favourite character. She's a curious child and always looking for new knowledge. Maybe I like her because she reminds me of myself as a child. I was an absolute nerd as a kid and all I wanted to do was learn more. There was always more to know and I see so much of that in Brooke. I also love the way Ali Smith handles race in this. Until the end Smith doesn't mention Brooke's race until she raises the point of characters' race not mattering and Brooke can be anybody she wants to be. It doesn't matter that Brooke is black but she raises an excellent point about race when she says: "unless you add the describing word then the man or the girl are definitely not black". I'll say that until I was told otherwise, Brooke was a white character in my head. Smith's use of voice and narration is brilliant and this is very likely a book I'll be reading over and over again.
3. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
I read this as part of my studies and I can't say that I thought I'd enjoy it. Jane Eyre had been put in the same part of my brain as Pride and Prejudice. I've tried reading Pride and Prejudice and never made it far. I had to read Jane Eyre though so I was preparing to force myself through it. I was so surprised to have enjoyed it as much as I did. In part, I have Juliet Stevenson to thank. Her reading of the book is fantastic; she does voices for the characters brilliantly with each one distinct without feeling like they're forced. I adore Jane and love seeing how her character grows throughout the book. I still don't know how I feel about Mr. Rochester. He can be charming and sweet but also he locked his mad wife in his attic. I don't like that I was happy with the ending. I should not like him but I was so happy when she found him and when he recognised her. I think this may be one of the only books of it's type and time that I enjoy. I've tried three and only successfully made my way through one Jane Austen book and I can't say that Wuthering Heights was one of the best books I've ever read. I may not enjoy many others in the genre but I'm so glad I was pleasantly surprised by this book.
2. Classic Scrapes - James Acaster
The final book of 50 and my goodness it was worth the wait. I put this off because I was hounded by the ad for it on YouTube so many times I didn't get it because I'd been irritated by it. Though, possibly ironically, it was being reminded of that advert that got me to get the book while I was searching through Audible. I think that books by comedians should always be consumed via audio-book because so much of comedy is timing and getting comedians to read their own books means the timing is perfect. After his Netflix special and his appearance on Taskmaster, I've been massively enjoying James Acaster and this book, well, it explains a lot. I think the moment that stands out most is him jamming with folk and, having never heard the song before, playing a disco beat to Hendrix's All Along the Watchtower. I could not get enough of this book and found myself having to stop myself laughing out loud when I was listening in public. Definitely be getting a physical copy for my shelf.
1. A History of Heavy Metal - Andrew O'Neill
Well, of course it is. I've both read the physical copy and listened to the audio version of this book and my goodness I love every single moment. It's another book where I have to recommend the audio version. Andrew O'Neill, being a comedian, is fantastic with timing. Not only that but before becoming a book A History of Heavy Metal was a stand-up show. A bloody brilliant stand-up show I might add, buy the DVD when it's released. Footnotes work well in the physical version but in the audio version they work as little asides. I will never hear of the band Grand Funk Railroad without hearing Andrew's voice saying "Grand Funk Railroad is not heavy metal". Even as I typed that, I could hear it. Even if you don't love heavy metal, this book is brilliantly funny. I can only give an anecdote from the show to prove this but it's all of got. My mum is the kind of person who sort of knows who Metallica is and knows Iron Maiden because of my dad. Andrew O'Neill had her laughing at jokes about Venom and Cradle of Filth, if that doesn't prove how brilliant this book is, nothing will.
I hope you enjoyed the run down of my Top 10 books from my 50 Book Challenge 2018. I look forward to writing about the books I read next year.
I'll see you all soon,
Autumn James x
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