This year I've managed to keep a list of the books I've read. Here it is with some annotations about the books and where I obtained them. I've set them out in the order in which I read them.
William Dalyrymple, The Age of Kali. Indian travel/history. Borrowed from a friend. My second reading.
Paul Bowles, The Sheltering Sky. Novel set in North Africa. Borrowed from a friend. Second reading.
Sarah Paretsky, Writing in an Age of Silence, Essays about writing in America post-9/11. Borrowed from a library.
Murray Bail, Notebooks 1970-2003. Australian writer's notebook. Library copy.
Sarah Hobson, Family Web- A Story of India. Anthropological study of village life in South India. Library copy.
Arthur Miller, Timebends. Autobiography by the great American playwright. Purchased at secondhand book sale.
Hannie Rayson, Inheritance. Play set in rural Australia. Secondhand copy.
Sophie Cunningham, Geography. Novel. From my own collection. Second reading.
Helen Garner, The Spare Room. New Australian novel which I bought this year.
Lawrence Wright, The Looming Towers. History of the background to the 9/11 attacks. Library copy.
Henry David Thoreau, Walden. Classic philosophical memoir. Secondhand.
Sophie Cunningham, Bird. New Australian novel. Free review copy.
TimeLife books, Russia Beseiged. History of Russia in world war two. Library copy.
Michelle de Kretser, The Lost Dog. New Australian novel. Library copy.
Maryanne Robinson, Gilead. Novel. Friend's copy.
Karen Joy Fowler, The Jane Austen Bookclub. Novel. Library copy.
Fiona Capp, Musk and Byrne. New Australian historical novel, set in Daylesford. Library copy.
Murray Bail, The Pages. New Australian novel. Bought new.
Dorothy L. Sayers, Gaudy Nights. Detective novel. Library copy.
Amitav Ghosh, Field of Poppies. New Indian novel. Birthday gift.
Amitav Ghosh, The Calcutta Chromosone. Novel. Secondhand copy.
Robert Bolt, A Man for All Seasons. Play. Own collection. Re-reading.
Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace. Novel/history/philosophical essay. New translation. Friend's copy. Second reading.
Heather Vicenti, Too Many Tears - An Autobiographical Account of Stolen Generations (Meme Media), new copy.
Bob Dylan, Chronicles. Autobiography, Secondhand copy. Second reading.
Joan Baez, And a Voice to Sing With. Autobiography. Secondhand.
William Shakespeare, King Lear. My collection. Re-reading.
Graham Greene, Journey Without Maps. Travel in Africa. Library copy.
Richard Greene (ed.), Graham Greene: A Life in Letters. Writer's letters. Library copy.
Shirley Hazzard, Greene on Capri. Memoir. Library copy.
Henning Mankell, Firewall. Detective novel. Secondhand.
They are the books I have on my list so far this year.
And now - drum roll please Maestro!
I am pleased to announce the inaugural Gold Camel Award for the best book read by me in 2008.
The award goes to -
Count Leo Tolstoy for War and Peace.
Congratulations Count Leo!
Round of applause.
In making this award I would like to thank the sponsors: friends, op shops, garage sales. bookfairs, public libraries, schools etc
What have others been reading in 2008?
TAR : To Apprehend Relativity
2 months ago
7 comments:
What an amazing list! I look forward to adding to it. BUT FIRST: I have just tagged you. What the hell does that mean?? Find out here.
Di,
I wish I had kept a list. Most of my reading, fiction and non-fiction, has been around nineteenth century Irish women immigrants coming to Australia, especially to Queensland. I have found the State Library of Victoria to be a treasure trove. Perhaps the highlight for me was finding a copy of the "Books of lessons for the use of schools /Commissioners of National Education, Ireland". It was published in 1979 by the Ballarat Historical Park Association, a reprint of the school reader originally published in Dublin by Alexander Thom in 1862. It gave me such a strong sense of what my grandmother Delia would have read at school in the 1870s, including a description of Australia, the land that was to become her homeland.
Delia.
My top books for 2008:
Mediated by Thomas De Zengotita
The New Kings of Nonfiction edited by Ira Glass
How to Do Words With Things by Peter O'Mara and Patrick Jones
The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2007 edited by Dave Eggers
The Best Creative Nonfiction Vols 1 & 2 edited by Lee Gutkind
The Tall Man by Chloe Hooper
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
Bring On The Apocalypse by George Monbiot
Well now.
I do like the look of the tag Meg. It may take me a little while to figure out what it all means.
And I love your booklist. I'll write them down and look them up in the library. I've seen the book from Jones and O'Mara and it's an interesting one to look through. Other than that I have read 'In Cold Blood' which is a great book. Have you also read 'Joe Cinque's Consolation' by Helen Garner? Another chilling murder and trial story that I guess is in the tradition opened up by Capote all those years ago. You'll notice from my list I read both fiction and non fiction. I do like to bludge off into good detective fiction when I can get my hands on it and other fiction - serious fiction- interests me for what's happening with the novel and what it has to say about society's preoccupations, values and concerns.
And Del, isn't the State Library a great place? Definately a treasure. I'm looking forward to reading about your grandmother one of these days.
Hi Di,
Yes, I read and loved Joe Cinque's Consolation. I have Garner's Spare Room on my list to read.
I saw this and though of you.
hi Di
at bLOGOS/HA HA the drumroll is for...
'The Absolute at Large' by Karel Capek (1922 first published in Czech, with drawings by KC : 1927 English translation, published without drawings)
Hey BookCamel
Thanks for your list, it inspired me to keep one for next year. One book I read 9 times (at least once a year) stood out for me: 'Fugitive pieces' by Anne Michaels, and I'll probably read it again next year, Petrus
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