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FOUND FIVE | My 5 Favorite Books of 2017

December 31, 2017 , Sun | Found Fives | 0 or add you thoughts!

It’s almost 2018!! That is so crazy to me! Not because this year seemed short, but because the number 2018 just seems too big, if that makes sense. Anyway, as 2017 comes to a close, I thought it would be interesting to go through my year in books and pick five that jump out at me as I look through them. So these are my five favorite reads of 2017—sort of. Some of these I went back and forth on, because there were other books I felt could have been on this list too. But, in the effort to choose just five I think I’ve done quite well! Each of these has really stuck with me, and I definitely feel they will all remain long-term favorites.

As difficult as this is for any avid reader, I’ve also managed to choose a single, overall favorite: Uprooted by Naomi Novik.

1. Archangel by Sharon Shinn

My Aunt Diane gave me this for my birthday last year, and I’m so grateful to her for that! A romance, high fantasy, and science fiction rolled into one, Archangel is a fantastic read from all angles. Shinn has a writing style that is quite unique to me, which is always something I enjoy. I find she’s particularly good at building genuine drama. It doesn’t feel ridiculous or overdone, even when it involves the romance part of the story. And the series this is a part of, Samaria, has the COOLEST overarching plot. I’ve only read one other book in the series so far, but the larger plot starts to become clear, and since my aunt and now my dad read them too, I’ve heard hints! 😉 Archangel in particular was so fun for me. read more

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REVIEW | The Purple Swamp Hen and Other Stories by Penelope Lively

November 17, 2017 , Fri | Reviews | 0 or add you thoughts!

“Funny, she could be. Sharp—not malicious, just occasionally barbed. People who’d got up her nose. So you see I realized I can say what she was like—a sort of climate of mind—clever and astute and kind—yes, kind—but critical and quite judgmental and ambitious, yes, but the kind of ambition that’s about the thing being done, not the person doing it.”

Themes:

  • Regret
  • The quiet beauty of ordinary life
  • Society’s expectations and judgments, and how they influence choices

In May, my family moved to a new area. In the beginning of June, I went to the local library for the first time. This particular library has a “new to us” section, which visitors encounter immediately upon entering. On the day I walked in for the first time, The Purple Swamp Hen and Other Stories was prominently placed, facing out on this very shelf. What a magical place libraries are, and bless the librarians who put Lively’s masterpiece in that attention-grabbing spot. Because I picked it up, read it in a matter of days, and haven’t stopped loving it since.

I love to read, and I’ve enjoyed literature in all of its forms. But it’s a rare work that compels me to read and reread and reread again. This is one of them! I’ve already reread a few of the stories since having first read it in full back in June. I don’t normally write reviews so long after initially reading something, but since I’ve reread many of my favorite parts of this recently, and I love it so dearly, I decided I simply must write this! read more

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