My final “best of” list for the year and my most important one. I am reflecting on the books I have read, and it seems that my favourites are older books. I spend time reading new books and this year it was the classics I enjoyed the most. I think this will be a focus next year, as I am still working on my reading challenge. I do remember when I was reading over 100 books a year and I am jealous of that now, but life has other plans for me.

10. What We Can Know by Ian McEwen – 2025

You know when you read a book and you immediately want to start reading it again; I felt that way about What We Can Know. I think after reading part 2 of this novel, I wanted to go back and remind myself of the first part. I did read most of this on a plane; not being distracted by my phone could have been why enjoyed this novel so much. My first Ian McEwen and not my last, I found the prose so beautiful, engaging and yet so easy to read. I found myself comparing the style with Julian Barnes (another author I need to read more from) in the way it felt elegant to read and yet their style kept me engaged. Set in two parts, starting on 2119 where a scholar is looking of the archives of the twenty first century, in particular a long-lost poem. The second part is set in 2014 and the events that lead to the poem being written. It was an interesting exploration into how we engage with history verses what happened in these people’s lives to create this piece of writing.

9. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen – 1818

My wife and I decided to do a buddy read of this Jane Austen novel and I found it interesting to have a book to discuss with her. I think in 2026 there will be more buddy reads together (Chosen Family by Madeleine and another Austen, possibly Sense and Sensibility). What I loved about this novel is the exploration of gothic fiction and Catherine ‘fan-girling’ over an abbey. There are so many types of novels happening here; it is a satire, it is a gothic novel, it is a bildungsroman and a social critique. I find it hard to believe that this was written before all Austen’s major works and remained unpublished in her life. While I do prefer Pride and Prejudice (the only other Austen book I have read) I was impressed with everything happening in this novel…maybe I should write a review for this book.

8. Bad Girls by Camila Sosa Villada (translated by Kit Maude) – 2019

Camila Sosa Villada is a transgender actress, writer and singer from Argentina and this a semi-autobiographical novel around her time as a sex worker. Sometimes published in English under the name The Queens of Sarmiento Park, this novel explores a group of trans women on the streets around Sarmiento Park and the tales of their encounters with people. As it is a South American novel expect a little magical realism and be warned these experiences are horrifying. I love the way this novel explores the social divide, not just of economic classes but with the transgender community as well. This novel does not hold back, but I think the use of magical elements is used to blur lines of reality and still be informative about the dark sides of sex work.

7. The Unselected Journals of Emma M Lion: Vol 1 & 2 by Beth Brower – 2019

Technically two novels (and I still have six more to read) but I am invested in this series. Set in 1883, Emma M Lion is a young woman who is returning to St. Crispian to take her inheritance, Lapis Lazuli House. The house has been managed by her eccentric cousin Archibald who is not too keen on returning the property to the heir. The journals document the life of this very young woman and the interesting people she meets in St. Crispian. I found these books so charming and a delight. While the writing style is trying to be suggestive of authors like Oscar Wilde or maybe Jane Austen, I think there are choices made hrere to make it accessible to today’s readers. I had to force myself to not pick up more of these novels just so I did not spend the entire year only reading these books.

6. Orbital by Samantha Harvey – 2023

If it was not for book club, I do not think I would have read this novel at all; even if it did win the Booker, it was not the Booker prize I follow. I am never too sure if I should describe this as science fiction, maybe it is more a science than sci-fi or a philosophical novel. Orbital follows six astronauts on the international space station orbiting earth in a period of 24 hours. This is a contemplation of earth, our environment; the beauty and problems we see and if we have the ability to change or help our world. This was a novel that I read through quickly but remained on my mind for the rest of the year.

5. First Love by Ivan Turgenev (translated by Isaiah Berlin) – 1860

There was something so fascinating about the way this explored first love, and the complexities of romance as an adult. This follows Vladimir Petrovich who, much like most young men bidding for the affection of Princess Zasyekin who lived next door. Vladimir is only 16 years old and the way Turgenev explores the growth and understanding of his heart and emotions was stunning and as this is Russian literature you can expect a lot of angst and heartbreak; but I think that is expected with first loves.

4. Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin – 1956

This novel follows a young American in Europe who starts an affair with an Italian man, Giovanni. When Baldwin was asked if this novel is autobiographical, he as often stated this was not shaped by his own experiences in Paris; but I do suspect there were similar experiences between David and author. When thinking about how to describe this novel, I feel like I start listing the dozens of themes that play out in these pages. There is social alienation, exploration of bisexuality and homosexuality, masculinity, depression, racism, homophobia and so much more. I think I love Giovanni’s Room because there is a lot going on here and all around 150 pages. I need to read more James Baldwin but part of me also wants to reread this one next year.

3. My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin – 1901

I am not sure why it had taken me so long to read this novel, but thanks to the reading challenge my wife created for my birthday, I read and fell in love with My Brilliant Career. This is an autobiographical novel by Stella Miles Franklin who was only 21 when the novel was released and it is surprisingly feminist to the time. The heroine Sybylla Melvyn is a headstrong woman who refuses to confirm to social pressures, such as marriage. She wanted to achieve what she considered to be her dream career, to be an author. The questions about social pressures put on women remains relevant today as when this novel was written, which is disappointing but probably why this novel remains so applicable now.

2. On the Calculation of Volume I-III by Solvej Balle (I and II translated by Barbara J. Haveland, III translated by Sophia Hersi Smith and Jennifer Russell) – 2020-2021

It is 18th of November again and Tara Selter seems to be stuck in time. Many people compare these books to Groundhog Day, which is fair, but I think they offer so much more. I remember going into the first book wondering how can Balle keep this up for the intended seven books. It is hard to separate these as separate books as we all wait for the new translation of the next book to be translated into English (April 14, 2026, if you are wondering). While the focus is the time loop, I think each books seems to focus on an aspect of being stuck in a day. For example, book 1 focuses on Tara’s relationship with her husband who is not stuck in November 18, book 2 she discovers a new person and what it is like to realise you are not alone, while book 3 there are even more people trying to build a community together.  I have no idea what is going to happen in book 4 or any of the other books but I cannot wait to find out.

1. Same Bed Different Dreams by Ed Park – 2023

In 2015 a Korean American author got an ARC or a book called Same Bed, Different Dreams by Echo; the novel explores the sinister and secretive history of the Korean Provisional Government. This novel Same Bed Different Dreams (the one written by Ed Park) is a weird metafictional novel about a fictional novel, the Korean War, the division of North and South Korea and writing. It is so hard to categorise this novel, it is alternative history, science fiction, historical fiction and literary fiction all at the same time. I really wish I had the skills to describe this novel, it is complex, but it takes you one a weird postmodernist journey.

I started this blog for book blogging, and I do hope to get back into writing more frequently. 2024 was not the best reading year for me, I felt like I was in a slump and all I wanted to do was read Michael Connelly books. They are a lot of fun and I will continue to finish that series but I am not good at reviewing crime fiction. I have been tracking my reading journey since I first discovered my love of literature in 2009. This year was my worst reading year since then. I know I will probably never get back to the days where I was reading 150 books, but I want to rediscover my passion; not that I stopped loving reading, just this year I think I ended up doom scrolling on my phone more than I would like.

For 2025, I have decided to not have any reading goals, I am not going to set a book or page count, I am just going to read. I hope that will help find my joy again. Right at this moment I would probably prefer to read than write this, but I think it is important to document the reading year too. In 2024, I read 46 books and six of them were by Michael Connelly. In fact, if I was to recommend one of his books, I would say go read Angels Flight as it really explores the ethics of the police force through the lens of Rodney King, the LA Riots and the OJ Simpson Trial. If you prefer your crime fiction to be fun, then read The Thursday Murder Club series. I think around 15 of the books read were crime novels. However, I did read other books, and here are ten books that really stood out to me from this year.

The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden

This is a beautifully complex novel about family and romance. Set in a home in the Overijssel province in 1961, The Safekeep follows Isa and her maid Neelke. Isa is a lonely woman, grief stricken by the death of her mother, and often berates Neelke over the cleanliness of the house, things change drastically when her brother Louis and his girlfriend Eva move into the house. The presence of Eva stirs something she thought was long gone within her. This is a novel of being a recluse, loneliness, family duty and sexual or emotional re-awakening.

Safe Haven by Shankari Chandran

I think Shankari Chandran is fast becoming one of my favourite Australian authors. There is something about her writing that really appeals to me, like she understands the assignment of making sure a novel is a joy to read but also full of important social issues. Safe Haven takes place on an offshore detention centre, and it explores all the horrible things that you’re expect; poor living conditions, mistreatment of those in custody and unrelenting racism. However, this is a crime novel, following a suspicious death of a security officer. While this is a dark topic, this is a beautiful story about finding a home, where you can feel safe and loved.

No One Dies Yet by Kobby Ben Ben

This book took me a few months to read, not because I wasn’t enjoying it, because I kept getting distracted by the layers found here, and sometimes by other books. No One Dies Yet is a fascinating look into black diasporans, colonialism, queer culture in Africa, and so much more. Much like Safe Haven, No One Dies Yet uses the crime genre to explore important social issues (can you tell I love literary crime novels with a strong social critique?). This book has so much to unpack, and yet it might be one of the funniest and horniest books I have read in a long time.

The Work by Bri Lee

If I was to say this was a novel about art, love and sex, would that be enough for you? I am finding it hard to describe this novel and making it sound interesting. This follows Lally, a woman that runs her own art gallery in New York and Pat who is in the antiquities game in Sydney. What’s interesting about this book is they way the two characters look at art but neither are artists. It allows Bri Lee to explore the world of art from two different points of view. A fascinating look at the importance to art, and yet, much like No One Dies Yet, this novel is also funny and horny.

Prophet Song by Paul Lynch

Winner of the 2023 Booker Prize, Prophet Song is a dystopian novel set in a violent totalitarian Ireland where a the far-right National Alliance Party seizes control of the Country. This is the background to look at the growing refugee crisis happening in the world. Exploring the issue facing every country in the world where political parties stop caring about the people and start using fear and violence as tactics to control the country. This is a dark and claustrophobic novel, but it is one that I have not been able to stop thinking about, especially with everything that is happening in the world.

Dirrayawadha by Anita Heiss

Dr Anita Heiss AM is known not only as an author, but she is a vocal advocate for Indigenous Australian literature and literacy and a social commentator. Dirrayawadha (or Rise Up) is her eighth novel.  This one follows a young girl named Miinaa telling the story of when white ghosts arrived in her country and renamed it Bathurst. This is an epic historical novel of love and resilience during the frontier wars and invasion of Australia. Colonialism normally rewrites history in their favour, so I find it fascinating to read the stories from the oppressed. I loved Heiss writing so much, and I plan to read her novel Bila Yarrudhanggalangdhuray sometime this year.

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

I think Gabrielle Zevin might be an author I need to follow more closely. I was recommended Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by a friend; I have seen the book all over the place but wrote it off as popular fiction and not for me. I didn’t even connect the author with The Collected Works of A.J. Fikry, a book I remember really enjoying when it came out (maybe it is time for a re-read). I feel like Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow is everything I was looking for in Ready Player One. Rather than being jammed pack with nostalgia, this is a novel about the love of video games, creating something meaningful and the people you spend your time with. This is a novel about friendship, love, loss and obviously video games.

Witches by Brenda Lozano (translated by Heather Cleary)

In Witches we follow an indigenous healer named Feliciana and a journalist, Zoe. These two women’s lives intertwine when a muxe (a third-gender in Zapotec culture, assigned male at birth but a woman) healer named Paloma is murdered. Paloma was Feliciana’s mentor and friend, but also is the reason why Zoe is in Oaxaca and the two meet. Feliciana shares her story with Zoe, her childhood, and discovering her gift, the close friendship she developed with Paloma and the effect all this had on her family. I will read any book written by Lozano, when it gets translated into English, her writing is just so amazing and I love the way she is always looking at life, family and the sexism women constantly face.

The Trees by Percival Everett

Percival Everett is yet another newly discovered favourite author, everything I read from him, I simply adore, and he has so many other novels I still need to read (Erasure being a high priority). The Trees follows two detectives investigating a series of brutal murders in the small town of Money, Mississippi. The only problem is that at every crime scene there is another body found of a man who resembles Emmett Till. Percival Everett might be my favourite satirical author releasing books (sorry Gary Shteyngart). Each book from Everett is such a joy to read and they all aim to explore race and identity issues but using different genres and his own blend of humour. The bonus with discovering my love of Percival Everett is that he’s written over 20 novels, and I have only read three (James, Dr. No and this one) so far.

The Twilight Zone by Nona Fernández (translated by Natasha Wimmer)

The Twilight Zone is a novel set in 1984 Chile, smack in the middle of the Pinochet dictatorship. It follows a member of the secret police dictating his testimony to a reporter. He is complicit in some of the most horrible crimes committed by the regime, the narrator is a child that sees this man’s face on the cover of a magazine with the word “I Tortured People”. This is a difficult novel to describe, in parts it’s a social dissection into a brutal dictatorship, but also it uses imagery of the TV show The Twilight Zone to explore these social issues. I adore this novel so much and while it is so dark and depressing, it’s unflinching it its message, but the experimental approach is what got me through this novel.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation once aired a three-part special called The Books That Made Us. In this series acclaimed actor Claudia Karvan looked at the books that best defines our nation, Australia, under three topics: People, Place and Power. With over twenty books being used to form the Australian identity. This was a wonderful starting point to exploring Australian literature, I just with there was more.  

While I am not a big Australian literature reader, I really enjoyed the experience. I know I should read more literary works from my own country; I am just focused on my own niche of literature. I was surprised to discover books I hadn’t heard of before that I want to read, like They’re a Weird Mob by Nino Culotta and Power Without Glory by Frank Hardy. 

The series opened with the book that divides the country, a book I absolutely adored, The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas. I think this was the perfect book to open the series with, just because it is one that caused readers so many different reactions. Though Claudia Karvan telling Christos Tsiolkas she didn’t like the book was a surprise, but I think he handled it well. I am sure he has heard all kinds of criticisms about the book but is probably happy to have written something that gets talked about so often.  

I have only read six of the books that were mentioned in The Books That Made Us, and highlights for me include The Slap, Too Much Lip by Melissa Lucashenko and The Yield by Tara June Winch. The other three were The Choke by Sofie Laguna, The Natural Way of Things by Charlotte Wood and Crimes of the Father by Thomas Keneally. I enjoyed the variety of books being talked about and while I will probably never read something like Big Little Lies by Liana Moriarty or Honeybee by Craig Silvey, it did make me question if I should try Puberty Blues by Gabrielle Carey & Kathy Lette.  

I had a lot of fun watching this short series and want it to keep going but I also wonder what books define other countries, or even continents. As someone that loves world literature, I began wondering which books I would include to define the continents of the world. Europe has so many well-known pieces of literature, but which English, French or Russian classic would you put on that list? I thought Europe would be the easiest list to create (because it has so much popular literature), but the only book I could think of that should be on a list to define Europe was Older Brother by Mahir Guven (translated by Tina Kover). I would add that book because of the way it explores outsiders trying to integrate into European society, plus it goes into religious and political division in a country, even in a family.  

The Books That Made Us was a great series that reminded me that my exploration into world literature should include more works for Australian authors. If I was to pick a few books mentioned in the show to read soon, it would include The Lebs by Michael Mohammed Ahmad, Monkey Grip by Helen Garner, Carpentaria by Alexis Wright and That Deadman Dance by Kim Scott. If you find an opportunity to watch The Books That Made Us I hope you give it a go, I am not sure if it is available outside of Australia anywhere. Nor do I know if it is relevant to many non-Australian readers but I wanted to document my thoughts on this series. The show went on to get two AACTA nominations (the The Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards), one for Best Documentary or Factual Program and the other for Best Direction in Nonfiction Television.  

Read More

I am going to continue doing the prompts for Non-Fiction November, as one of my exercises in getting back into blogging. This week’s prompt is hosted by Doing Dewey and it is Book Pairings. I am not sure how well I will go with this but I will attempt to pair a few non-fiction books with some other media.

Things Are Against Us by Lucy Ellmann

I will start off easy here, but if you loved Ducks, Newburyport by Lucy Ellmann you should really check out this essay collection. As it is the same author you get the same anger and frustration in both. Ellmann is not happy with the way women are treated in the patriarchy and she will let you know, however she has this dry sense of humour that really works well in her writing. I enjoy her style and need to read some her older novels.

The Diary of a Bookseller by Shaun Bythell

Remember the English TV show Black Books? Don’t watch it now if you’ve never seen it because turns out the creator is a TERF, however this memoir is a good alternative. Shaun Bythell owns a secondhand bookstore in Wigtown, Scotland called The Bookshop and he has a bit of a snarky personality. This is a collection of humorous stories about book selling, the eclectic people that visit the store and the constant battle with Amazon. Bythell has written two more similar books but I am yet to read them.

Voices from Chernobyl by Svetlana Alexievich (translated by Keith Gessen)

I have not seen the HBO miniseries Chernobyl but it is on my list. I am confident enough to recommend the pairing because this book by Svetlana Alexievich is credited as part of the research material used to write the show. In particular, the book was used to help capture the how the Pripyat locals reacted to this disaster.

At the Existentialist Café by Sarah Bakewell

If you’ve read and enjoyed any novels by an existentialist then this is worth reading. Novels like The Stranger by Albert Camus, Nausea by Jean-Paul Sartre or The Mandarins by Simone de Beauvoir. This book looks at the lives of these philosophers and the philosophies they created. This is a fascinating read, and a great way to see how their lives, the way and other philosophical ideas, such as Phenomenology, help shaped their ways of thinking.

The Year of Reading Dangerously by Andy Miller

Finishing this list off with another easy one, but if you’ve been listening to the podcast Backlisted then I’m sure you already know about this book. The podcast is hosted by John Mitchinson and Andy Miller and they talk about older, forgotten books. I have to wonder if Miller’s book was a key factor in creating this podcast, particularly when The Guardian described his book as “a heroic and amusing attempt to get back to the classics”.

I know I need to read more non-fiction, there is so much to read but I really struggled to come up with decent pairings. I really wanted to recommend In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado but could not find anything similar and that is part of the beauty of that book.

I saw this over at Reading In Bed, and I thought I would join in; it’s this week’s #NonFicNov prompts which is being hosted by Rennie at What’s Nonfiction. I have been really in the mood for some non-fiction and thought it would be a good excuse to join in this event, and hopefully help motivate me to blog more. The prompt revolves around my year in non-fiction, which I admit has not been too great. My whole reading year has been a struggle, and I have read less than I normally would. Which means, I have not picked up much non-fiction, but what I have read, I’ve really enjoyed. So, I thought I would quickly highlight the non-fiction books I have read.

Sex and Lies by Leïla Slimani (translated by Sophie Lewis)

Leïla Slimani is a Franco-Moroccan author and journalist who while on a book tour decided to interview woman about their experiences with sex. When talking about sex, we often only get a western perspective (or this could be a cultural bias), so it was interesting to read some thoughts from Moroccan women. The books offered insights into the thoughts and expectations of these Arab women, while Slimani collected these stories, she also added some relevant statistics.

The Women’s Doc by Caroline De Costa

If it wasn’t for book club, I might have never read this book. Caroline De Costa is a controversial name here in Australia as a reproductive rights activist, mainly for her vocal support towards Mifepristone (RU486) which at the time was not available here. This book is a memoir of her working life, five decades as an Obstetrician and Gynaecologist in Ireland, Papua New Guinea, and Australia.

Ex Libris, 100+ Books to Read and Reread by Michiko Kakutani

I love books about books, but there is something about the subtitle of this one that really bugged me. In the 100+ books Kakutani mentioned, there was a large amount dedicated to American history and political. I find this to be a problem with Americans in general; not everyone lives in America! There is a world outside of America, and while some knowledge of your country can be useful, not everyone wants to read and reread these books.

Things Are Against Us by Lucy Ellmann

I loved Lucy Ellmann’s Ducks Newburyport, so I was excited to see this essay collection from her and she did not disappoint. This is a collection of 14 essays in which she unleashes her anger and frustration at the world. Ellmann has a great way of blending humour and anger together, and this collection covers topics on feminism, media, politics, labour, and the environment.

The Copenhagen Trilogy by Tove Ditlevsen (Translated by Tiina Nunnally & Michael Favala Goldman)

This is a collection of three short memoirs, Childhood, Youth and Dependency, covering a large part of Ditlevsen’s life. Stay tuned because there will be an episode of the Lost in Translations podcast on this book.

In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado

This might be my favourite book of the year; it was such an amazing read. This is a memoir of an abusive relationship, but Machado has done an amazing job in the way she wrote this book. Each chapter is written in a different style, using a series of narrative tropes to tell the story. What I really loved about this book is the way it is told in the second person as a way of letting the reader know they aren’t the only person suffering from abuse.

I am not planning on spending the entire month reading non-fiction but I have a few books lined up that I would really like to read, starting with Who Gets to Be Smart by Bri Lee. I am terrible at planning so I cannot reveal anything more, except the fact that Who Gets to Be Smart did mention No Friend but the Mountains: Writing from Manus Prison by Behrouz Boochani (translated by Omid Tofighian) which is sitting on my shelves waiting for me, so I might pick that up as well. As for my other project The Invisible Cities, we are focusing on Sierra Leone and Paraguay in November. December is a catch up month (so no new countries) and we will be back next year, starting with Algeria and Singapore.

Hope you have a great reading month, don’t forget to read some non-fiction. November is also Novelllas in November (#NovNov) if you need an excuse to read some shorter books.