Top 20 Books I Read in 2017

My friend Natalie asked me to create a top ten list of the books I read in 2017. Of course, I have more than ten. So to celebrate this plethora of riches, I present to you my favourite reads of 2017.

Historical Fiction

• His Bloody Project: Documents Relating to the Case of Roderick Macrae by Graeme Macrae Burnet
• Outlander by Diane Gabaldon

Very different books. Both set in Scotland. There may be a few more Scottish titles on this list. I've been hypnotized by the Edinburgh Book Festival.

I had intended to add book covers and links to all of the books below. But then I'll never get this posted and it's already February. Here goes!

Young Adult

Rodent by Lisa J. Lawrence
Fifteen Lanes by S.J. Laidlaw

Both titles were nominated for the White Pine 2017 awards. Please keep in mind that I'm only listing books which I actually read in 2017. There are a couple of other White Pine 2017 titles that I loved, but I read them in 2016.

Education
Launch: Using Design Thinking to Boost Creativity and Bring Out the Maker in Every Student by John Spencer

Enjoyed meeting up with my Tweeps old and new in the #LaunchBookChat this year!

International
Exit West by Mohsin Hamid
Goblin by Ever Dundas

Essays
Nasty Women by 404 Ink
One Day We'll All Be Dead and None of This Will Matter by Scaachi Koul

Nasty Women led the revolution in the year of the great shake up of #MeToo #BlackLivesMatter and #OscarsSoWhite.

Scaachi Koul's acerbic essays hit the funny bone. Clever book jacket design, too.

Non-Fiction
Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari
Mind blown
The Fact of a Body by Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich
Finely peeling away the layers of secrets
The Vanishing Man: In Pursuit of Valazquez by Laura Cumming
Winner of the 2017 James Tait Black Prize for NonFiction, a stunning tale of how art can consume us.

Picture Books
The Tale of Tam Linn by Lari Don
Scottish fairytale. A favourite of my niece's.
Journey by Aaron Becker
Only illustrations. Beautiful ones, at that. Great way for pre-literate or early literate children to tell stories.

Literary Fiction
What Belongs to You by Garth Greenwell
Nominated for the 2017 James Tait Black Prize for Fiction
The Last Neanderthal by Claire Cameron
Made me mourn for the extinction of the neanderthal. I want a lip like Girl's. Nominated for the 2017 Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize.

Mystery
All the Devils by Neil Broadfoot
Broadfoot's writing keeps getting better. Novel is set in Edinburgh. Scotland, yet again!
Glass Houses by Louise Penny
A perennial favourite - it's a good thing that Penny tends to publish a book a year!

Fantasy
A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab
This book was partly written in Edinburgh. And it shows.

Short Stories
The 2017 Short Story Advent Calendar by Hingston & Olsen Publishing
Forget about the chocolate - open a new short story every morning leading up to Christmas. Great being introduced to new writers and chatting with other readers about the tales on Twitter. #ssac2017

Poetry
I tend to read bit and bites of poetry, but what got me hooked on poetry this year like never before was the FutureLearn course, "Literature and Mental Health". Highly recommended.

Other Recommendations
This list from Kirsty Logan who read 220 books. Quite a diverse range of books that puts my list to shame. Enjoy!
http://www.kirstylogan.com/best-books-of-2017/

Worlds of Ink and Shadow

Worlds of Ink and Shadow by Lena Coakley
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Really enjoyed reading this book: It made me believe that many fictional characters are living real lives in alternate realities. Great way to understand the inspirations for the novels of the Bronte sisters. Worlds of Ink and Shadow is a YA book, but as an adult reader, I am frustrated that some of the darker aspects of the Brontes (repressed sexuality, ambition, and rivalry) isn't explored more fully. Hmmm, guess I should pick up a copy of Wuthering Heights or Jane Eyre.

4.5 stars - keep thinking about this book

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The Secret of the Blue Trunk

The Secret of the Blue Trunk by Lise Dion
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Imagine your parent leaving you the key to a blue trunk that was always kept locked. What life did your parent have before you were born? What secrets does the blue trunk hold?

Emotional and riveting. A daughter learns more about who her mother really was and what she had to endure.

Some violence and sexual allusions, but suitable for teens.

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First Day on Earth

First Day on Earth by Cecil Castellucci
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"We are all in the gutter,
but some of us are looking at the stars."
- Oscar Wilde

Beautiful, short, but thoughtful, novel. First Day on Earth tackles the subject of alienation - both literal and metaphorical - as well as abandonment, belonging and... space travel. The protagonist, Mal, belongs to Alateen, as well as a support group for alien abductees. A complicated life. There's also enough teenage kick in this book to gain the interest of most YA readers.

I would have liked to have seen the resolution with Mal's father issue handled in a more complex way. Other than that, the novel makes the reader deeply empathize with Mal's heartbreak.

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White Pine 2012 Nominees

Quick links to this year's list of nominees:

List of White Pine 2012 Fiction

List of White Pine 2012 Non-fiction

White Pine 2012: Something Wicked

Something Wicked by Lesley Anne Cowan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Something Wicked by Lesley Anne Cowan is the story of 16-year-old Melissa, who seems to be looking for a whole whack of trouble. Nominated for the 2012 White Pine competition, Something Wicked has been noted for its controversial subject matter: There’s plenty of sex, drugs and at-risk behaviour being done by this teen.

Written by a secondary school teacher of at-risk students, the book is intended as much for 16-year-old, at-risk female readers, as it is for teachers, parents and classmates of such teen girls. I benefited from reading the book for its insights into the reasons behind the behaviours.

The amount of sexual activity and drug use is shocking, but believable. Melissa is a girl who is drowning in her world and seeking every means of escape. The choices she makes in the book, even until the end, provide plenty of fodder for discussions.

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