{"id":6147,"date":"2020-12-23T09:00:50","date_gmt":"2020-12-22T22:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/michellecooper-writer.com\/blog\/?p=6147"},"modified":"2020-12-22T23:32:00","modified_gmt":"2020-12-22T12:32:00","slug":"my-favourite-books-of-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/michellecooper-writer.com\/blog\/2020\/12\/my-favourite-books-of-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"My Favourite Books of 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"

I didn\u2019t read many new books this year. This was a year of re-reading old favourites from my bookshelves, partly because I was craving familiar, comforting reads, but mostly because my beloved local library was closed for most of the year. I did acquire Clara<\/a>, which allowed me to read ebooks, but I\u2019ve decided I prefer paper books, given a choice.<\/p>\n

Favourite Novels for Adults<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"'GhostI began the year engrossed in Tana French\u2019s The Wych Elm<\/em><\/a>, an inventive thriller about privilege and identity. I also enjoyed The Secret Place<\/em><\/a>, by the same author, a cleverly constructed murder mystery set in a posh Dublin boarding school, and I liked Anne Tyler\u2019s new novel, Redhead by the Side of the Road<\/em><\/a>, a typically compassionate and thoughtful depiction of a flawed man. However, the most memorable fiction I read this year was Ghost Wall<\/em><\/a> by Sarah Moss, a tense, affecting novella about men using their dubious versions of history to strengthen their hold on power.<\/p>\n

Favourite Non-Fiction<\/strong><\/p>\n

I liked The Crown: Political Scandal, Personal Struggle and the Years That Defined Elizabeth II, 1956-1977<\/em><\/a> by Robert Lacey, about the actual history behind the TV series, even though I gave up on watching The Crown<\/em><\/a> after the first series. I didn\u2019t seem to read many non-fiction books this year, which is unusual for me. I think it was due to the lack of access to my library, but also because I was reading so much depressing pandemic-related non-fiction online.<\/p>\n

Favourite Books for Children and Teenagers<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"'LiarI enjoyed Kate Constable\u2019s new middle-grade novel, The January Stars<\/em><\/a>, as well as an older novel of hers, Winter of Grace<\/em><\/a>, about a contemplative teenage girl who explores spirituality and religion in a way that isn\u2019t often seen in Australian Young Adult literature. I also liked Rebecca Stead\u2019s Liar and Spy<\/em><\/a>, about a middle-grade boy who bravely faces up to unpleasant reality and devises a clever plan to defeat some school bullies. As always, I enjoyed her depiction of children\u2019s lives in Brooklyn – I have no idea how accurate it is, but she makes New York seem so appealing. I was also entertained (and often confused) by Archer\u2019s Goon<\/em><\/a> by Diana Wynne Jones, which is full of plot twists and surprises. I\u2019m not sure it is truly a children\u2019s book and it lacks the warmth of Howl\u2019s Moving Castle<\/em><\/a>, but it was very clever and intriguing. \"'DragonflyHowever, my favourite children\u2019s read was, unexpectedly, a novel told partly in verse about a girl living in a Bronze Age Mediterranean culture ruled by superstition. Dragonfly Song<\/em> by Wendy Orr<\/a> was an engrossing story about a lifestyle completely unfamiliar to me, told in simple but descriptive language. It has deservedly won a number of literary awards and there’s a good interview with the author about the book here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Favourite Read That Was Not A Book<\/strong><\/p>\n

When life felt really dismal this year, I escaped to Hedgehog Moss Farm<\/a>, a small farm in the south of France, owned by a young woman who works as a translator and lives with her Eeyore-ish donkey Pirlouit; her llamas, well-behaved Pampelune and escape-artist Pamp\u00e9rigouste; some photogenic cats and chickens; and a gentle giant guard dog called Pandolf. She describes interactions with her animals and her neighbours<\/a> in such a droll manner that each blog post is a delight. There are beautiful photos and videos of rural life, interspersed with artwork and literary quotes. Her writing style reminds me a little of Gerald Durrell – if she ever decides to write a book, I would happily buy it.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t know what I\u2019m reading these holidays, but I am planning a chapter-by-chapter discussion of Antonia Forest’s The Cricket Term<\/em>, with the first post up this week (probably). I hope all you Memoranda readers manage to have a relaxing, enjoyable holiday season, after a year we\u2019d all like to forget, and that 2021 brings better news for the world.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I didn\u2019t read many new books this year. This was a year of re-reading old favourites from my bookshelves, partly because I was craving familiar, comforting reads, but mostly because my beloved local library was closed for most of the year. I did acquire Clara, which allowed me to read ebooks, but I\u2019ve decided I … Continue reading My Favourite Books of 2020<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22,19,6,293,7,18,11],"tags":[24,28,211,56,304,306,301,307],"class_list":["post-6147","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-1950s-and-1960s","category-animals","category-books","category-childrens-books","category-film-and-tv","category-my-favourite-books","category-young-adult","tag-anne-tyler","tag-diana-wynne-jones","tag-kate-constable","tag-rebecca-stead","tag-robert-lacey","tag-sarah-moss","tag-tana-french","tag-wendy-orr"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/michellecooper-writer.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6147","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/michellecooper-writer.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/michellecooper-writer.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michellecooper-writer.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michellecooper-writer.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6147"}],"version-history":[{"count":22,"href":"https:\/\/michellecooper-writer.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6147\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6172,"href":"https:\/\/michellecooper-writer.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6147\/revisions\/6172"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/michellecooper-writer.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6147"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michellecooper-writer.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6147"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michellecooper-writer.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6147"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}