Top Ten books you read in 2017

Cafe Society
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Last year’s thread: Top Ten books you read in 2015 - Cafe Society - Straight Dope Message Board

Doesn’t matter when published, but you read 'em and loved 'em in the last calendar year. I’ll be along to shortly to post my favorites.

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Here are mine, in no particular order, from the 63 I read last year:

If Britain Had Fallen by Norman Longmate - Mostly-factual, partly-speculative discussion of the Nazi plan to invade and occupy the UK in World War II. Detailed and chillingly plausible.

The Secret Files of Sherlock Holmes by June Thomson - An excellent collection of Holmes pastiches - every bit as good as Conan Doyle’s originals, I thought.

The Path Between the Seas by David McCullough - Masterful history of the creation of the Panama Canal, from the doomed French project to the successful decade-long American effort (largely driven by Theodore Roosevelt). A fascinating mix of engineering, medicine, diplomacy and politics.

Soon I Will Be Invincible by Austin Grossman - Funny, clever supervillain spoof with just the right touch of pathos.

A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway - Spare, crisp war novel and doomed romance set in WWI Italy.

The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - As clever and well-crafted a mystery as ever; Sherlock Holmes at his best.

Founding Father: Rediscovering George Washington by Richard Brookhiser - An excellent short intro to the Revolutionary War hero and first President: what made him great, and why we too often take him for granted today.

The Hemingway Hoax by Joe Haldeman - A literary historian and a con artist team up to fake Papa’s lost 1922 trunkful of short stories, and then things get seriously weird.

Post Captain by Patrick O’Brian - The second Aubrey-Maturin novel, and a very engaging, beautifully-written look at British society, naval warfare and shipboard friendship in the early 1800s.

A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles - Charming novel about a Russian aristocrat held under house arrest in a fancy hotel for decades, and the life he builds for himself there.

3

In some rough order of impact:

  1. The Lawrence Browne Affair by Cat Sebastian. It’s a m/m Regency romance with a familiar crook in hiding plot. But the characterizations are interesting, well rounded with an obviously autistic character that is sympathetic and strong in his own way.

  2. The Soldier’s Scoundrel also by Cat Sebastian. It’s also a m/m Regency romance with a strong story of intrigue, blackmail and very likeable characters. I was almost more intrigued with the mystery than the budding romance between the son of an Earl and the son of a con man.

  3. The Witches Vacuum Cleaner by Terry Pratchett. They’re all silly little stories aimed at children, but you can clearly see the roots of Discworld in them.

  4. The Empty Grave by Jonathon Stroud. A perfect wrap up to the story, even with the last minute somewhat Deus ex Machina introduction of a major character. Stroud’s characters are likeable and grow over the course of the series. And of course, Skull.

  5. Two Necromancers, a Dragon and a Vampire by L. G. Estrella. The Two Necromancers series is light hearted and awkwardly written in places but still funny and interesting.

  6. Forged in Blood I & II by Lindsay Buroker. The whole series is a non stop rollercoaster of action and out-of-the-frying-pan-and-into-the-fire set ups, but the characters are likeable, the world building intriguing and the craziness non stop.

  7. The Seventh Bride by T. Kingfisher aka Ursula Vernon. She takes the old Bluebeard legend and ups the ante so instead of just killing the brides, the villian takes something from them: their life, their death, their magic, their voice…

  8. The Sumage Solution by G. L. Carriger. Ms Carriger takes her supernatural society out of Victorian England and into 21rst century San Francisco. The story is a m/m romance, but at heart it’s about finding your place in the world and letting go of the past. And I just love Max, tough talking, invulnerable, deeply wounded, cocksure ass that he is.

  9. A Dirty Job by Christopher Moore. One of my favorites, the characters are so over the top and the situations so awkward it’s hilarious.

  10. The Stoker & Holmes Series by Colleen Gleason. There are 4 books out in the series so far, set in a wonderfully multi leveled steampunk Victorian England. It’s an homage to the old movie serials with a villian that just slips through their fingers in the last pages of the book, but it’s the characters that keep me coming back.

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The Magicians, The Magician King and The Magician’s Land all by Lev Grossman

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Close Range: Wyoming Stories by Annie Proulx

Animal Dreams by Barbara Kingsolver

Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri

A Widow for One Year by John Irving

Cliff Walk by Bruce DeSilva

The River Wife by Jonis Agee

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At Home: A Short History of Private Life, by Bill Bryson
Broadway Babies Say Goodnight: Musicals Then and Now, by Mark Steyn
Every Heart a Doorway, by Seanan McGuire
The One and Only Ivan, by Katherine Applegate
What If? Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions, by Randall Munroe
Caesar’s Last Breath: Decoding the Secrets of the Air Around Us, by Sam Kean
1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus, by Charles C. Mann
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie
Throne of Jade, by Naomi Novik
The Wild Robot, by Peter Brown

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Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders was so much better than anything else I read last year, it’s blown them all out of my mind.

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Mink River (Brian Doyle)
Future Home of the Living God (Louise Erdrich)
Hild (Nicola Griffith)
The Left Hand of Darkness (Ursula K. Le Guin) (reread)

Straight: The Surprisingly Short History Of Heterosexuality (Hanne Blank)
The Crystal Desert: Summers in Antarctica (David G. Campbell)
In the Darkroom (Susan Faludi)
The Fruit Hunters: A Story of Nature, Adventure, Commerce, and Obsession (Adam Leith Gollner)
Antarctic Wildlife: A Visitor’s Guide (James Lowen)
Terra Incognita: Travels in Antarctica (Sara Wheeler)

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Please give us a brief description and tell us why you liked the books you mentioned.

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We went to the Civil Rights Museum in Memphis this year, which was amazing. Came home and read March, a graphic novel in three parts written by John Lewis, of all people! But with help. Really tied together all the big civil rights events for me.

The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead was also a gripping read.

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In the order I read them:

  1. Mr. Strangelove, A Biography of Peter Sellers, by Ed Sikou. Reasonably good, but he’s focused mainly on showing how Peter’s mother screwed him up.

  2. Sin in the Second City: Madams, Ministers, Playboys, and the Battle for America’s Soul, by Karen Abbott. Very intriguing study of the Everleigh Sisters circa 1900-1910, their brothel in Chicago, the criminal element and corruption. Very well-written, if a bit too favorable to the Sisters themselves.

  3. The Good Rat, by Jimmy Breslin. The master investigative reporter on the decline of the mob.

  4. Head in the Cloud, by William Poundstone. Insightful ponderings and research on why it is necessary to actually know things and not just be able to look it up online. Much discussion of how mislead much of America is, based on how they get their news.

  5. Warlock Holmes & The Hell-Hound of the Baskervilles by Gabriel Denning. Delightful spoof of the great detective with a supernatural element added. Great fun.

  6. The New Annotated Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, edited by Leslie S. Klinger. Lots of great background information and the footnotes show how Mary’s worldview changed between the original 1823 edition (when she was happily married to Percy and took the view that “there are things man was never meant to know”) and the 1832 edition (after Percy died tragically and she came to the view that “we are all doomed by fate”.) Excellent.

  7. Impeached: the Trial of Andrew Johnson and the Fight for Lincoln’s Legacy by David O. Stewart. Very good study showing just how deplorable Johnson’s views were, and why the Congress worked at coming up with any excuse to impeach him.

  8. James Buchanan by Jean H. Baker. It doesn’t aim at any great depth into Buchanan’s character, but does a good, if superficial, job of explaining him, his presidency and the division of the U.S.

  9. Anno Dracula 1899 by Kim Newman. Great group of short series, each individually a fun bit, overall showing masterful insight into the classic horror genre.

  10. The Zimmerman Telegram by Barbara Tuchman. Very well done, as usual for her. Excellent job of showing the origins of codebreaking in the U.K. and the U.S., and how Britain was finally able to break Wilson’s personal vow of not entering the War.

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Klinger’s giant annotated Sherlock Holmes volumes are also excellent, although I have caught him in a few minor errors.

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In no order at all, because I don’t wanna.

  1.   [The Nix](https://www.amazon.com/Nix-Nathan-Hill/dp/1101970340/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1514906887&sr=8-1&keywords=the+nix) by Nathan Hill.  Honestly, I can barely remember what this book was about, beyond a few key scenes.  But even as I was reading it, I felt the enjoyment of it was more about the journey than the destination.  It was pleasurably well-written, never boring, and I’ll be picking up future works by this author.

  2.  [Gentlemen and Players](https://www.amazon.com/Gentlemen-Players-Novel-Joanne-Harris/dp/0060559152/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1514907330&sr=1-1&keywords=gentlemen+and+players+by+joanne+harris) by Joanne Harris.  A well-written mystery set in a British boys school.

  3.  [The Freedom Maze](https://www.amazon.com/Freedom-Maze-Delia-Sherman/dp/076366975X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1514907840&sr=1-1&keywords=the+freedom+maze), Delia Sherman.  A YA time-travel story in which a girl travels back to pre-Civil War times and lives as a slave.

  4.  [Strange Weather](https://www.amazon.com/Strange-Weather-Four-Short-Novels/dp/0062663119/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1514908005&sr=1-1&keywords=strange+weather) by Joe Hill.  Joe’s making the list this year; his dad did not.  This is a book of four novellas, all of which were decent.  My favorite was Aloft, about a man who gets trapped on a cloud.  Second was Loaded, a much more reality-based story, but damn it was harsh.

  5.  Cheating on this entry:  [Menagerie & Spectacle](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0761T57MP?ref=series_rw_dp_labf), first two books in a series by Rachel Vincent, about a world in which mythological creatures exist and are exhibited in circus sideshows.

  6.  [The Dry](https://www.amazon.com/Dry-Novel-Jane-Harper/dp/1250105625/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1514909389&sr=1-1&keywords=the+dry+jane+harper) by Jane Harper, another well-done mystery, set in Australia during a drought.  I liked the main character, and am glad to know a sequel is coming, although all threads were tied up at the end.

  7.  [The Keep](https://www.amazon.com/Keep-F-Paul-Wilson/dp/1613770502/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1514909629&sr=1-1), by F. Paul Wilson.  A classic vampire novel, I’m glad I finally picked it up!

  8.  [Lost Boy: the true story of Captain Hook](https://www.amazon.com/Lost-Boy-True-Story-Captain/dp/0399584021/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1514910004&sr=1-1&keywords=lost+boy) by Christina Henry.  Seems like a lot of good tales were inspired by Peter Pan; I dig them, anyway.

  9.  [The Empty Grave](https://www.amazon.com/Lockwood-Book-Five-Empty-Grave/dp/1484778723/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1514910182&sr=1-1&keywords=the+empty+grave+by+jonathan+stroud) by Jonathan Stroud.  I didn’t put this list in order but if I had, this would have been first.  A perfect end to a perfect YA series.  The series begins with The Screaming Staircase, and I recommend everyone go get it immediately.
  10. The Book of the Unnamed Midwife by Meg Elison. Yay for post-apocalyptic fiction! This could totally happen, you know.

Honorable mentions: Nothing Left to Lose (end of the John Cleaver series by Dan Wells), What the Hell Did I Just Read (clever and funny series entry by David Wong), and Paperbacks From Hell (beautifully illustrated non-fiction about horror fiction, by the awesome Grady Hendrix).

Several of these books were recommended to me by other Dopers. I think I remember who, but don’t dare attribute in case I get it wrong. Thanks to all you guys for such a great year of reading!

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Mink River (Brian Doyle): Oregon local, poetic language. Not much plot, but it does have a sentient bird and plenty of Listenwissenschaft.
Future Home of the Living God (Louise Erdrich): Like The Handmaid’s Tale, but more surreal. Erdrich’s usual pleasurable language.
Hild (Nicola Griffith): The fictionalized childhood of St. Hilda, of whom little is actually known. Griffith says it’s the first in as trilogy; we’ll see. A nice job of subtlely explaining magical/miraculous outcomes as the consequence of close observation and inference.
The Left Hand of Darkness (Ursula K. Le Guin) (reread): One of my favorite novels, well worth a periodic rereading. Pastiche storytelling, nicely layered. What I’d really like is an edition that swaps all the pronouns. Read in Antarctica to enhance Genly and Estraven’s flight across the ice.

Straight: The Surprisingly Short History of Heterosexuality (Hanne Blank): An engaging and provocative look at the subject, conversational in tone and with incursions of material from the author’s relationships.
The Crystal Desert: Summers in Antarctica (David G. Campbell): Memoir of scientific work in Antarctica, rather lyrically presented though not lacking in popular science.
In the Darkroom (Susan Faludi): A memoir of the author’s problematic relationship with her father, who late in life surprises her with the announcement that she is trans.
The Fruit Hunters: A Story of Nature, Adventure, Commerce, and Obsession (Adam Leith Gollner): While by no means exhaustive, a pleasant romp through the history of fruit.
Antarctic Wildlife: A Visitor’s Guide (James Lowen): The best of the field guides, with large, clear photos, a reasonable amount of information, and very useful location information.
Terra Incognita: Travels in Antarctica (Sara Wheeler): A travelogue of the author’s experiences as a writer in Antarctica.

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I love The Keep! It’s one of my favorite vampire novels. Check out Fevre Dream by George R.R. Martin and 'Salem’s Lot by Stephen King, if you haven’t already.

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Fiction:

  1. Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine – This book has a can’t-turn-away quality to it. Initially, the book is amusing, as you see the thoughts and actions of a socially clueless young woman. As the book goes along, the mood gets darker and darker, as we (the readers) gradually receive hints as to what happened in the woman’s past that made her so weird. It’s rare for an author to shift a book’s mood so drastically while keeping it interesting, but the author does this flawlessly. The end result is horrifying, amusing, and heartwarming.
  2. Behind Closed Doors – I don’t remember the last time I’ve been so obsessed with finding out what happens next. I flew through this one.
  3. Penpal – This is a creepy book, but it’s not one of those ones that’s like “omg the dead girl is standing at the foot of my bed!”. It’s a subtle creepy that sucked me in.
  4. Rocks Fall, Everyone Dies – I can’t pinpoint what it is that made me adore this book about a teenage boy who could steal people’s thoughts, wishes, memories, etc. without their knowledge. I love the premise, and I liked how the book was so many things at one: philosophical, mystery, action-adventure, and romance.
  5. Dealing with Dragons – A children’s book. Nothing earth-shattering, but I sure had fun reading it!

Nonfiction:

  1. Far from the Tree – This is a book about how parents cope with children that are “different” in a particular way. There are chapters on autism, schizophrenia, dwarfism, prodigiousness, deafness, transgenderism, multiple severe disability, children conceived through rape, children who grow up to be criminals, and Downs Syndrome. I have never much been interested in other cultures, but I am fascinated by people who grow up in the same culture but experience it differentially by virtue of some physical or mental disability/difference, and as a result, this book was a metaphorical treasure chest to me. It was equal parts engaging and educational.
  2. Think Like a Freak – The third book in the Freakonomics series. Another one that was equal parts engaging and educational. I especially liked the part where they argued that having fun helps you to succeed at something, because when you’re having fun you want to spend more time doing it, which means you get more practice, and as a general rule, the more practice you get the better you are at something.
  3. But What If We’re Wrong? Thinking About the Past as if it Were the Present – The dose of humility present in this book was so, so refreshing. I feel like I read too many books by smug scientists and statisticians that think they know everything, but if we’re being honest, I think the general culture (at least in the U.S.) has trended too far towards smugness and certainty. I loved reading a book that cast doubt on what we think we know, but in a gentle and playful way.
  4. The China Study – I like to learn about health and nutrition, but many books in that vein seem to be aimed towards people who don’t like to read (i.e., flashy marketing language with little substance, pictures and call-out boxes and huge text, etc.). This book was the most thoroughly researched nutrition book that I have ever read, and the author respected the reader, really taking the time to explain how studies were conducted, funded, etc.
  5. The Twenty-Four Hour Mind: The Role of Sleep and Dreaming in Our Emotional Lives. There is so little literature on dreaming that is actually backed by solid research, and it was wonderful to actually find some information on what dreams reveal about your psychological state that actually have a basis in science.
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Recipes from the Herbalist’s Kitchen by Brittany Nickerson. It’s a cookbook, with lots of encouraging words about how good herbs are for you. Recipes are damn good.
The Bog People by P.V. Glob. I love Seamus Heaney’s bog poems, and this is the book that inspired them.
Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie. Her best book.
A Murder is Announced by Agatha Christie. My favorite Miss Marple.
The Reshaping of Everyday Life by Jack Larkin. This is a fascinating survey of cultural history in postcolonial America.
The North West Company by Marjorie Campbell. Lyrical but damned informative, this is a classic work.
The Jewel Garden by Monty and Sarah Don. C’mon, who doesn’t love Monty Don?
The Merry Hall trilogy by Beverley Nichols. I read everything by him I could get my hands on; these were my favorites.
The Constance Spry Cookery Book by Constance Spry. She was English. In the 1950s. And her cookbook blew my mind. This is who Martha Stewart wishes she could be.
Precious Bane by Mary Webb. Who was a genius. This novel is a masterpiece of first-person narration. The definitive example, imo.

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I read that a few years ago and was impressed. The chapter on prodigies was particularly remarkable, but frankly discouraging - their parents can either push too hard and ruin their lives, or not push hard enough and then later be blamed by them for not having had the chance to achieve their full potential. Damned if you do…

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I’ll rank them until I feel they are equal:

1.** The Book of the New Sun **by Gene Wolfe - The true deserved title of Lord of the Rings of science fiction. It’s amazing, dense, and worth it.

Note: 4 main novels and a 5th epilogue/finishing novel, but I recommend reading them all as one. I bought a bound version, actually.

  1. Ready Player One - very fun, though it will not stand the test of time. Seriously, though, check it out. Lots of fun.

  2. The Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams - I read the first three Hitchhiker’s guide and this was the best of the three. I highly recommend Martin Freeman’s audio book version. He’s amazing.

  3. The Sorcerer’s House by Gene Wolfe - An underrated gem from Wolfe. Don’t look anything up. Just know it is short and fascinating. PM me to discuss it after you read it. Again, it’s a short book from Wolfe.

  4. **Dragonsbane **by Barbara Hambly - A great and unique tale involving a dragon, a plain woman, and a wonderful adventure. I’ve heard the sequels are terrible, but this was a gem of a find.

  5. **Warbreaker **by Brandon Sanderson - One of his few stand alone books. I loved every moment…starting after the first 75 pages(which were slow, but necessary).

  6. **Reaper Man **by Terry Pratchett - I cried(nearly, anyway) at the end. Funny, too.

8-10(tied).** Men at Arms, Feet of Clay, and Guards! Guards!** by Terry Pratchett. I have now read three City Watch books in Discworld and they are a true joy. Get them even if you get nothing else from Discworld.

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I don’t have a top ten but the books that effected me most this past year were Maus and Maus II.

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This and Zinsser’s Rats, Lice, and History are in my lifetime top 10.