Arrianarose's 2022 Books, books and more books challenge

Hi everyone and happy 2022! This is my twelfth year of book challenges, which is amazing and a bit shocking. It doesn't seem like it's been that long since I first started this. The past two years, my reading, like the rest of the world, has been a bit wacky. I've read an enormous amount of books, which I still find difficult to fully believe. I have no idea how this upcoming year will go, but I'm hoping that it includes some wonderful new books, at least!

Last year, two of my friends and I created our own 21 in 2021 book challenge, and it worked well for us, so we decided to create another one for 2022. We've chosen 22 prompts to fill throughout the year, and plan to have fun with it.

2021: 109 books
2020: 81 books
2019: 61 books
2018: 69 books
2017: 39 books
2016: 46 books
2015: 55 books
2014: 49 books
2013: 46 books
2012: 47 books
2011: 40 books





My Ticker link seems to be broken, suddenly. :( I'm at 85 books, and I believe I chose 75 as my goal for the year.

Where has my reading taken me this year?



Africa
Ghana: Indigo

Antarctica
South Pole Station

Asia
China: Undress Me in the Temple of Heaven
Peach Blossom Spring
South Korea: The Cabinet
Island of Sea Women
Syria: The Beekeeper of Aleppo

Europe
France: The Rose of Martinique
Victorine
32 Yolks
Switchboard Soldiers
Down and Out in Paris and London
Greece: Pandora's Jar
Song of Achilles
A Thousand Ships
A House Like A Lotus
Ireland: This Must be the Place
Haven
Italy: The Venice Sketchbook
From Scratch
One Italian Summer
A Thousand Days in Venice
Kosovo: Bolla
Norway: The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven
The Fellowship of Ghosts
Portugal: The Arm of the Starfish
Russia: The Cherry Orchard
Scotland (cheating, I know): The Bookshop on the Corner
UK: And Then There Were None
Tin Man
The Flatshare
Life After Life
Home Fire
Misc. What the Ermine Saw

North America
Canada: When We Lost Our Heads
Kiss & Tell
(maybe?) (also in space) Good Morning, Midnight
Guatemala: Hard Red Spring
Jamaica: Wide Sargasso Sea
USA
California: Malibu Rising
A Single Man
The Future of Another Timeline
Parable of the Sower
Parable of the Talents
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
Lessons in Chemistry
Colorado: Passage
Hawaii: Hawaii's Story by Hawaii's Queen
Kansas: Corinne
Louisiana: Five Days at Memorial
Massachusetts: We Are Market Basket
New York: Lease on Love
Final Revival of Opal & Nev
The Personal Librarian
Songs for the End of the World
Leave the World Behind
Someday, Someday, Maybe
Texas: (and a mythical shadow Earth) A Snake Falls to Earth
Utah: On Location
Misc. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Lost Children Archive
The Violin Conspiracy
Radium Girls

Oceania

South America
Venezuela: Dragons in the Waters

Everywhere and nowhere
ArtCurious
No Baggage
On Girlhood
Vanilla
Nowhere Girl
Small Odysseys: Selected Shorts
Full Tilt: Ireland to India with a Bicycle
Great Circle
We Came, We Saw, We Left: A Family Gap Year
Packing for Mars
Rogues
Saturday Night Widows
It Must Have Been Something I Ate

Fictional locales
Yan: Descendant of the Crane
Somewhere in the universe: All Systems Red
Artificial Condition
Rogue Protocol
Exit Strategy
Urth: The Starless Crown
Panga: A Psalm for the Wild-Built
A Prayer for the Crown Shy

Belated Happy Reading New Year. Cheers!

1. Bolla by Pajtim Statovci Jan 2: Jan 7
2. And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie Jan 3: Jan 10 (audiobook)
3. The Cabinet by Un-Su Kim Jan 7: Jan 18

And, I'm off! Completely by chance, the two library books I snagged on a whim are both in translation, which I think starts the year off well.

>3 rocketjk: Thanks! :) Happy reading to you as well this year!

4. ArtCurious by Jennifer Dasal Jan 1: Jan 20
5. Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid Jan 9: Jan 21
6. The Venice Sketchbook by Rhys Bowen Jan 23: Jan 26
7. Descendant of the Crane by Joan He Jan 10: Feb 2 (audiobook)

Of this group, I liked The Venice Sketchbook best. I felt really immersed in the Venetian locale, its people and the rhythms of day to day life there. The main character's story was much richer and more interesting to me than that of her niece. I would have liked to have some of her own perspective from later in life looking back.

Descendant of the Crane was an AudioSync download from last year, and I'm not entirely sure what my takeaway is on it. I often struggled to understand where the narrative was going, and can't decide if that's a good or a bad thing. There doesn't seem to be a sequel at the moment, so I'm spared making the decision of stopping or continuing to find out what happens next.

8. Indigo by Catherine E. McKinley
9. Tin Man by Sarah Winman
10. A Single Man by Christopher Isherwood (audiobook)
11. All Systems Red by Martha Wells
12. The Rose of Martinique by Andrea Stuart
13. The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri (audiobook)
14. The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary
15. Artificial Condition by Martha Wells
16. No Baggage by Clara Bensen

Clearly, I haven't felt inclined to note down my books this past month, so there's a bit of a backlog here. I was generally disappointed by Indigo. I'm a big fan of micro histories, and that's one of my reading challenge items, but instead found myself with a internal discovery type memoir with very little to do with indigo. On the flip side, I picked up Tin Man, which was unexpectedly wonderful, by randomly picking a row in the fiction stacks at my public library and being drawn to it's Van Gogh book jacket. Apparently you can sometimes judge a book by its cover! :)

I'd heard good things about Martha Wells' Murderbot series, but probably wouldn't have picked it up it if hadn't been on a display at the front of the library. I mean - Murderbot? - it really didn't sound like anything I had the vaguest interest in. However, it turned out to be a quirky and humorous sci fi adventure/drama. As you can see, I went back to the library and grabbed the next three, one of which I've already finished.

I just realized that I inadvertently have a sub-theme of emotional well-being/mental health in three of the more recent books - The Flatshare, The Beekeeper of Aleppo and No Baggage, all of which, though quite different from one another, were quite good.

17. We Are Market Basket by Danie Korshun & Grant Welker Feb 14: Feb 27
18. On Location by Sarah Echevarre Smith Feb 27: Mar 1
19. Passage by Connie Willis Mar 3: Mar 6

It was interesting to read about the Market Basket strike from a new perspective, having witnessed and peripherally participated in it (boycotting during the strike) As a New Englander whose home city has three grocery stores - all Market Basket - I obviously knew some of the situation, but learning the details and history of the family and business were very interesting.

I was a bit disappointed in Passage. Normally I love Connie Willis, but the whole comedy of errors-type situations got old very fast in this one. Stop running around in circles! None of your news is that critical - if you stay put, the person you want to talk to will have returned to the office! Also, grow a backbone! If you do not want to, or do not have time to talk with someone, say so and leave! It also (not by any fault of hers) made me feel old. I thought it was a more recent book of hers (2001), so was surprised by the rather out-dated technologies being used by everyone (pagers, mini-cassette recorders,etc.). Only to realize that, oh wait, that really was the technology at that time, I've just forgotten that 2001 was actually 20+ years ago, and so much of what we use constantly now wasn't around when I started college. I'm now old - ugh!

20. Hawaii's Story by Hawaii's Queen by Liliuokalani Feb 22: Mar 8 (audiobook)
21. Rogue Protocol by Martha Wells Mar 10
22. Life After Life by Kate Atkinson Mar 12: Mar 14

The US really sucks sometimes. We look so critically at other countries and often forget how badly we have behaved ourselves. I did not know much of anything about the US's acquisition of Hawaii, and am now rather embarrassed to find out just how they became a US territory. Ugh.

I'm always interested in books that explore quirks of time, so Life After Life was just my kind of thing. Though I do think her birth was portrayed rather a few too many times. I'd have preferred more focus on when she really began to remember her other lives and how that changed (or didn't change) what happened to herself and those around her.

23. From Scratch by Tembi Locke Mar 9: Mar 23 (audiobook)
24. Exit Strategy by Martha Wells Mar 31

I'm really enjoying this bite-sized series - every book readable in one sitting. From Scratch makes me want to visit Italy again. The food, the views, this history, the food. :)

25. The Bookshop on the Corner by Jenny Colgan Mar 29: Apr 8
26. On Girlhood by misc. edited by Glory Edim Mar 22: Apr 9
27. The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven by Nathaniel Ian Miller Mar 20: Apr 9
28. Vanilla by Tim Ecott Mar 4: Apr 10
29. This Must be the Place by Maggie O'Farrell Apr 9: Apr 10

First off, book titles. The Bookshop on the Corner is apparently the US title, and was utterly and absurdly misjudged by the publishers. Do authors have any say over these types of decisions? I'd have to assume not, as I can't imagine Colgan would have approved of such an absurdity as naming her book, which contains no corner and no actual bookshop, being named as such. I think the UK title is The Little Shop of Happy Ever After - the actual name of the main character's book van! If the US publishers really felt that the title, combined with say, a cover picturing a book van (gasp!) was really too subtle for us lackwitted Americans, they could just have changed Shop to Bookshop - wouldn't that be more sensible? On a lesser note, I'm less than enthused about the subtitle for Vanilla: In Search of the Ice Cream Orchid. Ugh, really? Are we trying to attract small children or adults, here? I'm hopeful that was also the notion a publisher rather than the author's own idea.

I was attracted by the cover of The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven in my library's newly acquired fiction shelves, and my whim was rewarded. I feel that it's different than most books I've read, or at least lately, though I'm not sure I can pinpoint why. Maybe the types of characters it depicts, or how they interact with one another? It wasn't just the remote setting, though that certainly lent to it somewhat.

I was completely sucked into This Must be the Place - apparently I just started it yesterday, though I feel like I've been engrossed in the characters' lives for so much longer than that.

30. Lease on Love by Falon Ballard Apr 18: 21
31. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain (audiobook) Apr 11: Apr 28
32. Lost Children Archive by Valeria Luiselli Apr 30: May 3

The first was a silly, to be read on vacation, book that was rather dopier than necessary. I've never actually read Huck Finn before, so decided to listen to it on audio. I now understand why some people want to keep it off school reading lists, etc. I'm fairly sure the n word was literally every other word of the book, and that was actually the easiest part to take. I had to look up, partway through the book, what Mark Twain's thoughts on slavery were, as I was getting so uncomfortable. I actually physically flinched several times while listening to really awful bits. Supposedly Twain came to realize that slavery was wrong, but I'm unconvinced he had the same feelings about it that I do. He clearly thought it was perfectly fine for two young children to boss around a grown man, causing him potential death or bodily harm, just for their (or at least Tom's) own amusement. And my god is that Tom Sawyer a little shit. I was done with him after about five minutes of his having shown up. I honestly never got the impression from Twain that he felt slavery was wrong overall, or that black men and women were equal to whites, just that Jim was a really nice guy and that maybe he deserved better. Not exactly a ringing human rights/abolitionist sentiment.

I particularly liked second half of the Lost Children Archive, from the point of view of the son, and the interweaving of the storage box contents, especially the children's boxes at the end, with the transcribed echos and Polaroid photos.

33. Pandora's Jar by Natalie Haynes Apr 21: May 14
34. The Starless Crown by James Rollins May 4: May 15
35. Undress Me in the Temple of Heaven by Susan Jane Gilman May 20: May 21
36. Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller (audiobook) May 9: May 23
37. Final Revival of Opal & Nev by Dawnie Walton May 18: May 28
38. Island of Sea Women by Lisa See May 28: Jun 4

I think I always get sloppy starting around this time of year in noting which books I've read. The weather is finally warmer and I can be outside with growing things. Though this year, sprig was slow to come and rather chilly, then we all got Covid the first week in May, which was unfortunate.

These books were all good, on the whole. The Gilman memoir about her 1980s trip to China was crazy, though completely fascinating, and utterly different from what I was expecting. Also fascinating was Island of Sea Women - I knew absolutely nothing about Jeju Island in Korea, its inhabitants or war ravaged history.

39. Victorine by Catherine Texier May 23: Jun 7 (audiobook)
40. The Future of Another Timeline by Annalee Newitz Jun 4: Jun 7
41. Nowhere Girl by Cheryl Diamond Jun 5: Jun 9
42. One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle Jun 9: Jun 15 (audiobook)
43. When We Lost Our Heads by Heather O'Neill Jun 12: Jun 19
44. A Thousand Days in Venice by Marlena de Blasi Jun 21: Jun 23

I read Nowhere Girl for my college book and one of the items that I keep coming back to is her brother. I feel that it was very clear he was killed by the author's sister and possibly her father. Yet, despite the intense depression her mother falls into because of this, it is never actually addressed, not even when the author and her mother escape. How is it possible to write a book that implies that your murdered brother is most likely buried behind your old house, somewhere in VA, then never mention it again? Shouldn't the police have to follow up on revelations like this?

45. Small Odysseys: Selected Shorts edited by Hannah Tinti Jun 8: Jun 24
46. A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers Jun 12: Jun 29
47. A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes Jul 9: Jul 10

I have a bit of a Greek/Roman ancient times thing going here, suddenly.

48. 32 Yolks by Eric Ripert Jun 29: Jul 12 (audiobook)
49. Peach Blossom Spring by Melissa Fu Jul 16: Jul 22

I don't really know anything about Chinese history, unfortunately, so I'm always glad to learn more. This was an excellent story. I loved how the stories on the scroll were used as bright points to carry them through some of their toughest days.

50. The Arm of the Starfish by Madeleine L'Engle Jul 12: Jul 27
51. Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler Jul 13: Jul 28 (audiobook)
52. Dragons in the Waters by Madeleine L'Engle Jul 27: Aug 4
53. Full Tilt: Ireland to India with a Bicycle by Dervla Murphy Jul 23: Aug 5
54. Parable of the Talents by Octavia Butler Jul 31: Aug 6

The first three are all re-reads. I'm going through the Polly O'Keefe books again, and I wanted to re-familiarize myself with Parable of the Sower before I read the sequel.

Both Full Tilt and Parable of the Talents fit into two of our reading prompts for this year - "next book in a series you've already started" and "set on a mode of transportation." I really enjoyed Murphy's deep love of travel and meeting new people. There were several instances of casual/unconscious racism that I disliked (in L'Engle, too, which was unexpected and jarring), but on the whole it was a fascinating story of her journey, and a look back in time. I was surprised by how different Parable of the Talents was from the first book - I hadn't realized it was written from the point of view of her daughter, looking back and commenting on her mother's life, years later.

55. A House Like a Lotus by Madeleine L'Engle Aug 5: Aug 17
56. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid Aug 17: Aug 29 (audiobook)
57. Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead Aug 7: Sep 11
58. Hard Red Spring by Kelly Kerney Aug 14: Sep 13

59. Kiss & Tell by Adib Khorram Sep 9: Sep 14 (audiobook)
60. We Came, We Saw, We Left: A Family Gap Year by Charles Wheelan Aug 21: Sep 22 (audiobook)
61. South Pole Station by Ashley Shelby Sep 14: Sep 23
62. Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys Sep 24: Oct 7
63. Five Days at Memorial by Sheri Fink Sep 21: Oct 11
64. Switchboard Soldiers by Jennifer Chiaverini Oct 8: Oct 14
65. Packing for Mars by Mary Roach Oct 16: Oct 23

66. Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie Oct 24: Oct 29
67. The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray Oct 29: Oct 30
68. Rogues by Patrick Radden Keefe Oct 11: Oct 31 (audiobook)
69. Corinne by Rebecca Morrow Oct 31: Nov 2
70. The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb Oct 25: Nov 6
71. Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell Nov 1: Nov 9 (audiobook)
72. Haven by Emma Donoghue Nov 6: Nov 9
73. Saturday Night Widows by Becky Aikman Nov 10: Nov 13
74. Radium Girls by Kate Moore Nov 16: Nov 18

My tracking is falling behind, but my reading is way up. I think maybe the chill and darkness of fall naturally lead to increased time curled up with a book. Quite a few of these books are titles I've been wanting to read for quite some time - The Personal Librarian, Home Fires and Saturday Night Widows. A few, Radium Girls and The Violin Conspiracy, are for book challenge prompts and an alumni book club. These were all actually quite good, though the intricacies of the individuals in Rogues may have been easier to follow in print than via audiobook, which I listen to on my commute to work.

75. Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton Nov 9: Nov 21 (audiobook)
76. A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger Nov 7: Nove26
77. What the Ermine Saw by Eden Collinsworth Nov 22: Nov 30 (audiobook)
78. Songs for the End of the World by Saleema Nawaz Nov 28: Dec 4
79. The Fellowship of Ghosts by Paul Watkins Nov 25: Dec 8
80. Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus Dec 4: Dec 8
81. Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alan Dec 1: Dec 9 (audiobook)
82. A Prayer for the Crown Shy by Becky Chambers Dec 21
83. Someday, Someday, Maybe by Lauren Graham Dec 13: Dec 26 (audiobook)
84. The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekhov Dec 27: Dec 28 (audiobook)

Okay, wow, that's more than I thought I was adding. A few were for prompts I wanted to finish before the end of the year - a book that was turned into a movie, a play, somewhere I want to visit - and the rest were just random happenstance choices.

My reading around the world didn't go so well this year. South America is always woefully under-read by me - for some reason I have immense trouble finding books set and/or authored there. This year, it seems Oceania got a complete miss, for unknown reasons. Africa and Asia didn't do so well, either. I'm thinking of using a self-prompt next year to get me thinking about location in a new way. I'll choose a few random letters, probably two or three, then read a bunch of books in places that begin with that letter - counties, cities, regions, states, whatever. Just a fun idea to expand my horizons in a new way, like Scategories for books. Actually, it would be super helpful if I had one of those dice - sadly, it's one of the few games my family doesn't actually own.

85. It Must Have Been Something I Ate by Jeffrey Steingarten Dec 22: Dec 31

Last book of 2022!