Welcome to another installment of Pages From the Past. Every month I have been sharing one year from my old reading journal. We're up to 2002, so let's get right to it...
My Favorite Reads of 2002
Empire Falls by Richard Russo
I also read Straight Man in 2002. Russo is still a favorite author.
A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
I have vivid memories of reading this on a beach in Captiva, FL. About as far from a 'beach read' as you can get, it is an all-time favorite.
Falling Angels by Tracy Chevalier
My favorite novel by this author, I read it on the same vacation as A Fine Balance. I wonder if the sun, surf, and sand influenced my opinion...
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
I keep changing my mind as to whether this or Crossing to Safety is my favorite novel.
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
I read a lot of Austen in 2002.
The Voyage of the Narwhal by Andrea Barrett
Read with an online book club and a little outside my comfort zone at that time. I loved the writing and have gone on to enjoy other books by this author.
Jemima J by Jane Green
An entertaining beach read
I Wish I'd Skipped...
Lincoln's Dreams by Connie Willis
Read for an online book group. Not my kind of book... at all.
Lady Chatterly's Lover by D.H. Lawrence
The annual classic selection for my local book club, I may have been the only member to actually finish it. Have not been tempted to read more Lawrence.
Other Notables
The Bonesetter's Daughter by Amy Tan
I don't remember much about this particular novel, but it's notable because it prompted me to take a break from Amy Tan. Too much of the same thing, perhaps?
Welcome to the World, Baby Girl! by Fannie Flagg
My first audiobook! I have been addicted to audios ever since.
That pretty much sums up my year in reading for 2002. Have you read any of these titles? If you are an audio fan, do you remember your first audiobook or when you began listening?
More Pages from the Past :
Very entertaining! I wish I'd kept a reading diary. Funnily enough, I have just given up on Lady Chatterley's Lover. I read Lincoln's Dreams last year - Connie Willis has written some fantastic time travel books - this was an early attempt, and I agree has a rather odd plot. However, 'Doomsday' and 'To Say Nothing of the Dog' are well worth reading.
ReplyDeleteMichelle Ann - We must have similar literary dislikes, lol! I wish I'd started keeping a reading journal a lot sooner than I did. Thanks for the recommendations... I'll give Willis another try one of these days.
DeletePride and Prejudice is truly a great book and I understand why it is one of your favorites.
ReplyDeleteI have not read lady Chatterley's Lover but I know that many people, even some Lawrence fans, do not care for it. I have read several of his other books. I found both The Rainbow and Women in Love to be great books.
Brian Joseph - Maybe Lady Chatterly is Lawrence's most notorious novel and not necessarily his best. I should give him another chance and will keep your recommendations in mind.
DeleteYes, yes, so many good ones from the past. Monster's Daughter was one I read twice (something I never do). I also loved Empire Falls, A Fine Balance.
ReplyDeleteDiane - There were so many good books that year. I've been meaning to read Mistry's Family Matters ever since...
DeleteI love this feature and wish I'd kept meticulous records from way back! I also really need to read some Russo...I hear he's kind of grit litty, which seems to really be working for me right now.
ReplyDeleteSarah - Russo is very down-to-earth and real... maybe not quite as gritty as others in your category, but I love his books.
DeleteDefinitely interesting reading for 2002! Other than Austen and Tan I'm not sure I've read any of those authors but I've had Empire Falls on my list. I kept a partial list in 2002 but mostly likely it's 95% romance because I had just discovered the genre!
ReplyDeleteKatherine - Isn't it funny how when we discover a new author or genre we go on binges with them. This may be the winter of the cozy mystery for me ;-)
DeleteI love these looks back...it's the best reason to keep a reading journal for yourself, and it's even more fun to peek into someone else's! Of course I also love the Jane Austens. I read one of Jane Green's first books and loved it (it's still on my bookshelf), but I think that like some other writers (Katie Fforde is one), she's lost something as time has gone by.
ReplyDeleteAudrey - I also read Persuasion in 2002... not sure I fully appreciated it. High time for a reread. Not sure I'll ever get back to Jane Green again, but Jemima J is definitely a pleasant memory.
DeleteIt's amazing how many of these are still on my wishlist. I need to bump them up. A Fine Balance is especially at the top of my list. I should probably make time for it soon, especially since it was recently banned at an Indian university.
ReplyDeleteAthira - Every fall, I think about reading all older books in the upcoming year. I'll never catch up...
DeleteI had no idea A Fine Balance was banned at an Indian university. It is such a fascinating book!
I agree that it's hard to decide between Crossing to Safety or Pride and Prejudice. Makes me think that I'd like to read Crossing to Safety again.
ReplyDeleteMonica - Crossing to Safety is high on my list to reread, too!
DeleteAlways fun to see these posts. I own a hardback collection The Erotic Works of DH Lawrence - got it in college and I still am not sure I have read anything in entirety. I also need to read Crossing to Safety... I do own it, just haven't gotten to it yet.
ReplyDeleteCare - Funny that you've hung on to the Lawrence book. Move Crossing to Safety to the top of your list!!!
DeleteLove your flashback posts! I've had A Fine Balance on my shelf for ages still not attempted yet.
ReplyDeleteArti - A Fine Balance is such a moving novel! Hope you give it a try soon.
DeleteI've been doing "From My Archives" on my blog and it is interesting to see what I was reading way back when--though my archives don't go back to 2002.
ReplyDeleteRAnn - It's fun to take a look back, isn't it? I like the idea of a blog "from my archives", too. I started keeping arcading journal in 1998 and wish I'd started sooner. Thanks for visiting :)
DeleteYay for looking back! I loved A Fine Balance! Such a wonderful book. I think I read it with an online book group, but I don't want to go look up the exact date I read it to check. Jane Austen - a given for great - Sense and Sensibility is my favorite. I remember looking at The Voyage of the Narwhal and then not reading it for some reason. My daughter loved Jemima J and still recommends it to people. And she doesn't read all that much. Amy Tan - I keep meaning to read more of her books. The only one I can remember reading is The Joy Luck Club - loved it. And I think the only Fannie Flagg book I've read is Fried Green Tomatoes. Trying to think what was going on with me in 2002 - daughter was in college. Oh and for some reason, I stopped writing down what I read in August of that year for the rest of the year. Why did I do that? LOL
ReplyDeleteKay - I've read so many Amy Tan books, but for some reason never her most famous - The Joy Luck Club. Strange! Would love to reread A Fine Balance one day, too. Always curious as to whether books will have the same effect a decade or so later.
DeleteI love your look-back posts!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Amy. They are so much fun to write!
DeleteI didn't get around to reading Empire Falls until 2004, but thoroughly enjoyed it. The fact that I grew up in Maine helped of course. :)
ReplyDeleteThough I don't remember much of it, I also vaguely feel like The Bonesetter's Daughter put me off from Amy Tan for a while. I'd like to re-read Kitchen God's Wife someday as I was most impressed with that book at the time I read it.
Christy - Funny, I loved The Kitchen God's Wife, too, and would love to reread. It was my first Tan novel... and I often wonder if that's the reason it stands out from the others.
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