I keep thinking this year has been a creative slump for me, but it hasn’t been too bad. I managed to self-publish a collection of short stories, as well as complete a horror Christmas story series on Dystopic. So while I haven’t done as much as I had planned, I have done something. A real victory for 2020, I’m sure you’d agree.
But an even bigger victory for me this year has been the number of books I’ve read. As I grew bored of Netflix and didn’t have the brain capacity to write consistently, I found myself wanting to read more, and not just because I told myself I should.
Looking back over 2020, I think it’s been the most ‘un-me’ year for reading – you’ll see very little science fiction in the books catalogued on my Goodreads profile. Instead, there’s been a lot of horror and non-fiction. Also a lot of contemporary novels – most of which were a tad disappointing, but it has encouraged me to expand my reading habits.
Anyway, to wrap up the shittest year on record, here is a wrap up of the books I read in 2020.
Number of books I’ve read
57. That’s an insane number to me. I haven’t read that many books in a year since my pre-teen years, back when I practically lived in the library.
Reading a high number of books is definitely a habit I had to consciously work at. At the beginning of the year, the idea of reading for more than half an hour at a time seemed impossible to me, but something clicked when I actively dedicated time each day to reading instead of flitting about on other things or watching a movie. Now reading is all I think about.
My first book of 2020
The Perils of Perception by Bobby Duffy. This was my 2019 Jólabókaflóð (Christmas Eve) book from my boyfriend. It’s all about statistics – how they can be misused and misread, and how the public’s perceptions of them can be skewed and why. It was a very topical book at the time with all the Brexit stuff kicking off, and now with Brexit upon us and COVID-19 in full swing, it has helped me understand the world’s reactions to current affairs and how to take a step back from it all. It also showed me the role I need to play when it comes to sharing the truth and the meaning behind statistics, not just the figures.
As a result from reading Duffy’s book, I have learned the following things:
- When Googling, don’t just accept the first result (maybe even look at the second page…!)
- Read non-fiction books/watch documentaries from reputable sources (or at least understand the agenda behind these sources) and learn about things instead of picking up snippets
- Talk to actual humans (if possible) and find out why they think the way they do
- Follow people on social media who don’t have similar views to you
My last book of 2020
Sensible Footwear: A Girl’s Guide by Kate Charlesworth. This is a graphic novel that once again was bought for me by my boyfriend, but this time as a random gift. It combines (mostly British) LQBTQ+ history with Kate Charlesworth’s own history discovering her sexuality, her experiences as a lesbian in and out of her community, the people within her community, her work as an artist and her relationships. It was eye-opening – I’m always shocked by how LGBTQ+ people were treated in the very recent past, and the struggles they still face today. It was also heart-warming to read about the individual and collective victories, the love, the friendships and the camaraderie.
My Favourite book of 2020
It’s a toss up between Before and After by Andrew Shanahan, an incredibly enjoyable post-apocalyptic story about a super morbidly obese man in the middle of a zombie outbreak, and A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara, a literary fiction novel about a male friendship group and how their relationships evolved throughout their lives.
They’re very different. Before and After is a journey filled with peril, sorrow, heartbreak, joy and triumph following a complex, funny, loveable and believable character. A Little Life is…miserable. But I do love being miserable.
Least favourite book of 2020
Creed by James Herbert.
A book I didn’t finish
On the Road by Jack Kerouac. I started off enjoying it, but I lost interest pretty quickly. I think it’s a novel you either love or don’t quite connect with, and it was definitely a connection issue with me.
2020 is definitely my DNF (Did Not Finish) year. I gave myself permission to put down anything that I didn’t think about other than when I was reading it, and anything that made me avoid reading.
Book I’m currently reading
The Blue Hour, Jean Rhys’ biography by Lilian Pizzichini. I love Jean Rhys, and have done ever since I finished Good Morning, Midnight when I was eighteen. And I only read that because I had misread something else.
For university, I was given a list of books to read for my classes, but I mistakenly bought a few from the additional reading list, thinking it was compulsory (don’t worry, I didn’t make that mistake again during my degree). Good Morning, Midnight was a suggested accompaniment to Virginia Woolf’s Mrs Dalloway, which I read after and didn’t like at all.
I remember the exact moment I finished Good Morning, Midnight in my parents’ living room the summer before university. I sat there, a little stunned, put the book on my lap and stared at it. I had never read anything like that before. She seemed to reveal all the self-conscious secrets in my head.
When I found The Blue Hour in a charity shop, I immediately bought it. I’ve read Rhys’ unfinished autobiography twice, but I’ve always wanted to know more about her as a person. She was beautiful, funny, tragic and way ahead of her time.
2021 reading goals
70 books. That’s how many I want to read. It’s very ambitious, but I have a feeling 2021 is going to be very similar to 2020 – at least for the first half, anyway. Last year I found it difficult to focus at first, but I think I have a handle on it now. I know my limits, and I have certainly learned how to relax with a good book.
But what books am I going to read? That’s the part I’m going to leave open. I’ve read a lot of contemporary novels this year, but next year I want to focus on clearing the unread books I already have on my shelves. Not that I’m going to avoid buying any books in 2021…that would be ridiculous.
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