Kathy Hamilton One of my favourite things to read at this time of year are the yearly round ups. There’s something satisfying and enjoyable about a good list and when you combine it with a retrospective look at the year it’s a match made in heaven! So since it’s been a great year reading, I thought it would be fun to share my own best books of 2018!
When I was pulling this list together I was pleasantly surprised by it. Before writing this post I would have categorised my own reading in 2018 as “Classics and romance fiction heavy”. But actually, as we’ll see, the books that really stood out to me don’t fit neatly into either category! In fact, most of the books that made it onto My Best Books of 2018 are new genres to me. And, every single one was written by an author I have never read before! Proving that sometimes experimenting with new genres pays off.
The Odyssey by Homer
“The epic tale of Odysseus and his ten-year journey home after the Trojan war forms one of the earliest and greatest works of Western literature. Confronted by natural and supernatural threats – from the witch Circe who turns his men into pigs, to the twin terrors of Scylla and Charybdis; from the stupefied Lotus-Eaters to the implacable enmity of the sea-god Poseidon himself – Odysseus must test his bravery and native cunning to the full if he is to reach his homeland safely.”
Okay, so this one could be classified as the CLASSIC of all Classics. But, before this book was forced into my hands by a friend I had been avoiding it for years. Urgh…the ancient Classics? No way would I enjoy those! This is the part where I eat a large slice of humble pie because here it is on my best books of 2018. The first thing I loved about The Odyssey by Homer was how readable it was. For a book that’s over 1000 years old, that’s surprising! Next, I loved how immersive the reading experience was. You really get swept up in the Epic tale of Odysseus. As an added bonus; reading it finally put all the mythical allusions that confused me when I studied 18th Century Poetry into context.
The Living Mountain by Nan Shepherd
“In this masterpiece of nature writing, Nan Shepherd describes her journeys into the Cairngorm mountains of Scotland. There she encounters a world that can be breathtakingly beautiful at times and shockingly harsh at others. Her intense, poetic prose explores and records the rocks, rivers, creatures and hidden aspects of this remarkable landscape. Shepherd spent a lifetime in search of the ‘essential nature’ of the Cairngorms; her quest led her to write this classic meditation on the magnificence of mountains, and on our imaginative relationship with the wild world around us.”
This was actually the first book that came to mind when I was planning my best books of 2018. I’m so glad I discovered this lyrical masterpiece of nature writing! I found this book when I was feeling low and desperate for a book that would inspire me. If I hadn’t been searching for something different, I would never have found Nan Shepherd. Nature writing has never been high on my list of genres. In fact, I think this is the first nature narrative I’ve ever read! What’s surprising is how impactful such a tiny book can be. The Living Mountain by Nan Shepherd feels like a breath of fresh air and a reminder to take time to experience the natural world around us. Her deep, at times spiritual, connection to the Carin Gorms inspired me so much.
Read the Full Review Here
The Return of the Soldier by Rebecca West
“The soldier returns from the front to the three women who love him. His wife, Kitty, with her cold, moonlight beauty, and his devoted cousin Jenny wait in their exquisite home on the crest of the Harrow-weald. Margaret Allington, his first and long-forgotten love, is nearby in the dreary suburb of Wealdstone. But the soldier is shell-shocked and can only remember the Margaret he loved fifteen years before, when he was a young man and she an inn-keeper’s daughter. The women have a choice – to leave him where he wishes to be, or to ‘cure’ him. It is Margaret who reveals a love so great that she can make the final sacrifice”
Another slim book with a huge impact and another new author to me! The Return of the Soldier by Rebecca West is a book I picked up on a whim because I wanted to read something from the Virago 40 year anniversary collection. I thought its focus, a shell-shocked soldier returning home with amnesia, allowed Rebecca West to really dig into double standards and the strange choices we make out of our misplaced sense of duty. For me, the ending of The Return of the Soldier had a profound effect. Although meant to be seen positively, I found myself getting a little choked up by the magnitude of it. It’s not until the last line that you really understand that the title is about much more than Chris’ physical return from the war.
Read the Full Review Here
As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning by Laurie Lee
“The young Laurie Lee walks to London. There he makes a living labouring and playing the violin. But, deciding to travel further afield and knowing only the Spanish phrase for ‘Will you please give me a glass of water?’, he heads for Spain. With just a blanket to sleep under and his trusty violin, he spends a year crossing Spain, from Vigo in the north to the southern coast. Only the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War puts an end to his extraordinary peregrinations.”
As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning by Laurie Lee truly captivated me. Lee writes about the mundane acts of life in a way that elevates them to the sublime. This book has an irresistible charm that instantly propelled it onto my best books of 2018. Again, you guessed it, Laurie Lee is a brand new author to me in 2018. Are you sensing a theme yet?! Considering this book is set during the build up to the Spanish Civil War, it’s soothing tone surprised me. But really, it’s more of a Bildungsroman (a coming of age story) than a war narrative. As such, this book made me ache to put on my walking boots and go on an adventure.
You Do You by Sarah Knight
“Being yourself should be the easiest thing in the world. Yet instead of leaning in to who we are, we fight it, listening too closely to what society tells us. You Do You helps you shake off those expectations, say f**k perfect, start looking out for number one and keep on with your badass self. From career and finances to relationships and family, lifestyle and health, Sarah Knight rips up the rulebook. Writing about her mistakes and embarrassments in her own personal quest to ‘do me’ – because nobody gets everything right all day, every day – Sarah Knight shows why you can and should f**k up and teaches you to let yourself off the hook, bounce back and keep standing tall.”
This is the only self-improvement book to feature on my best books of 2018 but it’s a good one! You Do You by Sarah Knight came along exactly when I needed it this year. It was the perfect shake by the soldiers and gave me the courage to make significant changes in my own life. Like getting my dream job! It was a welcome reminder that being true to myself is enough, good and bad points included. Sometimes the scariest thing is to believe in yourself, but this book really challenged me to try.
Britt-Marie Was Here by Fredrik Backman
“When Britt-Marie finds herself unemployed, separated from her husband of 20 years, left to fend for herself in the miserable provincial backwater that is Borg – of which the kindest thing one can say is that it has a road going through it – and somehow tasked with running the local football team, she is a little unprepared. But she will learn that life may have more to offer her that she’s ever realised, and love might be found in the most unexpected of places.”
That’s right, it’s another brand new author! I think a lot of us have heard of A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman, since it was made into a film recently. That’s certainly how I stumbled across Britt-Marie Was Here. I was intrigued by an author everyone seems to speak highly of and the plot of this book stood out to me. This was the first and (almost) only book in 2018 to make me cry. If “As I Walked Out” is a coming of age story then Brit- Marie Was Here is a finally coming of age story. When Britt-Marie finally takes steps to do things she’s always dreamed of you can hardly keep from cheering. This book reminds you that, when it all comes down to it, the important things are love, friends and family.
What We Owe by Golnaz Hashemzadeh Bonde
Tehran, 1978. Nahid and Masood, both eighteen, are young lovers and young revolutionaries. Determined to overthrow the Shah’s regime and help to bring about democracy. Their clandestine activities are dangerous, but with youth, passion and right on their side, they feel invincible. As the revolution sours, Tehran is no longer safe for them, and now they are expecting a baby; they need to get out before they lose everything. Thirty years later, Nahid lies in a hospital bed replaying her life, raging at her carers, at her recent cancer diagnosis, at Masood, at her – now pregnant – daughter, and at her exile among people who while purporting to understand know nothing of what she has been through.
Before reading this book in November, Britt-Marie Was Here was the only tear-jerker. But this gut-wrencher of a novel changed all that! It was a short, sharp and brim-full of emotion. I’m not a mother but this book really shows how complicated being a mother is. Additionally, I knew next to nothing about the Iranian revolution but after reading this book I have had my eyes opened to its impact. Far from being a gentle rumination on life, What We Owe is filled with the indignant rage of a woman who’s suffered through trauma and loss, known grief and regret and yet still clings to every scrap of life left to her. A real stunner of a book and a perfect ending to my best books of 2018.
That Wraps Up my Best Books of 2018
Looking over my best books of 2018 its funny to see a theme emerge. From The Odyssey to You Do You, each book deals with a journey, whether physical or mental. I’m not a psychologist, but I wonder what that says about where my mind was focussed in the past year?! Probably best not to analyse that too much! Another theme that emerges is that it’s great to try new authors and genres. If I hadn’t take a risk on reading new authors I wouldn’t have discovered any of the books featured on this list! Crazy. How about you? What are your stand out books of 2018?
