2013 Favourites

In scoring our reads throughout the year, we are able to determine which books gave us the most enjoyment. Every so often there is the odd surprise … a book that does not necessarily rate high in any other quarters, will stand out as an exceptionally wonderful read for us.

 

Our winner this year is one of those amazing books that brings enjoyment through beautiful and intelligent writing, in spite of its theme. There were some criticisms but The Absolutist by John Boyne impressed our entire group and scored high, putting it just above our last read for the year The Unlikely Pilgrimage of HaroldFry by Rachel Joyce. Harold found a spot in most of our hearts, as did Renee in Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery, which came a close third.

 

Our enjoyment is more often than not increased by the good discussion a book can lead us to. Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes and The Submission by Amy Waldman are good examples of this. We all love being challenged not only by the literature itself but by the empathy it can invoke and the questions it can raise, in our minds and our hearts.

We discovered late last year that a recent study has shown that reading novels can make you a better person. By seeing all sides of a character in a book, unlike in real life, we can understand and empathize more, and literally walk in their shoes.

 

Makes a whole lot of sense to us and scores a big one for reading, don’t you think?