2023: The year in (good) books

Even though this year was more than chaotic for me, I still made time for reading. In fact, it was my favorite thing to do when I wanted to relax and tune out in the evenings. Because of this, I slightly overshot last year's numbers  - especially because there were a lot of short children's books on the list this year :)

I finished a total of 101 books, almost 19,000 pages. Below you can see a list of my favorites, in no particular order.

Fiction

I didn't read much fiction this year, but in December one last book made the list anyway.

R. F. Kuang: Yellowface

You will especially enjoy this book if you are a writer, or if you work in publishing. It speaks in the first person, allowing us a glimpse into the messed-up mind of a woman who does serious mental gymnastics to justify her theft of someone else's manuscript. On top of that, she pretends to be of Chinese descent (for publicity), digging herself into a deeper and deeper hole. As the book turns into a bestseller, we get to watch with morbid curiosity how far her lie would stretch before it all comes crashing down. Besides being entertaining and clever, Yellowface also delivers some punches at the business of publishing and social media.

Nonfiction

Still my favorite genre, and thanks to the Polymath Reading Challenge (and Ploymath Plus), I read a lot of it this year. Here are my new favorites:

Sabrina Imbler: How far the light reaches

I thought it would be a book about marine biology, but it turned out to be something much more complex and beautiful. It is a series of poetic essays, mixing scientific information with the author's own life, identity, and emotions. Neither eclipsed the other. Identity in itself is represented in its richness: the author is queer, part Chinese, child of an immigrant mother, and a member of a generation seeking its place and purpose. Also a sicence journalist, which shows in the attention to detail and empathy directed at marine creatures and humans alike. 

Mike Brown: How I killed Pluto and why it had it coming

If you were upse too when Pluto got demoted, this book is for you. The astronomer whose discoveries accidentally resulted in one fewer planet in our solar system explains what happened, why, and how. It is an enjoyable read. I loved the chapters detailing the painstaking process of search and discovery, looking for barely visible specks of light in the vast night sky, trying to catch a new object.

Carlo Ginzburg - Bruce Lincoln: Old Thiess, a Livonian werewolf

In 1691, during a witch trial, a witness was suddenly accused of being a werewolf. To which the old man shrugged and replied: "yeah, and?" The resulting new trial was, luckily, well documented, and that is what we get to read in this book, alongside several essays and discussions by the authors (representing two distinct points of view). Old Thiess, the werewolf, tells the judges how he is a member of a pack, and how they travel every year to the Underworld to save the crops from evil magicians. You have to admire the pluck of this old guy so long ago: when life gives you a werewolf trial, roll with it and take over the narrative...

Paulo Lemos Horta: Marvellous Thieves

Mandatory reading for all storytellers. A very cool basic concept: the author spends each chapter delving into the life and work of famous translators of the 1001 Nights. He examines how their experiences and personalities influenced the translations they produced... and how much those can actually be called "translations" at all. Antoine Galland, for example (the man credited for starting the Arabian Nights craze in Europe) is famous for adding a whole lot of random tales to a manuscript of only 200 he had, to round out the collection. Also mentioned are Edward Lane, who was a proud Egypt expert, but completely lost without his local guides (and cut women out of many of the tales), and Richard Burton, who never actually translated from the original, rather he repurposed other English translations, and created a myth of himself as an orientalist. Featured furthermore are pre-raffaelite poet John Payne, who barely spoke Arabic but wanted to add the censored saucy bits back in; and Henry Whitelock Torrens, who sadly never finished his own translation, even though he was the only one who could match the language of the tales and understood the importance of female characters. I really enjoyed this book, appreciated the detailed research and psychological insights, and learned a whole lot about the 1001 Nights.

Merve Emre: The Personality Brokers

If you still had any doubt that the Myers-Briggs Personality Test is about as scientific as a horoscope, read this book. It is endlessly entertaining and somewhat surreal to read how it became a worldwide phenomenon while not having any solid foundations in science. The life story of the mother-daughter pair who created it is fascinating, peppered with religious fanaticism, racism, and shockingly abusive Victorian parenting techniques. Victorian mothers will literally invent a personality test and write homoerotic fan fiction of C. G. Jung instead of going to therapy...

Maria Noriega Rachwal: From kitchen to Carnegie Hall

The Montreal Women's Symphony Orchestra was the first complete all-women orchestra in North America when it was founded in 1940. Ethel Stark and Madge Bowen - two vastly different women - went against all social norms and expectations to create it. The whole story should be an HBO show, really. In the early 1900s many musical instruments were not thought to be suitable for women (string instruments you had to hold between your legs), so the founders advertised that they'll accept anyone who "could read a little music", regardless of race, age, religion, or social standing. They ended up with an amazingly diverse orchestra including students and grandmothers, heiresses and factory workers, Anglo-Saxon white women, French Catholic women, Jewish women, black women, etc. Ethel distributed used instruments and everyone learned on their own, practicing in living rooms and basements. And against all odds, naysayers and mockery, 7 years later they were performing in Carnegie Hall - the first Canadian orchestra to do so. The orchestra existed for 30 years, and in the end disbanded because it succeeded: female musicians were accepted into professional orchestras around the country along with the men. Ethel lived to be the oldest conductor in the world, and died at the age of 101.

Szvetlana Alekszijevics: Secondhand time / The unwomanly face of war

Both are very difficult reads emotionally, but much worth reading. The author created a new genre by weaving together thousands of oral history interviews to show complex, challenging pictures of World War II, and the fall of the Soviet Union. She talked to all kinds of people from all walks of life and many different ideologies and experiences. I would make her books mandatory reading in History class. Maybe fewer people would romanticize war.

Comics

In terms of comics, this was a good year. Continuing series were fun, and the ones below were freshly added to my list of favorites.

John Allison - Whitney Cogar: Giant Days

Adorable, likable, hilarious. Three college roommates with their distinct personalities and problems of epic magnitude. Sometimes it borders on magical realism, and features many memorable, quotable panels and lines. I fell in love with it at first volume. And the artwork is great too.

Simon Spurrier: Hellblazer

Spurrier can do no wrong when the extra mile needs going. Whoever decided he should write John Constantine was right on the money. Too bad it is a limited series, but at least it is a complete story; Spurrier ties it up so neatly (and so epicly) at the end that it should be taught in writing school. The visuals are just as strong and haunting as the story is. I love the way Spurrier handles magic and mythology, and makes each noir-horror episode complete in and of itself.

Kieron Gillen - Simon Spurrier - Al Ewing: Sins of Sinister

We all knew when the whole Krakoa thing started for the X-men that it was only a matter of time before it had to come crashing down. Sins of Sinister is the volume that rings in the beginning of the end, and it does so on a thousand-year alternate-future scale. It seems like the writers thoroughly enjoyed the premise of "what if mutants had no moral qualms at all"? I can't wait to see what comes after this.

Folklore and mythology

I'm not gonna list all the volumes I read this year (a lot), but I'd like to highlight some new favorites.

Oein DeBhairduin: Why the moon travels

This book is an instant classic. The stories were written down from a living Irish Traveller tradition, a whole community participated in shaping them, and the illustrations are also the work of a Traveller artists. The result is a lovely volume full of memorable, enchanting stories. I loved the respect they all show for nature, how even the animals usually portrayed as villains or pests appear as helpful and kind. Even the sad or tragic stories were beautiful; people were taught to learn from their mistakes instead of being mercilessly punished. I will return to this book again and again for moments of beauty and wisdom.

Daniel Allison: Irish mythology

This book is the perfect blend of respect for tradition, deep love for myths, and creative storytelling. This book bridges the divide between oral storytelling and written fiction with a lively style that begs to be read aloud. Epic battles, formidable heroes, powerful magic, and deep personal emotions create a mythic landscape that is vividly alive. Peeling back layers of Christian retellings, and tracing the untold inner motivations of larger-than-life characters, Daniel Allison weaves old stories into a powerful narrative. His admitted goal is to make new generations of readers fall in love with Irish mythology. Mission accomplished. If you enjoyed Neil Gaiman's Norse Mythology, you will love this book.

Rakesh Khanna - J. Furcifer Bhairav: Ghosts, monsters, and demons of India

I rarely read encyclopedia style folklore books for three reasons: 1. They usually limit themselves to the most well known stories or creatures. 2. They usually don't contain the actual narratives. 3. They rarely cite their sources individually. This book, however, checks all three boxes, in more than 500 pages. I kept reading and reading, and when I thought we would surely run out to shocking ghosts, memorable monsters, and haunting demons, there was always more. And when I thought I can't be surprised by anything anymore, the book still had some unexpected creatures at Z. It is an entertaining, inspiring read, full of stories I have never heard before (and yes, stories are often included with the creatures). The authors selected from a wide range of cultures within India, and also a wide timeline from ancient textx to 21st century hauntings. There are sources, and pop culture references, and clever commentary. I don't even like dark folklore all that much, and yet I adored this book.

Poetry

I have to admit I didn't read a lot of poetry this year, but in December I came across this little volume and it is worth a mention.

Kaitlin Shetler: i hope they sing christmas carols in hell

I found the poet through a viral poem on Facebook about the Virgin Mary, and I loved the look of this volume so much I had to buy it. It didn't disappoint. Christmas poetry from an atheist, and yet the poems are not about hate or spite. There is a lot of feminism, a lot of humor, and a talent for seeing deeper messages in classic Bible stories (or what they could have been). And a hope that there are Christmas carols in hell, because an atheist can love the holiday too.

Children's books

A new category this year, for obvious reasons :) Tested with the kiddo, but selected according to my own preferences. 

Kathryn Cristaldi - Kristyna Litten: I love you till the cows come home

My absolute favorite. Adorable illustrations, fun poetry, and a lovable, deeply emotional message. It made me tear up the first time.

Kate Allan: I like you

I like the author for her motivational messages on social media, and the book was a resounding success at home. It is a simple little read - I like you when you are mad, when you are happy, when you are shy, when you are messy, etc. - with bright colors, and it had to be read over and over and over again. Sometimes the kid even asked for it specifically after meltdowns.

Sandra Boynton: Barnyard dance

Another illustrator I like, and a very fun book. Combining funny animals and contra dancing, what's not to love? Extra funny when my Cajun husband reads it.

Béatrice Rodriguez: Chicken thief

I have the Catalan edition, but honestly it doesn't matter because it's a silent book. The pictures speak for themselves, and they are funny and adorable. A fox steals a chicken, and as they are running from Rooster & friends, they slowly grow to like each other. This is a three-book series, each volume just as silly and likable as the next. 

Satoe Tone: Where the heart is

Gorgeous, gorgeous book. A simple yet sweet story, and beautiful imagery filling every page.

Rob Scotton: Splat the cat

A book for starting school, but it works just as well with kindergarten. Kiddo had no problems on that front, but she does love this book for the funny cat characters and entertaining story. And I enjoyed reading it too.

2022: The best books of the year

It's the end of 2022, so it's time to make a list of my favorite books this year!

I finished a total of 92 books this year, which approximately amounts to 18,200 pages. I actually read more than this, but I am only counting the books I finished because I tend to jump around a lot. Surprisingly, only 15 of this number were folktale collections; I read more stories than that for research, obviously, but this year I was giving the genre a bit of a break. Instead, I was reading a whole lot of nonfiction, and also comics and graphic novels (more than 30 of the latter).

So, here's the list of this year's favorites, in no particular order:

SHORT STORIES

Theodora Goss: The collected enchantments

I managed to get my hands on an ARC copy of this one. It contains a large selection of Theodora Goss' short stories and poetry; some I have read before, but many of them are new. She writes fairy-tale adaptations in her unique style that blends magical realism, alternative history, and mythic fiction. I love her eloquent language, richly detailed descriptions, and the game of tracing the literary and foklore references she makes. She never spells them out too much, allowing the reader to make their own discoveries. It is an all-around lovely collection; worth reading little by little, savoring the stories.

YA NOVELS

Honestly, YA is a genre that has disappointed me many times before. I only opened two YA books this year - and both proved to be a hit.

Xiran Jay Zhao: Iron Widow

Chinese mythology meets the mecha genre. In a futuristic society humanity fights evil aliens with the use of giant robots piloted by a man and a woman. Women, however, basically just function as a battery, and are deemed expendable. Until one young woman decides that she will survive a battle... The book uses mythology and history in genius ways, and subverts a lot of YA tropes. For fans of Pacific Rim the good news is, the movie adaptation is already in the works.

Natasha Bowen: Skin of the Sea

Now this is how you write a Black Little Mermaid. (*cough*Disney*cough*). The author adapts the fairy tale to 15th century West Africa, blending Yoruba mythology and the history of the slave trade: the "prince" rescued by the mermaid is a young man thrown into the sea from a slave ship. It is a beautifully eloquent, colorfully detailed book with lots of (to my mind) vividly visual elements. Definitely one of the best of the genre I have read.

POETRY

Poetry made a reappearance in my life this year, and yielded two memorable reads.

Joanna Lilley: Endlings

I am so happy I came across this book. It is thoughtful and enchanting. It might seem like a depressing idea to read an entire book of poems about extinct animals, and it does have its heartbreaking moments. But as a whole, it is more about how incredible nature is, and what we lose when we don't care for it. It also has several poems about dinosaurs and other long-extinct species, and the wonder they represent. The author has deep love for each of them, and a beautiful way with words. It is a collection that inspires us to try to do better.

Rebecca Elson: A responsibility to awe 

There is something enchanting about poetry written by a scientist. What she understands deeply through her work, she eloquently puts into an artistic form to inspire the rest of us. This is the "responsibility to awe" mentioned in the title that permeates the whole volume. The first part is a poetry collection, while the second is a selection of notes, poetry fragments, and memoirs from the author.

COMICS & GRAPHIC NOVELS

I found a lot of new favorites this year (next to old loves returning, such as Saga and Fables).

Simon Spurrier: Coda 

Post-apocalyptic fantasy. A world where magic is dying, a grumpy bard with a golden heart, a filthy-mouthed unicorn, romance, a lot of dark humor, and the fantastic visual work of Matías Bergara. Three volumes, finished story. I adored every page of it.

Noelle Stevenson - Grace Ellis - Shannon Watters: Lumberjanes

I'm late to the party, but a total fan now. It's the kind of random WTF humor, lovable cast of characters, and fun artwork that is near and dear to my heart. Scout camp with Greek gods, Velociraptors, inter-dimensional travel, and punny badges. What's not to love?

Emily McGovern: Bloodlust and Bonnets

If you love the Background Slytherin webcomics, you definitely want to get your hands on the author's full-length graphic novel, where a Regency era heroine battles vampires alongside an idiotic Lord Byron. It's like Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, but a lot funnier. It never ceases to amaze me how McGovern can deliver a punchline with two strokes of a pencil on a stylized face.

Hubert & Zanzim: A man's skin

A gorgeous graphic novel. It weighs like 3 pounds, but worth picking up. The story is about a girl in Renaissance Italy who inherits a man's skin from her aunt - and with it the ability to transform into a man and go around town experiencing life from a different point of view. And since it's a French book, it's not overly prudish about the consequences. Elegant, beautiful, funny, and thought-provoking.

NONFICTION

Nicholas Jubber: The fairy tellers 

This is a book storytellers and fairy tale enthusiasts alike should definitely own. It puts "old stories" in a whole new perspective, illustrating the many ways their collectors and/or authors left their personal mark on texts that romantics like to label "universal." I have been deeply immersed in storytelling for almost two decades now, but this book could introduce me to new literary figures, and even told me a whole lot of fun new details about the lives of some whom I've read whole books about. The author dug deep into history, literature, primary sources, contemporary authors, modern experts, and even personal travel experience. The result is a book that gets the facts right, but presents them with the lively humor and twinkle-eyed excitement of personal telling. "You'll never guess what I just found out about Gabrielle-Suzanne de Villeneuve!" And I am ready to listen, every time.

I also participated this year in a (Hungarian) reading challenge called Polymath Training: every year, it appoints twelve topics you have to read nonfiction books about. I love this challenge, because it always brings a lot of fascinating reads into my life. Here are this year's highlights:

Alexandra Horowitz: On looking

The author took a walk around a city block with ten different experts, from geologist to typographer, and talked about the details they noticed - to prove that we all see the world through our own individual lens.

Anita Anand: Sophia

The biography of a Punjabi princess born and raised in Victorian England, and how she turned into an important member of the suffragist movement. The book also gives ample context about the history and colonization of the Punjab, through the story of Sophia Duleep Singh's family.

Joe Starita: A warrior of the people

The biography of Susan la Flesche Picotte, the first Native American woman who earned a western medical degree and became a practicing doctor, and a pillar of her community. Within the context of colonial history in the 19th century, and many important personalities in the indigenous rights movement.

Dan R. Lynch - Julie A. Kirsch: Crystal healing

A geologist and psychologist take on the concept of "crystal healing" - and basically pick it apart. A very enjoyable book that also taught me a lot about the international trade of minerals, the workings of the placebo effect, and geology in general.

Victoria Finlay: Jewels

The author delves into the stones of the Mohs scale, and presents a wealth of fascinating information about them. The book is a blend of history, folklore, geology and science, and personal travel journal - as she makes a point of visiting a site connected to each of the minerals, and talking to people whose lives are intertwined with the jewels.

Douglas Wolk: All of the Marvels

This dude read all of the Marvel comics (about 27,000 of them), and then wrote a book about the experience. It's a love letter to Marvel, and a fantastic adventure for more casual Marvel readers like myself.

Margaret Bourke-White: Portrait of myself

The autobiography of an incredible woman who was personally present at many important milestones of the 20th century, with camera in hand. I never thought someone could make the history of industrial photography exciting to me, but she did. She was also a war correspondent in WWII, world traveler, and all-around adventurer.

Eric Robbins - Donald Legge: Animal Dunkirk

The story of Operation Noah, a last-minute scrambling to save wild animals at the birth of Lake Kariba. Colonial authorities didn't realize that there would be a need for this until the water was already rising, so a small and ragtag group of rangers decided to go out and rescue elephants, honeybadgers, aardvarks, antelopes, monkeys, and even venomous snakes from the flood. Often by swimming in and dragging them to safety by the tail. Incredible read.

Note: in case you're interested, this year's Polymath topics are: Animation, Hungarian poetry, Baltic countries, Saints, Money, Dictatorships, Nature conservation, Solar system, Secrets and hoaxes, 20th century classical music, History of science. + 1 individual random topic from Wikipedia.

What did you enjoy reading in 2022? What are you looking forward to in 2023? :)

I read a folktale collection from each country in the world, and this is what I learned

Historic moment: I finished my Following folktales around the world reading project! I started it almost exactly five years ago, in early 2016. The idea (inspired by this challenge) was to read a folktale collection from every single country around the world.

I can't believe I made it!

Let's see the numbers first:

I read folktales from 200 countries.

I started with China and arrived in Mongolia in 5 years and 1 month (I started blogging in English a little bit later in the challenge, hence the discrepancy in the posts).

I read more than 10,284 folktales (these are the ones I counted, but there were books that contained multiple tales per chapter). 

There were 12 countries from where I could not find complete books. In these cases I read articles of folktales, or looked up stories on the Internet (Barbados, Guinea-Bissau, Burundi, Chad, Djibouti, North Korea, Belarus, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Mozambique, Tuvalu, Uruguay). If I happen to find books for them later on, I'll include them (recommendations welcome). I did find tales from all of them in the end; Burundi was the hardest one, I could only locate one single myth.

For three countries I read epics, because I could not find folktale collections (Guinea, Kosovo, Senegal)

The number of tales by continent:

Europe: 3859

Africa: 1642

Asia: 1542

Australia and Oceania: 1211

Central America and the Caribbean: 1124

South America: 756

North America: 150

I read the most stories from these individual countries:

Hungary (756) (one of our country's first folklore collections)

Papua New Guinea (602) (half of the 1001 Papua New Guinean Nights)

Dominican Republic (304) (each tale came with several variants)

Italy (200) (Calvino's classic collection)

Latvia (164) 

Australia (157) (I'd like to circle back for more)

Honduras, Suriname, Argentina (150/country)

You can find the complete list of countries and posts here! 

What did I learn from all this?

Tricksters are everywhere (even North Korea)

I barely read any collections where tricksters did not appear. They seem to be the most universal archetype of folktale characters around the world; where there are stories, there are tricksters, bringing their favorite pranks and antics over and over again, from tar dolls to tug-o'-wars to cunningly exchanged punishments. It's a trickster's world out there.

The most popular tale types are not the ones Westerners would think

The Western (mostly European) folktale canon has its big classics and favorites, mostly based on Grimm and French fairy tales: Cinderella, Snow White, etc. Many people tend to think these are the most popular stories around the world - but after 200 countries I see things differently. Cinderella is not even in the same ballpark as some other tale types you wouldn't think of right away. I was not keeping an exact count, but here are some of the most common stories that kept popping up over and over and over again:

The Kind and Unkind Girls (or boys) (see: Frau Holle) (ATU 480)

Magic Flight (you probably know it as Master Maid) (ATU 313)

Animals running a race (Tortoise and the Hare) (ATU 275)

Extraordinary helpers (commonly known as The Flying Ship) (ATU 513)

The gift of the little people (where a friendly person is rewarded for participating in the fairies' song, but a mean one is punished) (ATU 503)

Aladdin (a.k.a. the lost magic item) (ATU 561)

And, obviously, tricksters. 

You can find parallels in surprising places

I was sometimes stunned to find almost identical tales separated by great cultural and geographical distances. A dragon story popped up in Switzerland and Bhutan, but nowhere in-between. A witch tale appeared in Kiribati and Angola. I found a legend in the Philippines that I knew as a Native American story. The list goes on and on, but the point is: stories can travel incredible distances, and they often pop up independently from each other in very similar forms. Human imagination is a wonderful thing.

Some countries are luckier with folklore collections than others

In the case of some countries I had a very hard time finding a folktale collection in any of the languages I read (English, Spanish, and Hungarian, but I can also read Italian and German very slowly). History left its mark on folklore collections. Nation-building movements valued (and sometimes took advantage of) tradition, while war, colonization, and genocide often wiped out stories as well as people. In the case of some smaller countries it was a matter of sheer luck: the birth of one person who fell in love with stories, and spent their life collecting and preserving them, kicking off a folklore movement in a time when traditional tellers still carried the old tales. Hungary in particular is lucky in this regard. You walk into any used book shop, and you will find shelves of folktale collections. Our collecting started shortly after the Grimms, and our struggle for national independence boosted folklore studies early on. Not all countries are nearly this lucky. 

(Wherever I could support new publications and collection projects, I tended to buy books with this in mind.)

There is an endless supply of folktales, but not all are equally fun

As a storyteller, I have a subjective opinion of tales: there are stories I fall in love with, and others that are forgettable or don't really speak to me. There are types I love more than others, and obviously the ones I noted along this journey were the ones that I personally found the most fascinating. This challenge proved what I already knew about folktale collections: if a book has more than two stories I fall in love with, it is an exceptionally good book. There were a few collections that were especially memorable for the high number of amazing stories, but usually there were one or two tales per country that really stuck with me. This is nothing out of the ordinary, it's just the human nature of the storyteller. This is why we have to read a lot to expand our repertoire.

There is more!

I could talk a lot more about this challenge, and my experiences and adventures with it. If anyone is interested, hit me up :)

Where to next?

I have been wondering for a while about what I was gonna do once this challenge ended. And now, here we are. I was always aware that political borders don't often mean cultural borders, and that there are many rich cultures and traditions that I skipped along the way. I want to make up or these omissions, and start a new challenge where I read minority and indigenous folktales around the world! Right now, I'm feeling like starting with Chinese ethnic groups, but I'd also love to circle back to Siberian indigenous peoples, as well as indigenous groups of North and South America and Australia, and some European minority groups as well. 

Stories just go on and on...