2014 Year in Review: Favorite Books

Here’s my annual list of my ten favorite books read in the year.  As always, this is merely the best books I read this year not books published in 2013.  For previous years see 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007 and 2006. You may also want to check out My Favorite Books of All Time or see Every Book I’ve Ever Read cataloged in Library Thing.

In no particular order:

• The Underland Chronicles by Suzanne Collins
  • Gregor the Overlander
  • Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane
  • Gregor and the Curse of the Warmbloods
  • Gregor and the Marks of Secret
  • Gregor and the Code of Claw
• Reign of error by Diane Ravitch
• Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh
• The Race Underground by Doug Most
• Eden on the Charles: The Making of Boston by Michael Rawson
• Cheap: The High Cost of Discount Culture by Ellen Ruppel Shell
• A wicked war : Polk, Clay, Lincoln, and the 1846 U.S. invasion of Mexico by  Amy S. Greenburg
• Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth by Reza Aslan
• The Invisible Mountain by Carolina de Robertis
• An astronaut’s guide to life on earth by Chris Hadfield

And the complete list of books read in 2014 (books published in 2014 are in bold).

January

• Fables: Animal Farm by Bill Willingham – **1/2
• Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins (A) – *****
• Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane by Suzanne Collins (A) – ****1/2
• Gregor and the Curse of the Warmbloods by Suzanne Collins (A) – ****1/2
• The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri (A) – ***
• A Tear at the Edge of Creation by Marcelo Gleiser – ***1/2
• Every Day by David Levithan (A) – ****
• Fables 3: Storybook Love by Bill Willingham – **
• Gregor and the Marks of Secret by Suzanne Collins (A) – ****
• Fables 4: March of the Wooden Soldiers by Bill Willingham – ***
• Gregor and the Code of the Claw by Suzanne Collins (A) – ****

February

• The Monster in the Mist by Andrew Mayne – ***
• An Abundance of Katherines by John Greene (A) – ***
• Eden on the Charles: The Making of Boston by Michael Rawson – ****
• The Walking Dead: What Comes After (v0l 18) by Robert Kirkman – **
• The Walking Dead: March To War (vol. 19) by Robert Kirkman -**

March

• Cheap: The High Cost of Discount Culture by Ellen Ruppel Shell (A) – ****
• A wicked war : Polk, Clay, Lincoln, and the 1846 U.S. invasion of Mexico by Amy S. Greenburg – ****
• Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth by Reza Aslan – ****
• “Guns” by Stephen King – ***
• Where God Was Born by Bruce Feiler (A) – ***1/2
• The Walking Dead: All Out War (vol. 20) by Robert Kirkman -**
• The Information by James Gleick (A) – ***
• Doing Germany by Agnieszka Paletta – **1/2

April

• American Heretics: Catholics, Jews, Muslims, and the History of Religious Intolerance by Peter Gottschalk – **1/2
• Reign of error by Diane Ravitch – ****1/2
• Contemplative Prayer by Thomas Keating (A) – ***
• Walking the Bible by Bruce Feiler (A) – ***1/2
• Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell (A) – ***

May

• An astronaut’s guide to life on earth by Chris Hadfield – ****
• Strivers Row by Kevin Baker (A) – ***
• All Joy and No Fun by Jennifer Senior (A) – ***
• Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh – ****

June

• Drinking Boston : a history of the city and its spirits by Stephanie Schorow – ***

July

August

• The Race Underground by Doug Most (A) – ****
• The Man of Feeling by Javier Marías – **
• Life Form by Amélie Nothomb – ***1/2
• Cousin K by Yasmina Khadra – **1/2
• Book of ages : the life and opinions of Jane Franklin by Jill Lepore – ****1/2
• One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez (A) -***1/2

September

• One Summer: America, 1927 by Bill Bryson (A) – ****
• The Invisible Mountain by Carolina de Robertis (A) – ****
• Baba Yaga Laid an Egg by Dubravka Ugrešić – ***1/2
• Senselessness by Horacio Castellanos Moya – *1/2
• Pity the Billionaire by Thomas Frank (A) – ***1/2
• Be there now : travel stories from around the world – **

October

• The Castle of Whispers by Carole Martinez – ***1/2
• The Twelve Tribes of Hattie by Ayana Mathis (A) – ***
• Jerusalem by Gonçalo Tavares – ***
• The (Honest) Truth About Dishonesty by Dan Ariely (A) – ***
• The Angel’s Kiss: A Melody Malone Mystery by Justin Richards (A) – *1/2
• Eight World Cups by George Vecsey – ****
• Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan (A) – **1/2

November

• Dalek I Loved You by Nick Griffiths – **1/2
• Unruly Places by Alastair Bonnett (A) – ***1/2

December

• The Happiest People in the World by Brock Clarke – **
• A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin (A) – ***
• Closed at Dark by Rob Blackwell – ***
• Marbles : mania, depression, Michelangelo, and me by Ellen Forney – ***1/2
• Mary Ann in Autumn by Armistead Maupin (A) – ***

2014 in review

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2014 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

The concert hall at the Sydney Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 20,000 times in 2014. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 7 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.

Click here to see the complete report.

2014 Year in Review: Favorite Songs

I found it difficult to select just 10 songs I love from 2014.  So, I didn’t and instead I’ve compiled a list of 20 fantastic tracks of the past year.  And I could add more.  The songs are listed below, alphabetically by title.

For previous year-end lists of previous years check out my lists for 2013, 2012,  2011,  2010  and  2009.

I’ve featured many of this songs in my Song of the Week posts this year.  If you see a link from a song title it will take you back to the Song of the Week post for that song.

“Archie, Marry Me” – Alvvays

“Beneath the Brine” – The Family Crest

“Chaghaybou” – Tinariwen

“Coffee” – Sylvan Esso

“Discourse My New Romance” – Shinedoe

“Disco // very” – Warpaint

“Divisionary (Do the Right Thing)” – Ages and Ages

“Don’t Wait” – Mapei

“Don’t Wanna Lose” – Ex Hex

“Elon Matana” – Clap! Clap!

“FUNKNROLL” – Prince

“Go Away” – Weezer

“Good Mistake” – Mr. Little Jeans

“Grotto Beat” – Don Flemons

“The Liar” – Fennesz

“Low” – Young Fathers

“92nd Street” – Kris Delmhorst

“Ohun Aiye” – Seun Kuti & Egypt 80

“Quartz” – TV on the Radio

“True Trans Soul Rebel” – Against Me!

2014 Year in Review: Favorite albums

I’ve never attempted to make a list of favorite albums, primarily due to economic reasons I’ve never been able to listen to enough albums to make a fair judgment.  But now we live in the age of the cloud and I subscribe to Rdio and have the opportunity to listen to a lot more albums than ever before.  So, I’m going to give this a go, but I’m still not going to make a top ten, just eight favorites.

If you’re interested in more of the best albums of 2014, check out the lists compiled by my friends Erik and Jon.

The albums are arranged alphabetically by artist. I’ve included a sample song from each album, but check out SoundCloud, YouTube, or the artists’ websites for more.  I’ve also included an Rdio playlist of all eight albums below.

Aphex Twin – Syro 

The first album by Richard James released under the Aphex Twin moniker is a sonic wave of electronic noise and melody.

Clap! Clap! – Tayi Bebba

A project of Italian alian producer C. Crisci, Clap! Clap! creates dance music by combining electronic sounds with samples of traditional African music.  While not the first  effort to make this combination of sounds, Tayi Bebba is remarkably unique.

Ex Hex – Rips

Following up on the great supergroup project of Wild Flag, Mary Timony is back with another band that plays just straight-up great rock & roll.  I haven’t fallen in love with an album this quickly in a long time.

FM Belfast – Brighter Days

An electronic-pop band from Iceland plays on all of my weakness.  This music reminds me of the 1980s, but done right.

Moon Hooch – This is Cave Music

Moon Hooch is an all-sax band.  Cave music is apparently saxophones playing swinging dancetunes that feel like acoustic EDM.

St. Vincent

Annie Clark’s eponymous album is on all the best-of lists of this year, so I don’t need to say more than if you haven’t listened to it, check it out now.

 3rdEyeGirl – PLECTRUMELECTRUM

Prince released two albums this fall, and this is the better of the two, a collaboration with a new all-woman band of guitar player Donna Grantis, drummer Hannah Ford and  bassist Ida Kristine Nielsen.  Prince responds well when challenged by working with other great artists, and this album has more of a rock vibe than I’ve heard from Prince in some time.

Ana Tijoux – Vengo

French-Chilean hip-hop MC blends Latin beats, R&B, and consciousness-raising lyrics.

 

http://www.rdio.com/people/Othemts/playlists/12376150/Favorite_Albums_of_2014/

 

 

 

 

 

Christmas

On a peaceful Christmas at home in Boston, remembering the Christmas Truce of 1914, one of the more difficult to comprehend events in human history. Why would they stop fighting to celebrate with their enemies?  Why would they go back to war after getting to know one another?

This is cheezy, but this Sainsbury advertisement dramatizing the Christmas Truce is way better than it has any right to be.

 

Wherever you are, I hope your spending the day peacefully and safely among the people who love you.

 

Book Review: Marbles : mania, depression, Michelangelo, and me by Ellen Forney

Author: Ellen Forney
Title: Marbles : mania, depression, Michelangelo, and me
Publication Info: New York : Gotham Books, c2012.
ISBN: 9781592407323
Summary/Review:

This graphic memoir depicts artist Ellen Forney’s experience when diagnosed with a bipolar personality, and her efforts to come terms with the manic and depressive periods of her life, as well as the cocktails of pharmaceuticals to help address this.  Forney explores the idea of the “troubled artist” stereotype, wondering if medication would kill her creativity, but also learning of the terrible struggles of famed bipolar artists.  This book ends on an upbeat note as Forney reflects on how she’s changed since her diagnosis, and grows to accept some of the tradeoffs in life.

Favorite Passages:

“Sometimes it seems like ‘pain’ is too obvious a place to turn for inspiration.  Pain isn’t always deep anyway.  Sometimes it’s awful and that’s it.  Or boring.

Surely other things can be as profound as pain …  ?”

Recommended books: Fun Home by Alison Bechdel and Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh.
Rating: ***1/2

The 44th Annual Christmas Revels

The Christmas Revels at Sanders Theatre in Cambridge are annual family tradition.  My first Revels experience was in Washington in 1996.  After moving to the Boston area, the Cambridge Revels were an annual event from 2001-2006.  We missed the show in 2007 due to a newborn, and in 2008 due to a blizzard, but have been regular attendees since 2009 (that same year I actually sang in the chorus!).  So, I calculate that I’ve seen 13 different Christmas Revels performances.  Each year is delightful and surprising in its own way.*

This year’s Revels is set in Victorian England, with music halls and the Crystal Palace playing center stage.  The first act shows two teams of buskers competing on the streets of a Northern England town as the Crystal Palace manager Harry Colcord and composer Arthur Sullivan seek an alternate performer after a cancellation.  In the usual Revels’ way, everything comes together as the buskers join forces to create a performance of music, tricks, and a “panto” of Cinderella.  The second act is treated as a command performance at the Crystal Palace (complete with life-size wooden cutouts of the royal family in the mezzanine).

Highlights of the show:

• comic busking performances by Marge Dunn, Billy Meleady, Mark Jaster, and Sabrina Selma Mandell
• singing a round of “Row the Boat, Whittington”
• David Coffin’s solos on “It Was My Father’s Custom” and on the melodic “Christmas Bells at Sea”
• the sing-a-long and acting out of “When Father Papered the Parlour”
• the “Panto” of Cinderella, which while not a true Panto (oh no it isn’t!), we did get to shout “Don’t touch Billy’s eggs” several times
• And of course, the Revels traditions of “Lord of the Dance” (and dancing out into the lobby), “Dona Nobis Pacem,” “The Shortest Day,” and “Sussex Mummers’ Carol.”  Unfortunately, the “Abbots Bromley Horn Dance” was conspicuously absence in this year’s performance.

There are five more performances from December 26-28, so if you’re in or near Cambridge, get a ticket and go!

* I also recently discovered that the Revels website has a list detailing the theme of every performance from 1971 to present.  Now I need to discover time travel technology so I can go back in time and see each and every one.

Related posts:

• Christmas Revels (2006)
• Pub Sing
• Christmas Revels: The Reviews Are In (2009)
• The 40th Anniversary Christmas Revels (2010)
• The 41st Annual Christmas Revels (2011)
• The 42nd Annual Christmas Revels (2012)
• The 43rd Annual Christmas Revels (2013)

Christmas Song of the Week: “Dear Santa” by Mr. Little Jeans

Not sure if this is an original or a cover, but “Dear Santa” by Mr. Little Jeans (a.k.a. Monica Birkenes) is a good addition to the Christmas canon.

Book Review: Closed at Dark by Rob Blackwell

Author:Rob Blackwell
Title: Closed at Dark
Publication Info: Amazon Digital Services, Inc., 2014
Previously read by same author:

• A Soul to Steal
• Band of Demons
• Give the Devil His Due

Summary/Review:

This novella by my college friend Rob Blackwell introduces a new series about Soren Chase, a paranormal investigator.  This story combines parental fears of “stranger danger,” urban legends, and supernatural monsters to create an intriguing mystery thriller as Chase tries to figure out who – or what – is trying to abduct his long-time friend’s child.  The characterization is a bit thin, but I expect it will develop as did the characters in Blackwell’s Sanheim Chronicles.  We’ll find out soon when Soren Chase’s first full novel The Forest of Forever is released.

Rating: ***

Book Review: A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

Author: George R.R. Martin
Title: A Game of Thrones
Narrator: Roy Dotrice
Publication Info: [Santa Ana, Calif.] : Books on Tape, 2004
ISBN: 9780739353370
Summary/Review:

My wife has been reading A Song of Ice and Fire for years, including on our honeymoon, but I’ve always been intimidated by their length.  Having binge-watched the television adaptation Game of Thrones, I figured it was time to give the books their due.  The audiobook narration by Dotrice is a good way to enjoy the book because his gravely British accent makes me feel like I’m listening to an epic storyteller.  The book does a great job of laying out the politics and intrigues among the seven kingdoms while simultaneously setting up for a graver confrontation with stories of the North beyond the wall, and the Targaryen’s in the East.  Amazingly the first season of  tv show remained faithful, if condensed, to this book.  Worth the read/listen and I’ll be moving on to the second book.

Recommended books: Eragon by Christopher Paolini and The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkein.
Rating: ***