2022 – A Year in review

It’s that time of year again – a time to look back a little on the year that has gone – and celebrate some of the best things we’ve read. Best of year posts have been springing up for weeks – so apologies to those of you who are heartily sick of them.  

I have read far fewer books this year than I can ever remember. Had I been writing this post a few months ago I would have been very negative about that, but I feel I have come to terms with it. I read a bit less these days, and that’s just the way it is. So, after having picked twelve books for twelve months for several years, I am sticking to ten this year. One post, ten books. Glancing down the list I do think it very representative of my reading, mostly fiction, mainly women, some backlisted, some translated a couple of newer titles.  

In the order I read them, my top ten books I read in 2022 are: 

The Narrows by Ann Petry (1953) read in February. Reissued by Virago Press. A novel about love, lust, class, racism, tabloid journalism, the truth and betrayal – Petry writes her story flawlessly, giving us characters we won’t easily forget. Most of the characters inhabit the area of Monmouth, Connecticut called The Narrows – a Black community within what is a largely White town. A more complex novel than Petry’s best known work The Street, but so compelling, the narrative shifting between characters, its pacy and vividly described.  

Random Commentary by Dorothy Whipple (1966) read in February. Reissued by Persephone books. A compilation of pieces from Dorothy Whipple’s journals and notebooks. The journals were kept intermittently by Dorothy, then years later she simply copied out extracts that she thought might interest her readers. Nothing was ever organised or dated – though of course it all runs more or less chronologically, therefore the title fits absolutely. A thorough delight for any Whipple fan.  

Fools of Fortune by William Trevor (1983) read in March. Published by Penguin books. Told mainly in two first person narratives, spanning a period from just after the First World War to the 1980s. It is a beautiful, complex novel, haunting and tender and always compelling.  

The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak (2021) read in June. Published by Viking. Divided into three time periods – the late 2010s the early 2000s and 1974 – The Island of Missing Trees, with one very unforgettable narrator, tells a story of belonging and identity, it is a poignant story of love and trauma. Set in Cyprus and London, it is beautifully written, compelling and thought provoking.   

Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi (2020) read in July on Kindle. Published by penguin books. The story of an American-Ghanaian family in Alabama. A stunning, intelligent novel about family life, loss, grief, addiction, science and faith. A fast-paced multi layered novel that packs quite an emotional punch. 

Elena Knows by Claudia Piñeiro (2007) translated by Frances Riddle – read on Kindle in August. Published by Charco Press. A deeply heartfelt novel about a woman’s search for the truth about her daughter’s death. There appears to be a mystery at the heart of this novel and yet it’s not really a mystery novel. There’s a beautiful subtlety to the author’s telling the story of Elena and her daughter. The author understands the vulnerability and the frustrations of someone living with a debilitating health condition and that understanding weaves itself through the narrative.  

War Among Ladies by Eleanor Scott (1928) read in September. Reissued by The British Library as part of their women writer’s series. I love a school setting, and this devastating portrait of women teachers and 1920s education was a thoroughly immersive read. A novel about the politics and petty rivalries of a 1920s staffroom, Scott shows us how the choices for unmarried women who needed to earn a living were limited – and how difficult their lives were.  

Two Thousand Million Man Power by Gertrude Trevelyan (1937)) read in November. Reissued by Boiler House Press. Two Thousand Million Man-Power is an extraordinary novel. The novel concerns Robert Thomas and Katherine Bott from New Year’s Eve 1919 until the funeral of King George V in 1936. Throughout these years they change and grow, experiencing youthful radical idealism, economic boom and bust, terrible poverty, unemployment, and comfortable middle-class life in the suburbs with all the trappings. What Trevelyan does brilliantly however is to set her novel and place her characters very much in the context of everything that was happening in society and the wider world. So, looking forward to reading more by Gertrude Trevelyan soon.  

Territory of Light by Yūko Tsushima (1978) translated by Geraldine Harcourt read on Kindle in November. Published by Penguin books. The novel is told in twelve standalone fragments telling the story of an unnamed woman’s first year parenting her daughter alone after separating from her husband. She moves herself and her daughter – who turns three during the course of the story – into a fourth-floor apartment that is filled with light. A beautiful, delicate novel, which I read quickly, totally taken over by the imagery.  

The Other Day by Dorothy Whipple (1936) read in November. Reissued by Persephone books. My second Whipple on this list – I nearly swapped this for something else – but decided to stick to it. Dorothy Whipple was born in 1893 – and this book recounts delightfully her first twelve years. She reminds us – should we need it of all the horrors and pitfalls of childhood. How easy it is to get oneself into trouble with the grown-ups, how awful and miserable being taught by an unsympathetic teacher can be, how terrifying the illness of a sibling might feel. Another must for the Whipple fan, a deeply charming memoir.  

Coming in just under the wire – those I very nearly put in my list or would have done if I had been making the list longer: Springs of Affection, short stories by Maeve Brennan, The Light Years by Elizabeth Jane Howard, A Helping Hand by Celia Dale, and A Town called Solace by Mary Lawson which I only finished two days ago. 

So, that’s it – another year done, all bar the shouting. A few hours left of 2022 – but to be honest I have never been very bothered by New Year. The whole New Year, new year’s resolutions, “it will all be better next year” vibe irritates me. Still, if I were to make a New Year’s resolution (which I am plainly not going to do) it would be to get back to blogging a bit more regularly. I miss my former enthusiasm for it, but I am hoping bit by bit I will find my way back to enjoying it more than I have this year. I have struggled a lot since the summer, to blog and read and comment on other blogs – I feel I interact less on social media too. Thank you to those who have commented on, read, liked, or shared my infrequent posts over the last few months it has kept me going.  

There are changes on the horizon for me in 2023. I am in the process of being medically retired from work – I haven’t been at work since July. I have been told it can take months to go through, so I am currently off sick and waiting for everything to be finalised. The reality for me now is that I rarely leave home – and that’s unlikely to change much, if at all. So, I should have more time for blogging etc shouldn’t I? It’s not worked out like that yet. 

Despite my dislike of New Year – I do sincerely wish you all a very happy one. Let 2023 be filled with light, peace, and plenty of books.  

What were your best books of 2022?