Of the novels I read in 2011, here are the five that stand out in terms of their quality as well as their continued, lingering presence in my imagination: 5. Jonathan Franzen, Freedom. I began 2011 by reading this novel in January. Much-discussed, people seem to either love it or hate it. I’m in the…
5. Val Ross, Robertson Davies: A Portrait in Mosaic. [From my GoodReads review] Since reading Fifth Business, Davies has stood, for me, as the quintessential Canadian man of letters (I realize I’m just catching up with the 1970s in this respect). His emergence from a village in southwestern Ontario resonates with me, of course–though his…
Today, Ephiphany, is a fitting day to briefly highlight the poets I spent some time with in 2011, since I’ll begin with a poem on just that. 5. My subscription to Poetry is a primary source for new poetry in the house (along with their fantastic mobile app while I’m on the road). A favorite…
Twas the year of New Yorker stories for me, I guess. While I dabbled in some other collections (Hemmingway, Alice Munro), here are the five stories that made a dent on my imagination this past year (all published in the New Yorker): 5. Lauren Groff, “Above and Below.” A rather minimalist tale of a Florida…
I don’t usually highlight my “professional” reading in these annual retrospectives, but this year I read three theology books that stood out in a unique way. These are books that I would be enthused to give to friends and colleagues. In particular, it struck me that these three books could be very profitably read by…
Looking back, 2011 was a difficult year for our family. But any year in which one can still read can’t be all bad. So as per my tradition (see, for example, 2009 and 2010), and as a way to cultivate gratitude, I’ll spend the next few posts reflecting on a year of reading. I’ll highlight…