50 Books I read in 2023: (part 1 of 3)

the Fiction

I did not intend to divide my reading last year so neatly into three categories (fiction, non, fiction, read-aloud) but somehow my book counts in each came out shockingly even: I read 16 fiction, 17 non-fiction, and 17 read-alouds in 2023. Elizabeth Gaskell was the author I read most with three books; Austen, Dickens and du Maurier were all tied for second with two books each.

Let’s start with the fiction.

A Young Girl Reading, Jean-Honore Fragonard (1776)

North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell

Revisiting this book for the first time since college (nearly 20 years ago) was a treat. Gaskell is a masterful storyteller, and this is one of her best novels. If you love a strong heroine, Margaret Hale is the lady for you (move over, Jo March!). Gaskell turns sex roles upside down with Margaret’s heroic rescues, and the tension between Margaret and Mr. Thornton that slowly builds over the course of the novel is palpable. If you love Austen and Dickens but have never picked up a Gaskell, do yourself a favor and read North and South.

The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey

A haunting, melancholy story about a middle-aged couple who are grieving the loss of their only baby and their childless state. Mabel and Jack one evening create a snow sculpture of a child, which then somehow comes to life and returns to them each Alaska winter with the arrival of the snow. Based on the Russian fairy tale The Snow Maiden (Snegurochka in Russian), this story is beautifully written but had an ultimately unsatisfying ending for me. Definitely a great one to read on cold winter nights.

Emma by Jane Austen

It is interesting to me that Jane Austen set out to create "a heroine that no one could much like" in Emma. I think she failed miserably to achieve that goal, especially when Emma is set next to & inevitably compared with a couple of insufferable and tiresome characters (Mrs. Elton & Miss Bates). In my opinion, Emma is a deeply relatable character, and I thoroughly enjoyed her development over the course of the story. Emma is unlike Pride and Prejudice in that you really must read it a second time to grasp Austen’s genius in crafting this story that is, some say, actually a detective story.

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

This was a fantastic gothic novel: full of mystery, romance, intrigue, suspense, and the perfect moody English setting. I enjoyed it very much; it's a perfect book to read on a stormy, blustery evening, sipping a steaming mug of tea in front of a crackling fire.

Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell

I found Cranford to be a bit of a mixed bag; I love Gaskell's other books (North & South, Wives & Daughters) and assumed this one would be just as good. It certainly had some wonderfully funny lines and a couple of great characters, but overall it was a bit too disjointed and short for my taste. A pleasant, light read.

Small things Like These by Claire Keegan

A short but beautifully written and thought-provoking short story set in Ireland, it describes the state of the girls & women who were imprisoned in the often Catholic-run asylums from the 18th to the late 20th centuries. Prostitutes, and later many other types of women and girls (those who were pregnant out of wedlock, the mentally disabled, etc) were sent to work in what was called Magdalene Laundries, where they were treated terribly, often abused, and in many cases, never left again. This little story almost reads like a parable. Claire Keegan's writing is top-rate and I want to look up more books she has written.

Persuasion by Jane Austen

Persuasion is, in my opinion, the least of Jane Austen's novels. It was a somewhat dull read, especially when compared with her better works, like Pride & Prejudice and Emma. One reason for this dullness was because she includes a fraction of the dialogue in this book than what she used in, say, Emma. I missed that greatly, as her conversations are where she shines as an author. However, she still displays incredible insight into human nature, and reading her books always causes me to reflect on what type of person I am--and how Austen would describe me if I were a character in one of her stories.

Hard Times by Charles Dickens

This was a relatively quick read (for Dickens) and almost read like a short story because of the small cast of characters and limited scope (both in chronology and geography). I love Dickens' incredibly insightful commentary on the results of an education that is wholly devoted to ‘Facts’ and nothing else. "Hard Times" almost reads as a treatise on what Education *shouldn't* be. It's always good to mull over and mentally chew on the ideas in a good book in the days after finishing it, and this one was no exception.

Bleak House by Charles Dickens

Is there an author that creates such realistic characters so vividly and so quickly as Dickens does? His descriptions & dialogue craft fascinating flesh-and-blood humans on the page and it is one of the reasons why I love reading Dickens so much. Bleak House is such a long (800+ pages) rambling story that it's hard to write just a few sentences about it. I found it fascinating that Jo, a destitute street-sweeper, was a character who Dickens involved in the key plot points/scenes of the book. The ongoing theme of the poor inhabitants of London desperately in need of aid contrasted with the self-righteous ladies (Mrs. Jellyby being one of them) who only give help to those suffering in far-away places like Africa was a stark one. I wonder how much we do this today, too? How often do I have a desire to assist those far away, while there are people in my own city (neighborhood, even) in need of my help.

The Blue Castle by L. M. Montgomery

The Blue Castle started off quite dreary and a bit melodramatic for my taste but once Valancy gets her diagnosis and the shackles fall off, (loved that scene where she hurls the old potpourri jar out the window!) Montgomery is *on fire* with witty hilarity. I was laughing out loud and absolutely loving her interactions with her family once she decides that she would no more live in fear of all the proper correctness that had been imposed on her since she was a child. The humorous one-liners continue for much of the rest of the book and I flew through it faster than expected. A delightful read.

The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins

Absolutely wonderful mystery/suspense novel. Masterful storytelling by Wilkie Collins, and some of the best characters I've ever encountered (Marian Halcombe is superb and of course Count Fosco is delightfully wicked and sinister). Definitely a long read (true to its Victorian roots), but a perfectly creepy novel for those dark autumn/winter nights.

The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy

This was my first foray into Russian literature and I loved it. It’s much shorter than Tolstoy’s novels (like War & Peace) so we'll see how much I enjoy him once I venture into deeper waters. This little story is a short, easy read, but contains much to think about as it is dealing with Death, one of the big ideas of life. Ivan Ilyich is our Everyman, and he actually reminds me a lot of Ebeneezer Scrooge. Both very selfish as well hardworking in their professions, but both exceedingly miserable as they contemplate their lives and come to the realization that they are lonely, friendless and in dire need of repentance.

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

Absolutely fantastic detective novel/murder mystery; I have been reading Agatha Christie's novels since I was a young teen, and never once have I successfully guessed who the murderer was...until this novel! 9 pages before the end, before Poirot has revealed the shocking truth, it came to me in a flash and I gasped aloud. Incredible writing by the queen of mystery; highly, highly recommend to anyone who loves the mystery genre.

Mary Barton by Elizabeth Gaskell

Elizabeth Gaskell's first novel, "Mary Barton" doesn't quite have the excellence of "North and South" or "Wives and Daughters," but it is still a great book, and, in my opinion, absolutely worth reading. Mary Barton is a young, foolish, and at times frustrating protagonist, but Gaskell's descriptions of the state of the working-classes in Manchester in the 1840s is absolutely harrowing. The utter squalor and filth that the poor lived in is unimaginable for us in modern times, and is heart-rending to read about. The tension between the manufacturers/mill-owners and their workers is a very interesting one, and while Gaskell doesn't offer any easy solutions, she does offer a beautiful illustration of reconciliation between the two.

My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier

Daphne du Maurier is expert at atmosphere; she draws the reader in so skillfully that you forget you're even reading a book. She carries you through the text and right into the story. My Cousin Rachel is just as dark and moody and mysterious as Rebecca, and it even reminded me of Wilkie Collins' book The Woman in White. The protagonist drove me crazy with his naivete and unreliable narrative, but perhaps that is what du Maurier intended?--To portray a young man in love and show how clouded one's judgement can be when emotions are high. Worth reading, and especially perfect for a winter evening sipping hot cocoa next to a crackling fire.

The Birds’ Christmas Carol by Kate Douglas Wiggin

A very short, sweet, Victorian Christmas story that is sentimental (in the best of ways!), heart-warming, funny, and a perfect read-aloud for Christmastime. This may end up on our annual Hood Family Christmas Read-Aloud list.