Top 20 Best Books of 2023 (Publishers Weekly) TBR
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 20 ส.ค. 2024
- I go through the recent Publishers Weekly Top 20 Best Books of 2023 and decide which books to put on my TBR. I explain my thought process, what kind of books and topics appeal to me, and I share an anecdote of my strange experience when I was featured in Publishers Weekly. #reading #booktube #books #bookrecommendations
Here's a link to the list put out by Publishers Weekly best-books.pub...
Music featured in the video: John Adams Fellow Traveller
Some of the books and authors I talk about in this video include
Age of Vice by Deepti Kapoor, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, Charles Dickens, August Blue by Deborah Levy, Bariloche by Andres Neuman, Beyond the Door of No Return and At Night All Blood Is Black by David Diop, Company by Shannon Sanders, A Cowardly Woman No More by Ellen Cooney, Eastbound by Maylis de Kerangal, White Teeth by Zadie Smith, The Fraud by Zadie Smith, Greek Lesson by Han Kang, The Vegetarian by Han Kang, I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai, The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride, Let Us Descend by Jesmyn Ward, North Woods by Daniel Mason, The People Who Report More Stress by Alejandro Varela, Small Worlds by Caleb Azumah Nelson, Terrace Story by Hilary Leichter, This Is Salvaged by Vauhini Vara, This Other Eden by Paul Harding, Another Country by James Baldwin, Tremore by Teju Cole, Delirium's Muse by Michael Wertenberg, The Unsettled by Ayana Mathis, Strangers on a Train and The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith
Follow me on Goodreads: / 15181081.micha_l_werte...
Support this channel. Buy a book, leave a review.
Amazon US - bit.ly/46nAIS1
Amazon UK - bit.ly/3LB0R82
🌹
The thing I liked about this vlog was less about the books and more about you and what interests or moves you or doesn’t. I enjoyed this.
Thank you Meow-Meow😁I'm glad you enjoyed it. Thank you for the positive feedback😸😺
Amazing TH-cam channel ! Keep doing what you’re doing, you’re amazing! 👏🏼👏🏼✨
Hi Patsy. Thank you for the kind words!😊😁I'm just getting the day started, and what a wonderful way to do so, with your positive energy!
thank you !!!
You're welcome😁
We live in rural france. I am waiting outside the local doctor’s as my wife has an appointment. There is generally a big wait. Today is no different. Thankfully your latest video dropped and I have chuckled my way through it enjoying your appraisals. I won’t be reading any of those books, my life is too precious to me. I broadly share many of the reasons you passed. As always thanks for sharing. Bon weekend.
Thanks Phil. I hope all goes well at the appointment. I am also in rural France (depending on the definition of rural). Does Le Var count as rural? There's no hospital, but there aren't any farms either, so I don't know...
@@Michael_Wertenberg Thanks. I guess in this beautiful country one is never too far from the countryside. But you do have beaches as well! It’s pretty much all farming here in the Vienne 😂 but it’s all good.
Emotions, emotions, emotions! When you started to talk about THEM. Oh, you cracked me up. It always feels so good to laugh out loud. Gee, sorry I didn’t mean to bring up emotions.
😁Yeah, I've been down those roads before, those roads of em*tions. They don't lead to anywhere good.
I think Kim (Middle of the Book March) is reading Fraud.
Ben (Ben Reads Good) liked North Woods.
*segue into the next* TBR.
Reagan (Peruse Project) liked Birnam Wood (Eleanor Catton).
Sam (Super Blomper): The First Bad Man (Miranda July).
Rachel (Shades of Orange) : Our Wives Under the Sea (Julia Armfield).
You should have read The Vegetarian .
Love the content.
Thanks for the recommendations. I've just looked up Middle of The March; great image quality! I only found the vid where she has put aside The Fraud. Maybe I'll finish before her (but at the moment I've got some 20-30 1980s horror books to get through...)
love the knit
Thank you. I'm not sure what that's in reference to. The sweater? But I'm always happy to recieve a compliment🙂Thanks for watching and for your kind words.
@@Michael_Wertenberg yes sir, you are correct.
😁@@BreezeTalk
Michael, I recommended Fever House to you recently. The author, Keith Rosson, is legally blind, and is losing his sight as well. He's done several interviews about being an artist/author while having sight challenges. If you google him, lots of interviews and reviews of his books will pop up. His books Fever House and The Mercy of the Tide both have horror themes. This seems like something that would interest you. 📚💚
Fever House sounds exciting. And it has great reviews on Goodreads! And given what you've told me about the author, I'm even more intrigued. It's on my TBR for sure. Thanks! I'm currently reading Fevre Dream for my '80s horror retrospective. So, from Fevre Dream to Fever House, seems like a logical progression...🙃
Indeed!
Only two that sounded like something I might read, The Fraud, and Greek Lessons. Really bizarre about PW. Enjoyed the video, as always.
Thanks Roo😁The Fraud is at the top of my TBR now (but I still have lots of '80s horror to get through before that😵💫
Michael Strangers on a Train is Patricia Highsmith I’m impressed by your musical background. (My brother is the Tympanist with the Houston Symphony). Sorry to hear you are losing you’re losing your eyesight. How tragic for a reader. Loved your list!
Yeah, I have a terrible memory for names😔Cool gig for your brother! He gets to perform John Adams' El Nino next spring!
None of these books sounded interesting to me but your side comments were entertaining.
Thanks for the kind words. I agree. There wasn't anything that sounded mind-blowingly inventive. But I'm expecting to love at least 1 of the 4 I've chosen to read.🤞
Very interesting video, thank you! I share your feelings about books dealing with racial issues, I am also over it...But I did read another James Baldwin book this year and really loved it - Giovani's room. It did not deal with racial issues, BTW. I didn't read "Strangers on a train", but I did see the movie a few weeks ago, it was good! What didn't you like about the book? And very weird what happened with Publisher weekly...
BTW - in how many languages can you read?? I'm jealous!
I had a few issues with Strangers on a Train. Lots of monologues, and they were quite repetitive; a protagonist who is spineless; and another who's a bully. Spineless protagonists are hard to root for. I read in the Romance languages (minus Romanian): French, Portuguese, Spanish, and Italian (though it's been at least 9 years since I've read anything in Italian). And English, of course. The Romance languages are all quite similar. So, once you've got one, it's not a big leap learning the others.
I'm glad I found your channel, I find your content refreshing and original. I'm reading North Woods now, I haven't gotten very far but I am finding it very enjoyable. One thing I noticed from you going throughout the list is that it's obviously skewed towards race relations which I am completely sick of hearing about. It also blows my mind that it is so prevalent since no time in history have people of color in the United States ever been more free then they are now. I would opt for the same books that you picked but to be honest none of them seemed overly appealing to me except for North Woods. I'm looking forward to checking out more of your content. Your other posts have pushed me to now want to check out books by Adam Neville so, thanks for the horror recommendation.
Hi Book Pal. Thanks for the kind words😁Judging from the feedback I've been getting on this video, you and I aren't alone in being sick of the theme of race relations. If you do decide to check out Adam Nevill, let me know how that works out for you. I still have a ranking video of his I need to put out...
White teeth was good? I've had it on my shelf forever and I don't know why I keep passing it up. Thanks for always being honest :) On another note: you love people who lie???? Hum... I'm sure there is something there. I'd love to know why you think that is. Ugh the Vegetarian made me sorta sick and I actually had trouble reading for a while after.
I thought White Teeth was excellent. Me, I'm always looking at the technical or the craft aspect of a book. I want to experience great writing. That often has a higher priority for me than the actual story or the 'message'. I was impressed with her craftsmanship, her ability to flesh out and differentiate so many characters, give them each a distinct voice and have them interact in compelling ways. You've renewed my curiosity/desire to read The Vegetarian!😆
@@Michael_Wertenberg I’d be super interested if n what you’d think of it
omg!! Another great video that I wished I'd enjoyed with wine. But I'm getting over a cold so stupid fruit juice instead. None of those books appealed to me but I appreciate the literary knowledge. I'm also sick of the race relations/gender issues and I'm a Mexican-American in California. Not everything is a trial by combat or a wave of a cultural flag. If I choose to read Marianela in Spanish while having cafe con pan dulce , I am still the same person who read Spenser's Faerie Queene with tea (milk and sugar please) and biscuits. I'm just someone who likes to eat and read. lol.
😁Thank you for the kind words. I'm wishing you a quick and full recovery. There will be more videos and more wine occassions soon enough, so get well soon!
@@Michael_Wertenberg - Thank you so much. :)
The problem with racial and gender themes in books and media today is there are so many bad faith actors involved. It's impossible to approach any of it without feeling like i'm being subjected to a cult, a false history, or straight propaganda. I'm sure there are many many fantastic stories being written through an honest lens but, sadly, I've been duped so many times I just reject those premises wholesale now, at least for the time being.
Well said. I'm with you on that.
You call yourself a “snob” and don’t know what “war” is in Latin? I henceforth revoke your snob card.
Do I still get to turn my nose up at adults who drink milk?
@@Michael_Wertenberg only if you can identify truffle terroirs in blind tasting