What I’m Reading
Welcome to my First-Annual My Year in Books award post! *applause* *cheer*
Today I’ll pick the best of the best out of what I read last year–as voted by me–and share the results with you. Today’s books have been chosen from what I read between January 1st and December 31st 2023. “Best” is entirely subjective, and based solely on what I enjoyed the most, so take that however you will.
Now, on with the show!
Best Children’s Book
How Dinosaurs Went Extinct: A Safety Guide
by Ame Dyckman, Illustrated by Jennifer Harney
Children’s Fiction, ages 4-8
How Dinosaurs Went Extinct is 33 pages of pure ridiculousness that had my boys howling with laughter this year. Do you know what killed all the dinosaurs? This author does!
Gallimimus ran with scissors.
Ankylosaurus tipped backwards on their chair… right over a cliff.
Bambiraptor didn’t look both ways before crossing the street…
and so on.
This author/illustrator duo took all the common things that parents always say, and turned them into a tummy-tickling safety guide full of “Dad” humour. Don’t be like the dinosaurs, kids!
Best Children’s Series
Pig the Pug
Written & Illustrated by Aaron Blabey
Children’s Fiction, ages 3+
Pig the Pug is a 10-book children’s series by the author of The Bad Guys (which I reviewed here). These books are for younger readers than The Bad Guys but that hasn’t stopped my 10-year-old from loving them and collecting the whole set!
What I have grown to appreciate about all of Blabey’s books, is that he really knows his audience and what will make them laugh; he writes stories that are short enough and interesting enough to encourage reluctant and struggling readers to pick up his books; and while his books are short and manageable, they contain challenging and interesting vocabulary words. While these books are suitable to read out loud to your preschooler, they contain enough of a challenge for my 5th-grader on the autism spectrum to practice his independent reading skills.
My only warning to keep in mind is that these books are written for your “wild child.” They are chock-full of burps, farts, and shenanigans. So if you have a gentle soul, they may not appreciate them as much as my neurospicy boys do. Otherwise, these get an enthusiastic thumbs up from my household.
Best Memoir
Making It So: A Memoir
by Patrick Stewart
Non-Fiction, Memoir
I was certain that I did not want to live in a world that would
–Making It So by Patrick Stewart
pass me by, without having left some sort of impact on it.
My favourite memoir of the year—no offence, Prince Harry—belongs to Sir Patrick Stewart in his newly-released book, Making it So.
Patrick Stewart is best-known for his roles as Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation, and as Professor Xavier in the X-Men movie franchise, but this fame did not begin until he was 47 years old. Before Star Trek Patrick Stewart lived a lifetime on the stage, from his first “leading man” role as Joseph in a nativity play, to decades of bringing Shakespeare’s characters to life for the Royal Shakespeare Company and Broadway.
I loved the first third of the book as Patrick shared about his childhood, and the series of events that made him into the actor he is today. From throwing a district track and field match that he was certain to win (because the final race would have conflicted with the play he was in!), to giving up acting to become an obituary reporter, his story is full of ups and downs and humorous anecdotes.
The middle of the book focuses on his early career and Shakespeare days. And while I found this part the least relatable, I feel like I learned so much about Patrick’s character in these pages. He never once misses an opportunity to pay tribute to the teachers who invested in him—all of whom he remembers by name; nor an opportunity to mention fellow beginners he spent time with in acting classes and early productions who shaped him. There is a sincere tone of humility and gratefulness on each and every page.
The final third of the memoir brought me to the years I knew the most about, and delighted me with details I did not know, such as that one time he agreed to help out a professor friend by acting out example scenes in his class… and ended up catching the attention of Gene Roddenberry (Creator of The Next Generation) in the process.
To finish this short review, I’ll leave you with two wildly out of context quotes that made me laugh out loud. If you want to know the stories behind them, you’ll just have to pick up the book. 🙂
- If I kill Paul McCartney, it will be the only thing I will be remembered for.
- At the very least, it was the most family-friendly brothel one could hope to find near the gulf coast.
Best Debut Author or Self-Published Author
Your Child is Not Broken (Authors & Co Edition)
by Heidi Mavir
Non-Fiction
As an aspiring writer myself, I make a point of reading a few books every year by debut authors, and/or self-published authors. When I found out about this book, which is Heidi Mavir’s hybrid-published debut book on the topic of autism, I couldn’t click “add to cart” fast enough!
The edition I purchased and read was the hybrid published edition with Authors & Co, but since then Heidi’s book has been picked up by a Big 5 publisher, and is now available from Bluebird, an imprint of Macmillen. Author goals! That to say, I am reviewing the first edition, but there’s a second edition with approximately 100 pages of new content available to you.
This book is short and sweet, but packs a big punch. In Your Child is not Broken, Mavir tells the story of her son’s autism diagnosis, which eventually led to her own autism diagnosis in her forties. The story is raw and personal, sharing real emotions and real challenges. (Now would be the time to add a “language” warning about this book. There is no shortage of unapologetic swearing. Of course, you already know my feelings on that.)
Mavir encourages parents who are entering the world of autism to choose how they will view their child’s diagnosis. They can choose a very medical view of disability, which she did at first; or they can adopt a more social view, which is where she finds herself today. In a nutshell, a medical view of disability is: “This person cannot fit into our world, so we must fix them.” A social view of disability is: “Our culture is built in ways that exclude people with disabilities; how could we fix our culture to better accommodate them?” Heidi shares the painful impact it had on her family to invest all of her energy into “fixing” her son, and how much their lives have changed for the better when she started advocating for her son instead.
While her words are different than mine, I recognized a familiar feeling throughout this book. I’d like to think she’d approve of what I said in this post: “I no longer feel the need to change him. I want to change the world for him.”
I realised that I had some choices to make. What kind of parent did I want to be? Did I want to change Theo? Did I want to force him to conform? Did I want to spend the rest of my life in a pit of despair, hoping for a way to “cure” him, pumping him full of overpriced herbal remedies from the internet? Or did I want to find a way to support him, celebrate him, and love him for all that he was?
-Your Child is Not Broken by Heidi Mavir
Best Book About Neurodiversity
The Girl Who Thought in Pictures: The Story of Dr. Temple Grandin
by Julia Finley Mosca, Illustrated by Daniel Rieley
Children’s Non-Fiction, Biography
As you can imagine, Autism and ADHD are big reading topics for me every year, which is why I decided to make “Book about Neurodiversity” a category. This year, the honour goes to The Girl Who Thought in Pictures. I’ve already reviewed this book on the blog, so you can read all about it here:
I was so impressed by this book that it continues to shine as my favourite Autism read this year, even surpassing books written for adults.
Best Re-Read
Th1rt3en
by Steve Cavanagh
Adult Fiction, Thriller, Suspense, Crime, Courtroom
Best re-read goes hands-down to Thirteen by Steve Cavanagh. Simply, it is one of the best modern crime books I have ever read.
I read Thirteen last year because it is so highly praised. Then, after absolutely loving it, I started at the beginning of the series this year and re-read Thirteen along the way. This time I was prepared for the big reveal, however, I had completely forgotten about a secondary reveal, and was surprised a second time around! Cavanagh writes so well that, even though there are clues, I forget them or set them aside as unimportant compared to the other events of the book. It’s just that action-packed and full of sub-plots.
In Thirteen, a movie star is on trial for the high-profile murder of his actress wife and their bodyguard. Things look bleak as the evidence stacks up against him, and he’s already guilty in the court of public opinion. The only person who knows beyond a shadow of a doubt that the actor is innocent is the man who actually committed the crime: a serial killer whose MO is framing others for his kills, and then maneuvering himself onto the juries so he can manipulate the vote to “guilty.” It’s a courtroom drama similar to the show Law & Order, with all the mind games of Criminal Minds.
This book is part of a larger series of courtroom fiction centered around defense attorney, Eddie Flynn. It is written by an Irish author in European English, which means there are a few dialect differences along the way, (ie. “cot” vs. “crib,” “satnav” vs. “GPS”). It has nine titles so far. If you are into crime thrillers, I highly recommend them!
And, (I hope this is obvious), if you’re not into crime and serial killer books, steer clear. These are not for you!
“Whatever good things you’ve heard about me probably aren’t true. Whatever bad things you’ve heard are probably
– Thirteen by Steve Cavanagh
just the tip of the iceberg.”
Best Light-Hearted Read
I Only Read Murder
by Ian Ferguson & Will Ferguson
Adult Fiction, Mystery, Comedy
I read a lot of “heavy” books. I always have a non-fiction book on the go, and my taste in fiction isn’t always the lightest of reads, what with the murders and all…
Occasionally I just have to reach for something funny, and this book is far and away the funniest thing I’ve read all year! Not to mention by Canadian authors, and still in my wheelhouse of murder mystery… love, love, loved it!
Miranda Abbot is a has-been actress–or at least–she would be if The Real Has-Beens of Beverly Hills hadn’t turned her down. She’s broke, and her only job offer is a Metamucil commercial, when she gets a mysterious postcard in the mail that leads her to the town of Happy Rock, Oregon. Here, she sinks to an all-time low when she auditions for a community theatre play, and ends up getting cast as the maid who dies in Act One.
Luckily for Miranda, she is not the first person to die.
When a fellow cast member dies onstage, Miranda uses the skills she learned as a former TV Detective to help solve the mystery.
It’s light, it’s funny–did I mention it’s Canadian?–and unlike Thirteen above, I actually can recommend this book even if you aren’t the biggest murder-mystery fan, since it’s heavy on the comedy, and light on the murder.
“She’s mean,” said Ned. “Her husband left her.”
I Only Read Murder by Ian Ferguson & Will Ferguson
“Ned! He died in a car accident.”
“Yeah, well, I always figured, he saw that hairpin turn, thought about what was waiting for him at home, and cranked that wheel.”
Best Book I Wouldn’t Normally Read
Ascendance of a Bookworm (Part 1, Volume 1)
by Miya Kazuki
Japanese, Light Novel, Fantasy
It’s good to expand your horizons isn’t it? That’s why I try to read a book or two every year that isn’t “my thing.” Fantasy light-novels translated from Japanese definitely fit that description. But you know what? I LOVED it.
Urano is obsessed with books. She’s a total bookworm with her sights set on becoming a librarian, until a tragic accident (she dies in a bookslide during an earthquake!) cuts that dream short. Unfortunately for Urano, she is reincarnated as Myne, a little girl from a mysterious land where the literacy rate is low, and books are expensive and out of reach for all but the upper class. Despairing over the lack of books, Myne sets her sights on a new goal: to write the first children’s book any child her age has ever seen.
This novel is imaginative and fun. It’s a story that I’d like to hear more of. I’m planning on checking out the anime TV show based on it. (It’s faster than reading the 30+ novels currently in this series!) If you’re into manga, light novels, or anime, you probably already know and love this series. If you’re a parent with children who are taking an interest in Japanese novels/manga I can assure you that at least Book 1 is interesting, fun, and clean reading for your tweens.
She’s going to become a living natural disaster
–Ascendance of a Bookworm by Miya Kazuki
that destroys the market and remakes it anew.
Best Series
The Plantagenet and Tudor Novels
by Phillipa Gregory
Historical Fiction (Royal Family, Cousin’s War, Tudors, 1400’s, 1500’s)
Surprised? Even though I loved the Eddie Flynn series by Steve Cavanagh (above), Phillipa Gregory’s books are simply in a class all by themselves. Author Philippa Gregory holds a PhD in literature, and has several honorary degrees for her contributions as a historical fiction author. Her education and research really sets these books apart. Her story-telling is woven in between actual historical documents, including royal communications and personal letters, making them feel real and alive.
The Plantagenet and Tudor series of novels is up to 15 titles. They cover the British royal families of the 1400’s and 1500’s, including some of history’s most recognizable monarchs: King Henry VIII & Elizabeth I. What makes these novels so special, is that Gregory always tells the story from a woman’s point of view, shedding light on the queens, princesses, mothers, and grandmothers who influenced history behind the scenes.
It is hard to pick a favourite across 15 novels, but one keeps coming back to mind over and over again, so it deserves a special mention: The Queen’s Fool.
The Queen’s Fool follows the life of a young Jewish woman who was brought to the courts of King Edward VI and Queen Mary I against her will during a time of religious upheaval, inquisition, and martyrdom. Her story is one of survival as she tries to hide her Jewish faith while serving Edward: the protestant son and first successor of King Henry VIII; and Mary: the catholic daughter of Henry VIII who earned the nickname “Bloody Mary” for executing protestants in her attempts to reverse the reformation and make England a Catholic country once again.
We stand hand-clasped, our faces quite blank,
On the execution of Joan of Arc, from The Lady of the Rivers by Phillipa Gregory
as if this were not a nightmare that tells me, as clearly as if it were written in letters of fire, what ending a girl may expect of she defies the rules of men and thinks she can make her own destiny.
I am here not only to witness what happens to a heretic.
I am here to witness what happens to a woman who thinks she knows more than men.
Most Underrated Read
The Blue Castle
by Lucy Maud Montgomery
Period Fiction
By far, the most underrated book I read this year was The Blue Castle, an adult fiction novel by Lucy Maud Montgomery. L.M. Montgomery is known world-wide for her Anne of Green Gables series, and to a lesser extent, her Emily of New Moon series for young readers. I didn’t even know that this adult fiction gem existed until this year.
In true Montgomery form, this novel delves into the heart and imagination of a female protagonist. In this case, Valancy Stirling, a 29-year-old spinster trapped in a mundane existence with her family who has emotionally and spiritually abused her, and stifled her individuality her whole life. We meet her on the day that everything changes: the day that she receives a poor prognosis from a doctor that encourages her to live life on her own terms before it’s too late.
Emboldened by the fact that she will die soon anyway, Valency begins living exactly how she wants to for the very first time; horrifying her family by doing scandalous things such as: participating in conversations instead of sitting quietly in the corner, no longer laughing at her uncle’s unfunny jokes, and only sweeping the front room when the floor is dirty and not according to a strict schedule. Shocking! This new independence leads her to true love and her own happily ever after. The ending is rather convenient–cheesy even–but who doesn’t like a feel-good story with a happy ending once in awhile?
This novel was a cathartic read for me for many reasons. I loved the setting, which broke from Montgomery’s normal backdrop of P.E.I. and took us instead to the Muskoka region of Ontario, the landscape I grew up in. I also loved Valancy’s metamorphosis from a silent and abused girl into a confident woman with a voice and beliefs all her own.
When this book was written in 1926, it was considered a romance. However, since the “romance” in this book is limited to one kiss, I would call it period fiction, suitable for YA and up.
“Have you no sense of shame?” demanded Uncle James.
–The Blue Castle by L. M. Montgomery
“Oh yes. But the things I am ashamed of are not the things
you are ashamed of.”
Hope this post has given you some ideas on what to get with those holiday gift cards. 🙂
See you next week, as I get back to a more “normal” post for me: a series on executive function (a topic very important to understanding Autism & ADHD).
©Ashley Lilley – First time commenting? Please read my Comment Policy.
Disclosure: No affiliations here! While this page may contain links to products, I am not an affiliate or ambassador for any brand. I do not receive commission or kickback of any kind for recommending products. Just sharing stuff I love, and hope it helps someone. If you wish to support my blog in some way, please consider following me on social media and sharing my links with your friends. -Ashley
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