The New York Times Book Review's Top 10 Books of 2021
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- Опубліковано 29 вер 2024
- The New York Times unveiled its list of the ten best books of 2021 (five fiction and five nonfiction). I look forward to this list every year, so of course, I wanted to take a look and react. We'll also talk about some surprising omissions and how many of these books I managed to predict.
Check out the list: www.nytimes.co...
Further viewing film 🎥:
The Washington Post’s top 10: • The Washington Post’s ...
The NY Times 100 Notable for 2021: • The New York Times’ 10...
Last year’s NY Times top 10: • The New York Times Bes...
The 2019 NY Times top 10: • The New York Times Bes...
My reaction to the National Book Award Longlist: • National Book Award fo...
Titles mentioned 📚:
How Beautiful We Were, Imbolo Mbue
Intimacies, Katie Kitamura
The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois, Honorée Fannone Jeffers
No One Is Talking About This, Patricia Lockwood
When We Cease to Understand the World, Benjamin Labatut (translated by Adrian Nathan West)
The Copenhagen Trilogy: Childhood; Youth; Dependency, Tove Ditlevsen (translated by Tiina Nunnally and Michael Favala Goldman)
How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning With the History of Slavery Across America, Clint Smith
Invisible Child: Poverty, Survival and Hope in an American City, Andrea Elliott
On Juneteenth, Annette Gordon-Reed
Red Comet: The Short Life and Blazing Art of Sylvia Plath, Heather Clark
My husband made a cookbook! Check it out here:
www.blurb.com/...
But wait, there's more!
Website: supposedlyfun....
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Twitter: / supposedlyfun
I have to say I watch your videos
because I like them
and perhaps more importantly
you open possible new avenues
and new types of books
that I might read.
You aren't my only source of inspiration
BookTube as a whole does that and
research I do on topics can lead to a lot of reading.
Thank you! That really means a lot. I'm glad to be part of the group that provides this service.
@@SupposedlyFun
Virtually none of my reading overlaps
with yours but that is what makes it interesting
@@johncrwarner I agree!
Love these lists!
Me too!
I so agree about Patricia Lockwood. I also tried it more than once and finally gave up. Life is too short!
Very true!
Priestdaddy is the funniest book I've ever read, but I also put down No One Is Talking About This. I highly recommend reading that instead.
I admit I’ve been holding off since I had such a visceral reaction to No One Is Talking About This. Thanks for reminding me of it!
When we cease to understand is really good!
Thanks for the feedback.
I prefer the Washington Post list. Oh well.
There's always next year!
No One Is Talking About This, Patricia Lockwood would definitely not work as an audiobook. Especially the first part, which is a bit light and flippant, but it makes the second part all the more powerful. The second part is totally different writing.
I've heard that the second part is very different but whether or not that makes a difference in the overall impression of the book seems all over the map. That's part of why I feel okay stopping where I did.
Why do you have 2 channels?
I don't have two channels? Unless there is something I'm not aware of.
Love 💕 from Janakpur madesh Pradesh Nepal 🇳🇵✅
Love your book review 💖.
Please keep uploading
I personally loved Intimacies, but I hesitate to recommend it because I think a lot of people would find it dull. Really nothing happens and I don't even know why I was drawn to the book. I did love the sparse writing style. I would say, if you don't feel particularly drawn to the book, no need to prioritize it, though worth an eventual read!
Sometimes a book where it feels like nothing happens can be magical--but as you say, it might not work if the reader isn't immediately drawn to it. Thank you for the feedback.
I absolutely loved the Copenhagen Trilogy, I wasn’t expecting to like it as much as I did but it’s ended up being one of my favourite reads of the year!
That says a lot--thanks for the feedback!
I have not read any of the books on this list. I don’t understand why
No one Is Talking About This
keeps appearing on these lists? It sounds very uninteresting to me.
I now see Intimacies is on the list. I found it very disappointing. Especially the stupid ending.
I don't get it either!
I loved Labatut! I don't know if it's your cup of tea but it moved me and made me think a lot!
It sounds like a book that would definitely do that. Thanks for the feedback!
When We Cease To Understand The World is one that has been on my list since Seji from The Artisan Geek did a brilliant review on it last year.
How The Word Is Passed is brilliant and if you want to get a taste Clint Smith hosts Black American History on Crash Course (10 minute educational videos on youtube) and it is great in audio as he narrates himself and has a great voice for it
On Juneteenth was really good snd I think the audio is only around 3 or 4 hours. It does a good job of intergrating history and memoir and she is most famous on writing on Sally Hemings (the woman Jefferson has 6 children with) and she covers her life and Monticello and how people have tried to prevent information about her yo be released in order to 'protect' Jefferson's legacy.
The Bell Jar is one of my favourite books and a fast and compelling but hard book to read. Still not sure if I'll ever commit to Red Comet though.
Oh how interesting--thanks for the recommendation re: Clint Smith. I appreciate all the feedback on the books as well.
How the Word is Passed is brilliant. I’ve been shouting about it since I first listened to it. Definitely do it on audio.
I thought the full list of 100 from the NYT was great. Lots of books to investigate. I’m less impressed by their top 10.
I was definitely a bit surprised by the top ten but I'm not mad at it. Thank you for the feedback on How the Word is Passed!
I was pleasantly surprised to hear you mention Lucia Berlin’s “A Manual for Cleaning Women.” It is my favorite collection of short stories as well. Six years later and I still think about that book.
It's such a good collection!
You don’t need to read Behold the Dreamers first. They are both excellent and fascinating. Intimacies is fascinating but I wouldn’t put it in the top 10. I loved reading about the life of interpreting trying to be true to the literal translation but also true to the intent of the communication.
Invisible Child is beyond excellent. It will make you you so mad at the system. The focus is the children and you will root for them. The audio is terrific.
Thanks for the feedback--looking for an audio of Invisible Child right away!
Intimacies by Katie Kitamura is one of my favourite books of the year, it is easy to read but very thoughtful and well crafted. I haven't read anything else by her so would be interested to pick another of her titles up.
That's good to hear--thanks for the feedback.
I did not like Red Comet it is true. I have never read anything else by or about Plath and I think that did impact my experience with the book in a negative way. I am also surprised Empire of Pain did not make this list!
Empire of Pain's omission is truly shocking. And I'm worried that my lack of experience with Plath would translate the same way.
I did not really enjoy No one is talking about this when I read it. But it has sort of stuck with me ever since.. I am now considering reading it again.. Great video!
Thank you! I hope the reread goes better than the first go-round.
I hadn't heard of How the Word is Passed until recently, and that has shot way up my list of things I want to read. I think Red Comet really deserves to be on that list. One of the best time investments I've made for a book maybe ever? And there's so much of her poetry and prose mixed into the text and discussed that I really do think you could go in not being familiar with her work. I hadn't ever read any of her poetry, and now I want to read it with the context I got from reading Red Comet. Such a great read.
I can’t promise it will be anytime soon, but I will try to get to Red Comet.
I've only read No One Is Talking About This, Patricia Lockwood and When We Cease to Understand the World, Benjamin Labatut I've wanted to read Red Comet for a while but it hasn't fit into my reading yet. I think only The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois, Honorée Fannone Jeffers has been on my radar, I tend to look to the UK covers so not entirely sure if I've seen the others.
I haven't seen the UK cover of Love Songs but now I'm curious.
I keep hearing good things about Red Comet but probably will not read it. I had two friends (who have already passed) who knew Plath when Ted Hughes was at Smith College. My friends were teaching at Smith at the time. Their stories about her have probably biased my opinion about her. I need to get over it. I had a lot of problems with the Franzen book, so I am glad not to see it on the list.
Although I think Franzen's omission is a big surprise, I admit I'm feeling slightly pleased about it (although I haven't read the book). That's an interesting backstory with Plath!
Copenhagen trilogy proved to me that a simple memoir can be so poetic. The way she weaves her life through these short 300 pages just struck me with so many emotions.
Thanks for the feedback on it.
I purchased Red Comet from my local independent bookstore and requested Love Song as my free audiobook. I previously listened to the first 4 or 5 chapters of Red Comet on Libby and really, really liked it. It has come out in paperback, and I decided I wanted my own copy. I tend to like a physical book for really large books. I was surprised to find it on the list because it was actually published in 2020. I expected Empire of Pain. I read it when it first came out. I liked it, but I liked his book “Say Nothing” more. Empire of Pain is a 50,000 foot view of the opioid epidemic. It should be read along with Dreamland or Death in Mud Lick for a more personal understanding. Love your videos. You are on my must watch list.
Thank you--those kind words really mean a lot! Empire of Pain not making the list really does feel shocking, especially as I reflect on the list.
I've been wanting to read Benjamin Labatut since watching this excellent review by the Artisan Geek:
ua-cam.com/video/CVF4ZgwHs1c/v-deo.html
And maybe the fact that the author of The Invisible Child is a reporter for NYT affected their decision to put her book on their list.
Thanks for the link--I missed that video! It could very well be that since Invisible Child started as a NY Times story, they were more inclined to include it. TO be fair, though, countless books are published by Times writers every year. So we'll never know.
I loved Red Comet, but i am a Sylvia Plath fan and have read some of her other works. It is a commitment. I agree you don’t need to be familiar to read the biography, but I think it is a much better experience if you are (or a deeper one), though it is a fantastic biography/literary analysis. I am going to check out On Juneteenth and Invisible Child! They sound great.
I think I'm going to try to at least read The Bell Jar before I even think about Red Comet.
I enjoy watching your reviews as you shed a light on many works that I probably wouldn’t have considered. Keep up the great work!
Thank you so much! I really appreciate that.
I always follow the best of leases and the awards. I use them as tools for what is out there. I tend to lean to works in translation but I plan on reading How Beautiful We Were
They’re definitely useful tools.
Recommendation for you
Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan
It’s a short book that packs an emotional punch. It was shortlisted for the Irish Post book awards.
It was just published yesterday in the US -- I've had it pre-ordered for the past month. Can't wait to read it.
I'll look for it! Thanks.
I like best books lists. I’m the same as you, I like the lists to be varied. I feel this year must be poorer than usual as all the lists se to note the same books. Unless those books really are the best.
There are usually some commonalities but it's still fun to follow. Sometimes the books these lists have in common are part of the fascination.
@@SupposedlyFun definitely. I’m interested in trying Matrix and The Prophecy. Both sound great
@@irena7777777 I'm on a hold list for Matrix.
On Juneteenth and How the Word is Passed are both fantastic. I wish I had read How the Word is Passed instead of listening to it. The author read it himself and it was a struggle. Great video. I might read that nonfiction trilogy. Sounds interesting.
Oh that's a shame--it's usually fascinating to hear an author's words in their own voice but there's no denying that some aren't quite narration-ready.
Red Comet is the only one I will definitely read.
I hope you enjoy it!
I’m so happy this continually get highlighted and awarded. After having stopped reading during the pandemic this is what finally encouraged me to read again, though it took me three ebook checkouts of six weeks to finish it. It is truly a landmark biography that future biographies, especially on literary individuals, will be measured by. It is stunning.
@@bookofdust Quite a hefty book to get out of a slump--I'm glad it did the trick and you loved it so much!
Intimacies was mehhhhhh.
Thanks for the feedback.