Books I Read in 2017

Important new voice speaks for our white working-class poor.

Good read!

Wow! A brilliant masterpiece! History and fiction woven gracefully together in four parts, epic, yet intimately personal. Davies' language often sings so musically it must be read aloud. Any American can recognize essential parts of himself in this Chinese-American immigrant story. "What else can we represent if not ourselves, however uncertain or contradictory those selves might be?"

Inspirational. Keep only what "sparks joy!"

Clever combination of memoir and novel, fact and fiction, real and imagined.

Excellent, well referenced, analysis of how our faltering health care system is driving the current prescription drug addiction epidemic. A clarion call for major change.

Amazing piece of work. Charming. Frightening. Captivating.

Finely crafted historical fiction, remembering the massacre at Gwangju, South Korea in May, 1980.

Superb! Lila's deeply moving story is one of sorrow and joy, loss and love, a search for meaning that touches the peace that passeth all understanding.

Clever, comedic demonstration of the absurd insanity of racism. Winner of the 2016 Man Booker Prize.

Recommended reading for all writers and readers! Profound. Deeply personal. Li shares words about literature and life, often in a private language that helps bring us closer together.

Serious fun. Short-listed for 2016 Man Booker Prize.

Good, but missing something?

Eight powerfully poignant stories about our refugees from Viet Nam. More strong work from Mr. Nguyen.

Interesting development of character through interactions, especially conversations, with other characters.

Excellent work, thoroughly referenced, very well written! We become experts through deliberate practice!

Wow! Ms. Hulse has built a dazzling debut novel! Winner of the 2015 Reading the West Book Award. A 2016 PEN/Hemingway Finalist.

Insightful looks into nine characters from youth to old age. Well done.

Lamenting the loss of ancient Chinese culture.

Close look how the abortion issue can inspire violence with profound personal consequences. Good read.

Good stuff. Relationships, life, in transit.

Well done. We need belonging, purpose, storytelling and transcendence to give our lives meaning.

Well spun allegorical tale of child rearing.

Well written debut novel. Shades of Charles Manson's girls.

Even a notch better that his debut novel, The White Tiger, which won the Man Booker Prize in '08.

Wonderfully told story of an unlikely but especially warm and influential relationship.

Frankl writes of his Nazi concentration camp experiences and the principles of logotherapy. Meaning can be found even in suffering.

Very well written and referenced. We need to move from averagarianism to individualism in business and education. Key principles of individualism: talent is always jagged, behavior depends on context, and there are many different pathways to competence. Key concepts to individualize education: grant credentials not diplomas, replace grades with competency, and let students determine their educational pathway.

Good words and stories in support of our public libraries.

Refreshingly original. Sensitive. Observant. Compassionate.

Sandberg shares her personal story and those of others in dealing with the death of a loved one or with other major adversity. Beware the three P's: personalization, pervasiveness and permanence. Teach your children these four core beliefs of resilient kids: 1) they have some control over their lives, 2) they can learn from failure, 3) they matter as human beings, and 4) they have real strengths to rely on and share.

Move out of your comfort zone using the tools of conviction, customization and clarity.

Stop chasing stuff and start stretching what you have. Just say no. Find a sleeping beauty. Go explore. Take a break. Pick new neighbors. Appreciate. Shop your closet. Plan backward. Scramble the back row. Make midyear resolutions. Break it down. Turn trash into treasure. Any map will do.

Good, detailed, well-referenced analysis by a former FBI special agent. Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State are manifestations of dangerous Salafi-jihadism. To help counter the threat we need to expose its basic hypocrisy, and spread a new narrative based on the truth.

Wonderful story. Read aloud to two sons. National Book Award winner.

Award winning tale, told by five unique voices connected by an sudden accidental death.

Excellent inside tale of the disastrous Iraq war, told by an award winning journalist.

The exciting adventures of 19th-century Australian bushranger and outlaw, Ned Kelly, and his gang, as might be told by Kelly himself. 2001 Booker Prize winner.

Deep, sophisticated, intelligent, subtle, informative, romantic, brilliant. Prix Goncourt winner. Man Booker short list.

Excellent. Wonderful story telling with thoughtful historical and religious analyses. Was Judas the first and, perhaps, the last true Christian?

We are part of an awesome universe full of mysteries!

Flashes of historical fiction woven together into a story told with sensitivity enough to make us laugh and cry at the same time.

At least as good on second reading!

Cooper shows us that every little, ordinary thing holds beauty and profound meaning!

Very well done!

Superb, clear picture of how the Cold War significantly impacted much of our planet.

Excellent. Parallel stories about two characters distracted by life in their search for meaning.

A fine masterwork! Puts the reader right into the thick of things, politically and militarily.

Fine collection of poems. Clear, honest, human.

Pleasant read. Baxter's characters are real.

Brilliant piece of work! Superb characterization of sad, pitiful, determined, introverted, little-loved Soames Forsyte.

Wonderfully imagined and artfully constructed novel with parallel stories that intersect so sweetly in the end. 2006 Orange Prize for Fiction finalist. 2008 winner of the William Saroyan International Prize for Writing for fiction.

Interesting autobiographical sketch by a brilliant autistic (Asperger) savant.

Modern middle eastern Oedipus by a nobel laureate. Life follows myth.

Great read. Irresistible characters.

Tragic tale of an almost unbelievably dysfunctional family dealing with the rather mysterious death of a teen age daughter.

Great, helpful resource for anyone who cares about teens. See joshshipp.com.

Thoroughly compelling gem of a story.

Masterfully told, poignant tale of tragic immigrant failure, homemade in New York City.

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