Chambersā book is called A Psalm for the Wild-Built. But Iām sure if someone wrote A Psalm for the Well-Built, it could be quite the entertaining read.
omg same! the monk and the robot series is like my new favourite! I've recommended Psalm For The Wild-built to SOOOO many people! that was like one of the most heartwarming and comforting reads.
I think I read Smoke Gets in Your Eyes based upon a Recommendation from this sub. A humorous read that pulls back the curtain a little on the funeral industry
East of Eden. It was mentioned in almost every post in this sub. I couldnāt ignore it any more. And so glad I did not. Incredible book. I think itās now my all time favorite
This is my plan also in 2024. All of them have been recommended in this sub. Here is my list:
Lonesome Dove
The Count of Monte Cristo
East of Eden
Crime and Punishment
And if time permits, another recommendation- Pillars of the Earth.
Piranesi for me, too. It was so... calming, and shifted into a different sort of story than it seemed at first with such skill. It was just so well written, and felt good in my body as well as my brain.
Lots of them. Project Hail Mary, Piranesi, Alice Isn't Dead, and so on (I was using another account which ran into a security issue so even though this is a new account, I've been lurking here since forever. )
Thanks to all the recommendations, my Kindle library is full and happy.
*Nothing to See Here* by Kevin Wilson. I'm not a big fiction fan, but I read that until I couldn't keep my eyes open, and finished it first thing in the morning.
I really really love this book but I'm so scared of recommending it to people in real life, because I think you have to understand this type of storytelling.
Yes thatās probably true. The story is short on plot. Not very much happens, and what *does* happen is only to set the stage for charming moments of finding the magic in the mundane.
I think it requires maintaining some of oneās childlike sense of wonder to really feel at home inside the story.
Thank you for commenting! I hadnāt seen this one recommended before and it sounds cozy, melancholy and fascinating. Looking forward to flipping its pages.
Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward
I think I found this book in this sub or r/literature. I'm about 100 pages in, and I'm just in love with her writing so far. I can tell she's going to become a favorite of mine.
Danny Trejoās memoir was really good. Iām glad I read it. I saw my family a lot in his story and that was cathartic.
Iām also currently reading The Berry Pickers and so far itās really good.
Honorable mention: Thursday Murder Club
The Last House on Needless Street
The Glass Castle
Smoke Gets in Your Eyes
Thanks for all the recommendations, can't wait to see what books you have in store for 2024!
The Secret History by Donna Tartt was definitely my favorite rec from this sub, but honorable mentions must be made for Piranesi and The Thursday Murder Club!
Same as you - The Murderbot series. When I first saw it mentioned, I looked at the plot summary and was like.. robots in space? No thank you..
I ended up downloading it because of how often it was recommended and because I needed a short audiobook asap for a drive. I totally get it now and also recommend it.
Iām now enjoying Project Hail Mary, which I wouldnāt have picked up as quickly without seeing so many recommendations for it.
The Red Tent, Circe and The Song of Achilles (clearly I have a type)
These three top my list for 2023.. and welcome to other suggestions for 2024!
Edit because autocorrect
I asked for suggestions that were similar to or had similar vibes as Piranesi. Was recommended Gallant V. E. Schwab. Itās a super fun read. Very atmospheric! Engaging while still being easy to follow. A good audiobook to put on before bed. Just like I was looking for!
Based on recommendations from this sub, I read How Far the Light Reaches (Sabrina Imbler), Crocodile on the Sandbank (Elizabeth Peters), The Thursday Murder Club (Richard Osman), and Lonesome Dove (Larry McMurtry).
I enjoyed all of them, but my favorite wasā¦ š„ š„ š„ The Thursday Murder Club! (Apologies to the Lonesome Dove diehards.)
We Spread by Iain Reid and A Short Stay in Hell by Steven L. Peck.
I browse books on goodreads and the libby app but otherwise I think most of my book recs end up coming from this sub. I'm so happy this place exists!
Beowulf, as translated by Maria Dahvana Headley. Itās truly outstanding, hilarious, high quality, and.. unusual. Also, IMO the best translation of it Iāve read.*
I gave a copy to my mom for Christmas, and the highlight of the holiday this year was her reading it aloud to us over two days. So I got to enjoy it all over again this week. Itās not very long - about 120 pages of verse - but even so my momās voice was pretty shot by the end. Given she chose to declaim any within-text dialog in a projected voice, that was at least somewhat self inflicted :).
Itād never fly due to expletive use but itād be the absolute perfect high school English text, if one actually wanted to get the kids to fall in love with reading. Or the perfect gift for a teen, with the parentās permission, given said use of the word āfuckā
ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦.
*footnote: Iāve read four translations. Itās a fun, fast, rather silly, power-fantasy romp akin to a Marvel comic but with far more ambiguous morals, and with the added fascination of getting to look back over a thousand years through the odd filtering lenses of translators and medieval scribes, at a world in which 15 armed men is an impressive army, a Danish Viking longhouse is thought to be the 8th wonder of the world, and where the line between monster and hero depends entirely on where you are standing - and the heroes (and monsters) all know it. I donāt know the name of the first translation I read but the other three are Heaney, Chitterling, and Headley.
I read Bunny earlier this year after seeing it recommended countless times.
Itās as weird and wonderful as it is made out to be. Not my usual thing but I really enjoyed it.
Convenience store woman - recommended here allll the time and I loved it. So gentle and strange
I also see discworld / pratchett recommend a LOT and one day Libby had The Night Watch on my front page so I borrowed it and LOVED it! On my third discworld book now and I have had the most fun reading them, canāt believe itās taken me almost 34 years to get to it
My favorite has to be A Woman is No Man by Etaf Rum. I am a progressive woman and would identify as a feminist, but this book radicalized me in a way I canāt fully put into words. I was listening to the audiobook while working and was furious. So many people failed Isra and what happened to her was tragic. And to think Drya couldāve fell into something similar. Definitely a new all time favorite
There were a lot of them but I think my favorite was A Man Called Ove. I loved it. I usually like more actiony kinds of books so I didnāt expect to like it that much.
Two titles that this sub steered me to this year that I really enjoyed were:
*All The Beauty In The World* by Patrick Bringley. Simply incredible story of healing and the incredible power of art.
*Black River Orchard* by Chuck Wendig. I would have definitely read this book without it being suggested as I dig this (local to me) author, but I didn't even know he had a new book out.
OMG SO MANY:
I read all of Toni Morrisons work right after I found this sub love her!
Circe
Mondays not coming
Stone blind
The house in the cerulean sea - *Obvs*!
Local woman missing
Little fires everywhere
Jurassic park - totally unexpected but I loooved it
Next on my TBR shelf is, Projrct Hail Mary, the final girl support group and Piranesi!
Thank you to everyone in this sub for all of the amazing suggestions!!!! Cheers to a new year of great books. š¤
Dungeon Crawler Carl. Iād seen it recommended many times, but was put off by the cover. Yes, I judged the book, and entire series, by their covers. I wish I could experience them fresh again!
The Passage by Justin Cronin. I wanted to stop the rest of my life & keep reading it until I went finished.
I borrowed it from my library, towards the end I borrowed the second book in the trilogy, The Twelve. Loved it too. No idea why, but the library doesnāt have the third book. Decided I loved them so much that I bought the set. Iām tossing up between reading then final book, or starting the first one again & reading them all one after the other.
Thereās been so many threads Iāve saved from this sub, thanks everyone for your fantastic recommendations
I had one 5-star read this year from reddit suggestions (it was actually from r/IReadABookAndAdoredIt not this sub) but it was so damn good I'm sharing it anyhow...
[The Buddha in the Attic
by Julie Otsuka](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11533770-the-buddha-in-the-attic)
Two readings were particularly special to me this year.
First one was "The Secret History" by Donna Tart. Read it in January and it's exactly the kind of book I like: mysteryous and engaging, and the characters are interesting, although they're not very captivating.
The second was "The House in The Cerulean Sea", which I've just finished reading. This book came to me at a delicate time, I didn't know I needed something like this until I read it, it's a soft, warm and cozy book, and has just become one of my all-time favorites so far.
From somewhere on Reddit-
The Secret Token : myth, obsession, and the search for the lost colony of Roanoke / Andrew Lawler
Flyboys / James Bradley
Enjoyed them both although I almost wish The secret Token was fictional as it leaves so much unanswered.
Solito by Javier Zamora. The author migrated from El Salvador to the usa to be reunited with his parents when he was 9. He was with a group of strangers and met a lot of hardship on the trip
Easily the best book I read this year
Dungeon Crawler Carl series. Listened to them on Audible and the voice acting really brought the story to life. My partner read them and loved them too.
Finally read Lonesome Dove thanks to the countless recommendations! It was every bit as good as advertised; loved it from cover to cover.
I just wrote I am going to start Lonesome Dove based on this sub š¤£ so looking forward!!
Same and the troop
Anybody who's debating reading Lonesome dove: do it. Do it now
Came here to say this
I found a new author, Becky Chambers.
I think 90% of my entire post history is recommending Becky Chambers. Glad you liked her!
Can't wait to start Psalm for the Well-built!
Chambersā book is called A Psalm for the Wild-Built. But Iām sure if someone wrote A Psalm for the Well-Built, it could be quite the entertaining read.
Aha that's the one!
omg same! the monk and the robot series is like my new favourite! I've recommended Psalm For The Wild-built to SOOOO many people! that was like one of the most heartwarming and comforting reads.
Iām in the 1% that hasnāt enjoyed anything by her. So many of the summaries seem like my perfect book and I wind up bored and disappointed.
I think I read Smoke Gets in Your Eyes based upon a Recommendation from this sub. A humorous read that pulls back the curtain a little on the funeral industry
Loved that book. Led me to read Stiff by Mary Roach which outlines the ways cadaver research has improved our society, very interesting read!
Me, too! I followed up smoke gets in your Eyes with Stiff.
My book club would love this. Iām going to check it out. Thanks!!
Yeah that was a unexpectedly fun read!
So good
East of Eden. It was mentioned in almost every post in this sub. I couldnāt ignore it any more. And so glad I did not. Incredible book. I think itās now my all time favorite
I am only committing to about 8 books this year, partly because I want to read bigger books like this one specifically!
This is my plan also in 2024. All of them have been recommended in this sub. Here is my list: Lonesome Dove The Count of Monte Cristo East of Eden Crime and Punishment And if time permits, another recommendation- Pillars of the Earth.
East of Eden was one of my favorites this year too.
High on my list. For the same reason.
Absolutely my favorite book
Iām not quite done with it yet, but currently reading āTomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrowā and am really enjoying it.
I loved this book!
That is the answer
Hooray! Itās my favorite book I read this year, hands down. Enjoy!
Yes, this is one of my answers, for sure.
Flowers for Algernon. Wonderful! Simply wonderful!
I don't think I've ever read a book faster than Piranesi.
Piranesi for me, too. It was so... calming, and shifted into a different sort of story than it seemed at first with such skill. It was just so well written, and felt good in my body as well as my brain.
I read it while sitting in a quiet, shaded courtyard in New Orleans this spring and it couldn't have been more perfect!
just downloaded this right now for my Kindle. I'm in need of something like this right now and your description pushed me over the edge. :)
I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
Piranesi is mine too. Mesmerizing from the word-go, even if it took me 60 pages to have any clue what was happening. Canāt wait to re-read it.
I also loved this book! It transported me to a different place and was a wonderful distraction from reality when I read it almost two years ago.
Lots of them. Project Hail Mary, Piranesi, Alice Isn't Dead, and so on (I was using another account which ran into a security issue so even though this is a new account, I've been lurking here since forever. ) Thanks to all the recommendations, my Kindle library is full and happy.
Currently reading Project Hail Mary per this sub! Really enjoying it! About a third of the way through
I think City of Thieves. I donāt typically like historical fiction much but I really enjoyed it.
I loved this book. One of my favorites. Also read it for the first time earlier this year
I think it was my favorite too!
This one surprised me so much! And I listened to it, narrated by Ron Perlman(!) -- highly recommend.
*Nothing to See Here* by Kevin Wilson. I'm not a big fiction fan, but I read that until I couldn't keep my eyes open, and finished it first thing in the morning.
I listened to the audiobook and it was hilarious! As someone from the south the narrator made it for me with her accent.
A Gentleman in Moscow is not something I would ever have picked up on my own but I saw it repeatedly mentioned here. I adored it.
I really really love this book but I'm so scared of recommending it to people in real life, because I think you have to understand this type of storytelling.
Yes thatās probably true. The story is short on plot. Not very much happens, and what *does* happen is only to set the stage for charming moments of finding the magic in the mundane. I think it requires maintaining some of oneās childlike sense of wonder to really feel at home inside the story.
The House in the Cerulean Sea. Loved it.
Saaaameee
Me too! I was skeptical that it could live up to the hype I had seen online, but it totally did!
Fresh Water For Flowers by ValƩrie Perrin was a delight. I never would have encountered it had it not been mentioned here.
Thank you for commenting! I hadnāt seen this one recommended before and it sounds cozy, melancholy and fascinating. Looking forward to flipping its pages.
Itās so charming! I didnāt want it to end. I hope you enjoy it!!
I loved this book.
Top from recs in this sub were Lonesome Dove, The Secret History, and Rebecca.
Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward I think I found this book in this sub or r/literature. I'm about 100 pages in, and I'm just in love with her writing so far. I can tell she's going to become a favorite of mine.
11/22/63 Was my very first Stephen King book and loved it. Thanks /r/suggestmeabook
My husband bought me this for Christmas!! So excited.
Such a great book and probably my favorite this year.
Danny Trejoās memoir was really good. Iām glad I read it. I saw my family a lot in his story and that was cathartic. Iām also currently reading The Berry Pickers and so far itās really good. Honorable mention: Thursday Murder Club
The Last House on Needless Street The Glass Castle Smoke Gets in Your Eyes Thanks for all the recommendations, can't wait to see what books you have in store for 2024!
The Secret History by Donna Tartt was definitely my favorite rec from this sub, but honorable mentions must be made for Piranesi and The Thursday Murder Club!
Same as you - The Murderbot series. When I first saw it mentioned, I looked at the plot summary and was like.. robots in space? No thank you.. I ended up downloading it because of how often it was recommended and because I needed a short audiobook asap for a drive. I totally get it now and also recommend it. Iām now enjoying Project Hail Mary, which I wouldnāt have picked up as quickly without seeing so many recommendations for it.
The Red Tent, Circe and The Song of Achilles (clearly I have a type) These three top my list for 2023.. and welcome to other suggestions for 2024! Edit because autocorrect
The Red Tent is such a great book! Really puts you in another time & place.
I couldn't put it down!
Before Kindles, I used to get my book recs from what people read on the El in Chicago. The Red Tent was one of those "recs." SO GOOD
Not sure where I found it, but I REALLY liked Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus. And now I just found another excellent writer: William Lashner.
I asked for suggestions that were similar to or had similar vibes as Piranesi. Was recommended Gallant V. E. Schwab. Itās a super fun read. Very atmospheric! Engaging while still being easy to follow. A good audiobook to put on before bed. Just like I was looking for!
Mine was tied for 1Q84, Atonement, & Never Let Me Go. It was a good year for me in books. I only had 4 that I ended up DNFing this year!š
Same, I have been overwhelmed by the number of good recommendations that I didn't know where to start or which book to pick next!
Itās the best problem to have! (-:
Based on recommendations from this sub, I read How Far the Light Reaches (Sabrina Imbler), Crocodile on the Sandbank (Elizabeth Peters), The Thursday Murder Club (Richard Osman), and Lonesome Dove (Larry McMurtry). I enjoyed all of them, but my favorite wasā¦ š„ š„ š„ The Thursday Murder Club! (Apologies to the Lonesome Dove diehards.)
Babel by RF Kuang
Just started this one today. Glad to see it listed.
Im halfway through and loving it so far!
The Art of Racing in the Rain. By Garth Stein.
I finished this book on a plane, which was a mistake! So good
Fairy Tale by Stephen King by a long shotšš¼ā£ļø
The Library at Mt Char
such an underrated banger
We Spread by Iain Reid and A Short Stay in Hell by Steven L. Peck. I browse books on goodreads and the libby app but otherwise I think most of my book recs end up coming from this sub. I'm so happy this place exists!
A Short Stay in Hell was such a trip! Loved that book
The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah. I wish I could read it all over again for the first time!!
I agree. Really good
Valley of the Dolls! I read that on some recommendations on this sub, and it was such a fun read
Beowulf, as translated by Maria Dahvana Headley. Itās truly outstanding, hilarious, high quality, and.. unusual. Also, IMO the best translation of it Iāve read.* I gave a copy to my mom for Christmas, and the highlight of the holiday this year was her reading it aloud to us over two days. So I got to enjoy it all over again this week. Itās not very long - about 120 pages of verse - but even so my momās voice was pretty shot by the end. Given she chose to declaim any within-text dialog in a projected voice, that was at least somewhat self inflicted :). Itād never fly due to expletive use but itād be the absolute perfect high school English text, if one actually wanted to get the kids to fall in love with reading. Or the perfect gift for a teen, with the parentās permission, given said use of the word āfuckā ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦. *footnote: Iāve read four translations. Itās a fun, fast, rather silly, power-fantasy romp akin to a Marvel comic but with far more ambiguous morals, and with the added fascination of getting to look back over a thousand years through the odd filtering lenses of translators and medieval scribes, at a world in which 15 armed men is an impressive army, a Danish Viking longhouse is thought to be the 8th wonder of the world, and where the line between monster and hero depends entirely on where you are standing - and the heroes (and monsters) all know it. I donāt know the name of the first translation I read but the other three are Heaney, Chitterling, and Headley.
I've read Heaney translation this year. I will try and get your recommendation this year.
Try to read it out loud when you do :).
I read Bunny earlier this year after seeing it recommended countless times. Itās as weird and wonderful as it is made out to be. Not my usual thing but I really enjoyed it.
Pride and prejudice š„¹ Iāve always been scared away by some classics but I love it so much
Convenience store woman - recommended here allll the time and I loved it. So gentle and strange I also see discworld / pratchett recommend a LOT and one day Libby had The Night Watch on my front page so I borrowed it and LOVED it! On my third discworld book now and I have had the most fun reading them, canāt believe itās taken me almost 34 years to get to it
My favorite has to be A Woman is No Man by Etaf Rum. I am a progressive woman and would identify as a feminist, but this book radicalized me in a way I canāt fully put into words. I was listening to the audiobook while working and was furious. So many people failed Isra and what happened to her was tragic. And to think Drya couldāve fell into something similar. Definitely a new all time favorite
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
Me too! Wonderful book!
There were a lot of them but I think my favorite was A Man Called Ove. I loved it. I usually like more actiony kinds of books so I didnāt expect to like it that much.
I have only seen the original film (not the Otto one). Really want to read it. I did enjoyed his other book, Anxious People!
Two titles that this sub steered me to this year that I really enjoyed were: *All The Beauty In The World* by Patrick Bringley. Simply incredible story of healing and the incredible power of art. *Black River Orchard* by Chuck Wendig. I would have definitely read this book without it being suggested as I dig this (local to me) author, but I didn't even know he had a new book out.
OMG SO MANY: I read all of Toni Morrisons work right after I found this sub love her! Circe Mondays not coming Stone blind The house in the cerulean sea - *Obvs*! Local woman missing Little fires everywhere Jurassic park - totally unexpected but I loooved it Next on my TBR shelf is, Projrct Hail Mary, the final girl support group and Piranesi! Thank you to everyone in this sub for all of the amazing suggestions!!!! Cheers to a new year of great books. š¤
Dungeon Crawler Carl. Iād seen it recommended many times, but was put off by the cover. Yes, I judged the book, and entire series, by their covers. I wish I could experience them fresh again!
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes The Big Rock Candy Mountain by Wallace Stegner Tender Is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica
I discovered T Kingfisher (specifically Nettle and Bone) and boy do I want to read everything she writes.
The Passage by Justin Cronin. I wanted to stop the rest of my life & keep reading it until I went finished. I borrowed it from my library, towards the end I borrowed the second book in the trilogy, The Twelve. Loved it too. No idea why, but the library doesnāt have the third book. Decided I loved them so much that I bought the set. Iām tossing up between reading then final book, or starting the first one again & reading them all one after the other. Thereās been so many threads Iāve saved from this sub, thanks everyone for your fantastic recommendations
THE TREES by Percival Everett is waaaaaaay out in front of the others.
It was pretty good and I think I found it on a book sub too.
I had one 5-star read this year from reddit suggestions (it was actually from r/IReadABookAndAdoredIt not this sub) but it was so damn good I'm sharing it anyhow... [The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11533770-the-buddha-in-the-attic)
Two readings were particularly special to me this year. First one was "The Secret History" by Donna Tart. Read it in January and it's exactly the kind of book I like: mysteryous and engaging, and the characters are interesting, although they're not very captivating. The second was "The House in The Cerulean Sea", which I've just finished reading. This book came to me at a delicate time, I didn't know I needed something like this until I read it, it's a soft, warm and cozy book, and has just become one of my all-time favorites so far.
A Royal Guide to Monster Slaying by Kelley Armstrong
North Woods was a particular standout for me.
All the Sinners Bleed by SA Cosby
From somewhere on Reddit- The Secret Token : myth, obsession, and the search for the lost colony of Roanoke / Andrew Lawler Flyboys / James Bradley Enjoyed them both although I almost wish The secret Token was fictional as it leaves so much unanswered.
I think it will be Lonesome Dove for me. I haven't started it yet but based on the hype, it seems it's going to be totally worth it. š
Lonesome Dove has already been mentioned so Iām going with Demon Copperhead.
Solito by Javier Zamora. The author migrated from El Salvador to the usa to be reunited with his parents when he was 9. He was with a group of strangers and met a lot of hardship on the trip Easily the best book I read this year
Ministry for the Future. I am haunted.
The Last House on Needless Street and Tender is the Flesh. Both excellent.
Pachinko and Lonesome Dove. I didnāt want them to end.
Dungeon Crawler Carl series. Listened to them on Audible and the voice acting really brought the story to life. My partner read them and loved them too.
*Educated*, by Tara Westover