Books of the Year

In our final post for the year, SPS students and staff recommend their 'books of the year'.

Suleyman Ansari recommends Sustainable Energy - Without the Hot Air by David MacKay.

'In a world where climate discussion is becoming more and more prominent, I really enjoyed the objectivity and research methodology employed by this book. This broadened my understanding and allowed me to appreciate things from a scientific point of view instead of sensationalised media stories.' 

Mr Kemp recommends The Cazalet Chronicles by Elizabeth Jane Howard

'This term I have been almost exclusively reading these fabulous novels. They chart the fortunes of an upper middle class family of timber merchants from 1939-1959 and are utterly unputdownable. I am completely gripped, and about to finish volume 4, Casting Off, which takes us up to the late 40s. Each book raises so many exciting questions. Will Clary finish her novel in the cottage Archie rented for her? Will Sid ever confess her frustrations to Rachel? Will Hugh come clean to the family about his affair with Diana? Just brilliant.'

Mr Staniforth recommends Summer Fun by Jeanne Thornton 

'This was one of my 5 star reads of (appropriately enough) the summer. It is 'an epic, singular look at fandom, creativity, longing and trans identity.' Published by Dead Ink, it is a brilliant and magical work that reminded me a little of Iain Banks’ Espedair Street and has stayed with me ever since.'

Tom O'Donoghue recommends Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh

'Deeply emotional story of the fall of an aristocratic English Catholic family. Themes of religion (Waugh was a convert to Catholicism), undercurrents of homosexuality, and tragic futility. It was written during the Second World War, and the conflict looms large over the novel.'

Tom also recommends Renaissance Self-Fashioning by Stephen Greenblatt

'A seminal work of literary criticism that was a key force in the founding of New Historicism, the sheer beauty of the prose and the analysis gives a real insight into the religious, social, and literary changes of the early modern period as well as the texts covered in their own right.'

Mrs Cummings recommends Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan

'A superb novella, set in Ireland in 1985, Keegan’s book was absolutely robbed of the Booker Prize. It is the best book I’ve read this year, and the one our Predict the Booker audience thought should have won. A subtly told story this one stayed with me long after I’d read it.'

Mrs Cummings also recommends Jews Don’t Count by David Baddiel

'In a polemic with jokes Baddiel outlines why and how, in a time of intensely heightened awareness of minorities, Jews don’t count as a real minority. It is short and very readable and makes the reader confront their understanding of racism. It should be compulsory reading.'

Lucas Van Den Oever recommends Shipwrecks by Akira Yoshimura.

'The book is set medieval Japan, and told from the perspective of a young boy living in a remote fishing village. It's a very bleak book filled with hardship and suffering, but there are occasional fleeting moments of beauty and joy. I thought that the writing was quite elegant, and it's really good at absorbing the reader into its harsh world.'

Mr Gardner recommends The Arcades Project by Walter Benjamin

'A kaleidoscopic image of worlds simultaneously emerging and disappearing, Benjamin’s fragmentary vision of fin-de-siècle Paris is summoned from the margins, interstices and contingencies of a time and place as it was experienced by its contemporaries, and as it lives on in the imagination of its inheritors. Though at first disorientating, the experience of reading this gargantuan work (it runs to over 1000 pages) soon becomes hypnotic and compelling. It is a must-read for anyone interested in art, literature, architecture, sociology, fashion, modernism, and/or the history of European culture and society.'

Luke Buckland recommends An American Marriage by Tayari Jones

'This is a very cool book, which has a nice narrative structure and I enjoyed the modern context it was set in and the portrayal of the social context in America at the present.'

Will Cronshaw recommends The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold. 

'Really enlightening giving a new lens to this infamous story focusing on the victims rather than the often glorified exploits of the ripper. Very moving and a great insight into contemporary Victorian society.'

The High Master has three recommendations: first of all, Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu

'This is an extraordinarily witty and original novel which shines a light on serious issues of racial stereotyping.  The focus is on the Asian community in the US and the protagonist’s desire to be promoted from ‘Background Oriental Male’ to ‘Kung Fu Guy’ – but it will speak to anyone who has ever felt themselves to be an undervalued minority.  It has a unique voice and structure which provides satire at its very best – hilarious and powerful in equal measure.'

Mrs Huang's second suggestion is Fairy Tale by Stephen King

'A good Christmas read if you want to disappear into a fantasy world for a few days without too much effort.  Starting with the gritty realism of traffic accidents and alcoholism, the story sees Charlie Reade and his dog, Radar, venture to the kingdom of Empis and a full on, pager-turner adventure with monsters, battles and princesses.  King paints traditional fairy tales such as Rumpelstiltskin and Jack and the Beanstalk with his own dark palette – but it’s definitely more fantasy than horror this time around.'

The High Master's final recommendation is Revolver by Marcus Sedgwick

'Marcus Sedgwick is my favourite YA author and I wrote my dissertation about his work when studying children’s literature. Sadly, he passed away last month so I feel a greater urge than ever to recommend his books. Revolver is short and powerful and most Paulines could read it in a day. Set in Alaska at the time of the gold rush, it focuses on Sig who is left alone with his father’s corpse when a stranger turns up at the door.  A tense, psychological thriller, it’s not nearly as straightforward as it might appear.' 

Sidney Shaw recommends Homo Faber by Max Frisch

'An interesting foray into the idea of fate and whether humans have any control over theirs. Written from the perspective of a Swiss engineer in the inter-war period, it takes the view of a man devoted to empirical thought against the backdrop of an increasingly strange series of random coincidences, the answers to which are left up to the interpretation of the reader.'

Alex Tanielian recommends The Pirate's Daughter by Margaret Cezair-Thompson

'This novel focusses on the lives of two women in 1940s Jamaica - Ida, and May, her daughter by the swashbuckling movie star Errol Flynn. Being multi-racial creates a difficult situation for them as they aren’t accepted by the locals or by whites. I really enjoyed this book, especially trying to understand the Patois!'

Alex also recommends Beloved by Toni Morrison

'Beloved portrays the destructive legacy of slavery as it shows the life of Sethe, from her pre-Civil War days as a slave in Kentucky to her time in Cincinnati in 1873. I enjoyed the way in which Morrison constructs history through the acts of African-American slaves rather than through the perspective of the conventional white view.'

Miss Carr recommends The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides.

'It’s about an artist who has murdered her husband, but since she was found by the police she hasn’t spoken a single word. She gets committed to a psychiatric ward and Theo her new psychotherapist tries to get her to speak and share why she committed the crime. The real story as to what happened is much juicier than you first expect.'

Mr Dormandy recommends Putin’s People by Catherine Belton.  

'Not published this year, but a superb piece of journalism that offers a rich historical perspective on Putin’s crazy war, tracing his journey and that of his tight-knit clan of KGB cronies from backstreet fixers and seedy mob enablers to a new Imperial Tsar and his kleptocratic court.  Fascinating.'

Zac West recommends Birth of a Theorem by Cedric Villani. 

'An insight into the most interesting problems in modern mathematics written by one of the most entertaining mathematicians active today. Annie Lenox references and bed-wetting incidents sit alongside explorations of the Universe's most elusive secrets.'

Miss Muir writes: 'again, my thanks extend to the Library staff, who always kindly tuck away an eco-book for me before it hits the SPS library shelves. One book I adored this year was The Lost Rainforests of Britain by Guy Shrubsole.  Many creative ventures and relocations occurred during the pandemic; Shrubshole joined the clan of London to Devon emigres and began exploring the wooded valleys, rivers and tors of Dartmoor. He soon became fascinated by the landscape, realising that it was part of Britain's temperate rainforest flanking the western side. 

The Lost Rainforests of Britain is a beautifully wrought account of his wanderings and realisations. It takes the reader on an expedition from the Atlantic hazel woods and oakwoods of the Western Highlands, down through the Lake District, parts of the Peak District, Wales and into Devon and Cornwall, highlighting the incredible flora and fauna en route. Shrubsole also indicates how the forests might be restored to their former glory if we could only treasure the ancient beauty we have on our doorsteps.

 

Lucas Suarez enjoyed All the Light We Cannot See by Antony Doerr.

'A moving and personal story of two teenagers during World War II, one a blind girl in Nazi-occupied France, the other a German orphan boy pressed into service by the Nazi army. It is a story of courage, hope and love.'

Alex Weeks recommends The Heart of a Dog by Mikhail Bulgakov. 

'A satire critiquing the communist revolution told from the perspective of a stray dog. This brilliant book was banned in the soviet union - so given that we have the privilege of it being available - give it a go!'

Miss McLaren recommends The Night Ship by Jess Kidd.

'Murder, mutiny and mysterious monsters lurk around the edges of Kidd's latest novel, inspired by the tale of the Batavia, one of the most notorious shipwrecks of the 17th century. Told through the interlocking perspectives of two children, one from the past - fearless, curious Mayken, a passenger on the original voyage - and one from the present -  Gil, an orphan on the island off Australia where the Batavia's wreckage is being uncovered by a team of archaeologists, this is a gripping and powerful read, with a very, very dark centre. If you enjoy historical mysteries set on ships, Stuart Turton's The Devil and the Dark Water is also worth reading (and slightly less disturbing!).'  

Caspar Robertson recommends Identity by Francis Fukuyama 

'In the face of global democratic decline and and an increasingly divided political landscape continuing to emerge Fukuyama’s Identity offers a fascinating insight into the identity politics that are playing a part in driving these shifts. For anyone looking to better understand populism and polarisation this book should be a starting point.'

Gus Hatt recommends Youth by Joseph Conrad.

'The unique narrative style, how it is told through a framed narrative which lends a very distinct perspective on his story and makes one think about the nature of youth and what it means in comparison to one's later life.'

Mr Smith recommends A Brief History of the Earth’s Climate by Steven Earle

'I was looking for a book on the chemistry of climate change to prepare for the COP27 Question Time panel, but couldn’t find one.  I stumbled on this, which is a very short and beautiful exposition of the earth science (with plenty of chemistry) important to climate change.  It doesn’t tell you what to believe, it just tells you how we know what we know.  And we know a lot from many different sources.  Essential reading if you need to chat to a climate change sceptic in the near future.' 

He also recommends Exactly by Simon Winchester

'A history of precision engineering starting with canon boring, which was a major component of British naval supremacy in the 1700s.  The birth of machines that can be used to make machines marks perhaps the most profound revolution in history.  This book is packed with great examples, arranged in order of increasing precision.'

Mani Collins recommends Sanatorium under the Sign of the Hourglass by Bruno Schulz

'This is a collection of short stories by artist and writer Bruno Schulz, a Polish Jew, murdered by a Nazi officer in 1942. The stories focus on the life of a child and his family in Poland at the start of the century: Schulz isn't very well known in the UK, but these stories are an incredibly vibrant and luminous evocation of a lost world, and are remarkable for the intensity of the writer's language.'

Many thanks to everyone who contribute to today's post: hopefully it's given you lots of ideas for holiday reading - have a fabulous Christmas!