Litwit Lounge discussion

Here's our annual thread where we invite you to look back on the year just past, and single out a few of your top reads for special mention. (Personally, I try to pick my top five. That's usually a challenge!)

For 2019, my top favorite reads were:
The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder

Mansfield Park, Northanger Abbey, and Emma, all by Jane Austen

Plantation Trilogy: Deep Summer, The Handsome Road, and This Side of Glory by Gwen Bristow, and Rites of Autumn by Cliff Schimmels, tied for fifth place.

"Hamilton," by Stephanie Dray was excellent reading right after Christmas. Also, "Lady Clementine," by Marie Benedict. "Mosquito Land" by David Arnold was a Young Reader category but kept me most entertained right up to the end. Also enjoyed "The Secret Letter," by Debbie Rix. And "Giver of Stars," by Ron Chernow who wrote about the librarians in early North Carolina.

Those all sound like rewarding reads, Nina!

Ooo I hadn't spotted this thread :)

Right, my favourite 5 reads in 2019 were:

The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell
Under the Net by Iris Murdoch
The Towers of Silence by Paul Scott
A Christmas Tree by Charles Dickens

The Collins and Gaskell books are on my to-read shelf too, Jean! (One of these years....)

"Christmas Tree" sounds great. I have tried, "The Woman in White? but couldn't get into it. Maybe I'll try one more time.

Nina wrote: ""Christmas Tree" sounds great. I have tried, "The Woman in White? but couldn't get into it. Maybe I'll try one more time."

Yes, A Christmas Tree is lovely - pure nostalgia. It's the first of Charles Dickens's Christmas stories, which came after his Christmas books, so it is shorter than A Christmas Carol.

Here's my review of it, if you're interested Nina. (Is that allowed in this group? I'll happily remove the link if not.) I review all the books I read now.

The Woman in White can feel a bit dense and hard-going to start with. It has quite a complicated structure, so is best if you take your time over it. And then it's a really absorbing and intriguing read.

Jean wrote: "(Is that allowed in this group? I'll happily remove the link if not.)"

Yes, Jean, linking to your own reviews of books being referred to on the various threads here is not only allowed, but encouraged! We also have a special thread (inspired by and modeled on the one in the RFP group) where you can share links to your new reviews as you write them, here: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/... , though so far I'm the only person in the group who's ever posted on it.

That's good to know about! Thank you Werner :)

You're welcome, Jean! :-)