The Books I've Read This Year So Far, Ranked.

This year I have read more books than any year in my life--and it's only August! Between winter semester and the summer, I have started and ended 20 different stories (all but one for the first time), and I feel like they deserve some reflection before I hop into next semester. And what better way for a sports junkie to express his feelings than through a rankings system!
I'll get this right out there--ranking books is frivolous. There is no way you can quantify books by pleasure. I liked and disliked something from every book I read. Additionally, these books span a vast array of genres, some that were never meant to be compared. Imagine trying to see what household appliance makes the best pet. Books weren't made to be ranked.
But I would go with a microwave. Much lower maintenance than a sink, and it needs less exercise than the fridge, which never stops running.
However, there's a lot of joy to be found in organizing my emotions and pondering on which books I perceive as great. Sometimes you feel like there is a very loud, rambling figure that is trying to tell you to rediscover greatness, which makes you wonder in the first place, what is greatness? This was a fun exercise to reveal what I appreciate while participating in a broad spectrum of books.

So this exercise proves to be simultaneously pointless and fulfilling. Sort of like winning a video game, or burning leaves under a microscope. As the ranker, there was one critical rule I made myself follow: no religious books or texts included. While I am having fun crossing boundaries, this remains untouchable. It feels wrong to quantify a text I actually believe matters. And there is a rule that I advise the reader to follow: This list is not definite. It's a thought experiment provokes John Keating and oozes subjectivity. But hey, this is the internet, and you clicked on this link. So compliment, fire back, suggest new reads, but this is all really meant to introduce/reintroduce books you may have closed the case on.

So here they are, ranked 20 to 1 that also fits into a more inclusive tier system.

TIER 1: THE NEVER AGAIN'S
These books just didn't do it for me, and I don't think they ever will.

20. The Red Badge of Courage, by Stephen Crane (summer reading)
I knew I shouldn't have read this. The other Stephen Crane story I read wasn't my favorite, and the mundane, meticulous commitment to realist description slurred an exciting story into a drag. Additionally, it's hard to connect with the main character at all. Like, he's just a punk, and not symbolic enough to overcome his flaws. The brights spots in Badge were few and between for me.










19. The Firm, by John Grisham (The Law in Literature class)
iPlacing a Grisham novel ths low definitely defies popular opinion, but I perceived a critical flaw in the book I just couldn't overcome. Mitch McDeere. Not admirable enough to be a hero, not strong enough to be an antihero, we see him slipping into a gimmicky plot that I couldn't grasp. He's the center of a story too big for him, and described too bluntly to take seriously. I found myself laughing at bad times.










18. The Color Purple, by Alice Walker (The American Novel class)
Sorry Oprah. Bizarrely beautiful and filled with illogical positivism, it's truly a good book. This gets knocked down to the bottom because of its aggressive, physical approach to problem solving made me too uneasy. It's supposed to be jarring, and Walker does not respect your inclinations for one moment. Purple's rawness and plays against tenderness overwhelmed me. Perhaps it's unconventional path to finding its soul forced me to move on from it.









TIER 2. THE SLOW BURNS
While I would reread and recommend these books, they were kind of... a struggle to finish.

17. The Sound and the Fury, by William Faulkner (The American Novel class)
I enjoy Faulkner, so for this to be 17, you should recognize I really like most of the novels. Heck, I even said nice things about a book I never want to read again. With Faulkner, the strength and weakness of his books is his character building. Truly marvelous creations, but a thick, heady read. Moving from narrations from an autistic adult, a tormented college freshman, and a petty sexist is just hard to do. Overall fascinating, but a burden to get through.
P.S. there's a film adaptation with James Franco in it. The movie looks awful, but the trailer looks hilarious.









16. A Civil Action, by Jonathan Harr (The Law in Literature Class)
A completely true story about a lawsuit on two fortune 500 companies, this book is complex and stressful. Harr excellently describes how one real life horror story morphed into another one, and has the records to prove it. This may have struck a chord with my anxieties over finances, as Jan Schlichtmann almost spent himself to death. At times, Harr focuses too much on semantics and run dry, even for someone interested in law. But, they got John Travolta to be in the movie, so it's got that going for it.









15. The Sun Also Rises, by Ernest Hemingway (personal reading)

This may come as a surprise to some, because Hemingway is one of my favorite authors. I loved the writing style, the relationships, the tension in the book, but in the end, did anything happen? Three guys go to Spain with a floozy and they all end up screwed (and not in the good way). Like, is this an Ashton Kutcher/Vince Vaughn/Owen Wilson movie? The plot is lame. You can't deny it. But I will hedge and say this is one of Hemingway's less-lauded books, and he still can write.









TIER 3: THE GOOD READS
These books read quickly, and though I won't rave about them, they were well crafted

14. Recursion, by Blake Crouch (suggested by Ashley)

A science fiction thriller that really stretches your intellect, Crouch relentlessly plugs his tragic, world ending theory at you until you feel like there is no hope (spoiler: there is hope), all while he gently reminds that the more important theme is simpler and purer. I read all 500 pages in under three days, and that includes taking a break. A very addicting book.





13. The Princess Bride, by William Goldman (The American Novel)

It's difficult to talk only about the story when there is so much to discuss about the writer and its film adaptation. I mean, Freaking Rob Reiner had to pry the screenplay from Goldman's reluctant hands. Even the story itself is about a different story that has been edited for better effect. The effect makes for a funny, postmodern icon filled with lovable characters. This book is a cult classic without its cult classic movie-ego.









12. Wise Blood, by Flannery O'Connor (The American Novel)
There's really only one way to describe this book: weird. And in its weirdness it sucks you in. Who in the world are these characters? Where are they? What type of world are they in? It's a modern fairy tale with unknown motives, all doused in obscure Christian imagery. The most helpful bit of knowledge I had while reading this book was that O'Connor was a Catholic woman in the Deep South. All sorts of weird can happen when looking at the world through that lens.









TIER 4: THE OH MY'S
Books that surprised me with their power and touched me on a special level. 

11. 1984, by George Orwell (recommended by Ashley)

About 70 pages in, I realized I was mad at this book because of how realistic it was. Of course, the motives for Big Brother and the party members are completely different than most people's, but this book is surprisingly human. I'm not going to lie, I read this book on 100% adrenaline, and it contains a heart-wrenching finish. But I will credit Orwell with his writing prowess, to spin a sci-fi story into a reality, and to constantly fool the writer.










10. Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom (summer reading)

The anti-text of 1984, Tuesdays with Morrie grounds itself in a reality that one wishes they could achieve. I feel that this story would best flourish in the 90s era, but it has a sentimental message that can still be felt to this day. I think the best part of this book derives from the non-novelist author. It allows the reader to cross a more sincere bridge to Morrie's story. I also appreciate how he doesn't take time to moralize the story, instead relying on his experience to induce a more honest effect.

9. Dark Matter by Blake Crouch (recommended by Ashley)
Another suggestion from my wife, another Crouch work. Essentially the big brother of Recursion. This book sucks you in from the start and only gets better. I read the last 70 pages in 30 minutes. Dark Matter's one-sentence paragraphs, perplexing plot and non-stop action makes this fast, enjoyable, and rewarding. Although the main character's motive (like the one in Recursion) remains altruistic almost to a flaw, Crouch uses meta-dialog to his utmost advantage, creating a humorous, preposterous, exciting novel.









8. The Joy Luck Club, by Amy Tan (The American Novel)
Tan zones in on mother/daughter relationships so precisely that you can't help but feel like you are reading a diary. Unlike most diaries involving awkward families, the melodrama is striking and sympathetic. It was a tearjerker in the most postmodern way, dancing with form and narrative and voice. You can see it coming down harshly against men, but when you perceive in its proper place as an immigrant narrative, you'll see critiques on harmful paternalism nurtured in the Far East. Overall outstanding writing.









TIER 5: THE KEEPERS
Downright good, completely re-readable, and will reside on my coffee table for years to come.

7. Just Mercy, by Bryan Stevenson (The Law in Literature)
If you think you are ready for this book, you are not. Shocking and captivating, Stevenson does everything in his power to pack sympathy into his work. You cannot help but become emotionally entangled by the webs of American courts and prisons. Call him crazy, but Stevenson's insanity is bringing justice against all odds, and if that's not an American story, then it's certainly a good story.










6. To Kill a Mockingbird (The American Novel AND The Law in Literature)
This is the sole book on the list I read before this year. It was also an assigned reading in two different classes. Who doesn't love this book? If you don't, you aren't American (being semi-facetious). Similar to The Princess Bride, Mockingbird has its own austere aura. The writing is gorgeous. Lee pens a friendlier, endearing Mark Twain novel. And the story will never die; its overtone is too powerful. There is negative criticism on it regarding ensconced racism and sexism, but frankly, I think that is a reductionist at work. As much as I love this book, there are five more ahead of it. I have a lot of love to give








5. The Kite Runner (Recommended by Ashley)
I understand if you are surprised. A grand narrative on a personal level with a narrator so intriguing that I wished the book lasted until his death. I admit, there is a lot of "magic" in the book, but sometimes the suspended reality works. It was also enlightening to view a culture across multiple generations, tearing down the one-sided American view of Afghanistan while building up my country's view of its villains. It was also a gift to the reader to finish the book with such concrete hope.









4. The Chosen, by Chaim Potok (The American Novel)
I didn't expect a book about a smart Jewish kid in New York City to touch me so greatly. The matrix of relationships between the two fathers and two sons is so aesthetically beautiful. Potok craftily mixes the natural tensions in Judaism into his composition, forming a segue into a culture few know or have seen. Potok finds ways to traipse in between massive tropes and confine them into a likable teenage boy. An intimate book built upon love that I will gladly read to my children until they can read it on their own.









3. Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen (summer reading)
I've been an English major for this long and I just not read this book. The irony of me enjoying Pride and Prejudice this much is almost too much for me to handle. I've watched movies rifting off of the plot, seen a Kera Knightly-played Elizabeth Bennet splayed on my parent's screen multiple times, heard my brother rave about it, and I never read it. I actually developed a bias against it--There's no way it is really that good. But it is. It's a satire trapped in a romance and it genuinely funny, engaging, and lovable. Yep, I was Elizabeth, and it was Mr. Darcy.









2. Crime and Punishment, by Fyodor Dostoevsky (summer reading)
So yeah, this book was incredible. It's bare bones Barnes and Noble Classics page count was over 500 pages, but I never found a dry spot. Rashkolnikov is one of the most entrancing characters in literature, and the more confusing he becomes, the more you relate to him. The books "punishment" is relentless, and you feel it's heavy breath come down with a thrill that noir novelists would kill to have in their own pieces. It's a different type of terror, one that makes you tense until the very last page. If you can get past the Russian names, you will find a diamond.









1. Dr. Zhivago, by Boris Pasternak (summer reading)
Which leads me to my favorite book of the year. Yes, the Russians took silver and gold. You are allowed to see if there is an illegal doping scandal. This is a tough, intricate read that doesn't quite end with a warm fuzzy, but it is immensely rewarding. Pasternak uses his poetic background to construct a massive swath of Russian history out of intricate, delicate minuets. It's sort of like a Matryushka doll set, where one piece of art snugly fits over another, and then another, until you can't realize how many parts made the whole. It's a tantalizing work that refuses to figure out which side is up, and you have to admit that Pasternak outdid everyone. He wrote an untouchable story.