So here's a quick round-up of my 2013 for posterity. I've already done a list of my favourite music, but I just wanted to jot down some other highlights before another year fades from memory.
Best reads of 2013
• NW - Zadie Smith: One of the first books I read in 2013 on my then new Google Nexus 7 tablet, and it was a cracker. She's a favourite of mine, and one of the best London writers. There's a great passage on how the capital has little historical gems, in this case a medieval church, that get almost obscured by the creep of modernity, and another on how the denizens hate time wasters. I love the language too, full of colour and Caribbean slang like "chirpses" (chats up). The book's full of ideas too, such as the widening gap in wealth between baby boomers and younger generations, while I'm also a sucker for all the modernist, stream-of-consciousness flourishes that she excels at. That said, I don't think it's one of her best novels, still preferring White Teeth and On Beauty.
• Black Swan Green - David Mitchell: This was one of several books I took on holiday to France, including The Great Gatsby, and it confirmed to me that Mitchell is one of the best British writers alive. This semi-autobiography is different to many of his novels, most notably Cloud Atlas, in that it doesn't have the same grand scope or ambition, but as compensation it's by far his funniest book.
• HHhH - Laurent Binet: This was unlike any book I've read this year, or any other. To say this book is about Nazi officer Heydrich (HHhH stands for Himmlers Hirn heisst Heydrich, or “Himmler's brain is called Heydrich") or the daring Operation Anthropoid to kill him, wouldn't really be correct. It's more about how to write a history book about that subject. Mind-blowing and very funny in parts.
• HHhH - Laurent Binet: This was unlike any book I've read this year, or any other. To say this book is about Nazi officer Heydrich (HHhH stands for Himmlers Hirn heisst Heydrich, or “Himmler's brain is called Heydrich") or the daring Operation Anthropoid to kill him, wouldn't really be correct. It's more about how to write a history book about that subject. Mind-blowing and very funny in parts.
• Goldfinch - Donna Tartt: This was definitely worth waiting for. I put my review on Goodreads here.
• Stoner - John Williams: Everyone in the publishing world seems to be raving about this lost gem and Waterstone's even named it book of the year (quite strange for a novel written 48 years ago by an author who's now dead). The prose is lyrical and reminded me of Fitzgerald, and the fact it's so brilliantly written helps to soften the very depressing subject matter.
Other books I enjoyed were Rob Young's Electric Eden and Thomas Pynchon's Bleeding Edge.
TV
Breaking Bad
Homeland
Spiral
Mad Men
Neil Armstrong documentary
Google & The World Brain documentary
Sunday Night Football, BT Sport
Count Arthur Strong
Hans Rosling documentary about population
Re-watching The Sopranos
Films
The Act of Killing
Cloud Atlas
Alpha Papa
Patience (After Sebald)
Before Midnight
Events & activities
Ava's welcome to the world (+ Chris & Joanne visit)
Joining the local cricket team
Making beer & sourdough bread
Installation of big screen
Ranworth broad with Clare, Brian & kids
Norfolk golf weekend with the lads
Ruth's book launch at Waterstone's Norwich
Rosie's 4th birthday with bouncy castle
Norwich beer festival
Watching Perseid meteor shower on deckchair under blanket with Ruth
Journalism
Map of British "Atlantis" Dunwich
Antony Loyd's superb, brave reporting on the Middle East in the Times, helping to improve my awareness of the political situation in the region in a year that saw terrorist attacks in Algeria, Boston, Woolwich and Nairobi
Sebastian Thrun on the future of MOOCs
50 Life Hacks
Clive James on the Sopranos
Attack of the Mutant Pupfish
Does journalism have a future?
Sharing fast and slow
Where will we live?
What Mandela taught us
Outings & holidays
Wedding at Eltham Palace
Day at Beccles lido, followed by Broads riverboat trip and lunch at the Locks Inn
Northern France
Green Man festival
Sutton Hoo
Sport
Lakeside darts (going again next weekend!)
One-day match (Eng v Sri Lanka, Champions Trophy) at the Oval
Ashes victory at home (let's not talk about the tour in Australia!)
England qualifying for the World Cup in Brazil
Murray winning Wimbledon
The Valley getting ACV trust status
Other books I enjoyed were Rob Young's Electric Eden and Thomas Pynchon's Bleeding Edge.
TV
Breaking Bad
Homeland
Spiral
Mad Men
Neil Armstrong documentary
Google & The World Brain documentary
Sunday Night Football, BT Sport
Count Arthur Strong
Hans Rosling documentary about population
Re-watching The Sopranos
Films
The Act of Killing
Cloud Atlas
Alpha Papa
Patience (After Sebald)
Before Midnight
Events & activities
Ava's welcome to the world (+ Chris & Joanne visit)
Joining the local cricket team
Making beer & sourdough bread
Installation of big screen
Ranworth broad with Clare, Brian & kids
Norfolk golf weekend with the lads
Ruth's book launch at Waterstone's Norwich
Rosie's 4th birthday with bouncy castle
Norwich beer festival
Watching Perseid meteor shower on deckchair under blanket with Ruth
Journalism
Map of British "Atlantis" Dunwich
Antony Loyd's superb, brave reporting on the Middle East in the Times, helping to improve my awareness of the political situation in the region in a year that saw terrorist attacks in Algeria, Boston, Woolwich and Nairobi
Sebastian Thrun on the future of MOOCs
50 Life Hacks
Clive James on the Sopranos
Attack of the Mutant Pupfish
Does journalism have a future?
Sharing fast and slow
Where will we live?
What Mandela taught us
Outings & holidays
Wedding at Eltham Palace
Day at Beccles lido, followed by Broads riverboat trip and lunch at the Locks Inn
Northern France
Green Man festival
Sutton Hoo
Sport
Lakeside darts (going again next weekend!)
One-day match (Eng v Sri Lanka, Champions Trophy) at the Oval
Ashes victory at home (let's not talk about the tour in Australia!)
England qualifying for the World Cup in Brazil
Murray winning Wimbledon
The Valley getting ACV trust status
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