Sinister Scribbles

Another year has come and gone—and that means it’s time to discuss my favorite reads of 2023! In this post, I’ll cover my favorite fiction and nonfiction titles I read this year. I wrote up my favorite comics of this year with No Flying, No Tights again, so I will try to remember to post that list once it gets released.

Fiction:

The Radiant Emperor series by Shelley Parker-Chan (She Who Became the Sun and He Who Drowned the World): As a peasant girl living in the middle of a famine, Zhu was supposed to be nothing. Instead, Zhu steals her brother’s destiny after his death and launches a quest to become the emperor of China. Their quest puts them at odds with a eunuch general serving the Mongol occupiers. I have known about this series for awhile and I don’t know why I waited so long to read it. The Radiant Emperor series is an excellent epic tale with superb characterization and plot. While the story oftentimes turns brutal, there is still an undercurrent of hope. Parker-Chan does a solid job of developing the characters so that their motivations and personalities are understandable. Many of the characters wrestle with gender and identity as they fight for their goals and against society’s expectations, thus adding queer themes to the mix. The series is perfect for folks who enjoyed Iron Widow and other stories with fierce queer and/or female characters. (I will say if you’re not up for gore and/or dysfunctional sexual relationships, you might want to avoid or wait to read this series. You can find all the content warnings on Parker-Chan's website.)

What You Are Looking for Is in the Library by Michiko Aoyama: In a tiny community library, there is a librarian who seems to know what her patron needs, even if they don’t match up with what the patrons ask for! There are five stories featuring characters who are at different stages and have different needs; all of them get a list of books and a felted object, handmade by the librarian. I started out being a little skeptical of the book’s somewhat contrived premise, but stopped caring as I got swept up in the characters’ journeys, the soothing, ritualistic set-up of each story, and the growing sense of community. What You Are Looking for Is in the Library was a perfect cozy read as someone who has been feeling uncertain and down this year.

Nonfiction:

Braiding Sweetgrass, by Robin Wall Kimmerer: Robin Wall Kimmerer explores her relationship with the land as a Potawatomi and botanist; she discusses her culture’s teachings alongside the impact colonial practices have had on nature—the results of which we are still seeing today. I loved her meditative style; her writing was fascinating, yet dense, and I often needed to pause to fully sit with what she was saying.

The Art Thief: A True Story of Love, Crime, and a Dangerous Obsession, by Michael Finkel: Do you like reading stories where the character’s life spirals out of control? The Art Thief is the story of Stephane Breitwieser, a man from a well-off family who was obsessed with art. He stole thousands of artworks from museums all over Europe and squirreled them away in his home. He rode the high of his successes…until it all came to an end. Finkel discusses Breitwieser’s motivations and background and traces his actions through his final fall. It’s a gripping read that had me turning the pages to see how this train wreck would end. If you like true crime or nonfiction with plenty of drama, pick this up.