Wednesday, December 30, 2020

Eimer's Top Reads of 2020

In early 2020, after posting my Top 9 Great Post Apocalyptic Reads way back in March 14, the place that I work sent everyone home to partake in mandatory WFH fun for the rest of the year. Which then turned into the beginning of 2021. And now, more than likely, it's looking like this WFH parade will extend well into the summer of 2021 ... if not probably beyond. 

With everything shut down, nowhere to go, and nothing to do, I thought Governor Dewine's Covid-19 Stay-At-Home Order would prompt me to sit back, cuddle up with a nice glass of whiskey, and read, and read, a read to my hearts content maybe even surpassing a personal record of total books read. 

Well, I was wrong. Except for the whiskey part. 

After March, the procrastination got worse. All of the things I wanted to do, I put off. And, pretty much, just started drinking .... anything I could possibly get my hands on. The depression transformed into gluttony, which transformed into sadness, then anger and finally acceptance. Finally, in the summer of 2020, I woke up from my doldrums, started working out again, drawing again, creating again ... and yes, even, reading again. 

With this newfound creativity, I was able to knock out a bunch of relevant, interesting, fun, topical books. Well, some not so topical but still nevertheless damn interesting. So here, folks, is my list of 2020 Top Reads, in no particular order:

Beastie Boys Book 

by Michael Diamond and Adam Horovitz

Loved. Loved. Loved this book and not just because I'm a Beastie Boys fan. Well, that's probably half of it. But, it's just an inspiring story of three creative kids finding new sounds, meeting new people and pushing that imagination bar. From sampling, to writing, to music, everything that the Beastie Boys did was steeped in creativity, trying new things and just seeing what sticks. Making music was their platform, but having fun and creating great friendships was key to this fruitful collaboration between three bad brothers you know so well. From the days of Rick Rubin and Licensed to Ill, to sampling with the Dust Brothers in California, to returning to their musical instrument roots in Check Your Head, and beyond all the way to the death of MCA (Adam Yauch), the story is filled with a historical breakdown of music that inspired, warts and all creative process, and the inspirational, musical-minded folks they met along the way who helped shape these guys into the band that they became, and the fantastic experimental music they made along the way. It's a long book, but well worth the read. May even inspire you to get off your butt and do something, anything .. in the spirit of creativity.


The Library Book

by Susan Orlean

I never thought I'd find a book about a library so intriguing. Then, I found out that Susan Orlean, author of The Orchid Thief, was at the helm. In subsequent chapters, this immersive book takes you through the history of The Los Angeles Public Library as well as the hunt for the 'arsonist' who started the 1986 library fire that destroyed more than one million books. As a fan of my local library in Martins Ferry, as well as the Grandview, Columbus, Hudson, and Upper Arlington public libraries in Ohio (which I have visited, continue visiting, and borrowing with full gusto), I enjoyed this book which goes through the inner-workings of a library and brings back that warm, welcoming, nostalgic feeling that you get whenever you walk through its doors. Orlean weaves three distinct books into one; true detective, historical, and educational, which comes together for a really enthralling read.


Full Throttle

by Joe Hill

Wow! Joe Hill is pumping out some pretty, pretty, pretty kick-ass short stories. Check out 21st-Century Ghosts and Strange Weather. This collection contains a ton of goodies. Some of my faves include Wolverton Station, Faun, All I Care About is You, Mums, and Dark Carousel. The audio version did not include Twittering from the Circus of The Dead. So, I'm curious about that one. But, all in all, a great collection. But, by far, the most inspiring writing comes from the Prologue, which is titled 'Who's Your Daddy?' in which he waxes nostalgic about growing up around his dad and the many different inspirations for his eventual career in writing.


Borne

by Jeff VanderMeer

Thoroughly enjoyed VanderMeer's first book in the Southern Reach Trilogy (Annihilation). The other two books, not so much. But, I was intrigued that he decided to delve into science-fiction once again with Borne. Man, this is an odd book. The tone reminded a little bit of Margaret Atwood's Oryx and Crake. But, this book can stand on its own as an odd piece of post-apocalyptic sci-fi. I don't want to give too much away but VanderMeer's imagination is able to run wild with a humungous, angry lab-grown grizzly bear followed by an army of smaller grizzly bears, robots, bio-tech, destruction, mayhem, magicians and an odd little creature named Borne. Just an entertaining read from start to finish. It's an odd one. But if you're a sci-fi fan, you'll be happy you picked it up.


Recursion

by Blake Crouch

I'm a sucker for time travel books and this one definitely delivered. I would consider this a fresh take on the 'sometimes-tired' time travel genre. But this was a page turner. Great writing from Blake Crouch. This motivated me to snag his other book 'Dark Matter' and check out his scripted TV series 'Wayward Pines'. I just found out that this will be made into a Netflix series as well. Look, if you like sci-fi, time travel and just a different 'out there' supernatural story, this is a great book for you. 'Nuff said


Fire!: The Zora Neale Hurston Story

by Peter Bagge

In his later years, Cartoonist/Writer Peter Bagge (of 'Buddy Bradley' and 'Hate 'fame) has decided to turn his muse lens towards strong-willed, tenacious female character studies such as 'Woman Rebel', 'Credo', and finally 'Fire!'. In Fire!, Bagge tells the warts and all story of writer Zora Neale Hurston (best known for her novel 'Their Eyes Were Watching God'), who was a free-spirited black woman in the early 1900's when 'black' and 'woman' and 'free-spirit' were considered taboo by the white elite. It's a fun, entertaining, thoughtful ride with snippets of Zora Neale's life peppered across the pages in Bagge's famous cartoon style. I tip my hat to Bagge, a white male, who had the courage to take on the subject matter. Some may balk at a white man telling the story of a black woman. But, like I said, this is a story of a strong-willed woman who found success despite the obstacles thrown at her, which I think is an uplifting story that will inspire women and men of all ages. Looking forward to reading Woman Rebel and Credo in the near future.


Stranger in the Woods

by Michael Finkel

What a great book to read during the Covid 19 pandemic! The story is a true-life story of Chris Knight, who wandered into the woods in the early 80's and, pretty much, never came out until getting arrested 26 years later. The book makes you question what's important in this world. Getting likes on Facebook or Instagram? Or just enjoying life and the great outdoors as the day is here? Obviously we don't all have to be a hermit like Chris Knight and hide in the woods for 26 years, but there's some nice little snippets about enjoying life that I'll definitely take with me on my life journey. Minus all the burglary charges held against him and some of his personal psychological flaws, this Knight guy may be one of the smartest guys in the world. Stay tuned and I'll let you know in (hopefully) 40 years.


Kent State: Four Dead in Ohio

by Derf Backderf

Great book by Backderf. Lots of research and interviews went into this book, which follows the fateful days leading up to the killings of four students at Kent State in 1970. The history, the backstory and the character arcs (and of course the art), had me transfixed from the first few pages, then I was hooked. What a great undertaking to create this book. Hopefully he gets the awards and recognition for this. Personally, I didn't know much about the Kent State shootings, this totally filled in the blanks (and then some). Just a great story overall. If you liked this, I highly recommend Derf's other books, 'My Friend Dahmer' and 'Trashed' as well.


March - Book One

by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, Nate Powell

What an extremely appropriate book to read in 2020. About the life, story, and heroism of John Lewis. I knew a little bit about John Lewis, but this book is packed full of history, biography, and crazy racial injustices that didn't happen too long ago. It's amazing how far we think we've come, only to continue to be reminded that we've got a lot of work to do together as a nation to heal our wounds. With great story arc by Lewis and Aydin as well as fantastic artwork by Powell; I probably should've picked up this book sooner. But, I'm sort of glad I saved it for right here, right now. Looking forward to Book Two and Book Three of the series

Other Top Reads From Year's Past:
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