Another year of reading has come to a close. And like every reader I like to look back on the books I read throughout the last twelve months to see which ones have truly impacted me. This year I found three novels that I stirred my heart strings unlike the others. They are listed below in the order I read them in!
A Farewell to Arms – Ernest Hemingway Based upon Hemingway’s own World War I experiences, A Farewell to Arms tells the story of soldier Henry, his war experiences and his love affair with a nurse, Catherine. The first half of the novel sits you down in the middle of the fear and the realism of war. With Henry’s injury being the dividing point, the second half of the plot focuses on the the love and passion of the romance. I have read a few novels by Hemingway, with none being too remarkable to me. After reading A Farewell to Arms I realize why Hemingway is considered one of the greatest writers of the 20th century. The raw emotion, the heartache (real tears were shed here), no moments of cynicism or bitterness, just real human experiences, nothing in this novel was predictable. While his writing style is not for everyone, I couldn’t recommend this novel more.
On Chesil Beach – Ian McEwan Set in the summer of 1962, On Chesil Beach tells the story of Florence and Edward, two young virgins on their wedding night, with moments of their individual childhoods and romance interwoven between. McEwan is one of my favorite writers and this is my favorite novel (so far) by. him. He captures the innocence and vulnerability on a night assumed to be handled so maturely, along with the secrets and flaws each individual human carries around within them. The plot is simple, the story is short, by the depth of this novel is never ending.
The End of the Affair – Graham Greene In the opening lines of the novel, the lead character describes that the story is more about hate than love. The plot tells the story of Maurice who had an affair with married, Sarah, as he retraces his steps from overwhelming love to love/hate. I had never read a novel quite like this one before. It’s very raw in emotion, realistic, and deals with deep questions and spirituality. (I also read recently that there is an audio book narrated by Colin Firth!)
There are my favorite novels of 2017! There was definitely a theme with my favorites, being novels that were heartbreaking, kind of unhappy, but very raw, real, and so human. I look forward to reading many more amazing novels in the new year! Let me know what your favorites of last year were in the comments below.
Wishing you the greatest year yet,
Kaycee xx
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