Saturday 31 December 2016

Books of 2016

This is just an intermission, no art today! 

I mostly listen to audio books while I paint (unless I discover a new album, which I then listen to on repeat until I can't stand it anymore) And I found myself wondering how many books I read a year. So this year I wrote them down. These are just the books I finished, none of those started and abandoned make the list. And many are re-reads, since I have favourites and I'm nothing if not loyal to these faithful companions! 
This list is chronological, and so I've marked them as 'A' - audiobook, or 'P' - paperback, since I listen while I paint, but of course I still read actual books, 'cause it's my favourite thing in the whole world! (except for art and my husband and chocolate and so on) 
Also 'R' means reread.

P Haruki Murakami - A Great Sheep Chase                    
P Terry Goodkind - Wizards First Rule                   
A Terry Goodkind - Stone of Tears             
P Karin Slaughter - Pretty Girls         
P Mary Kubica - The Good Girl                
A Stephen King - Lisey's Story                                            - R
A Anne Rice - Interview with a Vampire                             -  R
A Anne Rice - The Vampire Lestat                                       
A Anne Rice - The Queen of the Damned                           
P Patrick Rothfuss - The Slow Regard of Silent Things      - R 
A Lemony Snicket - The Bad Beginning                              
A Lemony Snicket - The Reptile Room                               
A Lemony Snicket - The Erstatz Elevator                              
A Lemony Snicket - The Vile Village                                    
P Neil Gaiman - American Gods                                 
A Laurie R King - Bee Keeping for Beginners            
A Stephen King & Joe Hill - In the Tall Grass             
A Stan Lee - Amazing Fantastic Incredible                  
A Patrick Suskind - Perfume                                            
P Gaiman & Pratchett - Good Omens       
A Laurie R King - Folly                                                         - R
P Anchen Trotskie - Dis ek Anna     
A Stephen King - Duma Key                                                - R
A Douglas Adams - The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy  - R
A Douglas Adams - The Restaurant at the End of the Universe - R
A Douglas Adams - Life, the Universe and Everything        - R
A Alan Bennett - The Clothes they stood up in 
A Charlie Janders - All the Birds in the Sky  
P Stephen King - Mr. Mercedes                                           - R
A Michael Crichton - Jurassic Park                                      - R
A Terry Pratchett - Lords and Ladies 
P Stephen King - Finders Keepers                                      - R
A Terry Pratchett - Unseen Academicals 
A Terry Pratchett - Reaperman                                            - R
A Terry Pratchett - Hogfather 
P Michael Crichton - The Lost World                                   - R
A Terry Pratchett - The Last Continent  
A Terry Pratchett - Guards, Guards 
A Terry Pratchett - Feet of Clay  
A Robert Galbraith - The Cuckoo's Calling  
P Douglas Adams - So long and Thanks for all the Fish      - R
A Connie Willis - To say nothing of the Dog  
A Stephen King - Firestarter                                                - R
P A A Milne - The Sunny Side                                             - R
A Stephen King - Insomnia                                                  - R
P Marian Keyes - Anybody Out There                                 - R
A Laurie R King - A Darker Place                                        - R
P Anne Bronte - Agnes Grey                                               - R
A Gillian Flynn - Gone Girl                                                  - R
A Stephen King - Rage                                                       - R
P Charlotte Bronte - Jane Eyre                                           - R
A Stephen King - Revival                                                    - R
A Robin Hobb - Assassin's Apprentice                               - R
A Robin Hobb - Royal Assassin                                          - R
P Neil Gaiman - Stardust  
A Stephen King End of Watch  
A Robin Hobb - Assassins Quest                                       - R
A Stephen King - The Stand  
P Hobb/Lindholm - The Inheritance  
A Stephen King - The Regulators                                      - R
A Stephen King - The Long Walk                                      - R
A Robert Jordan - The Eye of the World ( WOT)               - R
A Robert Jordan - The Great Hunt (WOT)                         - R
A Chuck Palahnuik - Invisible Monsters  
A Neil Gaiman - Coraline  
A Neil Gaiman - Anansi Boys 
A Neil Gaiman - the Ocean at the End of the Lane 
A Frank Herbert - Dune                                                     - R
A Stephen King - The Gunslinger (Dark Tower)                 -R
A Stephen King - The Drawing of the Three (Dark Tower) - R
P Stephen King - Doctor Sleep                                          - R
A Stephen King - The Waste Lands (Dark Tower)             - R
A Matthew Fitzsimmons - The Short Drop 
A Stephen King - Lisey's Story                                          - R
A Stephen King - Different Seasons                                  - R
P Marita van der Vyver - Dis koue kos, skat 
A Stephen King - The Talisman                                         - R
P Baxter & Pratchett - The Long Utopia 
A Paula Hawkins - The Girl on the Train                           - R
A Malcolm Gladwell - David & Goliath 
A Stephen King - Roadworks                                            - R
A Chuck Palahnuik - Lullaby 
A Stephen King - Blaze 
A Stephen King - The Colorado Kid                                 - R
P Stephen King - The Running Man 
A Yana Martel - The Life of Pi 
A Karin Slaughter - Fallen 
A Arthur Golden - Memoirs of a Geisha                           - R
A Richard Matheson - I am Legend 
A Robert Bryndza - The Night Stalker  
P Neil Gaiman - Trigger Warning 
A B A Paris - Behind Closed Doors 
A Margaret Atwood - The Blind Assassin 
A Elizabeth Gilbert - Eat Pray Love 
A Bernhardt Schlink - The Reader 
A Anne Tyler - A Spool of Blue Thread 
A Ernest Cline - Ready Player One 
A Paul Beatty - The Sellout 
A Patrick Rothfuss - The Slow Regard of Silent Things  - R
A Neil Gaiman - American Gods                                     - R
A Chitra B Divakaruni - Oleander Girl 
P George R R Martin - A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms 
A Mark Edwards - Follow you home 
A John Taylor - Sherlock Holmes: the Rediscovered Railway Mysteries and other stories 
A Kazuo Ishiguro - Never let me go 
A Truman Capote - In Cold Blood                                   - R
A Robin Cook - Crisis 
A Stephen King - Black House                                       - R
A Stephen King - (Dark Tower) Wizard and Glass  -      - R
P Marita van der Vyver - Die Blou van Onthou 
P Marita van der Vyver - Vergenoeg  
P Marita van der Vyver Die Dinge van 'n Kind 
A Stephen King - (Dark Tower) The Wolves of the Calla - R
A Stephen King - (Dark Tower) Song of Susannah         - R
P Marita van der Vyver -Die Ongelooglike Avonture van Hanna Hoekom  
P Marita van der Vyver - Swemlesse vir 'n Meermin 
P Karin Slaughter - The Kept Woman 
A Stephen King - (Dark Tower) The Dark Tower 
P Marian Keyes - Watermelon 

Yes, Stephen King is my Favourite person. Laurie R King, Neil Gaiman, Pat Rothfuss, these authors make my brain sing. 

In terms of art, I have completed 5 paintings you haven't seen, 4 of them for 2 upcoming shows (March 2017) - it's all very hush-hush at this stage, and the other I just haven't photographed! So there's that, and an upcoming auction (Jan 2017) about which I'll share more when I can! It's hard to do a roundup of the year when there's so much I can't share! Also, it's very hot. So I can't really think straight, never mind actually wax lyrical about 2016. Things were achieved, others not, hope next year is better etc. :)

Keep safe tonight if you're the partying kind, we'll be breaking in the new year with a braai and board/card games - classic South African Nerd things! Have a fantastic evening, all :D