Welcome to the New Year...as it's already 2022 when I'm posting this. But I still need to talk about December's reads, so...let's skip back to the past for a moment, right?
Sherlock Holmes and the Christmas Demon (James Lovegrove)
Well...I'm starting to think that I would be better off by staying away from all those very popular Holmes pastiches. I rarely ever like them. Just like this one: it's not that I disliked it per se, but it was just too long and boring! Okay, to be fair: the original Holmes novels aren't my cup of tea either. Arthur Conan Doyle is a genius when it comes to short stories and that's just how Holmes stories are at their best. It's the same for pastiches. I think I would have enjoyed the story about a creature from the mythology of Yorkshire as a short story, but this book just didn't do it for me. I was mostly pretty bored, to be honest. Holmes also felt slightly out of character sometimes, and that clinched it for me. Also, the ending was way too cutesy and didn't fit the tone of the rest of the story. (Though I'm not one to talk, having written multiple sappy Christmas fanfictions about The Thick of It. Cough, cough.)
Trump's Christmas Carol (Watt T. Dickens)
Nice pun with the author's name, I see what you did there! In fact the book was written by Lucien Young, and I usually enjoy his fun little parody stories a lot. I did enjoy that one, too. But I was sceptical. I mean, Trump as Ebenezer Scrooge...I see the similarities and it's actually a great fit. But as we probably all know: Scrooge actually becomes a nice person in the end of A Christmas Carol. Can you see Trump becoming nice? I couldn't. So I was really curious about how the end of this book would be like. And what should I say, it was awesome. Exactly what I'd expect to happen with the real Trump. Highly enjoyable and I might read this again next Christmas.
A Christmas Carol (Charles Dickens)
Can't very well read a parody version without reading the original thing, right? I actually meant to do that last year already, but I couldn't find the motivation. So, this year it finally happened and well, it's a good read. It's making me a bit sad though, so I'm not sure whether I'd want to read it again next year. I will come back to it though, if only to refresh my memory when watching one of the countless adaptions.
A Very Murderous Christmas/Murder in Midwinter (various authors)
I used to love those Christmas crime anthologies, but they're always a little hit-and-miss. I already knew a few of the stories contained in these two books, I didn't like some of the other ones...and some were quite enjoyable. The best thing was that I discovered the Rumpole stories through them. I need to look into those, they seem to be right up my alley.
Quarantine Comix (Rachael Smith)
One of those books I bought because of, er, the cover blurb...or to be more specific, one of the people who recommended it. Sometimes I'm just like that. I didn't have to regret it though, as I enjoyed this collection of comics quite a bit. Well, of course the topic of Covid, lockdowns and quarantines isn't an especially fun one, so it wasn't the most relaxed read. But even though my situation is quite different I could relate to many of the themes very well, like the struggle with mental health and loneliness.
Die Schatzinsel (Robert Louis Stevenson)
I meant to read the classics in the original English version whenever possible, but...I had bought the German translation already, so I just read that one in this case. Apparently the translation was also pretty good, because I enjoyed the book tremendously! I might even want to re-read it at some point, which happens rarely enough for me. My sort-of favourite character was Ben Gunn because he was both pretty funny and also quite important for the story. Ah, I just like reading about adventures like that, and if they are as immersive as Treasure Island it's even more fun!
Animal Farm (George Orwell)
I watched a film adaption many years ago, but I didn't really get it back then. For example, I didn't even know that the story was supposed to be an allegory about Stalin and the Soviet Union. But once you know that this isn't just a story about farm animals (and frankly, any adult should notice that – my excuse is that I was about 13 when I watched the film, and I absolutely didn't care about politics back then), then reading certain scenes just make the reader realise that he can probably guess very well what's going to happen next. And even though it was a shocking book too it's a much easier read than 1984. So, even if someone doesn't feel up to the challenge of 1984: Animal Farm is almost as good, though in a different way. Reading both is the best option anyway. I'm glad I did.
1984 (George Orwell)
I don't even begin to think that I will actually write something that will make the slightest bit of sense about this book. And I guess everything worth mentioning has been said already anyway. So, just this much: it's shocking to see how many of the things mentioned in this book have either become reality, are about to become reality...or at least don't feel like they would be impossible in today's world. And really, everyone should read this book, even if it surely isn't an easy read. Especially the later chapters were just painful, but...it's just worth it and it might even change the reader's view on our world, society and politics.
The Shop Window Murders (Vernon Loder)
Started off pretty well, but became sort of boring later on. I'm all for lots of talking and gathering clues and evidence, but the police procedures described in this book was too much even for me. Also, I ultimately didn't really care about any of the characters. I just started to dislike Inspector Devenish at some point. And I don't even know why, but he started to annoy me? Well, it just wasn't to be, I guess. Oh, and...while this might be a nice golden age crime story it absolutely isn't Christmassy, no matter what the blurb on Amazon might say....
UK Politics Annual Update 2021 (Nick Gallop)
Eh, well, politics, I guess. It was an interesting read yet again, like all books from this series. But I personally don't think I need the yearly update anymore. By now I'm closely following the daily UK politics anyway, so there's no need for me to do that. The books were really useful to catch up on last year's events though!
Doctor Who: Twelve Doctors of Christmas (audiobook, various authors)
I started listening to these twelve stories last year, and then sort of lost interest and/or seasonal motivation. That doesn't mean the stories were bad, but...well, let's just say it was my fault. This year I picked it up again and getting through the stories was really easy...and also really pleasant, as I enjoyed almost all of them! Most were even properly Christmas-themed (I was wondering a bit about Sontar's Little Helpers and the one set in a hospital...they were less seasonal than the others, but still nice) and meeting the Doctor in all of his incarnations again is always a great thing, isn't it? As for why I picked up the audiobook version instead of the regular book, well...I noticed that the stories were read by people who actually played characters in the series at some point and when I saw that Chris Addison was among them, well... It just was a really easy decision, haha. And the best thing is, he even read one of my favourite stories of the bunch: the very last one with the 12th Doctor. Twelve is the best Doctor anyway. No, I won't debate this...but I'll of course accept different opinions ;)
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