We’ve arrived at the end of another year, and a week off looms for all of us ink-stained wretches. That must mean it’s time for my annual “Best of” list for the year. Maybe something will intrigue you, or maybe you’ll think I’m crazy. Either way, here we go!
Book of the Year - This year, I decided to take into account both the physical books I read and the audiobooks I listened to. One reason I did this was that one of the audiobooks, Why We Love Baseball, by Joe Posnanski, was so excellent that I may read it in book form too. If you enjoy baseball and especially the history of the sport, this is a must read. Even the moments that we all know so well, such as the Shot Heard ‘Round the World, are written up in a new and interesting way. I found reasons to listen to this outside my car just to keep finding out what moment would be highlighted next.
John Grisham is a very good writer. He’s a copious author, but it took him decades to return to one of his best-known characters, Mitch McDeere, from The Firm. The sequel finally arrived this year in The Exchange. This is very different from the previous appearance of this character as it is more international intrigue than lawyers figuring out ways to work the law. I re-read The Firm before embarking on this new adventure and am glad I did since I got to know Mitch and Abby again and re-familiarized myself with who they were. You don’t have to do that, but it was fun to do so.
The best book I read in 2023 just came out in November. If you’ve never read William Kent Krueger, a Minnesota author, you’re missing out. He writes with a smoothness that keeps a story flowing like the rivers that are often central to his mysteries. The River We Remember is set in Black Earth County and involves a murder that seems to be an open-and-shut case. It is set in the 1950s, and the historical relevance of characters who fought in either World War II or the Korean War is impactful. Do yourself a favor and read this book. Then go and find his other books and read them too!
TV Show of the Year - Once again, the streaming networks produced some stellar shows. I’ve written about Ted Lasso before, and the final season was excellent, but there’s another series on Apple TV+ that deserves mention. Lessons in Chemistry is based on the novel by Bonnie Garmas, one of the best books I’ve read in recent years. Brie Larson plays Elizabeth Zott, a female chemist in the 1950s, a time when women were supposed to stay at home, not work in a lab. Larson is fantastic and just how I pictured and heard the voice of Zott in the book. The show, which is eight episodes long, takes some divergent paths from the book, but the main story is still in place.
When I saw these four words - time travel murder mystery - I knew I had to watch Bodies on Netflix. The same dead body appears in four very different time periods in the same location. How can this be? And how do detectives in 1890, 1941, 2023, and 2053 work to solve the case without knowing each other? There are some gruesome scenes, but I was hooked in the first of eight episodes, and it was a fulfilling ending by the time it was done.
My favorite show from this year is also a one-and-done season. Turn to Disney+ and look up Muppets Mayhem. Dr. Teeth and the Muppet Mayhem band bring on a ton of guest stars and great music along with a fun storyline. This is certainly for all ages, and I enjoyed seeing many of my old favorites from various Muppet endeavors through this ten-episode romp. I hope they’ll do more Muppet series along the same lines as this one!
Movie of the Year - As usual, most of what I watched on the big screen was super hero fare. The Flash was one of those. Flash is one of my favorite comic book heroes, and though I was skeptical of the job Ezra Miller would do as the Scarlet Speedster, I was pleasantly surprised. Time travel stories are always fun (see above), and there were a lot of Easter eggs referencing cool comic book and movie lore.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse was every bit as good as its predecessor as we got to see Miles Morales as Spidey in another animated adventure. The hopping around different dimensions gave viewers another look at some cool variations on Spider-Man, and it included many new versions too. Imagine a Spider-Man from the year 2099 and one from a noir era of filmmaking. These were two that stood out among the myriad that appeared. I can’t wait for the next film in the series next year!
The best movie, though, was not a super hero flick. Michelle and I saw The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes when it came out in November, and it was marvelous! This prequel to The Hunger Games trilogy was a great book when it came out, and the movie lived up to the excellent nature of the novel. This is the story of President Snow when he was a young man and takes place during an earlier Hunger Games. The movie transports you right back to this version of earth and sets the stage for more action in this realm.
That does it for another year! If you’re interested in any of these great books or shows, I invite you to try them out. If you have some other suggestions, I’m always open to trying new things! Have a great Christmas, and I’ll see you in the new year!
Word of the Week: This week’s word is egrote, which means to feign sickness, as in, “The teenager decided to egrote so they could skip school and go to the new movie on opening day.” Impress your friends and confuse your enemies!