The 2014 list of books I have read

2014 is coming to an end pretty soon, so it is time again for the year “Books I have read” list. This year was a bit of a bummer and is currently averaging out to 3.6pt out of 5pt compared to the 4.1pts last year. Some duds I read, some really big duds.

On the positives side I read some really great books, like “Wind, Sand and Stars” by Antoine de Saint-Exupery, “Stranger in a Strange Land” by Robert A. Heinlein, “Invisible Cities” by Italo Calvino, “Dispatches” by Michael Herr and my Top Book this year “Siddhartha” by Hermann Hesse. I also read my second Kafka since I read one in High school. So not all was bad.

Enough of this, lets get to the list, in chronological order

Tom Clancy: Red Storm Rising

“I read two Tom Clancy books, and I swear I will not read a third one”. Actually I swore that already after my first one, way back. But then he died and I thought, let’s give it a try on one of his first novels. Well, doesn’t change. Should have read that when I was 14. Not recommended.

John le Carré: The Spy who came in from the Cold

You want a really great spy story? Well here it is, Carré can write really well and his stories have depth and are also really interesting. This one is my first book from him, and I have seen the movie before too (with Oskar Werner) and I can very much recommend both, book and film. Looking forward to read more from him and within the “Smiley Peoples” series.

Michael Crichton: The Andromeda Strain

I think I read only one other book from Crichton, something about Eco Terrorists, well this is one of his first, again, because I wanted to try it and it was just mediocre. Not really bad and not really good. Very short read, so can be fitted in one or two afternoons. Semi recommended.

Jo Nesbø: The Bat (Harry Hole #1)

After I read one of the last novels from this series I thought I should start at the beginning. Well, got a bit disappointed. Misses the depth of the first book I read. Soso. Again, Semi recommended.

Gene Wolfe: Shadow and Claw (The Book of the New Sun, #1–2)

What a waste of time. Boring, horrible boring. Every other page it is just him cleaning is precious sword that he loses every other page. Not going to read anything from this author again. Not recommended

Raymond Chandler: The Big Sleep (Philip Marlowe #1)

A quite nice read, 1920 detective novel, not a nail biter, but it has quite some charm. But don’t be put of that everyone smokes, all the time and the english feels quite dated too. Still I would recommend it, but if you want a better one, I recommend you pick “Little Sister” instead.

Samuel R. Delany: Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand

The second big disappointment. Especially because the book starts out really well and then it drops off in this self loathing “oh look I am so much better” bullshit. I doubt have read any worse Sci-Fi. Not even the most pulp Star Trek novels are that bad. Ultimate not recommended. Don’t waste your time on this, except reading the introduction chapter. Then put the book down and read something else instead.

Dashiell Hammett: The Maltese Falcon

A classic, a sort of must read and was recommended to me by several people. I saw the movie before too. Quite nice, but at the end it is just a 1920 detective novel. Feels just a bit dated in how women are treated and how everybody smokes, all the time. Still I would recommend it.

Jared Diamond: Guns, Germs, and Steel

The first non fiction book and quite a difficult one too. Tries to explain why white western people succeeded where other people from other areas did not. Can’t 100% agree on all the conclusions but this book gets a definite recommend from me.

David W. Mack: Star Trek: Destiny

David W. Mack: Star Trek: Destiny #1 — Gods of Night

David W. Mack: Star Trek: Destiny #2 — Mere Mortals

David W. Mack: Star Trek: Destiny #3 — Lost Souls

I’ll group those three together because there are more or less one book. Recommended by a friend quite some time ago, I pushed this ahead because in my opinion Star Trek novel are generally bad, but this one was a very positive surprise. Not only in the storytelling but also in the final conclusion. Recommended to those who like Sci Fi and are not turned off by Star Trek.

Jo Nesbø: Cockroaches (Harry Hole #2)

The second book from this series and much better than the first one. It starts to get the nice desperate feel of darkness. I really liked it. Recommended.

Tom Robbins: Still Life with Woodpecker

Another big disappointment. I just couldn’t like it. The story was horrible and the characters were all annoying cunts. It felt like listening to this shitty music type you just hate. One of the rare books I couldn’t even give two stars, this one got just one. Not recommended at all.

Charles C. Mann: 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus

Second non fiction book and this time about the Americas before Columbus. For me as a European a very interesting read. Highly recommended.

Neal Stephenson: Snow Crash

Can’t call yourself a well rounded Sci-Fi book reader unless you read at least one Stephenson. And so my love/hate relationship with him starts. It is basically like this: He has some really awesome ideas and great characters, but the writing style and finish are just two things that drag it always down to mediocre. Recommended with a but.

Hermann Hesse: Siddhartha — Eine Indische Dichtung (german)

Top book of this year. Without doubt one of the best books I have ever read. Once in school I had to read another Hesse book and hated it. But I think you need to have some mental maturity that you just lack when you are young. Extremely highly recommended.

Roald Dahl: My Uncle Oswald

And righter the best book I fall down into the abyss of really crappy writing. And from Dahl. How could this happen. I expected some witty, funny story and I get this abomination of a book. The only reason I gave this book two stars is because the basic idea of the story is great, just the written execution is the most horrible shit I have read. Stay away from it, not recommended at all.

Robert A. Heinlein: Stranger in a Strange Land

After each down, comes an up. Next best book this year. But I have to say that you should not read Heinlein as Sci-Fi but as a social study of humanity. Perhaps I would have enjoyed “The Moon is a harsh Mistress” more if I had read it differently. Thanks to recommendation and the tip of how to approach it from a friend I enjoyed this very much. Highly recommended.

Antoine de Saint-Exupery: Wind, Sand and Stars

I always wanted to read this book and finally I found time for it. Really amazing story, especially when it is just real life experiences for him from his years as a pilot. Highly recommended.

Dan Simmons: Hyperion (Hyperion Cantos #1)

This is one amazing Sci-Fi book. Since a long time I haven’t read anything similar where I felt like I was in this universe and living those characters lives. Feeling utterly immersed by the story. Overall a great story, very interesting characters and a gripping finish. Highly recommended.

Dan Simmons: The Fall of Hyperion (Hyperion Cantos #2)

Sadly, the second part does not even come close to the first part. Big disappointment. While not bad overall, it just doesn’t do it. Only recommended if you are a Sci-Fi lover or you really want to have story finished.

Italo Calvino: Invisible Cities

This is one of those books that you can read over and over again and find new interesting parts all over again. This is the only book since I own a Kindle that I actually want in physical form so I can put it on my table and open it every day and read just one chapter randomly. Highly recommended.

Andy Weir: The Martian

Pop-corn sci-fi at its best. Screams for a movie or TV show. A nice read with all the needed suspense and twists and turns you expect from such a book. Recommended, even for those who don’t care about Sci-Fi at all.

Raymond Chandler: The Little Sister (Philip Marlowe #5)

Another 1920 detective story and much better than the other Chandler book I read earlier this year. This one is highly recommended.

Michael Herr: Dispatches

You want to know how the Vietnam war actually was? Besides this book I doubt there is anything that comes close to actually describe it to someone who was born in another country and long after the war. Highly recommended.

Neal Stephenson: The Diamond Age: Or, a Young Lady’s Illustrated Primer

My second Stephenson book and like the first one it has the some problems. Amazing ideas and interesting characters but horrible execution and ending. Again recommended with a but.

Stieg Larsson: The girl with the Dragon Tattoo Trilogy

Either those books are that horrible written or the translation is horrible. But I wont stop thinking about “Minced meat” and “Hanging them out to dry” when I think of those books. Actually I would recommend that you only get the first book because it is the only one worth reading. The other two are just crap. Like the movies, watch the first one and forget about the other twos. Recommended only for the first, not recommended for the last two.

James S.A. Corey Expanse Series

James S.A. Corey: Leviathan Wakes (Expanse #1)

James S.A. Corey: Caliban’s War (Expanse #2)

James S.A. Corey: Abaddon’s Gate (Expanse #3)

Again I will put those three books together in one. I picked them up because I got several recommendations and I really enjoyed them. They are not all on the same level and can sometimes feel a bit pulp fiction style, but at the end they are thrilling space stories. There is a fourth released and fifth is upcoming. Recommended for Sci-Fi fans, not for the rest.

Franz Kafka: Der Proceß (german)

My second Kafka since High school and I really enjoyed it. After reading three Sci-Fi novels I needed something really different and it got delivered. Highly recommended. Can be acquired for free from the Amazon Kindle store.