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This year I continued with the challenge of reading more books by POC or LGBTQA+ authors and did pretty well, I think, with about a quarter of all my reading by those categories (more if you count manga).
I also hit the 100 mark this year for the first time! 105 books in total this year (again, manga and graphic novels are only counted as one, no matter how many volumes I read).
76 fiction
15 non-fiction
12 manga/graphic novels
3 in French
24 by POC and/or LGBTQA+ authors
This year's favorites were:
* Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant - because everyone needs killer mermaids in a Battle Royale-type setting, with the author's particular brand of humor, heart-wrenching moments, and a plethora of diversity
* Witchmark by C.L. Polk - a stunning debut novel that had everything I was looking for, and a few things I didn't know I was missing. I am eagerly awaiting the author's next book!!
* The Tensorate Series by J.Y. Yang - another marvelous discovery. These novellas take fantasy to places I hadn't been before and I loved immersing myself in them.
* Passing Strange by Ellen Klages - another strange little fantasy novel that defies convention or explanation.
Now that I look at them, I'm seeing a pattern: all of them have been Nebula or Hugo nominees. All of them contain a diverse cast of characters and highlight queer relationships. This is what has been missing from what I've been reading. It makes me happy... and makes for damn fine storytelling.
I also managed to see 47 movies (new and new-to-me), despite almost never getting to the movie theatre! Netflix continues to be my friend... My favorites for the year were:
* Black Panther (2018) - this needs no explanation
* I Kill Giants (2017) - surprising and visually stunning
* Room (2015) - amazing acting, it yanks at your heart the whole time
This year, I decided that I needed to see more concerts and shows, to get out a bit more and do things, even if it's on my own. The result: some truly fantastic shows!
- Les Miserables (Place des Arts): I can't explain how much I loved this production. I saw Les Mis years ago when I was a teenager and was sorely disappointed, so this was taking a chance. But the production floored me, leaving me in tears over "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables" in particular.
- Death in the Ice exhibit at CMH: a culmination of the last 2 years of work! I got to visit opening night, and then play tour guide the following day for the visitors.
- Lights with Dear Rouge (Algonquin Theatre): so many flashing strobe lights! Not my favorite concert.
- Mosaicultures: I'd wanted to go last year but never made it, so I took the opportunity to go with my mother when she was visiting. Beautiful artistry but not something I'd see again.
- Medieval exhibit at CMH: interesting but nothing special
- Bears of Legend (Salle Jean-Desprez): lovely, intimate concert as usual, made a little difficult by the freezing rain outside and some technical difficulties. A great show but not as strong as the last one we saw.
- Stars with the NAC Orchestra (NAC): I bought this ticket on a whim and oh, I did not regret it! My favorite concert of the year, they had such stage presence, sang all my favorites and things I'd never heard, and were just so in awe of the orchestra playing with them that it was lovely to see.
I also hit the 100 mark this year for the first time! 105 books in total this year (again, manga and graphic novels are only counted as one, no matter how many volumes I read).
76 fiction
15 non-fiction
12 manga/graphic novels
3 in French
24 by POC and/or LGBTQA+ authors
This year's favorites were:
* Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant - because everyone needs killer mermaids in a Battle Royale-type setting, with the author's particular brand of humor, heart-wrenching moments, and a plethora of diversity
* Witchmark by C.L. Polk - a stunning debut novel that had everything I was looking for, and a few things I didn't know I was missing. I am eagerly awaiting the author's next book!!
* The Tensorate Series by J.Y. Yang - another marvelous discovery. These novellas take fantasy to places I hadn't been before and I loved immersing myself in them.
* Passing Strange by Ellen Klages - another strange little fantasy novel that defies convention or explanation.
Now that I look at them, I'm seeing a pattern: all of them have been Nebula or Hugo nominees. All of them contain a diverse cast of characters and highlight queer relationships. This is what has been missing from what I've been reading. It makes me happy... and makes for damn fine storytelling.
I also managed to see 47 movies (new and new-to-me), despite almost never getting to the movie theatre! Netflix continues to be my friend... My favorites for the year were:
* Black Panther (2018) - this needs no explanation
* I Kill Giants (2017) - surprising and visually stunning
* Room (2015) - amazing acting, it yanks at your heart the whole time
This year, I decided that I needed to see more concerts and shows, to get out a bit more and do things, even if it's on my own. The result: some truly fantastic shows!
- Les Miserables (Place des Arts): I can't explain how much I loved this production. I saw Les Mis years ago when I was a teenager and was sorely disappointed, so this was taking a chance. But the production floored me, leaving me in tears over "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables" in particular.
- Death in the Ice exhibit at CMH: a culmination of the last 2 years of work! I got to visit opening night, and then play tour guide the following day for the visitors.
- Lights with Dear Rouge (Algonquin Theatre): so many flashing strobe lights! Not my favorite concert.
- Mosaicultures: I'd wanted to go last year but never made it, so I took the opportunity to go with my mother when she was visiting. Beautiful artistry but not something I'd see again.
- Medieval exhibit at CMH: interesting but nothing special
- Bears of Legend (Salle Jean-Desprez): lovely, intimate concert as usual, made a little difficult by the freezing rain outside and some technical difficulties. A great show but not as strong as the last one we saw.
- Stars with the NAC Orchestra (NAC): I bought this ticket on a whim and oh, I did not regret it! My favorite concert of the year, they had such stage presence, sang all my favorites and things I'd never heard, and were just so in awe of the orchestra playing with them that it was lovely to see.
