{"id":7583,"date":"2023-01-04T22:23:52","date_gmt":"2023-01-04T22:23:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/farefwd.com\/?p=7583"},"modified":"2023-01-04T22:23:54","modified_gmt":"2023-01-04T22:23:54","slug":"the-best-books-we-read-in-2022","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/farefwd.com\/index.php\/2023\/01\/04\/the-best-books-we-read-in-2022\/","title":{"rendered":"The Best Books We Read in 2022"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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The Best Books We Read in 2022<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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Once again, the Fare Forward<\/em> editors offer you the (unexpected) favorites we discovered during the year past. If you stumble across them too, we recommend picking them up!<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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By the FF Editors
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Giving Up the Ghost<\/em> by Hilary Mantel<\/p>

I still have never read any of Hilary Mantel\u2019s critically acclaimed novels (they\u2019ve been on my list for ages), but when she passed away this past September, a number of people posted portions of her (excellent) writing online, and the bits that struck me the most were from her memoir, Giving Up the Ghost<\/em>. I ordered a used copy of it and was somewhat surprised to receive a pocket-sized edition\u2014but its small size earned it a place in my luggage when we packed up for a family vacation. The title of the memoir, and its writing, were inspired by the sale of Mantel and her husband\u2019s weekend home, Owl Cottage. In addition to its other charms, Owl Cottage was the last place Mantel had seen her stepfather before his death. Thus, he is the titular ghost, but as the story unfolds, he is joined by a host of others. In a life marked by loss\u2014of home and family, of faith, of bodily autonomy, and, finally, of the children that would never be born\u2014Mantel emerges on the page as an accurate historian, but decidedly not a passionless one. Whether one relates to the travails of Mantel\u2019s life or not, her commitment to relating the story of a life as experienced makes this one worth the read. \u2013 Sarah Clark, Editor-in-Chief<\/p><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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If you’re not much for philosophy, or don’t want to commit time to reading the whole book, I suggest picking it up for the section on Mary alone.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Wandering in Darkness<\/em> by Eleonore Stump<\/p>

Late this summer, I finally plucked Eleonore Stump’s Wandering in Darkness<\/em>\u00a0off my husband’s bookshelf. Stump is a soft-spoken Thomist philosopher, and the book is her magnum opus. It’s a thoroughly original exploration of the problem of evil, driven by four stories from the Bible: the lives of Abraham, Job, Samson, and Mary of Bethany. Stump illuminates how each of these characters suffered differently, and her exegesis of the biblical stories that give us the details of their lives has invigorated my own reading of Scripture. Like poetry written about biblical characters and scenes, Stump’s exploration slows the pace of the biblical texts, allowing us to pause within the narrative to question why people act in certain ways or say specific things in light of their own suffering. Why, for instance, in John 11, does only Martha come out to meet Jesus on the road to Bethany, while Mary stays inside her house? If you’re not much for philosophy, or don’t want to commit time to reading the whole book, I suggest picking it up for the section on Mary alone, which will undoubtedly be a balm to your soul. \u2013 Moriah Hawkins, Managing Editor<\/p><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Before each article, he offers a peek into his own life as a black writer at the time.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy <\/em>by Ta-Nehisi Coates<\/p>

When I bought this nonfiction collection\u00a0by Ta-Nehisi Coates, I expected a collection of brilliant articles covering issues of race and politics during the Obama years, a \u201cgreatest hits\u201d of his work in\u00a0The Atlantic\u00a0<\/em>with some additional new writing. That\u2019s what I got\u2014that, plus the most deftly crafted writer\u2019s memoir I\u2019ve ever read.\u00a0Beyond Coates\u2019s literary prowess and intellect, the book\u2019s magic is in the structure. Before each article, he offers a peek into his own life as a black writer at the time. We see him go from fledging blogger to lauded journalist to best-selling author. These are vulnerable chapters, divulging not only personal information but also his current judgment of his past work, including several frank critiques. It is by eschewing the temptation to revise these articles that Coates manages to show something few memoirs can capture\u2014the evolution of a mind and voice. Moreover, the memoir aspect enhances the book\u2019s political insights. By speaking personally as a black man who came into success while the first black president was in power, he offers an exceptionally nuanced, piercing, and conflicted account of Obama\u2019s presidency and what came next. \u201cI wanted these articles\u2026 collected in a single volume,\u201d Coates explains in the book\u2019s introduction. \u201cBut I also had an urge to try to make something new of them.\u201d Mission accomplished. \u2013 Whitney Rio-Ross, Poetry Editor<\/p><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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With the deft precision of a surgeon, Morrison uses the narrative of Pecola Breedlove\u2019s life to cut to the core of our society\u2019s enchantment with certain forms of beauty.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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The Bluest Eye<\/em> by Toni Morrison<\/p>

A friend invited me to see a theater-in-the-round adaptation of Toni Morrison\u2019s first novel, The Bluest Eye<\/em>, earlier this year. I rushed to get a copy of the book, driven initially by the self-buoying goal of being \u201cin the know\u201d before the lights dimmed. But Morrison\u2019s pen quickly exerted a fierce gravity over me as I spent three nights moving through this harsh, unforgiving, and confoundingly tender story. With the deft precision of a surgeon, Morrison uses the narrative of Pecola Breedlove\u2019s life to cut to the core of our society\u2019s enchantment with certain forms of beauty, and the devastating fallout of this affair for the most vulnerable in our midst. In truth, I don\u2019t have anything to say about The Bluest Eye<\/em> that hasn\u2019t already been said by people much smarter than me, including those who gave it the Nobel Prize\u2014save for a sheepish admission that I wish I had read it sooner. \u2013 Jake Casale, Editor<\/p><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Steinbeck\u2019s magnum opus still manages to coalesce as a coherent meditation on one of his biggest questions: Can humanity be good?<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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East of Eden<\/em> by John Steinbeck<\/p>

If Steinbeck is right that all authors have one truly great book in them, and the rest are just practice, he’ll get no argument from me that\u00a0East of Eden\u00a0<\/em>is \u201cthe book\u201d in his bibliography. An ambitious story that follows about a dozen characters over several generations (and never misses an opportunity to follow a side-character\u2019s story down a bunny trail), Steinbeck\u2019s magnum opus still manages to coalesce as a coherent meditation on one of his biggest questions: Can humanity be good? Steinbeck remains hopeful that the answer is yes, despite his novel never once shying away from mankind\u2019s capacity for cruelty and violence. It\u2019s hard to watch his characters make destructive choices and not empathize with why, in those circumstances, they made that decision. It\u2019s easy to imagine that, in the right context, we might do the same. Perhaps that is why the tiny thread of hope that runs through the novel\u2014rarely acknowledged as it is\u2014shines so brightly. \u2013 Sara Holston, Editor<\/p><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Once again, the Fare Forward editors offer you the (unexpected) favorites we discovered during the year past. If you stumble across them too, we recommend picking them up!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":7584,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"ocean_post_layout":"","ocean_both_sidebars_style":"","ocean_both_sidebars_content_width":0,"ocean_both_sidebars_sidebars_width":0,"ocean_sidebar":"0","ocean_second_sidebar":"0","ocean_disable_margins":"enable","ocean_add_body_class":"","ocean_shortcode_before_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_after_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_before_header":"","ocean_shortcode_after_header":"","ocean_has_shortcode":"","ocean_shortcode_after_title":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_bottom":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_bottom":"","ocean_display_top_bar":"default","ocean_display_header":"default","ocean_header_style":"","ocean_center_header_left_menu":"0","ocean_custom_header_template":"0","ocean_custom_logo":0,"ocean_custom_retina_logo":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_height":0,"ocean_header_custom_menu":"0","ocean_menu_typo_font_family":"0","ocean_menu_typo_font_subset":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_size":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_unit":"px","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_line_height":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_unit":"","ocean_menu_typo_spacing":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_unit":"","ocean_menu_link_color":"","ocean_menu_link_color_hover":"","ocean_menu_link_color_active":"","ocean_menu_link_background":"","ocean_menu_link_hover_background":"","ocean_menu_link_active_background":"","ocean_menu_social_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_links_color":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_color":"","ocean_disable_title":"default","ocean_disable_heading":"default","ocean_post_title":"","ocean_post_subheading":"","ocean_post_title_style":"","ocean_post_title_background_color":"","ocean_post_title_background":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_image_position":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_attachment":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_repeat":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_size":"","ocean_post_title_height":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay":0.5,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay_color":"","ocean_disable_breadcrumbs":"default","ocean_breadcrumbs_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_separator_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_hover_color":"","ocean_display_footer_widgets":"default","ocean_display_footer_bottom":"default","ocean_custom_footer_template":"0","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"ocean_post_oembed":"","ocean_post_self_hosted_media":"","ocean_post_video_embed":"","ocean_link_format":"","ocean_link_format_target":"self","ocean_quote_format":"","ocean_quote_format_link":"post","ocean_gallery_link_images":"off","ocean_gallery_id":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7583","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-book-review","category-newsletter","entry","has-media"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/farefwd.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Best-Books-of-2022-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C1440&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/farefwd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7583","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/farefwd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/farefwd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/farefwd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/farefwd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7583"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/farefwd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7583\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7594,"href":"https:\/\/farefwd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7583\/revisions\/7594"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/farefwd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7584"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/farefwd.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/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