So I’ve beaten my record last year of reading 36 books. In 2017, I read 44 books – four by Veronica Roth, three by Patricia Highsmith, three by Gillian Flynn and another three by Gael Lindenfield. Over the year I went through a phase of having 4-5 half-finished books, bookmarks left at chapters one and two. Then a couple of months later I devoured them all.
I’m surprised at the number of female authors’ works I’ve been reading, but looking through the list, the one that really stood out for me was Cannery Row by John Steinbeck. It still leaves me with this glow just thinking about Doc’s house and the ocean in Monterey. Can you imagine – that book was published in 1945.
In terms of films watched in cinemas, all 9 below were pretty darn good! With the exception of King Arthur and Kingsman 2, which were mediocre and did not live up to its hype and expectation.
Films 2017
1) La La Land – HOYTS, Melbourne Central (Jan)
2) Beauty and the Beast – GSC Queensbay Mall, Penang (Apr)
3) Beauty and the Beast – GSC Queensbay Mall, Penang (Apr)
4) You Mean the World to Me – TGV 1st Avenue, Penang (May)
5) King Arthur: Legend of the Sword – TGV 1st Avenue, Penang (May)
6) Wonder Woman – TGV Paragon, Penang (June)
7) Wonder Woman – TGV Paragon, Penang (June)
8) Baby Driver – GSC Queensbay, Penang (July)
9) Kingsman: The Golden Circle – TGV Sunway Pyramid, KL (Sept)
Books 2017
1) Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them; Original Screenplay by JK Rowling (Jan)
2) Of Love and Evil by Anne Rice (Jan)
3) Coexist by Anna Tan (Feb)
4) Divergent by Veronica Roth (Feb)
5) Insurgent by Veronica Roth (Feb)
6) Allegiant by Veronica Roth (Feb)
7) Hans Christian Andersen’s Fairy Tales; Retold by Naomi Lewis (Feb)
8) Twilight by Stephenie Meyer (Mar)
9) Limitless: Devotions for A Ridiculously Good Life by Nick Vujicic (Mar)
10) Four; A Divergent Collection by Veronica Roth (Mar)
11) Anthem for Doomed Youth by Wilfred Owen (Mar)
12) Tales of Natural and Unnatural Catastrophes by Patricia Highsmith (Mar)
13) Dongeng by Anna Tan (Apr)
14) Dog Pound by Mamu Vies (Apr)
15) The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas (May)
16) Little Basket 2017: New Malaysian Writing (May)
17) Cannery Row by John Steinbeck (July)
18) Emotional Confidence by Gael Lindenfield (July)
19) The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood (July)
20) Developing the Leader Within You by John C. Maxwell (July)
21) Angel Time by Anne Rice (July)
22) Silverfish New Writing 6 ed. by Dipika Mukherjee (July)
23) KL Noir X Blue ed. by Eeleen Lee (Aug)
24) Child of the Sun by Cecil Rajendra (Aug)
25) Delighting in God by A.W.Tozer (Aug)
26) Selected Short Stories by F. Scott. Fitzgerald (Aug)
27) Super Confidence by Gael Lindenfield (Aug)
28) Dark Places by Gillian Flynn (Aug)
29) Revolutionary Work by William Taylor (Aug)
30) Self-Esteem by Gael Lindenfield (Aug)
31) Nutshell by Ian McEwan (Aug)
32) The Black House by Patricia Highsmith (Sept)
33) The Tudung Anthology ed. by Azalia Zaharuddin (Sept)
34) This Sweet Sickness by Patricia Highsmith (Sept)
35) Reflections on the Psalms by C.S. Lewis (Sept)
36) Live by Night by Dennis Lehane (Oct)
37) Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn (Oct)
38) Miracles by C.S. Lewis (Nov)
39) Floating Petals by Leela Devi Panikar (Nov)
40) True Grit: Women Taking on the World, for God’s Sake by Deborah Meroff (Nov)
41) Yesterday by Felicia Yap (Nov)
42) Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White (Nov)
43) Selected Stories by Alexandre Dumas (Nov)
44) Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn (Dec)
Wan Phing Lim 