Reprising last year’s compost heap, I’m offering my “best-of” of 2023 roundup when it comes to smells, sights, sounds, words, visions, and ideas.
1. Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
I came to the Mantel party way too late. I’m one of those obnoxious people who tend to develop an allergy for a book that everyone recommends. But Wolf Hall lives up to the hype. As a lover of historical fiction, I was blown away by Mantel’s fluency with Elizabethan detail. She knows this time period so well that she doesn’t have to prove to you that she’s done her research. The dialogue is organic and the character of Cromwell is devastatingly relatable – something I never thought I’d ever say. It’s a rare feat when a historical figure that has been obscured by interpretation emerges freshly sympathetic. This book immediately entered my top ten favorite books of all time.