Books Read in 2017

So Goodreads says I’ve read 53 books in 2017, but if you count the Shaeffer Trilogy as 3 books, it’s 55. Anyway, it’s been a pretty good reading year without any real duds. First, a few stand-outs:

Favorite Fiction

There were several good ones, but my favorite would probably be Pride and Prejudice, which I thoroughly enjoyed on audiobook this time through. 🙂

Favorite Education Read

I finished three of Charlotte Mason’s volumes in 2017: A Philosophy of Education, Parents and Children, and Home Education. Philosophy was definitely my favorite, and the one I and many others recommend starting with (although I actually finished School Education first because Philosophy was a slow read over a couple of years). I’m hoping to finish reading her volumes in 2018: I got Formation of Character for Christmas, and will be reading part of Ourselves with an online class starting in a couple of weeks.

Favorite Audiobook

Besides P&P, that is. 😉 I was pretty much riveted by Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, especially the dramatic last few chapters, and it’s my favorite of the series so far. I listened to 5 Harry Potter books in 2017, either with the whole family in the car (2 & 3), or alone (4, 5, 6). I’m having a hard time getting into the last book – the storyline seems so dark and sad right now – but hopefully it’ll grab me eventually.

Favorite Mystery

The Hound of the Baskervilles still creeps me out after multiple readings, so it must be good!

Favorite “School” Read 

P&P was kind of for school too, but a favorite memory from the last school year is the discussions Miss A, Mr. D, and I had while reading the Iliad. I hope we can do something like that again soon. 🙂

Here’s the complete list. RA is a read-aloud, “audio” is an audiobook, and the stars are my ratings on Goodreads.

1. She Stoops to Conquer by Oliver Goldsmith ⭐⭐⭐
2. Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare (book and audio) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
3. Edward MacDowell and His Cabin in the Pines by Opal Wheeler (RA) ⭐⭐⭐
4. The Putarch Primer by Anne White ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
5. Murder in Mesopotamia by Agatha Christie (audio) ⭐⭐⭐
6. The Singing Tree by Kate Seredy (RA) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
7. The Seven Laws of Teaching by John Milton Gregory ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
8. Airs Above the Ground by Mary Stewart ⭐⭐⭐⭐
9. Are You Liberal? Conservative? Or Confused? by Richard J. Maybury ⭐⭐⭐⭐
10. Common Sense by Thomas Paine ⭐⭐⭐⭐
11. The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare (book and audio) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
12. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (audio) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
13. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling (audio) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
14. Find the Constellations by H.A. Rey (RA) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
15. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling (audio) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
16. The Curious Nature Guide by Clare Walker Leslie ⭐⭐⭐
17. Owls in the Family by Farley Mowat ⭐⭐⭐
18. The Twits by Roald Dahl ⭐⭐⭐⭐
19. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K Rowling (audio) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
20. Only the Lover Sings: Art and Contemplation by Josef Pieper ⭐⭐⭐⭐
21. Plan Your Year: Homeschool Planning for Purpose and Peace by Pam Barnhill ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
22. The Age of Revolution by Winston Churchill (audio) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
23. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling (audio) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
24. The Sea Around Us: Special Edition for Young Readers by Rachel Carson ⭐⭐⭐
25. The Complete Tales of Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne (RA) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
26. Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes by Jonathan Auxier (RA) ⭐⭐⭐
27. A Philosophy of Education by Charlotte Mason ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
28. The Francis A. Shaeffer Trilogy by Francis A. Shaeffer ⭐⭐⭐⭐
29. The Wind off the Small Isles by Mary Stewart (audio) ⭐⭐⭐
30. Fierce Convictions: The Extraordinary Life of Hannah More – Poet, Reformer, Abolitionist by Karen Swallow Prior ⭐⭐⭐⭐
31. Parents and Children by Charlotte Mason ⭐⭐⭐⭐
32. Harry Potter and Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling (audio) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
33. Augustus Caesar’s World by Genevieve Foster ⭐⭐⭐
34. The Iliad of Homer translated by Richmond Lattimore (book & audio) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
35. George Washington’s World by Genevieve Foster ⭐⭐⭐⭐
36. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis (audio) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
37. Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White (RA) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
38. Clouds of Witness by Dorothy Sayers (audio) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
39. Jane of Lantern Hill by L.M. Montgomery (RA) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
40. 12 Ways Your Phone is Changing You by Tony Reinke ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
41. Richard III by William Shakespeare (book & audio) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
42. The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (audio) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
43. Martin Luther: The Man Who Rediscovered God and Changed the World by Eric Metaxas ⭐⭐⭐⭐
44. Reading People: How Seeing the World Through the Lens of Personality Changes Everything by Anne Bogel ⭐⭐⭐⭐
45. The Law by Frédéric Bastiat ⭐⭐⭐⭐
46. Evaluating Books by Richard Maybury ⭐⭐⭐
47. Are Women Human by Dorothy Sayers ⭐⭐⭐⭐
48. Linnets and Valerians by Elizabeth Goudge (RA) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
49. Home Education by Charlotte Mason ⭐⭐⭐⭐
50. Presenting Miss Jane Austen by May Lamberton Becker ⭐⭐⭐⭐
51. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë (audio) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
52. The A.B.C. Murders by Agatha Christie (audio) ⭐⭐⭐
53. Golden Booklet of the True Christian Life by John Calvin ⭐⭐⭐⭐