Confession: I initially drafted a long complaint about this year. It’s been a rough one in many respects. However, this year-end “Best Of” exercise has helped me transform the way I view 2023. It turns out that a lot of great stuff happened along with the not-so-great, so I ended up deleting several whiny paragraphs. You’re welcome.
Though the challenges have been intense the past 12 months, the joys have been commensurate. I’ve been fortunate enough to travel to wonderful places and to enjoy deep and meaningful connections with treasured family and friends. And I’ve consumed a lot of great media and food, as you’ll see.
Favorite Books Read
Longbourn, by Jo Walton
Surrender, by Bono
The Golden State, by Lydia Kiesling
The Covenant of Water, by Abraham Verghese
How to Sell a Haunted House, by Grady Hendrix
The Shards, by Bret Easton Ellis
White Cat, Black Dog, by Kelly Link
Vaughan Williams, by Eric Saylor
Crime and Punishment, by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Demon Copperhead, by Barbara Kingsolver
Favorite Movies Watched (2023 Releases)
Best New-to-Me Music
Bewitched (Laufey)
Laughing Stock (Talk Talk)
Dummy (Portishead)
Mezzanine (Massive Attack)
“Little Blue: The Mahoghany Session”—Jacob Collier
Favorite TV Watched
Best Restaurant Meals (SO MANY)
Tusk and Trotter, Bentonville
Farmstead, St. George
The Old Vine, Winchester
Wright’s BBQ, Bentonville
PoivretSel, Auxerre
Riffelhaus, Gornergrat/Zermatt
Le P’tit Bréguet, Paris
Christian Boillat, Lausanne
Benoît, Paris
The Pump Room, Bath
Benoît, New York City
Perle, Pasadena
So many great memories to savor! I’m a lucky woman. Here’s to all the adventures the coming year will bring, and here’s to a joyous, stable, and creative 2024 for us all.
Just wonderful, Luisa :). Here's to your wonderful, fresh New Year.
Always excited to see your year-end lists come through my inbox. Seeing some shows and books I obviously need to catch up on!