Is reading ever easy? Is knowing what you want to read possible? The times when the two click—when you find a book that says not what you know but what you need to hear—are the times I remember with the most longing. When a book speaks to you, and you are able to hear it, it’s everything. This year it was a struggle to find that match, to meet with a book each on our terms. My needs from reading were all over the map—did I want escapism? something to help me process life? Who did I want to be in charge, my brain or the book or both? There were books I devoured even though I didn’t particularly like them. There were books I wanted to read that I just couldn’t bring myself to continue. I wept, I laughed, it was the best of times, the worst of times….