Recommend the 20 best books you've read in the last five years

Shrike58: Another current example of the best state of the art of modern SF that builds on the traditions of the field (imagine what a collaboration between Le Guin & Cherryh would look like) while trying to extend the state of the art. Some people think this is a bad thing, and I'm not sure that Leckie's tricks of language always work, but this is ultimately a very individual story of how one comes by personal dignity.

Shrike58: I recommend the collected set of short novels as in the process of reading these books one is often unsure as to whether VanderMeer is either the smartest guy in the room, or whether he loses control of his material early in the game; with caveats, the former is the truer condition. Besides anything else, you read this book because VanderMeer attempts the hardest thing that you can do in a genre novel, accept that the Universe is more inscrutable than the Human mind can comprehend and still deliver a convincing story with that reality in mind. Besides that the dominant ethical theme is a consideration of what is the cost of true expiation for one's mistakes.

Shrike58: In the process of doing a refresh of this list, I figured that I had to mention this book, which is the opening portion of one of the most novel fantasy trilogies I've ever read.

Shrike58: Is this book a brick? Yes. However, the answer as to why World War I finished as it did is complicated and the author tackles all those issues with both clarity and completeness. If Stephenson doesn't know something about 1918 then you probably don't have to know it either.

Shrike58: I still think that "With Our Back to the Wall" is probably the best book about World War I of the last few years. This is the second best in my opinion, particularly if you want to have an understanding of the military failure of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Also, pretty much everything Watson has written is worth reading.

Shrike58: Written by an academician who has rather more sympathy for the barbarian successors to Rome than is typical, this is a lively examination of why a sustainable recreation of the Western Empire was not attainable, leading some very clever people to essentially create Christendom.

Shrike58: I like books that make me think and this is the current best synthesis of what we know of one of the major branches of humanity. Besides the authors doing a good job of communicating their enthusiasm for their studies, there is also a poignant aspect as it charts what will be looked back upon as a golden age of Russo-Western scientific cooperation.

Shrike58: The first book in an ongoing series of paranormal police procedural novels set in London. This is almost becoming a British specialty (see "The Laundry" series of Charles Stross) but I suggest this one to the reader due to the author's almost cinematic vision and having a nice balance between the human and the fantastic. This is not to mention that there is real character development as the series advances.

Shrike58: Is this an esoteric topic? Sure. But I think it's a great case study of what "positive" Nazi colonialism looked like.

Shrike58: Just a really excellent work of history, as the author puts Braddock's ill-fated expedition into context. The key point is to emphasize just how much this was a victory of the First Nations, as had it simply come down to a Anglo-French battle the French would have found their position untenable. It also doesn't hurt that the evidence suggests that David Preston has hiked the whole length of Braddock's trail, adding insight into the general's travails.