Simple list of books I read in 2009




Star ratings:
Absolutely Brilliant! A+ = ***** (5)
Loved it. A = ****/* (4.5)
Really Good. B+ = **** (4)
Enjoyed it. B = ***/* (3.5)
Okay. C+ = *** (3)
Did not enjoy it. C = **/* (2.5)
Not good! D+ = ** (2)
Really bad. D = */* (1.5)
Absolute Rubbish! F = * (1)

1. Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro - B+
2. A Fraction of the Whole by Steve Toltz - B+
3. When You Are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris - C+
4. Careless in Red by Elizabeth George - D+
5. The Haunting by Shirley Jackson - B
6. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button by F Scott Fitzgerald - C
7. Fingersmith by Sarah Waters - A
8. So Many Books, So Little Time: A Year of Passionate Reading by Sara Nelson - C+
9. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer - A
10. The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman - A
11. Dead as a Scone by Ron Benrey - C
12. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer - C
13. Shane by Jack Schaefer - B
14. Death of a Witch by M C Beaton - B
15. The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde - A
16. The 39 Clues: The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan - (YA) C+
17. Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami - B+
18. We Thought You Would Be Prettier by Laurie Notaro - C+
19. Brighton Rock by Graham Greene - A
20. Coraline by Neil Gaiman - B+
21. Winston & Salem: Murder, Mystery and Mayhem by Jennifer Bean Bower - C+
22. Three Thanksgivings by Charlotte Perkins Gilman - B
23. Labyrinth by Kate Mosse - B
24. The Girls In Their Summer Dresses by Irwin Shaw - B
25. A Sound of Thunder by Ray Bradbury - A
26. Tell Me Where It Hurts by Dr. Nick Trout - B
27. Foreigner by CJ Cherryh - B+
28. The Minotaur by Barbara Vine - C
29. Armageddon in Retrospective by Kurt Vonnegut - B+
30. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte - A+
31. The Diary of a Superfluous Man by Ivan Turgenev - B
32. The Darling Buds of May by HE Bates - B
33. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro - A
34. The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka - A
35. Dispatches From the Edge by Anderson Cooper - B
36. Mort by Terry Pratchett - B
37. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote - B+
38. The Day I Ate Whatever I Wanted by Elizabeth Berg - B+
39. The Book of Three: The Prydain Chronicles, book 1 by Lloyd Alexander - C
40. Evanly Bodies by Rhys Bowen - B+
41. The Mistress of the Art of Death by Ariana Franklin - B
42. Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury - A
43. Don't Miss Your Life by Charlene Ann Baumbich - B
44. Journey to the Centre of the Earth by Jules Verne - C+
45. A Dirty Job by Christopher Moore - B
46. Dead Heat by Dick Francis - C
47. The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett - B
48. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams - A
49. In The Woods by Tana French - B
50. The Magician's Nephew by CS Lewis - A
51. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by CS Lewis - A
52. The Horse and His Boy by CS Lewis - B
53. Prince Caspian by CS Lewis - B
54. The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux - B
55. New Moon by Stephenie Meyer - D+
56. The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne - B
57. Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer - D+
58. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson - A
59. Possession: A Romance by AS Byatt - B+
60. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by CS Lewis - B
61. Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer - D
62. The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allen Poe - B
63. The Silver Chair by CS Lewis - B
64. The Last Battle by CS Lewis - B
65. The Awakening by Kate Chopin - A
66. The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson - A
67. A Pair of Silk Stockings by Kate Chopin - B
68. The First Men in the Moon by HG Wells - B+
69. The Cask of Amontadillo by Edgar Allen Poe - B
70. The Passion by Jeanette Winterson - A

Message edited by its author, Nov 14, 2009, 8:26am.

Welcome to the group, BritAnnia! Looks like you have started out the year on a high note!

Hi Stasia,

I think I started with two great books. Hope the rest of the year keeps on that way! :)

Me, too! I have started off with several good books this year, as well. I hope the whole year is nothing but good books for both of us.

OH wouldn't a year of only good books be super? Too late for me LOL

Looks like I jinxed myself already by hoping for a year of good reads. ARGH! ;)
Careless in Red was not nearly as good as the earlier Lynley stories.
Still... ever onwards with the next TBR!

I finished Careless in Red last night, and I agree with your evaluation. However, if you've been following the series, you need to read it to see how Lynley begins to cope after the catastrophic events in the last Lynley book, With No One As Witness.

Looks like you haven't posted much here since starting but I saw you posts on the thread about 10 favorite/best and looked you up. We have some similar tastes based on our shared books in the libraries.

Thanks for coming over to say hello :)

I don't post my thoughts on the books I've been reading, though that was one of my goals for this year. Oops there, eh?!
Still, there's hope for me yet. The more I read the reviews of others the more encouraged I feel to try for myself.

Now I'm off to check your library and see which books we share.

Hi,
Just wanted to let you know that I started the thread for the Genre Challenge for April, which is horror. There are lots to choose from with that topic. Have a great weekend!
--BJ

You shouldn't feel pressured to make your comments or share your thoughts in any particular way. My reviews have grown a bit since I started but I find the one or two lines from alcottacre just as rewarding as the long reviews. Anything you put down is useful to us bibliophiles. And this is a very supportive group of folks.

Glad you stopped in at the library.

#11: Thanks for the compliment, Mac!

I echo what BDB says BritAnnia - I do not do long reviews, mine just tend to say whether or not I would recommend the book, so long reviews are certainly not required here :o) You also will not find a nicer group of book lovers anywhere, so if they have a question, believe me, they will ask!

Me too--in the shorter review group of threaders here. But I've found interesting reads on lots of different style threads, so just keep posting, please!

#6 & #7: Sorry to hear about Careless in Red. I've loved the Lynley series for quite some time and was so excited to pick up Careless at a library sale but have yet to read it. In fact, I started With No One as Witness years ago and never finished it. Perhaps I ought to finish that one first....if I can find where I put it.