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1avaland
For the 5th year in a row, here is the thread to tell us about your best reads of 2010.
In previous years, some have wanted to limit the number of fiction choices (5?) so that a cumulative list could be made for the group. We started that way (back in the old days) but I drifted, so if someone wants to do that this year, please start a separate "best" thread for that purpose.
Otherwise, readers, tell us your best reads of the year (and, if you consent, perhaps one line of why they made the list - and really isn't that more interesting than just a list of books? )
Best of 2006
Best of 2007
Best of 2008
Best of 2009
In previous years, some have wanted to limit the number of fiction choices (5?) so that a cumulative list could be made for the group. We started that way (back in the old days) but I drifted, so if someone wants to do that this year, please start a separate "best" thread for that purpose.
Otherwise, readers, tell us your best reads of the year (and, if you consent, perhaps one line of why they made the list - and really isn't that more interesting than just a list of books? )
Best of 2006
Best of 2007
Best of 2008
Best of 2009
2Storeetllr
I've still got 10 days to go before the end of 2010, but I don't think anything I'm reading now or planning to read in the next two weeks will top these:
1. The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender - The writing was outstanding, and I really got involved with the characters. Plus I thought the concept (being able to tell how the cook was feeling by eating a dish) was pretty original. I also couldn't stop thinking about what the brother did.
2. Sovereign by C. J. Sansom - The mysteries are good, but it's the historical details of these Shardlake mysteries that keep me salivating for the next one. In Sovereign, the history of the time overshadows the mystery, and the portrayals of Cromwell and Henry VIII are riveting and made the two come alive for me in a way other novels about them haven't.
3. Neverwhere Neil Gaiman - I didn't want this to end, and I desperately wish Gaiman would write a sequel or even a series on this. Dull-as-toast Richard Mayhew comes to the rescue of the injured girl named Door and by doing so falls through a crack into the shadowy, magical world under London where he must keep Door safe from those who mean her harm if he ever wants to get his old mundane life back.
4. White Night by Jim Butcher - I've enjoyed each of the previous books in the series, but in this one Harry Dresden has finally become the wizard I always knew he could be. The novel had me sitting at the edge of my seat, laughing and crying and cheering him on.
5. Palace of Justice by Susanne Alleyn - This historical mystery, set during the French Revolution around the time Marie Antoinette lost her head, features Aristide Ravel of Cavalier of the Apocalypse. The story pulled me right in and would not let me go. There were parts that had me biting my nails, while others had me in tears. The historical details were perfect. I can't praise this one highly enough.
6. The Wet Nurse's Tale by Erica Eisdorfer - Excellent historical fiction and remarkable studies of character and period (Victorian, I believe).
7. The Sandman: Preludes and Nocturnes, etc. by Neil Gaiman (graphic novel) - I've just started reading graphic novels (Welcome to the Jungle and Watchmen are two other good ones I've read), and these tales of Morpheus are addictive. The art is a bit uneven, though some of it is amazing, but it's Gaiman's dialogue and concept that makes this series so wonderful and a new favorite.
ETA The Sandman: Brief Lives and The Sandman: The Kindly Ones were my favorites, followed closely by The Sandman: World's End and The Sandman: The Doll's House.
1. The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender - The writing was outstanding, and I really got involved with the characters. Plus I thought the concept (being able to tell how the cook was feeling by eating a dish) was pretty original. I also couldn't stop thinking about what the brother did.
2. Sovereign by C. J. Sansom - The mysteries are good, but it's the historical details of these Shardlake mysteries that keep me salivating for the next one. In Sovereign, the history of the time overshadows the mystery, and the portrayals of Cromwell and Henry VIII are riveting and made the two come alive for me in a way other novels about them haven't.
3. Neverwhere Neil Gaiman - I didn't want this to end, and I desperately wish Gaiman would write a sequel or even a series on this. Dull-as-toast Richard Mayhew comes to the rescue of the injured girl named Door and by doing so falls through a crack into the shadowy, magical world under London where he must keep Door safe from those who mean her harm if he ever wants to get his old mundane life back.
4. White Night by Jim Butcher - I've enjoyed each of the previous books in the series, but in this one Harry Dresden has finally become the wizard I always knew he could be. The novel had me sitting at the edge of my seat, laughing and crying and cheering him on.
5. Palace of Justice by Susanne Alleyn - This historical mystery, set during the French Revolution around the time Marie Antoinette lost her head, features Aristide Ravel of Cavalier of the Apocalypse. The story pulled me right in and would not let me go. There were parts that had me biting my nails, while others had me in tears. The historical details were perfect. I can't praise this one highly enough.
6. The Wet Nurse's Tale by Erica Eisdorfer - Excellent historical fiction and remarkable studies of character and period (Victorian, I believe).
7. The Sandman: Preludes and Nocturnes, etc. by Neil Gaiman (graphic novel) - I've just started reading graphic novels (Welcome to the Jungle and Watchmen are two other good ones I've read), and these tales of Morpheus are addictive. The art is a bit uneven, though some of it is amazing, but it's Gaiman's dialogue and concept that makes this series so wonderful and a new favorite.
ETA The Sandman: Brief Lives and The Sandman: The Kindly Ones were my favorites, followed closely by The Sandman: World's End and The Sandman: The Doll's House.
3CarolynSchroeder
Fiction:
1. Freedom by Jonathan Franzen;
2. By Nightfall by Michael Cunningham;
3. The Long Ships bu Frans G. Bengtsson;
4. Lust for Life by Irving Stone; and
5. The Garden of Martyrs by Michael C. White
Non Fiction:
1. Born to Run by Christopher McDougall;
2. Bonk by Mary Roach;
3. The Piano Shop on the Left Bank: Discovering a Forgotten Passion in a Paris Atelier by Thad Carhart;
4. Beautiful Boy by David Sheff; and
5. Methland by Nick Reding
PS ~ I reviewed all of these, so feel free to peruse.
1. Freedom by Jonathan Franzen;
2. By Nightfall by Michael Cunningham;
3. The Long Ships bu Frans G. Bengtsson;
4. Lust for Life by Irving Stone; and
5. The Garden of Martyrs by Michael C. White
Non Fiction:
1. Born to Run by Christopher McDougall;
2. Bonk by Mary Roach;
3. The Piano Shop on the Left Bank: Discovering a Forgotten Passion in a Paris Atelier by Thad Carhart;
4. Beautiful Boy by David Sheff; and
5. Methland by Nick Reding
PS ~ I reviewed all of these, so feel free to peruse.
4jnwelch
Gives me a smile to see another Neverwhere fan; good description of the book! The Sandman books are great, too.
If it's all right, I'm going to give 4 categories for mine.
Fiction:
Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson - wonderful first novel about romance, integrity and overcoming class prejudice
The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien - mind-blowing set of inter-connected stories relating to the Vietnam War
A Guide to the Birds of East Africa by Nicholas Drayson - a quirky tale about a man of high integrity
The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa - clever story centered around friendships and a professor with a short-term memory disability
The Blind Contessa's New Machine by Carey Wallace - a lyrical flight based on the true story of the invention of the typewriter
Nonfiction:
Gang Leader for a Day by Sudhir Venkatesh - a unique inside story on the operations of a Chicago gang
Jane Austen for Dummies by Joan Elizabeth Klingel Ray - I was well-qualified to read this
Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior by Ori Brafman - an easy read full of contrarian insights
Buddha for Beginners by Stephen T. Asma - heavy on graphics but still conveying a lot of information that was new to me
Beowulf on the Beach by Jack Murnighan - a frank unassuming analysis of classic works by a guy I wish had taught me
Young Adult:
Chaos Walking trilogy by Patrick Ness - riveting series about many things including the dangers of charismatic leadership and the futility of war
The Hunger Games trilogy - powerful storytelling about rebels in a cruel dystopia
Daddy Long Legs by Jean Webster - old-fashioned epistolary charmer that was the basis for the movie
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott - a memorable family thrives on moral aspirations
Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery - irresistible Anne opens everyone's eyes and hearts
Graphic Novels:
Scott Pilgrim series by Bryan Lee O'Malley - lots of laughs but also truth
Britten and Brulightly by Hannah Berry a noir featuring a teabag; go figure
Too Cool to be Forgotten by Alex Robinson - the daydream/nightmare of returning to high school handled beautifully
Batwoman: Elegy - great graphics and story make it all brand new
Strangers in Paradise by Terry Moore - witty, infectious characters trying to find love in sometimes dire circumstances
If it's all right, I'm going to give 4 categories for mine.
Fiction:
Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson - wonderful first novel about romance, integrity and overcoming class prejudice
The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien - mind-blowing set of inter-connected stories relating to the Vietnam War
A Guide to the Birds of East Africa by Nicholas Drayson - a quirky tale about a man of high integrity
The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa - clever story centered around friendships and a professor with a short-term memory disability
The Blind Contessa's New Machine by Carey Wallace - a lyrical flight based on the true story of the invention of the typewriter
Nonfiction:
Gang Leader for a Day by Sudhir Venkatesh - a unique inside story on the operations of a Chicago gang
Jane Austen for Dummies by Joan Elizabeth Klingel Ray - I was well-qualified to read this
Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior by Ori Brafman - an easy read full of contrarian insights
Buddha for Beginners by Stephen T. Asma - heavy on graphics but still conveying a lot of information that was new to me
Beowulf on the Beach by Jack Murnighan - a frank unassuming analysis of classic works by a guy I wish had taught me
Young Adult:
Chaos Walking trilogy by Patrick Ness - riveting series about many things including the dangers of charismatic leadership and the futility of war
The Hunger Games trilogy - powerful storytelling about rebels in a cruel dystopia
Daddy Long Legs by Jean Webster - old-fashioned epistolary charmer that was the basis for the movie
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott - a memorable family thrives on moral aspirations
Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery - irresistible Anne opens everyone's eyes and hearts
Graphic Novels:
Scott Pilgrim series by Bryan Lee O'Malley - lots of laughs but also truth
Britten and Brulightly by Hannah Berry a noir featuring a teabag; go figure
Too Cool to be Forgotten by Alex Robinson - the daydream/nightmare of returning to high school handled beautifully
Batwoman: Elegy - great graphics and story make it all brand new
Strangers in Paradise by Terry Moore - witty, infectious characters trying to find love in sometimes dire circumstances
5Capybara_99
hThis list is fiction-heavy, and restricted to books I read for the first time this year (which requires the omission of Gulliver's Travels and Gravity's Rainbow.)
In the order read:
I Am Not Sidney Poitier by Percival Everett -- The adventures in satire and parody of a Black American, named Not Sidney Poitier, who is adopted by Ted Turner. Very funny, with the plots of Sidney Poitier's movies recurring in the book.
The Spare Room by Helen Garner -- a spare unsparing novel about the need for life to resist the needs of death and the dying. A comedy of manners.
The Spellmans Strike Again by Lisa Lutz -- the fourth book of a series about the maturation of Izzy Spellman and her family, investigators all -- the whole series is very funny, light, about something, and in key moments, touching.
Summertime by J.M. Coetzee -- typically acerbic memoir/autobiography which is also 1) fictional and 2) paints Coetzee in an unsympathetic light.
The Way We Live Now by Anthony Trollope -- big Victorian novel about about society in the throes of financial collapse.
The Age of Wonder by Richard Holmes -- the great biographer of the english Romantics, among others, tells great stories of the romance of science in Romantic England.
A Visit From the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan -- I found the chapter by chapter writing so engaging, and the story-telling choices so right, that the book is one of my favorites of the year despite not caring much about the overall story.
When Will There Be Good News? by Kate Atkinson -- I loved this crime story, and am not sure why. Atkinson has the eye of someone not as interested in the crime as the characters, I guess.
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell I liked his previous two better than this one, but he creates his world with remarkable imaginative sympathy, and then does not overload us with details.
How to Live: or A Life of Montaigne in One Question and Twenty Attempts at an Answer by Sarah Bakewell -- to some extent this book is on the list because I like her subject so much, but while for the first few pages I thought it perhaps too simple, soon I found this a masterfully told presentation of Montaigne and his reception through ages and places.
In the order read:
I Am Not Sidney Poitier by Percival Everett -- The adventures in satire and parody of a Black American, named Not Sidney Poitier, who is adopted by Ted Turner. Very funny, with the plots of Sidney Poitier's movies recurring in the book.
The Spare Room by Helen Garner -- a spare unsparing novel about the need for life to resist the needs of death and the dying. A comedy of manners.
The Spellmans Strike Again by Lisa Lutz -- the fourth book of a series about the maturation of Izzy Spellman and her family, investigators all -- the whole series is very funny, light, about something, and in key moments, touching.
Summertime by J.M. Coetzee -- typically acerbic memoir/autobiography which is also 1) fictional and 2) paints Coetzee in an unsympathetic light.
The Way We Live Now by Anthony Trollope -- big Victorian novel about about society in the throes of financial collapse.
The Age of Wonder by Richard Holmes -- the great biographer of the english Romantics, among others, tells great stories of the romance of science in Romantic England.
A Visit From the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan -- I found the chapter by chapter writing so engaging, and the story-telling choices so right, that the book is one of my favorites of the year despite not caring much about the overall story.
When Will There Be Good News? by Kate Atkinson -- I loved this crime story, and am not sure why. Atkinson has the eye of someone not as interested in the crime as the characters, I guess.
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell I liked his previous two better than this one, but he creates his world with remarkable imaginative sympathy, and then does not overload us with details.
How to Live: or A Life of Montaigne in One Question and Twenty Attempts at an Answer by Sarah Bakewell -- to some extent this book is on the list because I like her subject so much, but while for the first few pages I thought it perhaps too simple, soon I found this a masterfully told presentation of Montaigne and his reception through ages and places.
6brenzi
I love this time of year. Here we go:
Fiction:
All the King's Men byRobert Penn Warren
1507::Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
Fingersmith by Sarah Waters
American Salvage by Bonnie Jo Campbell
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
Troubles by J.G. Farrell
No Great Mischief by Alistair McLean
The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachmann
The Plague by Albert Camus
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh
Let the Great World Spin by Collum McCann
The Siege by Helen Dunmore
Middlemarch by George Eliot
The Betrayal - by Helen Dunmore
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Non-fiction
The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan
The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
Packing for Mars by Mary Roach
All have been reviewed on the work's page.
And I have to add this one even though I'm only about half way through because it's very good and will end up on this list anyway:
Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea by Barbara Demick
Fiction:
All the King's Men byRobert Penn Warren
1507::Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
Fingersmith by Sarah Waters
American Salvage by Bonnie Jo Campbell
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
Troubles by J.G. Farrell
No Great Mischief by Alistair McLean
The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachmann
The Plague by Albert Camus
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh
Let the Great World Spin by Collum McCann
The Siege by Helen Dunmore
Middlemarch by George Eliot
The Betrayal - by Helen Dunmore
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Non-fiction
The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan
The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
Packing for Mars by Mary Roach
All have been reviewed on the work's page.
And I have to add this one even though I'm only about half way through because it's very good and will end up on this list anyway:
Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea by Barbara Demick
8Grammath
My favourite was David Mitchell's debut novel Ghostwritten, a book which actually was all the things that are claimed about his later and more widely known Cloud Atlas.
9psychobabble4u
Off the top of my head and without a doubt the best book of 2010 was The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. This book was followed by Catching Fire and Mockinjay, the other two books in her series.
Jim Butcher Codex Alera series also among my favorites read this year.
The Help by Katherine Stockett
Karen Moning Shadowfever 4th in her fever series another 2010 favorite
Jim Butcher Codex Alera series also among my favorites read this year.
The Help by Katherine Stockett
Karen Moning Shadowfever 4th in her fever series another 2010 favorite
10avaland
--Black Mirror by Gail Jones (2002, novel, Australian) Her writing is just beautiful.
--Dreams of Speaking by Gail Jones (2006, Australian) Again, her writing is beautiful and the story was delightfully different, I thought.
--Strange Meeting by Susan Hill (1976, UK) Excellent tale of male friendship on the front lines.
--Wide Open by Nicola Barker (1998, UK) fabulously, artful tale that blew me away.
--The Broken Shore by Peter Temple (2005, Australian) Excellent literary fiction and a terrific police procedural.
--A Bloodsmoor Romance by Joyce Carol Oates (novel, 1982, US) Delicious homage/spoof of 19th century American literature, great story too.
--The Last Summer of Reason by Tahar Djaout (novella, Algerian, T 2007) Mesmerizing tale of one bookseller holding out against religious fundamentalism.
--Deep Hollow Creek by Sheila Watson (novella, 1992, Canadian) Great story of how one young woman's life is changed by the Canadian backcountry in the early part of the 20th century.
--Touch by Adania Shibli (novella, T 2010, Palestinian author) Another mesmerizing tale of life in the West Bank from a young girl's viewpoint.
--The Patience Stone by Atiq Rahimi (Afghan author, novella, translation 2009) Powerful story of one woman's emotional release as she cares for her dying (and oppressive) husband.
--I Lock My Door Upon Myself, Joyce Carol Oates (1990, novella, US) Lyrical tale of forbidden love.
Short fiction:
--Tunneling to the Center of the Earth by Kevin Wilson (2009, US) Clever, imaginative, and thoughtful debut collection.
--A Taste of Honey: Stories by Jabari Asim (short story collection, US author) Riveting interconnected stories (reads close to a novel) filled with irresistible characters you won't want to part from.
--Everything in This Country Must: A Novella and Two Stories by Colum McCann (Irish author, 2000) Soulful and moving stories.
Poetry:
--Bicycles: Love Poems by Nikki Giovanni (2009, US)
--Dark Things by Novica Tadic (Serbian poet, Translation: 2009)
Favorite Nonfiction:
--Living Dolls: The Return of Sexism by Natasha Walter (UK, 2010)
Police procedurals:
besides the Peter Temple listed above,
--The Shadow Woman by Åke Edwardson (1997, T 2010, Sweden)
12avaland
>11 jdthloue: ha ha! It's always so excruciating to reduce my list down to a few. There are sometimes different things to love about each book...
13jdthloue
#12: I only read about 30 books the entire year....most for which I owed reviews...my BEST OF would probably number...6 titles...to varying degrees. It wasn't a Banner Year, to say the least...but the GOOD ones were seriously so:
In order, more or less:
Out by Natsuo Kirino (as dark as it gets; extremely well-written)
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson (deserved all the Hype)
The Chinatown Death Cloud Peril by Paul Malmont (the Pulps are alive and well)
The Gendarme by Mark Mustian (gorgeous prose for a horrendous subject...History writ small)
Unnatural Fire by Fidelis Morgan (a lively, bawdy romp through the Restoration....scandal rags ain't new)
Grace After Midnight by Felicia "Snoop" Person (a Celebrity Bio with heart and smarts....rocks slow and deep)
there......
;-}
******edited for The List********
In order, more or less:
Out by Natsuo Kirino (as dark as it gets; extremely well-written)
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson (deserved all the Hype)
The Chinatown Death Cloud Peril by Paul Malmont (the Pulps are alive and well)
The Gendarme by Mark Mustian (gorgeous prose for a horrendous subject...History writ small)
Unnatural Fire by Fidelis Morgan (a lively, bawdy romp through the Restoration....scandal rags ain't new)
Grace After Midnight by Felicia "Snoop" Person (a Celebrity Bio with heart and smarts....rocks slow and deep)
there......
;-}
******edited for The List********
14Storeetllr
>4 jnwelch: jnwelch Gaiman's wonderful, isn't he! I just found Mike Carey's graphic novel of his Neverwhere that just blew me away!
15DeltaQueen50
I had an excellent reading year, and I have my fingers crossed that 2011 will be as good.
My top reads:
Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes - a beautifully written war epic about a young man's experiences in Viet Nam. Highlights the waste, the stupidity, and the utter chaos of war.
The Road by Cormac McCarthy - a haunting and grim look at the post-apocalyptic world through the eyes of a father and son. Bleak and brutal, yet ultimately hopeful.
Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson - this YA book about a young black girls' experiences as a slave during the time of the American Revolution was both heart-breaking and fascinating.
Ride The Wind by Lucia St. Clair Robson - based on the true story of Cynthia Ann Parker, who was kidnapped by the Commanches as a young girl and became the mother of war-chief Quannah Parker, was breathtaking in scope and simply a great story.
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman - A great fantasy quest story, taking place in the dark and deceptive shadow city under modern day London. My first Gaiman - certainly not my last.
Quite Ugly One Morning by Christopher Brookmyre - One of the funniest, grossest opening chapters I have ever read. Sharp, witty dialogue, great characters, interesting plot. If you are looking for an excellent crime/thriller, I highly recommend this author.
My top reads:
Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes - a beautifully written war epic about a young man's experiences in Viet Nam. Highlights the waste, the stupidity, and the utter chaos of war.
The Road by Cormac McCarthy - a haunting and grim look at the post-apocalyptic world through the eyes of a father and son. Bleak and brutal, yet ultimately hopeful.
Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson - this YA book about a young black girls' experiences as a slave during the time of the American Revolution was both heart-breaking and fascinating.
Ride The Wind by Lucia St. Clair Robson - based on the true story of Cynthia Ann Parker, who was kidnapped by the Commanches as a young girl and became the mother of war-chief Quannah Parker, was breathtaking in scope and simply a great story.
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman - A great fantasy quest story, taking place in the dark and deceptive shadow city under modern day London. My first Gaiman - certainly not my last.
Quite Ugly One Morning by Christopher Brookmyre - One of the funniest, grossest opening chapters I have ever read. Sharp, witty dialogue, great characters, interesting plot. If you are looking for an excellent crime/thriller, I highly recommend this author.
16whymaggiemay
Each year when this thread comes up I gather together my list of books to which I have given marks of 4.5 and 5. Then I really review how often I've been reminded of them and how I've felt about each since I closed the book. Those which evoked the greatest cerebral and emotional response are put on this list, whether they initially got the highest marks or not:
Fiction:
Someone Knows My Name a/k/a The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill, a wonderful story of slavery seen through the eyes of a very intelligent woman early in the history of the U. S.
A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth, almost 1,500 pages about the lives and inter-relationships of several families in 1951 in the new independent country of India
The Blue Notebook by James Levine, M.D., I read many YA books this year, but nothing even approached this one for its importance, bravery, honesty, and sadness
Olive Kittridge by Elizabeth Stout, a group of interconnected short stories which richly deserved the Pulitzer Prize it was awarded
Little Bee by Chris Cleave, a book that made my think about oil exploration in Africa and immigration in a new way
Non-Fiction:
Strength in What Remains by Tracy Kidder, Deo survives genocide between the Hutus and Tsutis and gets a chance to come to the U.S., where he arrives with only a few dollars and no English, but rises above it all to get an education and return to his own country to help his people
Stones Into Schools by Greg Mortenson, a continuation of the story of Greg Mortenson's quest to build schools in Afghanistan and Pakistan with help from local men who risk their lives to make a better life for the children in their countries
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot, about the woman whose cells have revolutionized medicine since 1951 and some history of the experiments done with the aid of those cells
The Unfinished Presidency by Douglas Brinkley, Jimmy Carter's work since he left the White House
My Reading Life by Pat Conroy, Conroy's memoir of his reading and writing life and influences thereon
Fiction:
Someone Knows My Name a/k/a The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill, a wonderful story of slavery seen through the eyes of a very intelligent woman early in the history of the U. S.
A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth, almost 1,500 pages about the lives and inter-relationships of several families in 1951 in the new independent country of India
The Blue Notebook by James Levine, M.D., I read many YA books this year, but nothing even approached this one for its importance, bravery, honesty, and sadness
Olive Kittridge by Elizabeth Stout, a group of interconnected short stories which richly deserved the Pulitzer Prize it was awarded
Little Bee by Chris Cleave, a book that made my think about oil exploration in Africa and immigration in a new way
Non-Fiction:
Strength in What Remains by Tracy Kidder, Deo survives genocide between the Hutus and Tsutis and gets a chance to come to the U.S., where he arrives with only a few dollars and no English, but rises above it all to get an education and return to his own country to help his people
Stones Into Schools by Greg Mortenson, a continuation of the story of Greg Mortenson's quest to build schools in Afghanistan and Pakistan with help from local men who risk their lives to make a better life for the children in their countries
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot, about the woman whose cells have revolutionized medicine since 1951 and some history of the experiments done with the aid of those cells
The Unfinished Presidency by Douglas Brinkley, Jimmy Carter's work since he left the White House
My Reading Life by Pat Conroy, Conroy's memoir of his reading and writing life and influences thereon
17jnwelch
>14 Storeetllr: Storeetllr I liked Mike Carey's Neverwhere graphic novel a lot, too. Really good adaptation. If you can get your hands on it, the BBC dvd of Neverwhere is terrific. Gaiman's BBC series actually came before the book. Very unusual.
>15 DeltaQueen50: Glad you liked Neverwhere, DQ50!
>16 whymaggiemay: whymaggiemay Strength in What Remains wasn't one I read this year, but is a big favorite. What a story!
>15 DeltaQueen50: Glad you liked Neverwhere, DQ50!
>16 whymaggiemay: whymaggiemay Strength in What Remains wasn't one I read this year, but is a big favorite. What a story!
18Citizenjoyce
I loved so many this year, I'll list more than I should:
fiction
The Last Days of Dogtown by Anita Diamont
Going Bovine by Libba Bray
The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery
Wit: A Play by Margaret Edson
The James Tiptree Award Anthology 3: Subversive Stories about Sex and Gender edited by Karen Joy Fowler
Tropical Secrets: Holocaust Refugees In Cuba by Margarita Engle
Daddy Long Legs by Jean Webster
Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri
March by Geraldine Brooks
Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier
Nonfiction
By Heart: Poetry, Prison, and Two Lives by Judith Tannenbaum and Spoon Jackson
Fun Home by Alison Bechdel
My Husband Betty: Love, Sex, and Life with a Crossdresser by Helen Boyd
Guns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond
A Short History of Myth by Karen Armstrong
The Means of Reproduction: Sex, Power, and the Future of the World by Michelle Goldberg
Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali
fiction
The Last Days of Dogtown by Anita Diamont
Going Bovine by Libba Bray
The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery
Wit: A Play by Margaret Edson
The James Tiptree Award Anthology 3: Subversive Stories about Sex and Gender edited by Karen Joy Fowler
Tropical Secrets: Holocaust Refugees In Cuba by Margarita Engle
Daddy Long Legs by Jean Webster
Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri
March by Geraldine Brooks
Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier
Nonfiction
By Heart: Poetry, Prison, and Two Lives by Judith Tannenbaum and Spoon Jackson
Fun Home by Alison Bechdel
My Husband Betty: Love, Sex, and Life with a Crossdresser by Helen Boyd
Guns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond
A Short History of Myth by Karen Armstrong
The Means of Reproduction: Sex, Power, and the Future of the World by Michelle Goldberg
Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali
20Citizenjoyce
Yes, I saw Wit. It's haunting. She was fantastic.
21Citizenjoyce
Yes, I saw Wit. It's haunting. She was fantastic.
22princessgarnet
A History of the Baltic States by Andres Kasekamp
A Royal Passion by Kate Whitaker
Mary Tudor: Princess, Bastard, Queen by Anna Whitelock
A Royal Passion by Kate Whitaker
Mary Tudor: Princess, Bastard, Queen by Anna Whitelock
23mainrun
My favorite books I read in 2010:
Night of Flames: A Novel of World War II by Douglas W. Jacobson: The lead in this book, Jan Kopernik, reminds me of Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan. I tagged it Historical Fiction.
Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson: The plot was just simple enough that I figured out things a bit before the lead characters. What makes this a good book was I didn't hold that against them. Sort of like Neal Stephenson or Lois McMaster Bujold. I tagged it science fiction.
Three other books to make the total five. I tagged these three thrillers:
Daemon by Daniel Suarez: I joined Librarything September 2009 and this was the first book I read due to LibraryThing's suggesting-thing. Only complaint I have are a couple cliched characters.
The Wolf's Hour by Robert McCammon: This was a non scary book about werewolves. Couple of disappointing plotting things: - an action scene at the end which didn't seem to have any purpose (good stuff but it bothered me) and out of place "comedy" towards the end. Oh well.
Freedom (TM) by Daniel Suarez (Daemon's sequel:) A couple times the story dragged, and kind of got muddled. This author's bad is a lot better than most author's great though.
Night of Flames: A Novel of World War II by Douglas W. Jacobson: The lead in this book, Jan Kopernik, reminds me of Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan. I tagged it Historical Fiction.
Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson: The plot was just simple enough that I figured out things a bit before the lead characters. What makes this a good book was I didn't hold that against them. Sort of like Neal Stephenson or Lois McMaster Bujold. I tagged it science fiction.
Three other books to make the total five. I tagged these three thrillers:
Daemon by Daniel Suarez: I joined Librarything September 2009 and this was the first book I read due to LibraryThing's suggesting-thing. Only complaint I have are a couple cliched characters.
The Wolf's Hour by Robert McCammon: This was a non scary book about werewolves. Couple of disappointing plotting things: - an action scene at the end which didn't seem to have any purpose (good stuff but it bothered me) and out of place "comedy" towards the end. Oh well.
Freedom (TM) by Daniel Suarez (Daemon's sequel:) A couple times the story dragged, and kind of got muddled. This author's bad is a lot better than most author's great though.
24Citizenjoyce
To my overly long list of favorites I forgot to add Lonesome Dove, the first western I'd read in years and a deeply affective book full of humor and bleak reality. I was thinking of it today when I requested a copy of True Grit from the library. I hope it will be as good.
25kirsty
Here are my top ten books (all fiction) of 2010 in no particular order.
I read some great books this year and I had a hard job cutting it down to ten. There were a couple of authors whose new books I had highly anticipated ie John Irving and Kate Atkinson but my list is based purely on the books I would recommend to anyone.
I've given one line descriptions of the books, take it as read I thought they were all brilliant.
The Welsh Girl by Peter Ho Davies - set mainly in Wales during World War Two, a story of language and identity.
Brooklyn by Colm Toibin - a young woman migrates to America from Ireland in the 1950s and during a visit home faces a life changing dilemma
One Day By David Nicholls - following the lives of two university graduates for one day a year for twenty years
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel - historical fiction, the Tudor period brought vividly to life
The Yiddish Policeman's Union by Michael Chabon - thriller set in an alternative reality where Alaska is a Jewish State
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell - series of linked tales stretching from the South Pacific to a post-apocalyptic future
The Bride's Farewell by Meg Rosoff - young adult fiction romantic tale
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro - science fiction, children growing up in a boarding school in England slowly learn who they are and what is expected of them
City of Thieves by David Benioff - a story of survival during the siege of Leningrad
The Death-Defying Pepper Roux by Geraldine McCaughrean - children's fiction, Pepper Roux trying to evade his predicted fate goes in search of adventure
I read some great books this year and I had a hard job cutting it down to ten. There were a couple of authors whose new books I had highly anticipated ie John Irving and Kate Atkinson but my list is based purely on the books I would recommend to anyone.
I've given one line descriptions of the books, take it as read I thought they were all brilliant.
The Welsh Girl by Peter Ho Davies - set mainly in Wales during World War Two, a story of language and identity.
Brooklyn by Colm Toibin - a young woman migrates to America from Ireland in the 1950s and during a visit home faces a life changing dilemma
One Day By David Nicholls - following the lives of two university graduates for one day a year for twenty years
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel - historical fiction, the Tudor period brought vividly to life
The Yiddish Policeman's Union by Michael Chabon - thriller set in an alternative reality where Alaska is a Jewish State
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell - series of linked tales stretching from the South Pacific to a post-apocalyptic future
The Bride's Farewell by Meg Rosoff - young adult fiction romantic tale
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro - science fiction, children growing up in a boarding school in England slowly learn who they are and what is expected of them
City of Thieves by David Benioff - a story of survival during the siege of Leningrad
The Death-Defying Pepper Roux by Geraldine McCaughrean - children's fiction, Pepper Roux trying to evade his predicted fate goes in search of adventure
26MarianV
The Worst Hard Time Great depression + dust bowl . It's a wonder anyone lived through the dust bowl years.
American Ceasar a biography of Gen. Douglas MacArthur by
William Manchester . When I was in grade school in 1942, all of my friends had pictures of Gen. MacArthur pasted on their notebooks & book covers. Towards the end of the war, when the ordinary GI's began to return, they painted a picture not of a hero but of a martinet who cared more for his own image than the welfare of his men. In this biography - one of the best Manchester has written, he produces all the many sides of Gen. MacArthur, and which ones will be remembered
most by historians of the future.
Sharon Kaye Penman's trilogy which begins with the fight among the heirs of William the Bastard, and continues through the saga of Henry 11 and his sons, and his wife, Eleanor of Aquataine.
The books are"
When Christ and his Saints Slept
Time and Chance\
The Devil's Brood
American Ceasar a biography of Gen. Douglas MacArthur by
William Manchester . When I was in grade school in 1942, all of my friends had pictures of Gen. MacArthur pasted on their notebooks & book covers. Towards the end of the war, when the ordinary GI's began to return, they painted a picture not of a hero but of a martinet who cared more for his own image than the welfare of his men. In this biography - one of the best Manchester has written, he produces all the many sides of Gen. MacArthur, and which ones will be remembered
most by historians of the future.
Sharon Kaye Penman's trilogy which begins with the fight among the heirs of William the Bastard, and continues through the saga of Henry 11 and his sons, and his wife, Eleanor of Aquataine.
The books are"
When Christ and his Saints Slept
Time and Chance\
The Devil's Brood
27sanddancer
I'm limiting myself to 5 fiction and 5 non-fiction.
The Motel Life by Willie Vlautin - a deceptively simple style, but with real emotional depth, telling the story of two brothers living in poverty in present day USA. I could have chosen Northline by the same author but this one out on a account of the illustrations that accompany the text.
Gold by Dan Rhodes - Very funny story set in a mall village in Wales, filled with quirky characters.
An Artist of the Floating World by Kazuo Ishiguro - Such a classy author, with was an amazing piece of writing.
Brooklyn Follies by Paul Auster - one of my favourite authors and this is one of his best. Mixes literary references with genuine emotions.
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson - a light-hearted story about a naive spinster whose suddenly finds herself involved in an exciting glamorous world. Such a delightful story - I've already bought this book as a gift for two people.
Non-Fiction
It's only a movie by Mark Kermode - very funny memoir about the film critic's career and film obsessions
31 Songs by Nick Hornby - great selection of songs, particularly moving on the songs with connections with his autistic song
Love is a Mix Tape by Rob Sheffield - beautiful tribute to his deceased wife and their relationship through music.
Blockbuster by Tom Shone - fascinating examination of how Jaws and Star Wars changed the film industry for better and for worse.
Just My Type by Simon Garfield - a book about fonts may not appeal to all, but my inner design-geek loved it.
The Motel Life by Willie Vlautin - a deceptively simple style, but with real emotional depth, telling the story of two brothers living in poverty in present day USA. I could have chosen Northline by the same author but this one out on a account of the illustrations that accompany the text.
Gold by Dan Rhodes - Very funny story set in a mall village in Wales, filled with quirky characters.
An Artist of the Floating World by Kazuo Ishiguro - Such a classy author, with was an amazing piece of writing.
Brooklyn Follies by Paul Auster - one of my favourite authors and this is one of his best. Mixes literary references with genuine emotions.
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson - a light-hearted story about a naive spinster whose suddenly finds herself involved in an exciting glamorous world. Such a delightful story - I've already bought this book as a gift for two people.
Non-Fiction
It's only a movie by Mark Kermode - very funny memoir about the film critic's career and film obsessions
31 Songs by Nick Hornby - great selection of songs, particularly moving on the songs with connections with his autistic song
Love is a Mix Tape by Rob Sheffield - beautiful tribute to his deceased wife and their relationship through music.
Blockbuster by Tom Shone - fascinating examination of how Jaws and Star Wars changed the film industry for better and for worse.
Just My Type by Simon Garfield - a book about fonts may not appeal to all, but my inner design-geek loved it.
28nancyewhite
Fiction
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout - My favorite book of the year. It is one of the ten bazillion I read in the "linked short stories forming a novel" genre. Headlong and sideways glimpses of a woman over her lifetime provide a rare intimacy - that she is largely unlikeable and yet I loved her speaks to the talent of this writer.
American Salvage by Bonnie Jo Campbell - Wonderfully written short stories about the poor and desperate. Authentic.
Room by Emma Donoghue - Harrowing yet hopeful story of a mother's love told from the perspective of a five year old boy.
The City and The City by China Mieville - Weird science fiction detective story written by a man who makes language dance. I found this more accessible than Perdido Street Station
Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann - More interconnected stories. Sad look at the lives of various New Yorkers on the day of the tightrope walk.
Nonfiction
Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder - Kidder details the life of Paul Farmer the doctor who founded Partners In Health.
The Lives They Left Behind by Darby Penney - A look into the lives of people who lived their lives in a state mental hospital using objects found in the suitcases discovered in the attic after the hospital closed. Extraordinary.
Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick - The stories of people who escaped North Korea.
Love is a Mix Tape by Rob Sheffield - A touching tribute to his wife who died far too young.
Chasing Goldman Sachs by Suzanne McGhee - Accessible explanation of the financial meltdown.
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout - My favorite book of the year. It is one of the ten bazillion I read in the "linked short stories forming a novel" genre. Headlong and sideways glimpses of a woman over her lifetime provide a rare intimacy - that she is largely unlikeable and yet I loved her speaks to the talent of this writer.
American Salvage by Bonnie Jo Campbell - Wonderfully written short stories about the poor and desperate. Authentic.
Room by Emma Donoghue - Harrowing yet hopeful story of a mother's love told from the perspective of a five year old boy.
The City and The City by China Mieville - Weird science fiction detective story written by a man who makes language dance. I found this more accessible than Perdido Street Station
Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann - More interconnected stories. Sad look at the lives of various New Yorkers on the day of the tightrope walk.
Nonfiction
Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder - Kidder details the life of Paul Farmer the doctor who founded Partners In Health.
The Lives They Left Behind by Darby Penney - A look into the lives of people who lived their lives in a state mental hospital using objects found in the suitcases discovered in the attic after the hospital closed. Extraordinary.
Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick - The stories of people who escaped North Korea.
Love is a Mix Tape by Rob Sheffield - A touching tribute to his wife who died far too young.
Chasing Goldman Sachs by Suzanne McGhee - Accessible explanation of the financial meltdown.
29barney67
Jayber Crow by Wendell Berry
A Soldier of the Great War by Mark Helprin
The Pacific and Other Stories by Mark Helprin
An Evil Guest by Gene Wolfe
The Sorcerer's House by Gene Wolfe
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
Legend by David Gemmell
White Wolf by David Gemmell
All The Bells on Earth by James Blaylock
The Last Coin by James Blaylock
My Dog Skip by Willie Morris
Herzog by Saul Bellow
The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell
Plus
The Belgariad by David Eddings
The short stories of Gene Wolfe
The Grey Mouser series by Fritz Leiber
A Soldier of the Great War by Mark Helprin
The Pacific and Other Stories by Mark Helprin
An Evil Guest by Gene Wolfe
The Sorcerer's House by Gene Wolfe
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
Legend by David Gemmell
White Wolf by David Gemmell
All The Bells on Earth by James Blaylock
The Last Coin by James Blaylock
My Dog Skip by Willie Morris
Herzog by Saul Bellow
The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell
Plus
The Belgariad by David Eddings
The short stories of Gene Wolfe
The Grey Mouser series by Fritz Leiber
30moneybeets
I read more bad books than good this year, but a handful were really outstanding. My favorites:
The Makioka Sisters by Junichiro Tanizaki - A proud but foundering Japanese family embarks on a years-long search for a proper husband for sister Yukiko. Yukiko herself is unable to muster much enthusiasm, prolonging the project, while youngest sister Taeko becomes restless.
World War Z by Max Brooks - Brooks gives us a surprisingly thoughtful and intelligent look at a very trendy subject, the zombie apocalypse. Not without some minor flaws, but absolutely unputdownable.
The Little Friend by Donna Tartt - For me, nobody evokes a specific time and place as well as Tartt. I could picture each scene so vividly, they felt almost like my own memories.
Barrow's Boys by Fergus Fleming - British adventurers search for the Northwest Passage and Timbuktu. Fleming points out the rampant absurdity of many of the explorers--wool uniforms in Africa??--but remains respectful and enthusiastic about their voyages. A great adventure book.
Memoirs of Hadrian by Marguerite Yourcenar - Slow as molasses, but gorgeous.
Still finishing The Once and Future King, which I have a feeling will make the list if I finish it by Jan. 1.
The Makioka Sisters by Junichiro Tanizaki - A proud but foundering Japanese family embarks on a years-long search for a proper husband for sister Yukiko. Yukiko herself is unable to muster much enthusiasm, prolonging the project, while youngest sister Taeko becomes restless.
World War Z by Max Brooks - Brooks gives us a surprisingly thoughtful and intelligent look at a very trendy subject, the zombie apocalypse. Not without some minor flaws, but absolutely unputdownable.
The Little Friend by Donna Tartt - For me, nobody evokes a specific time and place as well as Tartt. I could picture each scene so vividly, they felt almost like my own memories.
Barrow's Boys by Fergus Fleming - British adventurers search for the Northwest Passage and Timbuktu. Fleming points out the rampant absurdity of many of the explorers--wool uniforms in Africa??--but remains respectful and enthusiastic about their voyages. A great adventure book.
Memoirs of Hadrian by Marguerite Yourcenar - Slow as molasses, but gorgeous.
Still finishing The Once and Future King, which I have a feeling will make the list if I finish it by Jan. 1.
31rebeccanyc
#28, nancywhite Nothing to Envy will be on my best of the year list too, and American Salvage and Let the Great World Spin (which I thought of as a novel, not interconnected stories) were on last year's list.
Edited to try to fix touchstones, but they seem to be worse now!
Hoping third time's a charm!
Edited to try to fix touchstones, but they seem to be worse now!
Hoping third time's a charm!
32PaperbackPirate
In the order I read them, my favorite books (fiction and non-fiction) in 2010 were:
1. Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami - phantasmagorical
2. Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen - great sister story with magical realism
3. Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand - the fascinating world of horse racing during the Great Depression
4. Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya - southwestern coming of age story with a twist of magical realism
5. Animal Dreams by Barbara Kingsolver - a young woman tries to save her family, herself, and the environment
6. The Eyes of the Dragon by Stephen King - not your typical Stephen King story - kings, dragons, and an evil sorcerer
7. Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg - sweet and funny story about friendship, family, love, and overcoming racism and hardship
8. The Girl with No Shadow by Joanne Harris - sequel to Chocolat
9. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot - non-fiction that reads like a novel. Tackles body waste rights, science, and racism all centered around HELA cells
10. Lily White by Susan Isaacs - a mystery filled with family drama, feminism, and friendship
Thank you everyone for sharing! I wonder what 2011 will bring us?
1. Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami - phantasmagorical
2. Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen - great sister story with magical realism
3. Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand - the fascinating world of horse racing during the Great Depression
4. Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya - southwestern coming of age story with a twist of magical realism
5. Animal Dreams by Barbara Kingsolver - a young woman tries to save her family, herself, and the environment
6. The Eyes of the Dragon by Stephen King - not your typical Stephen King story - kings, dragons, and an evil sorcerer
7. Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg - sweet and funny story about friendship, family, love, and overcoming racism and hardship
8. The Girl with No Shadow by Joanne Harris - sequel to Chocolat
9. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot - non-fiction that reads like a novel. Tackles body waste rights, science, and racism all centered around HELA cells
10. Lily White by Susan Isaacs - a mystery filled with family drama, feminism, and friendship
Thank you everyone for sharing! I wonder what 2011 will bring us?
33nancyewhite
#31 - Rebecca - I should have been clearer. I think of Let the Great World Spin as a novel, but woven of interconnected stories rather than a single linear narrative.
This was my year for falling in love with that approach. Whereas, American Salvage is the exception that proves my general dislike of short stories, I read and enjoyed LtGWS, Olive Kitteredge, The Imperfectionists, Welcome to the Goon Squad and The Things They Carried all of which were written as a tapestry of stories and all of which, I think, are billed as novels.
It feels as though this method of building the story allows me to somehow get even closer to the characters than the more straightforwardly narrated fiction I typically read. What is odd, is that there were so many of them this year. I recall in my reading life only one other book written this way and it was something set in a lesbian bar in the 1980s.
Thanks for commenting. I'm sure your thread was one of the places I learned about the fantastic books I read this year. LT has truly provided me with an abundance of riches.
Touchstones are not working properly for me either!
This was my year for falling in love with that approach. Whereas, American Salvage is the exception that proves my general dislike of short stories, I read and enjoyed LtGWS, Olive Kitteredge, The Imperfectionists, Welcome to the Goon Squad and The Things They Carried all of which were written as a tapestry of stories and all of which, I think, are billed as novels.
It feels as though this method of building the story allows me to somehow get even closer to the characters than the more straightforwardly narrated fiction I typically read. What is odd, is that there were so many of them this year. I recall in my reading life only one other book written this way and it was something set in a lesbian bar in the 1980s.
Thanks for commenting. I'm sure your thread was one of the places I learned about the fantastic books I read this year. LT has truly provided me with an abundance of riches.
Touchstones are not working properly for me either!
34rebeccanyc
Thanks, Nancy. A Visit from the Goon Squad will be one of my favorites this year, too.
35detailmuse
Fiction
The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman -- linked short stories about an English-language newspaper in Rome and its employees
The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey by Walter Mosley -- tender exploration of old age and race in 2006 south-central LA
You Know When the Men Are Gone by Siobhan Fallon -- linked short stories about contemporary life for deployed soldiers and their families at Fort Hood, Texas
Nonfiction:
American Terroir by Rowan Jacobsen -- why certain locales grow certain animals and plants so well, and the attentive harvesting and processing that transform them into outstanding foods
Packing for Mars by Mary Roach -- quirky scientific exploration of human space travel
Pheromone: The Insect Artwork of Christopher Marley by Christopher Marley -- stunning mounted arrangements of insects
The Disappearing Spoon by Sam Kean -- “a funny, or odd, or chilling tale” for every element in the periodic table
The Elements by Theodore Gray -- visually stunning coffee-table book that showcases physical samples and a “biography” of each element; pairs well with The Disappearing Spoon, and getting access to its enhanced e-version strikes me as reason alone to purchase an iPad
The Geometry of Pasta by Caz Hildebrand/Jacob Kenedy -- an anthropology of pasta shapes plus recipes and pairings of pastas and sauces
The Visual Display of Quantitative Information by Edward Tufte -- the bible of information graphics
The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman -- linked short stories about an English-language newspaper in Rome and its employees
The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey by Walter Mosley -- tender exploration of old age and race in 2006 south-central LA
You Know When the Men Are Gone by Siobhan Fallon -- linked short stories about contemporary life for deployed soldiers and their families at Fort Hood, Texas
Nonfiction:
American Terroir by Rowan Jacobsen -- why certain locales grow certain animals and plants so well, and the attentive harvesting and processing that transform them into outstanding foods
Packing for Mars by Mary Roach -- quirky scientific exploration of human space travel
Pheromone: The Insect Artwork of Christopher Marley by Christopher Marley -- stunning mounted arrangements of insects
The Disappearing Spoon by Sam Kean -- “a funny, or odd, or chilling tale” for every element in the periodic table
The Elements by Theodore Gray -- visually stunning coffee-table book that showcases physical samples and a “biography” of each element; pairs well with The Disappearing Spoon, and getting access to its enhanced e-version strikes me as reason alone to purchase an iPad
The Geometry of Pasta by Caz Hildebrand/Jacob Kenedy -- an anthropology of pasta shapes plus recipes and pairings of pastas and sauces
The Visual Display of Quantitative Information by Edward Tufte -- the bible of information graphics
36Tallulah_Rose
The best books I read in 2010:
1. The Moving Finger Very well written and highly suspicious crime novel.
2. Thirteen Problems Collectsion of very interesting short Stories where Miss Marple could schow all her deductive abilities.
3. Minna von Barnhelm Though rather old it was a typical live story with the man having the feeling of being unworthy for his wife in spe and how it all ravels up in the end (a play).
4. The Ha-Ha A book about a middle-aged man being unable to talk and write after an accident, but finding his way to life again through a small child. Rather disturbing sometimes, but thoughtprovoking and touchy nevertheless.
5. The Canterbury Tales Worth the pain and time to read them in every respect! Learned lots of thins about medieval life and morals and also ad fun while reading!
Now looking forward to hopefully another great reading year!
1. The Moving Finger Very well written and highly suspicious crime novel.
2. Thirteen Problems Collectsion of very interesting short Stories where Miss Marple could schow all her deductive abilities.
3. Minna von Barnhelm Though rather old it was a typical live story with the man having the feeling of being unworthy for his wife in spe and how it all ravels up in the end (a play).
4. The Ha-Ha A book about a middle-aged man being unable to talk and write after an accident, but finding his way to life again through a small child. Rather disturbing sometimes, but thoughtprovoking and touchy nevertheless.
5. The Canterbury Tales Worth the pain and time to read them in every respect! Learned lots of thins about medieval life and morals and also ad fun while reading!
Now looking forward to hopefully another great reading year!
37rebeccanyc
At an even 100, this probably wraps it up for 2010, since I won't finish the other book I'm reading, The Collected Stories of Jean Stafford tomorrow. So, after much thought, here are my favorite books of 2010. I struggled mightily to reduce this list even more, but this is the best I can do. What can I say? It was a great reading year!
New and Recent Fiction
The Best
Lord of Misrule by Jaimy Gordon
Great House by Nicole Krauss
A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan
The Siege by Helen Dunmore
Where the God of Love Hangs Out by Amy Bloom
Runners Up
Q Road by Bonnie Jo Campbell
The Last Brother by Nathacha Appanah
The Betrayal by Helen Dunmore
Classics and Older Fiction
The Best
Shadow Country by Peter Matthiessen
Conversation in the Cathedral by Mario Vargas Llosa
The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
The Balkan Trilogy by Olivia Manning
The Long Ships by Frans Bengtsson
The Mountain Lion by Jean Stafford
Captain Pantoja and the Special Service by Mario Vargas Llosa
Runners Up
School for Love by Olivia Manning
Wolf among Wolves by Hans Fallada
Terra Nostra by Carlos Fuentes
The Green House by Mario Vargas Llosa
Hotel Savoy by Joseph Roth
Wish Her Safe at Home by Stephen Benatar
The Feast of the Goat by Mario Vargas Llosa
Honorable Mention
Burning Secret by Stefan Zweig
Doctor Glas by Hjalmar Soderberg
Nonfiction
The Best
Bloodlands by Timothy Snyder
Murder City by Charles Bowden
The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich byWilliam Shirer
Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick
The Road by Vassily Grossman (this collection includes both fiction and nonfiction, but the essay "The Hell of Treblinka" is the brilliant, horrifying heart of the book)
Travels in Siberia by Ian Frazier
Hitler and Stalin by Alan Bullock
Runners Up
The Whites of Their Eyes by Jill Lepore
The Eitingons by Mary-Kay Wilmers
Dreams in a Time of War by Ngugi wa Thiong'o
Great Plains by Ian Frazier
In Search of a Lost Ladino by Marcel Cohen
Operation Mincemeat by Ben Macintyre
New and Recent Fiction
The Best
Lord of Misrule by Jaimy Gordon
Great House by Nicole Krauss
A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan
The Siege by Helen Dunmore
Where the God of Love Hangs Out by Amy Bloom
Runners Up
Q Road by Bonnie Jo Campbell
The Last Brother by Nathacha Appanah
The Betrayal by Helen Dunmore
Classics and Older Fiction
The Best
Shadow Country by Peter Matthiessen
Conversation in the Cathedral by Mario Vargas Llosa
The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
The Balkan Trilogy by Olivia Manning
The Long Ships by Frans Bengtsson
The Mountain Lion by Jean Stafford
Captain Pantoja and the Special Service by Mario Vargas Llosa
Runners Up
School for Love by Olivia Manning
Wolf among Wolves by Hans Fallada
Terra Nostra by Carlos Fuentes
The Green House by Mario Vargas Llosa
Hotel Savoy by Joseph Roth
Wish Her Safe at Home by Stephen Benatar
The Feast of the Goat by Mario Vargas Llosa
Honorable Mention
Burning Secret by Stefan Zweig
Doctor Glas by Hjalmar Soderberg
Nonfiction
The Best
Bloodlands by Timothy Snyder
Murder City by Charles Bowden
The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich byWilliam Shirer
Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick
The Road by Vassily Grossman (this collection includes both fiction and nonfiction, but the essay "The Hell of Treblinka" is the brilliant, horrifying heart of the book)
Travels in Siberia by Ian Frazier
Hitler and Stalin by Alan Bullock
Runners Up
The Whites of Their Eyes by Jill Lepore
The Eitingons by Mary-Kay Wilmers
Dreams in a Time of War by Ngugi wa Thiong'o
Great Plains by Ian Frazier
In Search of a Lost Ladino by Marcel Cohen
Operation Mincemeat by Ben Macintyre
38jfetting
I'm going to try to keep it to 5 fiction and 5 nonfiction. Nonfiction will be easier.
Nonfiction
1) The Brontës by Juliet Barker - fascinating, comprehensive biography of one of the most ridiculously talented families in history. I couldn't put it down. This is actually one of the best books I read all year, period.
2) Wonderful Life by Stephen Jay Gould - I love his writing, and this book is particularly interesting because of all the drawings of those insane pre-Cambrian species.
3) Family Britain - the follow-up to Austerity Britain is just as good as the first. I love all the interviews with non-famous people. I wish more history books talked about what people really did, and ate, and wore, etc.
4) The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot - a highly hyped book that actually deserves it.
5) The World of Yesterday by Stefan Zweig - a beautiful elegy for the world of Zweig's youth.
Fiction
1) The Last Chronicle of Barset by Anthony Trollope - best book I read all year, but then I am a big fan of the Barchester books.
2) The Radetzky March by Joseph Roth - One of those beautiful world-before-the-wars books, about three generations of a family that had been thrust from one social class to another, much higher one, just before that lifestyle completely disappeared with the onset of WWI.
3) The Post-Office Girl by Stefan Zweig - I would only let myself pick one Zweig book, and this is it.
4) Buddenbrooks by Thomas Mann - big, sprawling, multigeneration family novel that is compulsively readable. I loved the Buddenbrook family, and was unhappy about its decline.
5) The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison - stunning and heartbreaking. Morrison is brilliant.
runner up: The Cost of Living, a collection of short stories by Mavis Gallant which were wonderful.
Nonfiction
1) The Brontës by Juliet Barker - fascinating, comprehensive biography of one of the most ridiculously talented families in history. I couldn't put it down. This is actually one of the best books I read all year, period.
2) Wonderful Life by Stephen Jay Gould - I love his writing, and this book is particularly interesting because of all the drawings of those insane pre-Cambrian species.
3) Family Britain - the follow-up to Austerity Britain is just as good as the first. I love all the interviews with non-famous people. I wish more history books talked about what people really did, and ate, and wore, etc.
4) The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot - a highly hyped book that actually deserves it.
5) The World of Yesterday by Stefan Zweig - a beautiful elegy for the world of Zweig's youth.
Fiction
1) The Last Chronicle of Barset by Anthony Trollope - best book I read all year, but then I am a big fan of the Barchester books.
2) The Radetzky March by Joseph Roth - One of those beautiful world-before-the-wars books, about three generations of a family that had been thrust from one social class to another, much higher one, just before that lifestyle completely disappeared with the onset of WWI.
3) The Post-Office Girl by Stefan Zweig - I would only let myself pick one Zweig book, and this is it.
4) Buddenbrooks by Thomas Mann - big, sprawling, multigeneration family novel that is compulsively readable. I loved the Buddenbrook family, and was unhappy about its decline.
5) The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison - stunning and heartbreaking. Morrison is brilliant.
runner up: The Cost of Living, a collection of short stories by Mavis Gallant which were wonderful.
39Porua
2010 turned out to be quite a good reading year. I read a lot of books. But choosing the best of the year wasn’t difficult at all. My top 10 are,
1. Goodbye, Mr. Chips by James Hilton - After a long, long time a book that made me cry. One of the very few books I’ve read this year that I know I’m going to re-read.
2. The Queen of Hearts by Wilkie Collins - An excellent collection of ten short stories set within a connecting narrative. The best story of the collection is The Biter Bit. A hilarious Victorian era detective story, written in the form of letters.
3. London Lavender by E. V. Lucas. - A collection of loosely connected vignettes. A little known gem of a book.
4. Girl in Hyacinth Blue by Susan Vreeland. - Eight interconnected tales, all linked to the past and the present of a piece of art, are presented in this book. A book I bought without knowing what it was about and was pleasantly surprised by it.
5. The Killer Inside Me by Jim Thompson. - The mind of a serial killer unravels as the bodies pile up. Truly a classic of the noir genre.
6. A Kiss for Cinderella by J. M. Barrie. - A three act play set during WWI. A destitute young woman fends off hunger and loneliness with the help of her imagination. A romantic fantasy which is surprisingly realistic.
7. The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro. - Kazuo Ishiguro is an exceptional writer. For someone who seldom if ever really enjoys a book written during the last twenty or so years, I really liked this one.
8. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? By Philip K. Dick - I cannot believe I didn’t read this book earlier. I appreciated the themes of loneliness and understanding between all living beings.
9. Seize the Day by Saul Bellow - It is astonishing how Bellow paints an amazingly vivid picture of a man’s entire life in little more than a hundred pages. I found Seize the Day to be quite satisfying. It may be a bit gloomy but this is perhaps literature at its best.
10. Tales of Men and Ghosts by Edith Wharton - A collection of short stories. Stories about commonplace, everyday men chasing greatness but ending up going nowhere and often returning to where they had begun is no longer an option. A fascinating experience.
1. Goodbye, Mr. Chips by James Hilton - After a long, long time a book that made me cry. One of the very few books I’ve read this year that I know I’m going to re-read.
2. The Queen of Hearts by Wilkie Collins - An excellent collection of ten short stories set within a connecting narrative. The best story of the collection is The Biter Bit. A hilarious Victorian era detective story, written in the form of letters.
3. London Lavender by E. V. Lucas. - A collection of loosely connected vignettes. A little known gem of a book.
4. Girl in Hyacinth Blue by Susan Vreeland. - Eight interconnected tales, all linked to the past and the present of a piece of art, are presented in this book. A book I bought without knowing what it was about and was pleasantly surprised by it.
5. The Killer Inside Me by Jim Thompson. - The mind of a serial killer unravels as the bodies pile up. Truly a classic of the noir genre.
6. A Kiss for Cinderella by J. M. Barrie. - A three act play set during WWI. A destitute young woman fends off hunger and loneliness with the help of her imagination. A romantic fantasy which is surprisingly realistic.
7. The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro. - Kazuo Ishiguro is an exceptional writer. For someone who seldom if ever really enjoys a book written during the last twenty or so years, I really liked this one.
8. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? By Philip K. Dick - I cannot believe I didn’t read this book earlier. I appreciated the themes of loneliness and understanding between all living beings.
9. Seize the Day by Saul Bellow - It is astonishing how Bellow paints an amazingly vivid picture of a man’s entire life in little more than a hundred pages. I found Seize the Day to be quite satisfying. It may be a bit gloomy but this is perhaps literature at its best.
10. Tales of Men and Ghosts by Edith Wharton - A collection of short stories. Stories about commonplace, everyday men chasing greatness but ending up going nowhere and often returning to where they had begun is no longer an option. A fascinating experience.
40rebeccanyc
#38, jfetting, Have you read Varieties of Exile by Mavis Gallant? I liked that collection even better than The Cost of Living.
41Citizenjoyce
I just finished my last book of 2010 and have to add it to my bests of the year: Bullfinch's Mythology: The Age of Fable kind of a Crib Notes for The Iliad, The Odyssey, The Aeneid, The Upanishads, and The Vedas with the addition of other religions for which there is no main book: the Druids, the early Egyptians, etc.. This is a great reference book for literature, geography and religion.
42jfetting
rebecca - not yet! It is on my to-be-read-this-year shelf, and I'm really looking forward to it.
43mollygrace
I read very little nonfiction this year, but I did do quite a bit of rereading, so that is how I am going to list my "bests":
Rereads:
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
Absalom! Absalom! by William Faulkner
My Antonia by Willa Cather
Dispatches by Michael Herr
The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat by Oliver Sacks
New reading:
Savage Beauty by Nancy Milford
An Unfinished Season by Ward Just
The Quickening Maze by Adam Foulds
Loving Graham Greene by Gloria Emerson
and, my favorite book of the year:
The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman
Rereads:
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
Absalom! Absalom! by William Faulkner
My Antonia by Willa Cather
Dispatches by Michael Herr
The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat by Oliver Sacks
New reading:
Savage Beauty by Nancy Milford
An Unfinished Season by Ward Just
The Quickening Maze by Adam Foulds
Loving Graham Greene by Gloria Emerson
and, my favorite book of the year:
The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman
44callen610
Top Fiction, New Reads
The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver - this book was about so many things - socialism, patriotism, love, Frida Kahlo, fame, writing....a pleasure to listen to on audio
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman - I wish this wasn't so brief! A major goal this year will be to read more Gaiman
The Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood - tremendously "alive" characters
The Help by Kathryn Stockett - terrific voices and personalities in this, I'd really like to listen to the audio version sometime
Rebecca by Daphne DuMaurier - I still find it oddly disturbing how much I still think about this book
Top Fiction, Rereads
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak - fabulous on audio the first and even better reading it this year; I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this book
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee - a nearly perfect book
Top Non-fiction
The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution by Richard Dawkins - finished this with renewed awe
Consider the Lobster by David Foster Wallace - my first foray into DFW - WOW!
The Disappearing Spoon by Sam Kean - odd tales about the elements and the figured behind the periodic table
Jane Austen: A Life by David Nokes
Never Work Harder Than Your Students by Robyn Jackson - clear, level-headed strategies to improve teaching practices
The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver - this book was about so many things - socialism, patriotism, love, Frida Kahlo, fame, writing....a pleasure to listen to on audio
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman - I wish this wasn't so brief! A major goal this year will be to read more Gaiman
The Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood - tremendously "alive" characters
The Help by Kathryn Stockett - terrific voices and personalities in this, I'd really like to listen to the audio version sometime
Rebecca by Daphne DuMaurier - I still find it oddly disturbing how much I still think about this book
Top Fiction, Rereads
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak - fabulous on audio the first and even better reading it this year; I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this book
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee - a nearly perfect book
Top Non-fiction
The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution by Richard Dawkins - finished this with renewed awe
Consider the Lobster by David Foster Wallace - my first foray into DFW - WOW!
The Disappearing Spoon by Sam Kean - odd tales about the elements and the figured behind the periodic table
Jane Austen: A Life by David Nokes
Never Work Harder Than Your Students by Robyn Jackson - clear, level-headed strategies to improve teaching practices
45grkmwk
I read fewer books this year compared to recent past years, but then again, I had a 5-17 month old child to chase after and a new job to figure out! Fortunately, what I did read was overall quite enjoyable. My best, in chronological order:
Best Fiction
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
Mattaponi Queen: Stories by Belle Boggs (delightful chance discovery while visiting a bookstore on vacation)
Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender
The Paris Wife by Paula McLain (an LTER book that will be published in March - highly recommend!)
The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins
A Novel Bookstore by Laurence Cosse
Best Nonfiction
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson
Garlic and Sapphires by Ruth Reichl (a re-read that was better the second time)
Best Faith
Listening to Your Life by Frederick Buechner
Mudhouse Sabbath by Lauren Winner (another re-read that was better the second time)
Best Fiction
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
Mattaponi Queen: Stories by Belle Boggs (delightful chance discovery while visiting a bookstore on vacation)
Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender
The Paris Wife by Paula McLain (an LTER book that will be published in March - highly recommend!)
The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins
A Novel Bookstore by Laurence Cosse
Best Nonfiction
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson
Garlic and Sapphires by Ruth Reichl (a re-read that was better the second time)
Best Faith
Listening to Your Life by Frederick Buechner
Mudhouse Sabbath by Lauren Winner (another re-read that was better the second time)
46jhowell
So this was my first full reading year post-twins. Down to a measly 36 books from a typical ~75 or so. But at least I read - and I tried to be more selective so there were some good ones.
I almost always read fiction:
1. Sacred Hunger by Barry Unsworth (5 stars)- an unforgettable tale of a slave ship. Probably would rank as a "desert-island" pick. I think it should have been The Booker of Bookers.
2. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro (5 stars)- I am late to the party with this one, but I thought it was creepy, brilliantly executed, restrained, gothic - quite a little masterpiece IMHO.
3. Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin (5 stars) An LT early reviewer - go figure. A literary mystery of sorts - these can be as rare as a 4 leaf clover. This one is just good literary fiction; the mystery is less important.
4. The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters (4 1/2 stars) Again, the rare literary mystery, also somewhat of a period piece. I thought this was great and haunting - but apparently not close to this author's best in many's opinion. I'll read more by her in 2011.
5. Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel (4 1/2 stars) C'mon who doesn't love The Tudors; especially in the hands of a skilled writer who wins the Booker with them!
I almost always read fiction:
1. Sacred Hunger by Barry Unsworth (5 stars)- an unforgettable tale of a slave ship. Probably would rank as a "desert-island" pick. I think it should have been The Booker of Bookers.
2. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro (5 stars)- I am late to the party with this one, but I thought it was creepy, brilliantly executed, restrained, gothic - quite a little masterpiece IMHO.
3. Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin (5 stars) An LT early reviewer - go figure. A literary mystery of sorts - these can be as rare as a 4 leaf clover. This one is just good literary fiction; the mystery is less important.
4. The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters (4 1/2 stars) Again, the rare literary mystery, also somewhat of a period piece. I thought this was great and haunting - but apparently not close to this author's best in many's opinion. I'll read more by her in 2011.
5. Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel (4 1/2 stars) C'mon who doesn't love The Tudors; especially in the hands of a skilled writer who wins the Booker with them!
47rocketjk
Both lists offered in the chronological order in which I read them, not by their relative quality. I couldn't get the fiction list down to five.
Fiction:
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
Charming Billy by Alice McDermott
The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood
When the Rainbow Goddess Wept by Cecilia Manguerra Brainard
One Day of Life by Manlio Argueta
Say You're One of Them by Uwem Akpan
The Woman Who Walked Into Doors by Roddy Doyle
The Gates of the Forest by Elie Wiesel
Non-Fiction:
The Battle for Spain: The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939 by Antony Beevor
The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama by Gwen Ifill
Packing for Mars: the Curious Science of Life in the Void by Mary Roach
Letters from Joseph Conrad 1895-1924 edited by Edward Garnett
The Reminiscences of Carl Schurz: Volume Two 1852 - 1863 by Carl Schurz
Fiction:
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
Charming Billy by Alice McDermott
The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood
When the Rainbow Goddess Wept by Cecilia Manguerra Brainard
One Day of Life by Manlio Argueta
Say You're One of Them by Uwem Akpan
The Woman Who Walked Into Doors by Roddy Doyle
The Gates of the Forest by Elie Wiesel
Non-Fiction:
The Battle for Spain: The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939 by Antony Beevor
The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama by Gwen Ifill
Packing for Mars: the Curious Science of Life in the Void by Mary Roach
Letters from Joseph Conrad 1895-1924 edited by Edward Garnett
The Reminiscences of Carl Schurz: Volume Two 1852 - 1863 by Carl Schurz
48whymaggiemay
#46, jhowell - glad to hear you liked Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter because I got it this weekend at B&N because it was on sale and was recommended in Bookmarks magazine.
49Morphidae
My best books of 2010 are:
Marley and Me by John Grogan
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
World War Z by Max Brooks
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
Re-reads
Kushiel's Chosen by Jacqueline Carey
Heir to the Shadows by Anne Bishop
Marley and Me by John Grogan
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
World War Z by Max Brooks
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
Re-reads
Kushiel's Chosen by Jacqueline Carey
Heir to the Shadows by Anne Bishop
50Citizenjoyce
The world is certainly a better place for having Sherman Alexie in it.
51whymaggiemay
#50 Hear, hear!
52Morphidae
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian got a nine out of ten stars. The ONLY reason it didn't get a ten was because it was a little young for me - which isn't the fault of the author.
53VivalaErin
#49-52 I second Sherman Alexie - his writing is absolutely incredible. I read The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven in 2009, but there are some parts I still haven't forgotten.
54FicusFan
My Best books for 2010
Fiction:
In Other Rooms, Other Wonders by Daniyal Mueenuddin
The Girl in the Glass by Jeffrey Ford
White Sky, Black Ice by Stan Jones
Unperfect Souls by Mark del Franco
First Contact: Or It's Later Than You Think by Evan Mandery
This Must Be The Place by Anna Winger
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,
The Girl Who Played With Fire, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson
New Amsterdam by Elizabeth Bear
Stealing Fire by Jo Graham
The Shadow Pavilion by Liz Williams
Things Unborn by Eugene Byrne
Frozen Sun by Stan Jones
Flint by Margaret Redfern
Lester Higata's 20th Century by Barbara Hamby
Killbox by Ann Aguirre
Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay
Nekropolis by Tim Waggoner
Iron Khan by Liz Williams
Death Comes by Amphora by Roger Hudson
Veil of Lies by Jeri Westerson
Non-Fiction:
Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali
My fiction are 4.5-5.0 stars. It was a very good year for fiction. Not so much for non-fiction, only 1 4.5-5.0 book.
Fiction:
In Other Rooms, Other Wonders by Daniyal Mueenuddin
The Girl in the Glass by Jeffrey Ford
White Sky, Black Ice by Stan Jones
Unperfect Souls by Mark del Franco
First Contact: Or It's Later Than You Think by Evan Mandery
This Must Be The Place by Anna Winger
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,
The Girl Who Played With Fire, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson
New Amsterdam by Elizabeth Bear
Stealing Fire by Jo Graham
The Shadow Pavilion by Liz Williams
Things Unborn by Eugene Byrne
Frozen Sun by Stan Jones
Flint by Margaret Redfern
Lester Higata's 20th Century by Barbara Hamby
Killbox by Ann Aguirre
Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay
Nekropolis by Tim Waggoner
Iron Khan by Liz Williams
Death Comes by Amphora by Roger Hudson
Veil of Lies by Jeri Westerson
Non-Fiction:
Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali
My fiction are 4.5-5.0 stars. It was a very good year for fiction. Not so much for non-fiction, only 1 4.5-5.0 book.
55millhold
Of all the several hundred books I read in 2010, I think the very best one was The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. It was non-fiction, but read like fiction. I told everybody I knew about it, loaned my copy to a friend, and still haven't gotten it back! Grrrrrrr.
edited for typo
edited for typo
565hrdrive
Fiction
The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara
Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
Sharpe's Battle by Bernard Cornwell
Night Watch by Terry Pratchett
The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown
Non-Fiction
The Book of Basketball by Bill Simmons
The Longest Day by Cornelius Ryan
Dreadnought by Robert Massie
The Boys of Summer by Roger Kahn
Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond
The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara
Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
Sharpe's Battle by Bernard Cornwell
Night Watch by Terry Pratchett
The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown
Non-Fiction
The Book of Basketball by Bill Simmons
The Longest Day by Cornelius Ryan
Dreadnought by Robert Massie
The Boys of Summer by Roger Kahn
Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond
57talkingcelery
After much thought, here's my top ten, in the order I read them:
The Left Hand of Darkness, by Ursula K. Le Guin. Classic science fiction with a big heart.
Dancing at the Rascal Fair, by Ivan Doig. I just discovered him this year and absolutely loved this novel. I like stories about ordinary people going about their lives, and this was a prime example!
This House of Sky, also by Ivan Doig. It's a memoir, and one of the most affecting and thoughtful I've read. The writing is exquisite (maybe a little too much so at times...).
The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins. I read the whole trilogy this year, but the first was the best by far. Very gripping.
The Thorn Birds, by Colleen McCullough. I love the way she writes -- I was captured by the first page and never lost interest.
Shoeless Joe, by W. P. Kinsella. Such a charming story, and I actually liked it better than the movie that came after (Field of Dreams).
Diamond Ruby, by Joseph Wallace. Saw this on the new books shelf at the library and picked it up. I loved it! I'm enthralled with Babe Ruth-era baseball and the world this book conjured up was so interesting to me.
Out Stealing Horses, by Per Pettersen. A very quiet book, and very moving. I couldn't stop thinking about it.
The Imperfectionists, by Tom Rachman. So funny and so devastating at the same time. This book snuck up on me -- I didn't expect to like it as much as I did.
Fifth Business, by Robertson Davies. My dad recommended it and it was wonderful! I loved the voice of the main character (or is he the main character?).
The Left Hand of Darkness, by Ursula K. Le Guin. Classic science fiction with a big heart.
Dancing at the Rascal Fair, by Ivan Doig. I just discovered him this year and absolutely loved this novel. I like stories about ordinary people going about their lives, and this was a prime example!
This House of Sky, also by Ivan Doig. It's a memoir, and one of the most affecting and thoughtful I've read. The writing is exquisite (maybe a little too much so at times...).
The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins. I read the whole trilogy this year, but the first was the best by far. Very gripping.
The Thorn Birds, by Colleen McCullough. I love the way she writes -- I was captured by the first page and never lost interest.
Shoeless Joe, by W. P. Kinsella. Such a charming story, and I actually liked it better than the movie that came after (Field of Dreams).
Diamond Ruby, by Joseph Wallace. Saw this on the new books shelf at the library and picked it up. I loved it! I'm enthralled with Babe Ruth-era baseball and the world this book conjured up was so interesting to me.
Out Stealing Horses, by Per Pettersen. A very quiet book, and very moving. I couldn't stop thinking about it.
The Imperfectionists, by Tom Rachman. So funny and so devastating at the same time. This book snuck up on me -- I didn't expect to like it as much as I did.
Fifth Business, by Robertson Davies. My dad recommended it and it was wonderful! I loved the voice of the main character (or is he the main character?).
58Sandydog1
It's a bit late in the year (2011), so I will just list them (2010):
Me Write Book Hilarious.
The Quiet American
The God Delusion
The End of Oil
Lost on Planet China
World War Z
And No Birds Sang
The Road
Inherent Vice
Born to Run
In Cold Blood
Invisible Man
Cry, the Beloved Country
Me Write Book Hilarious.
The Quiet American
The God Delusion
The End of Oil
Lost on Planet China
World War Z
And No Birds Sang
The Road
Inherent Vice
Born to Run
In Cold Blood
Invisible Man
Cry, the Beloved Country
59sarahbird
After consideration, here are my best books of 2010. I tried to narrow the list down a bit, but it was impossible - it was an excellent reading year!
Fingersmith - Sarah Waters. Excellently written, creepily gothic historical fiction with a twist that literally made me gasp out loud.
The Year of Living Biblically - A.J. Jacobs. Hysterically funny yet insightful first-person account of the author's attempt to follow the Bible literally for a year.
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day - Winifred Watson. Bubbly and delightfully entertaining.
Never Let Me Go - Kazuo Ishiguro. Incredible writing, extremely thought-provoking.
Eating the Dinosaur - Chuck Klosterman. Entertaining series of essays.
Changing Planes - Ursula K. Le Guin. Odd, dreamy blend of fantasy and sci-fi.
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks - Rebecca Skloot. Wonderfully researched and fascinating nonfiction.
The Sparrow - Mary Doria Russell. Perfectly-drawn characters and a fascinating plot.
Revolutionary Road - Richard Yates. Depressing but beautiful, with characters that are so realistic I forgot they were fictional.
Half of a Yellow Sun - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Fascinating and moving story.
American Wife - Curtis Sittenfeld. Well-written and emotionally affecting - Sittenfeld really gets into the main character's head.
False Colours - Georgette Heyer. Laugh-out-loud, madcap romp. P.G. Wodehouse meets Jane Austen.
Fingersmith - Sarah Waters. Excellently written, creepily gothic historical fiction with a twist that literally made me gasp out loud.
The Year of Living Biblically - A.J. Jacobs. Hysterically funny yet insightful first-person account of the author's attempt to follow the Bible literally for a year.
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day - Winifred Watson. Bubbly and delightfully entertaining.
Never Let Me Go - Kazuo Ishiguro. Incredible writing, extremely thought-provoking.
Eating the Dinosaur - Chuck Klosterman. Entertaining series of essays.
Changing Planes - Ursula K. Le Guin. Odd, dreamy blend of fantasy and sci-fi.
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks - Rebecca Skloot. Wonderfully researched and fascinating nonfiction.
The Sparrow - Mary Doria Russell. Perfectly-drawn characters and a fascinating plot.
Revolutionary Road - Richard Yates. Depressing but beautiful, with characters that are so realistic I forgot they were fictional.
Half of a Yellow Sun - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Fascinating and moving story.
American Wife - Curtis Sittenfeld. Well-written and emotionally affecting - Sittenfeld really gets into the main character's head.
False Colours - Georgette Heyer. Laugh-out-loud, madcap romp. P.G. Wodehouse meets Jane Austen.
60Storeetllr
>59 sarahbird: Since I agree with you 100% on Fingersmith, Never Let Me Go, and The Sparrow, I guess I can trust you on the others, so I'll be checking them out, especially Year of Living Biblically, Henrietta Lacks, Miss Pettigrew, and False Colours, all of which sound wonderful.
61whymaggiemay
Storeetllr, if you haven't read Half of a Yellow Sun I would definitely recommend it. Wonderful story.
62Storeetllr
It's on my TBR list, Maggie. Just haven't gotten round to it yet. Too many other books keep cutting in front of the line.
