I keep a little notebook on my nightstand. In it I write down the books I read over the course of a year. In addition to the book's title and author, I usually jot a little note regarding my overall impression about that particular title.
A couple people asked for my favorites of the year. I narrowed it down to the top five in fiction and non-fiction.
Top 5 Fiction of 2008 (it was really, really hard to narrow it down to five):
1. Wintersmith - Sir Terry Pratchett (he was recently knighted by Queen Elizabeth)
2. The Graveyard Book - Neil Gaiman
3. An Arsonist's Guide to Writers' Homes in New England - Brock Clarke
4. The Pale Blue Eye - Louis Bayard
5. I Love You, Beth Cooper - Larry Doyle
Top 5 Young Adult Fiction of 2008:
1. Redwall - Brian Jacques
2. The Percy Jackson and The Olympians books (The Lightning Thief, et. al.) - Rick Riordan
3. Soon I Will Be Invincable - Austin Grossman
4. Zel - Donna Jo Napoli
5. The Twilight series - Stephanie Meyer
Top 5 Non-Fiction of 2008:
1. The Areas of My Expertise - John Hodgman
2. The Shock Doctrine - Naomi Klein
3. The $64 Tomato - William Alexander
4. Blood Brothers - Michael Weisskopf
5. The Amazing Mackerel Pudding Plan - Wendy McClure
Top 5 Comic Books of 2008:
1. One Hundred Demons - Lynda Barry
2. Owly: A Time To Be Brave - Andy Runton
3. The Mouse Gaurds - David Peterson
4. Too Cool To Be Forgotten - Alex Robinson
5. Funhome - Alison Bechtel
With the good, you get the bad and I read some stinkers this year. Stay far away from the following books, the worst I read in 2008, if you know what's good for you:
1. Footsucker - Geoff Nicholson
4. Generation Ecstasy - Simon Reynolds
5. The Monstrous Memoirs of a Mighty McFearless - Ahmet Zappa (which is too bad because I love the title)
Leeanthro wondered what book I'd like to hear on audio. My choice is Terry Pratchett's bloody fantastic Wintersmith, mainly because I'd love to hear the Feegles (they have Scottish accents and are hilarious).
A couple people asked for my favorites of the year. I narrowed it down to the top five in fiction and non-fiction.
Top 5 Fiction of 2008 (it was really, really hard to narrow it down to five):
1. Wintersmith - Sir Terry Pratchett (he was recently knighted by Queen Elizabeth)
2. The Graveyard Book - Neil Gaiman
3. An Arsonist's Guide to Writers' Homes in New England - Brock Clarke
4. The Pale Blue Eye - Louis Bayard
5. I Love You, Beth Cooper - Larry Doyle
Top 5 Young Adult Fiction of 2008:
1. Redwall - Brian Jacques
2. The Percy Jackson and The Olympians books (The Lightning Thief, et. al.) - Rick Riordan
3. Soon I Will Be Invincable - Austin Grossman
4. Zel - Donna Jo Napoli
5. The Twilight series - Stephanie Meyer
Top 5 Non-Fiction of 2008:
1. The Areas of My Expertise - John Hodgman
2. The Shock Doctrine - Naomi Klein
3. The $64 Tomato - William Alexander
4. Blood Brothers - Michael Weisskopf
5. The Amazing Mackerel Pudding Plan - Wendy McClure
Top 5 Comic Books of 2008:
1. One Hundred Demons - Lynda Barry
2. Owly: A Time To Be Brave - Andy Runton
3. The Mouse Gaurds - David Peterson
4. Too Cool To Be Forgotten - Alex Robinson
5. Funhome - Alison Bechtel
With the good, you get the bad and I read some stinkers this year. Stay far away from the following books, the worst I read in 2008, if you know what's good for you:
1. Footsucker - Geoff Nicholson
2. Alligator - Lisa Moore (I have no recollection of reading this book, other than the fact that there are no alligators in it.)
3. Eye Contact - Cammie McGovern (my note for this says it all: "meh.")4. Generation Ecstasy - Simon Reynolds
5. The Monstrous Memoirs of a Mighty McFearless - Ahmet Zappa (which is too bad because I love the title)
Leeanthro wondered what book I'd like to hear on audio. My choice is Terry Pratchett's bloody fantastic Wintersmith, mainly because I'd love to hear the Feegles (they have Scottish accents and are hilarious).
So there you go. Here's to a 2009 filled with great books, comics, poetry: beautiful, beautiful words.
1 comment:
I'll have to check some of those out. I love a good book!
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