I managed to read 21 books in 2011. One more than last year, so I've made progress! The first half of my year-of-books seems a bit heavy on the unimpressive picks, but I ended up reading quite a few books that I really enjoyed through spring and summer. Three were re-reads, and of course I threw in one token non-fiction since that seems to be the way I roll. I'm not one to dish out written reviews with my yearly book lists, but it does seem too bare to just leave a list as it is when I'm just typing them out in order of when they were read, so I'll at least provide my own ranking that I use in my notebook. Two stars for the ones I'd consider my top favorites of the year, one star for those I really did enjoy, and no star for those that I wouldn't recommend to anyone. "And so, dear reader, here we go ..."
Snow Falling on Cedars - David Guterson *
The Postmistress - Sarah Blake *
Which Witch? - Eva Ibbotson
Never Let Me Go - Kazuo Ishiguro
The Farming of Bones - Edwidge Danticat *
Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen **
Who Has Seen the Wind - W.O. Mitchell
The Secret Scriptures - Sebastian Barry
A Handful of Time - Kit Pearson
Gift from the Sea - Anne Morrow Lindbergh **
Peter Pan - J.M. Barrie *
Cutting for Stone - Abraham Verghese **
New and Selected Poems: Volume One - Mary Oliver *
Follow Me - Joanna Scott
The Poisonwood Bible - Barbara Kingsolver **
Five Quarters of the Orange - Joanne Harris *
The Help - Kathryn Stockett **
Fire in the Blood - Irene Nemirovsky
September - Rosamunde Pilcher *
The Forgotten Garden - Kate Morton **
The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins **
Since we visited a bookstore or two (or four) while we were in Kelowna, we came home with a happy new stack of books for the new year. It actually made me giddy realizing that I had several new books that really excite me to decide between now that I'm ready to move onto a new book. 2012's prospects are looking at a foody biography, an indian/parisian foody novel, the rest of the hunger games trilogy, a quirky youth fantasy ... maybe a little indian child bride, a mute boy, perhaps Jane Eyre? Cheers to a new year of good reading! I'd love to hear what you might have to recommend for me!
Looks like we have much the same taste! I read the first and last of the Hunger Games trilogy while at Moose Lake (I found them in the trailer we were staying in...couldn't make myself wait until I could track down the 2nd to tuck into the 3rd which was sitting right there on the shelf after the first), and The Help is one of the next on my to-read list, as well as another one by Kate Morton.
ReplyDeleteI just read The Forgotten Garden and loved it, too. Thanks for sharing your book list and also adding the 1 and 2 star ratings. Love getting new ideas. If you are in the mood for a non-fiction I shall not Hate by Izzeldin Aberlaish(?), Half the Sky, and Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali are all good reads.
ReplyDeleteYay! Just the other day I almost sent you an e-mail saying that I needed your book list! :) I love to hear what you've read and add a few from it to my list. Sadly I read next to nothing this past year but this year I'm planning to change that.
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