Years ago, I started keeping track of the books I read and I used to put them on a spreadsheet. I have encouraged my students to do this, but being 13 and knowing everything there is to know about the world, they think I’m just stupid.
However, I beg to differ. Using the blogging platform this year to keep track has been both fun and challenging. It’s hard to come up with a cogent and concise comment on every book (and you already know that sometimes I just blow it off), and I’m really glad that Amazon.com is full of reviews by people who do it a lot better than I do. For those of you who have actually read and commented on my recommendations, I thank you.
If you want to see what I read this year, feel free to skim through my 2010 Book List. I am not surprised to find that I read 70-ish books; there are a few missing here and there, and I’m also not surprised to see that I read a lot of fluffy chicklit. I’m okay with that and it keeps me sane. There are, however, some must-reads on my list that I’m going to go out on a limb and tell you that you would miss something in life if you did not read them. They are, in no particular order:
- Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
by Jamie Ford
- The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
by Stieg Larsson
- The Book Thief
by Markus Zusak
- Cleopatra: A Life
by Stacy Schiff
- American Wife: A Novel (New York Times Notable Books)
by Curtis Sittenfeld
- Loving Frank: A Novel
by Nancy Horan
- Honolulu
by Alan Brennert
- South of Broad: A Novel
by Pat Conroy
- Bridge of Sighs: A Novel (Vintage Contemporaries)
by Richard Russo
- The Help
by Kathryn Stockett
I’m looking at the stack of books on my nightstand and wondering which will be my favorites in 2011. I’m pretty sure the other two Stieg Larsson books will be there, and I’m reading a bunch of “book club reads” off the dedicated shelf in the library. I think I’m going to buy my own copy of Walking to Canterbury because I’m pretty sure I’m going to want to pass it on. We’ve chosen some interesting books for book club, so I’m convinced it will be another great year for reading.
Happy New Reading Year to you all and I look forward to your comments and recommendations!
I read 1, 5, 8, and 10 and loved them all. I just finished Innocent, the sequel to Presumed Innocent, and loved that too. Happy new year!! Looking forward to what I hope is a good year for all.
Do you own Innocent? I’d love to read it, as Presumed Innocent has always been one of my favorites!
Yep. You’re welcome to borrow it.
Aunt Jennie, I am excited you have a Cleopatra book on your list! I am always looking for good stuff–I am fascinated by here. On my Kindle waiting to be read is the Memoirs of Cleopatra by Margaret George. Have you read it? If not, I’ll let you know how it is. By the way, I highly recommend you investing in a Kindle, it is wonderful. <3 your history nerdy niece.
Oh, I LOVED “The Book Thief”!
I listened to “The Help”; it was read by different women for the different characters and was just wonderful. I strongly recommend the audio version of this one. You can get it from Audible.com, or, even better, free from your public library.
Thanks for the comment, Deb. As a dedicated audio book listener, I agree that there are many books that are improved by the dramatic reading. My best ever was A Passage to India, which I would never have gotten through without an audio book.