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Bookish Talk, Lists

Best of 2013: My Favorites

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Best Books of 2013

The new year is almost here. Why not start it off with a book list?

This list includes books that I read this past year and that impressed me in some way. There were others that I loved for different reasons, but for whatever reason, I did not include them here. It’s funny what ends up on your list after you’ve had a year to think about it. The real surprise here? The short story collection and that a memoir made the list.

Here’s my list in no particular order:

Life Itself by Roger
Sweet Tooth by Ian McEwan
Night Film by Marisha Pessl
After Her by Joyce Maynard
Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk by Ben Fountain
The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach
This Cake is For the Party by Sarah Selecky
Panorama City by Antoine Wilson
The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman
Sputnik Sweetheart by Haruki Murakami
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami
The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer

Happy New Year

Happy New Year to you all. Here’s to another year of reading!

Bookish Talk

Best of 2012: My Favorites

36 Comments

Best of 2012

Happy New Year!

2012 was a tough year of reading for me. I enjoyed many books, but when it comes to my “best of” list, the books needed to be more than just entertaining or elegantly written. They had to spark something within me. That said, some of my choices may seem odd to you but they all meant something to me at the time and they are the ones that I often think about, even now.

Here’s my list, in the order in which I read them:

1.Then Again (audio) by Diane Keaton
2.Wish You Were Here by Stewart O’Nan
3.Heft by Liz Moore
4.A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
5.The Starboard Sea by Amber Dermont
6.The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
7.The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce
8.So L.A. by Bridget Hoida
9.The Dog Stars by Peter Heller
10.The Lighthouse Road by Peter Geye
11. Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Haruki Murakami (added at the very last minute!)

Looking at this list which is is all fiction with the exception of the first title, I can honestly say that the characters won me over. Each of them complex, richly developed and memorable. If you are looking for a great read, you can’t go wrong with any of these.

Here’s to another year of great reading!