Best I Read in 2009
By Kristen on Jan 4, 2010 in Book Club Favorites, Future Classics...?
photo credit: kevindooley
What a great year of reading I’ve had! Here are my top recommendations… Feel free to leave your own picks below in the comments, too! I realize some of these picks were published prior to 2009, but I’ve decided to create my list according to what I read this past year… I decided on this list by strolling through all of my reviews and choosing those titles that really made me think, or brought me great pleasure, or have simply stayed with me months later. See what you think!
- Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri
- Hot, Flat, and Crowded by Thomas Friedman
- Dangerous Laughter by Steven Millhauser
- A Whole New Mind by Daniel Pink
- Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
- Every Last Cuckoo by Kate Maloy
- Rooftops of Tehran by Mahbod Seraji
- People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks
- The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
- The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
- The Help by Kathryn Stockett
- Dreams of My Father by Barack Obama
- What Is the What by Dave Eggers
- Zeitoun by Dave Eggers
- In A Perfect World by Laura Kasischke
- The Bee Season by Myla Goldberg
So, what did I miss this year? What should I add to my TBR list?
Welcome back!
I also think Unaccustomed Earth, Olive Kitteridge, and Zeitoun belong on the best of the year. All excellent books. My reading list from last year, like most years, spanned a lot of current books, as well as classics and others I had to read for business reasons.
Out of the new lot, and don’t laugh, I wholeheartedly recommend Stephen King’s Under the Dome. I followed King’s work from the very beginning for about a decade and then stopped reading him in the mid-1980s. For some reason, this book appealed to me. And I couldn’t have been more surprised. King has really grown as a writer. This is a page turner that doesn’t let up. But apart from the crackling good story, King has something to say this time around. He’s shining a mirror back at the world of today and it’s not a pretty picture. If you can get past the heft of the 1,000+ pages, you’ll be rewarded with a truly memorable read.
Jim Lochner | Jan 4, 2010 | Reply
Cutting for Stone, Abraham Verghese; and Day After Night, Anita Diamant. Reviews are on my blog. We have a lot of the same books on our lists, so I’m guessing you’ll like these!
Sarah at SmallWorld Reads | Jan 4, 2010 | Reply
Unaccustomed Earth was a great read. Great list, i’ll have to check out some of these books.
Mrs.Q: Book Addict | Jan 4, 2010 | Reply
Thank you for the suggestions! It has been years since I read King, but have a hard time putting any of his novels down once I’ve started…
Kristen | Jan 4, 2010 | Reply
Thank you for the suggestions, Sarah!! Love to add to my TBR list
Kristen | Jan 4, 2010 | Reply
I love adding to my TBR list, too!! Thank you and I”m so glad the list is useful…
Kristen | Jan 4, 2010 | Reply
Looks like a great list. Many of these books are on my TBR list, especially The Help and The Art of Racing in the Rain. I hope 2010 brings more great literary greatness.
Julie | Jan 4, 2010 | Reply
not sure if you have read Still Alice, but it’s my favorite fiction in 2009 (2nd was The Help, 3rd was The Blue Notebook. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society and Rooftops of Tehran were honorable mentions.
christa | Jan 4, 2010 | Reply
Hi Christa — I just read Still Alice over the holidays and loved it!! Good choice… Haven’t read The Blue Notebook yet, but now it’s on my TBR list!
Kristen | Jan 5, 2010 | Reply
Guernsey made my list too!
Anna | Jan 7, 2010 | Reply
by a huge margin, The Witing on My Forehead, a fantastic debut novel by Nafisa Haji — a rich and mesmerizing hypenated-american story that should be a must read
tally me banana | Apr 1, 2010 | Reply