1. Bag of Bones by Stephen King: It’s not a new read, but it’s definitely my favorite King book (and it gets better every time I read it). It doesn’t improve with age in the same way The Great Gatsby does, but it has a sustainable storyline filled with memorable characters that I love coming [...]

Best of Best Books of 2009, Douglas Preston, Geraldine Brooks, Lisa Genova, Margaret Lazarus Dean, Mario Spezi, Markus Zusak, Nicole Johns, Stephen King, Thomas Tyron

These are my best 11 books of 09 (I think I made that clear in the title). The order of the books will be the first one will be the best and 11th will be the 11th best.
1. The Complete Maus: A Survivor’s Tale by Art Spiegelman
2. Mudville by Kurtis Scaletta
3. American Born Chinese by [...]

Best of Alan Grant, art spiegelman, Best Books of 2009, Chuck Dixon, Doug Moench, Jeff Smith, Jeph Loeb, Jim Lee, Kurtis Scaletta, Marjane Satrapi, Mark Waid, Scott Williams

10. The Fractured Fairy Tales of Lynn Roberts: Ms. Roberts, along with her illustrator brother, give us three charming renditions of some old classics. Cinderella as an 1920’s flapper girl, Rapunzel as a long-haired hippie of the 1970’s and Little Red, a brave little guy who gets the wolf to burp out Grandma with ginger [...]

Best of Adam Rapp, Ann Leary, Best Books of 2009, Bill Scheft, Janine Latus, John Ajvide Lindqvist, Jonathan Carroll, Julia Leigh, Lynn Roberts, Neil Gaiman, Stacey O'Brien

2009 was a good year full of fantastic books, but I did run into books that I absolutely didn’t enjoy. I found these books thanks to my old school’s library, reading class, the Maud Hart Lovelace reading program, friends, my random pick, or read aloud. These books are in order from 10 to 1. A [...]

Best of Ally Carter, Best Books of 2009, Caroline B Cooney, Cynthia Kadohata, Dandi Daley Mackall, Gordon Korman, Jerry Spinelli, Kathryn Lasky, Lisi Harrison, Margaret Peterson Haddix, Sarah Weeks

10. Hoot by Carl Hiaasen: I don’t think I’ve come across a Carl Hiaasen book yet that I haven’t enjoyed.As a young adult novel, Hoot has a slower pace and a thinner plot, but still a fun read. Like his adult novels,the characters are just as twisted, the humor is just as warped [...]

Best of Allan Guthrie, B.H. Fingerman, Best Books of 2009, Carl Hiaasen, Eve Golden, John Meany, Josh Bazell, Masha Hamilton, Neil Gaiman, Walter Mosely

My list is not that original, you may find many of these books on other best of lists for 2009, but hopefully that’s because they are good books. I’m behind the times with two of these titles – The Road and Push – but they both left lasting impressions on me this year.
Here you go:
1. [...]

Best of A.M. Homes, Arthur Phillips, Best Books of 2009, Cormac McCarthy, Dan Chaon, Elizabeth Strout, Lorrie Moore, Mary Karr, Roberto Bolano, Saffire, Tom Piazza

1. Ray of the Star by Laird Hunt: Loved everything about this book! The writing is dynamic, the setting is exotic, and the plotline is filled with beauty and tragedy. [review]
2. The Invisible Mountain by Carolina De Robertis: This book is currently making the rounds with the ladies of my family. It is a moving [...]

Best of A.W. Hill, Alan Deniro, Anne-Marie Oomen, Best Books of 2009, Carolina DeRobertis, Debra Ollivier, Isobella Jade, Janet Skeslien Charles, Laird Hunt, Miriam Toews, Norah Labiner

1. State by State: A Panoramic Portrait of America by Matt Weiland and Sean Wilsey: I love stories that create a sense of place, so this anthology of 50 essays by 50 authors, each about his or her own state, was a jackpot. Every three or four pages, you get a completely different tone and [...]

Best of Annie Proulx, Bernard Schlink, Best Books of 2009, Donna Tarrt, Junot Diaz, Louise Erdich, Lynne Truss, Matt Weiland, Michael Chabon, Richard Holmes, Sarah Thornton, Sean Wilsey

This year I read twenty books that earned my coveted 5-star rating. Here, in no particular order, are the ten I feel were the best of those twenty.
1. In the Land of Invented Languages: Esperanto Rock Stars, Klingon Poets, Loglan Lovers, and The Mad Dreamers Who Tried to Build A Perfect Language: Arika Okrent [review]
2. Neither [...]

Best of Andrew Davidson, Arika Okrent, Best Books of 2009, Jiddu Krishnamurti, Joseph Campbell, Kent Nerburn, Matthew Fox, Sarah Vowell, Steve Hagen, Waziyatawin

In no specific order:
In the Miso Soup by Ryu Murakami: Kenji is a young guide who takes tourists through Tokyo’s seedy underground. It’s an illegal job that brings him into contact with the seemingly plastic-faced and socially awkward Frank, whom Kenji suspects is a murderer. This book is absolutely chilling. In my favorite scene, blood [...]

Best of Andrew Davidson, Arthur Phillips, Best Books of 2009, Charlotte Roche, E.L. Doctorow, Jonathan Safran Foer, Josh Bazell, justin evans, lucinda rosenfeld, Ryu Murakami