The Very Best Book You Read Last Year

[SynysterSaint]

Best book of 2009 was Something Wicked This Way Comes.

I'm with you there, Brownings! Something Wicked This Way Comes is one of my favorite books as of this moment, and definitely worthy of the title "Best Book I Read in 2009". The Dark Tower was amazing, and it is my favorite book I read, but I feel that Bradbury brought more to the table than King this time around.

DT7

Except for the last line in The Dark Tower and Jake & Oy's deaths, I could have lived with a completely different narrative for the last book. He added in all of the necessary components, but Bradbury simply had a better narrative.

Fun fact: I had the outline for a story I wanted to write, and I found out through a Wikipedia article about the Best 100 Novels of the 20th Century that Bradbury had already written that book (SWTWC). That's how I first heard about it. Imagine how amazed and upset I was! However, it was a horribly fantastic narrative and, looking back, I feel he handled the story much more eloquently than I would have.

[Mattrick]

Much like the thread for movies, this is for your top ten list of the books we read this year. Either this list will be every book you have read this year or a small percentage. Figured with a month left before the end of the year it is a good time, if you read a book in the next 6 weeks thats listworthy edit it up.


1. East of Eden by John Steinbeck
2. Notes From Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky
3. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
4. Candide by Voltaire
5. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
6. The Catcher In The Rye by J. D. Sallinger
7. Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
8. The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
9. Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut
10. The Pianist by Wladislaw Szpilman

[WeDealInLead]

I'll post mine in December. Top 10 2012 books and top 10 non-2012 books that I've read this year.

[Mattrick]

I think the most recent book ive read all year was Under The Dome.

[WeDealInLead]

Dang, I'm at 26 2012 books already and I think I'll read at least 5 more by year end.

I'll start now with 2012:

Railsea - China Mieville
Pure - Julianna Baggott
The Fleshless Man - Norman Prentiss
The Underdwelling or Puppet Graveyard - Tim Curran
Hide Me Among the Graves - Tim Powers

I'm still reading The Twelve by Cronin and I won't have time to read Nothing As It Seems by Tim Lebbon but I've read most of the stories already. Those two will be on the list for sure. In the words of Rorschach... "Hrm"

[Jean]

bears have read tons of great stuff this year, will post later, now the first things that come to mind:

1. Crichton!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (all the four books I've read so far)
2. Shirley Jackson. The Haunting of Hill House
3. J.K.Rowling. The Casual Vacancy
4. Joe Hill. Horns
5. Dan Simmons. Summer of Night

absolutely adored all of the above

[alkanto]

let's see...so far, I think I can some up with these at least? I didn't read very many new books this year, unfortunately...a lot of re-reads.

1. This Book is Full of Spiders - David Wong
2. Black House - Stephen King/Peter Straub
3. Neverwhere - Neil Gaiman
4. The House of Silk - Anthony Horowitz
5. The Graveyard Book - Neil Gaiman

[Mattrick]

How is Black House? It sounded intriguing on the jacket.

[alkanto]

I really, really liked it. It was creepy, horrifying, and awesome. it's now one of my favorite King novels, actually

[Jean]

what Jen said

[Darkthoughts]

Yes, Black House is one of my absolute favourite King books too. Imagine a life without having known Henry Leyden?! Matt, you should read it immediately!!

Jean, what did you like about Casual Vacancy? I couldn't stand it, I found it very tedious - I'm interested to know why Bears liked it!

[Jean]

Jean, what did you like about Casual Vacancy? I couldn't stand it, I found it very tedious - I'm interested to know why Bears liked it!

I relished every sentence. I'll try to post a review.

[Darkthoughts]

Excellent!

[mae]

Sadly this was a very slow year for books for me. I don't think I even read ten books in all. The best would have to be 11/22/63. Inspired by Jean's fervor for Crichton, I'm hoping to read and re-read the entire MC oeuvre next year. That's my upcoming New Year's resolution.

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

No particular order, but here is my favorite 10 from this year.
1. Horns -Joe Hill
2. Angels and Demons - Dan Brown
3. All the Pretty Horses - Cormac McCarthy
4. Gullivers Travels - Jonathan Swift
5. The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins
6. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas - H.S. Thompson
7. A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess
8. A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
9. Black House - SK
10. The Twelve - Justin Cronin

[Jean]

1. Horns -Joe Hill
4. Gullivers Travels - Jonathan Swift
9. Black House - SK

[Jean]

The year is nearing the end! Time to choose which is the best book you've read in 2013

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

Best of 2013

1. VERY BEST = Joyland

2. Life of Pi
3. Peter Pan
4. Lolita
5. Last of the Mohicans
6. Dr. Sleep
7. Cat's Cradle
8. NOS4A2
9. Rose Madder
10. The Turner Diaries

[Jean]

I've read such a lot this year that it's hard to pick the winner... Cloud Atlas and Joyland are sure among the best, but there's also Crichton... Luckily, we still have time make up our minds before the end of the year.

I believe the very best book I read this year, though, is The Terror by Dan Simmons.

I was surprised now, when I looked at my booklist, and found that I only read The Terror this year. I feel like I've lived most of my life with it.

The other best book is Watership Down... so hard to chose between the two!

[evilash]

The Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace. Not only the best book I read this year but may be the best book I have ever read.

[Mattrick]

I haven't read very many books this year but if I had to choose a top five it would be:

1. The Brothers Karamazov - Fyodor Dostoevsky
2. The Sun Also Rises - Ernest Hemingway
3. Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
4. The Old Man and the Sea - Ernest Hemingway
5. Blindness - Jose Saramago

I plan on reading a few books so it might change.

[DoctorZaius]

In no particular order
The Wind Through the Keyhole - King
11/22/63 - King
Joyland - King
Olympos and Ilium - Dan Simmons
Their Eyes Were Watching God - Zora Neale Hurston
Earth Abides - George R. Stewart
All the Pretty Horses - Cormac McCarthy
Ex Utero - Laurie Foos (funniest book I have read in years)
Vox - Nicholson Baker (sexy, sexy, sexy)
Mondo Barbie - (funny, sexy, demented, what more could you want in a short story collection?)
The Dante Club - Mathew Pearl
Burnt Offerings - Robert Marasco
The Lord of the Rings - ashamed to admit I had never read them

I will try to narrow it to one after thinking further

[Merlin1958]

Dr. Sleep, hands down!!!

[DoctorZaius]

Dr. Sleep, hands down!!!

I still haven't read it - gotta get to over my XMAS break from school.

[CyberGhostface]

Tough to say but going to throw out NOS4A2 for now.