Of the 92 books I read in 2012, there were a few standouts.
I mentioned "Sacre Bleu" by Chistopher Moore, but some of the others were:
"The Cat's Table" by Michael Ondaatje - I love all of his writing and I'm just waiting for him to get the Nobel Prize for Literature, he deserves it.
"Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand - our book club read this and loved it.
"The Invisible Circus" by Jennifer Egan - her first novel and the best of the 3 I read by her
"Waterfront" - by Philip Lopate - a wonderful exploration of the history and current appearance of New York's waterfront.
"The Art of Fielding" by Chad Harbach
"Wendy and the Lost Boys" by Julie Salomon - the biography of Wendy Wasserstein. I also read several of her plays after reading this. And Wendy's two books of essays "Shiksa Goddess" and "Bachelor Girls".
"A Crack in the Edge of the World" And "Atlantic" by Simon Winchester. He's wonderful and writes about everything - like another Bill Bryson.
"Home" by Toni Morrison - fabulously layered small jewel of a book. I also liked "A Mercy".
"Lots of Candles and Plenty of Cake" by Anna Quindlen - a collection of her essays on turning 60.
I have also been talking up the "Investigator Yashim" series by Jason Goodwin. These take place in 1830s Istanbul. Yashim is a eunuch in the sultan's harem who investigates crimes and mysteries. Very atmospheric. There are 4 books now in the series.
"Sweet Tooth" by Ian McEwan - one of his best.
"Flight Behavior" by Barbara Kingsolver - I've read every word this woman has published ever since I picked "Homeland" off the shelf of my library 20 years ago. This one is wonderful
"Ransom" by David Malouf - I read this when I was on my Australia kick - beautiful re-imagining of Chapter 24 of "The Iliad"
I also did a dip into the classics in honor of Dickens' 200th anniversary. I read "Little Dorrit", "Nicholas Nickleby" and "A Tale of Two Cities". I would recommend any of those!
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