Saturday, January 14, 2012

BEST AND WORST BOOKS READ IN 2011

THE BEST
(Click on the Title To See My Review)




BEST FICTION PUBLISHED AND READ IN 2011
The Gap Year by Sarah Bird
Room by Emma Donoghue
Rules Of Civility by Amor Towles



BEST NON-FICTION PUBLISHED AND READ IN 2011
Stories I Only Tell My Friends by Rob Lowe
In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror and an American Family 
in Hitler's Berlin by Eric Larson
The Intentional Networker by Patti DeNucci
Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson 
Destiny Of The Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the 
Murder of a President by Candice Millard



BEST FICTION  PUBLISHED PRIOR TO BUT READ IN  2011
True Grit by Charles Portis
The Automatic Detective by A. Lee Martinez
Half Broke Horses: A True-Life Novel by Jeannette Walls
The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith
Still Alice by Lisa Genova




BEST NON-FICTION PUBLISHED PRIOR TO BUT READ IN 2011
Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, 
Resilience and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand
Genghis Kahn And The Making Of The Modern World by Jack Weatherford
Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff
Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi and Curt Gentry
Learning to Breathe by Alison Wright




PRETTY DAMN GOOD
The Best American Science Writing
The Best American Nature Writing
The Best American Medical Writing




OK
The Best American Travel Writing
The Best American Sports Writing
Are Men Necessary: When Sexes Collide by Maureen Dowd




THE WORST

REALLY TRIED MY PATIENCE
Wine & War: The French, the Nazis, and the 
Battle for France's Greatest Treasure 
by Donald Kladstrup and Petie Kladstrup
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern



MADE ME WANT TO HURT SOMEONE



BOOKS I WANTED TO READ IN 2011 BUT DIDN’T, YET
The Pale King by David Foster Wallace
Information: A History, A Theory, A Flood by James Gleick
The Tiger’s Wife by Tia Obreht
Boomerang by Michael Lewis
Fatal Invention: How Science, Politics and Big Business 
Re-Create Race In The Twenty-First Century by Dorothy Roberts
Life Itself by Roger Ebert
Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward
Lost in Shangri-La by Mitchell Zuckoff


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4 comments:

  1. Chey-Anne SmartJanuary 14, 2012 at 5:46 PM

    Totally agree with Unbroken-one of the best books I've ever read!!! Could not put it down!

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    1. Gals - Very Smart GalsJanuary 15, 2012 at 8:11 AM

      Thanks for your comment Chey-Anne! Love your FB posts about your adorable kids. I guess you got your mom's love of books!

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  2. Patti DeNucciJanuary 15, 2012 at 8:02 AM

    Wow, SueAnn, you are a very prolific reader! Great list. And thanks for including my book among your favorites! Two books I enjoyed this year were Water for Elephants (book way better than movie) and The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane. Also Today We Are Rich by Tim Sanders.

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    1. Gals - Very Smart GalsJanuary 15, 2012 at 8:10 AM

      Patii:

      I want to assure you that you were in the top 10 because your book is that good, not because you are my friend. I got an email last night from Sarah Bird, and she'll be at the party, so there will be two top 10 there! Ha!

      I too loved "Water for Elephants" (the book - which I read when it first came out). Thanks for your comment!

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