i did a lot of reading in 2006, but sadly most of what i read wasn't terribly memorable. having said that, there were a few books that stood out. here were my favourites:
the many lives and secret sorrows of josephine b., tales of passion, tales of woe, and the last great dance on earth by sandra gulland i wasn't very interested in reading about napolean bonaparte until i happened upon this trilogy about his wife josephine. written in diary form, these books cover her whole life from childhood through her marriage to napoleon and they are really fantastic.
middlesex by jeffrey eugenides this is a multi-generational novel about a greek-american girl who grows up to be a man. i had so many recommendations for this that i finally went out and got it. i thought it sounded a bit strange, but it's not really and i should have bought it earlier.
crossing to safety by wallace stegner my friend heidi recommended this amazing book about lifelong friendship and marriage.
how i live now by meg rosoff this is a novel aimed at teens, about a girl who goes to modern-day england to stay with relatives. while she is there, she falls in love and world war breaks out. i loved it.
12 days by shelley silas i am often disappointed by short story collections, but this one really surprised me. it's entertaining and well written. themed around the 12 days of christmas, this set of stories by contemporary authors inspired me in my short story writing.
we need to talk about kevin by lionel shriver i put off buying this for nearly six months because i knew i would have a hard time with it. i was right--it's really difficult to read. but it's also difficult to put down and incredibly thought-provoking. it was definitely one of the best books i read this year.
the boleyn inheritance by philippa gregory i just love gregory's historical fiction, and this new novel about henry viii's third and fourth wives doesn't disappoint. it's narrated by three women--the two wives (anne of cleaves and katherine howard) and jane boleyn, the sister-in-law of the infamous anne.
the contented little baby book of weaning by gina ford i had to include this one in the list because i have referred to it (and anabel karmel's top 100 baby purees) over and over throughout the year. this book made weaning madeline onto solids an absolute breeze and her recipes are madeline's favourites.
Great suggestions! I will check a bunch of these out (except the weaning book -- hehehe).
I have the "Kevin" book but haven't read it yet. "How I Live Now" sounds really great, too.
Thanks for the recommendations!
xoxoxo
L
Posted by: Lain (Knit and Purl Grrl) | January 19, 2007 at 06:31 PM