Best books of 2007
I'm just counting books that I read for the first time this year . . . which is too bad. I had some excellent re-reads this year, including In Cold Blood, American Psycho, The Golden Compass, and The Things They Carried. Anyway, here is the list. It could have been a lot longer, but I decided to give you beautiful people a tight twenty (in alphabetical order).
Holy Blood, Holy Grail by Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh, and Henry Lincoln
This book was so awesome it made my eyes cross in my head and it changed my entire relationship to the universe with its relentless sweet insanity. The delightful mindfuck of "You can't prove it didn't happen, therefore it did!" raised to ultimate artfulness. In terms of enjoyment, this is in my top-five for the year.
Babel Tower by A.S. Byatt
This is a great novel. It's the story of a woman leaving her abusive husband in 1960s England . . . mixed in with a mysterious novel about the aftermath of the French Revolution facing a trial for obscenity . . . and a committee to reform the teaching of English to schoolchildren. Don't question it. It is enthralling.
The Alienist by Caleb Carr
This is your run-of-the-mill New York cops and psychiatrist in a race against time with a demented serial killer . . . only it is set in the early 20th century when psychiatry was new. Good book.
A Slight Trick of the Mind by Mitch Cullin
This was the last great novel I read this year. It's the story of Sherlock Holmes in 1947, 93 and facing the inevitable decline of his mental facilities. A blurb on the back said "This is what a novel should be." I can't improve on that review.
The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion
My favorite of Didion's. Heartbreaking.
Debunking 9/11 Myths: Why Conspiracy Theories Can't Stand Up to the Facts edited by David Dunbar and Brad Reagan
Sweet rationality and science--ruining everything!
Lunar Park by Bret Easton Ellis
My favorite novel of the year. I find myself reading the last few pages every week just so I can recapture that feeling.
The Big Over Easy by Jasper Fforde
Something Rotten by Jasper Fforde
Fforde is one of my favorite novelists working today. My Mom just finished The Big Over Easy and said--"It's one of the best mysteries I've ever read!" If you'd like to say that about a book featuring Humpty Dumpty as murder victim, read it posthaste.
Housekeeping vs. the Dirt by Nick Hornsby
Hornsby is a master of the book review.
Bag of Bones by Stephen King
One of the best books he's published for years.
Chuck Klosterman IV: A Decade of Curious People and Dangerous Ideas by Chuck Klosterman
I adore Chuck Klosterman. The end.
Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith by Jon Krakauer
Our Guys by Bernard Lefkowitz
Two great non-fiction books about the horrible things that people do to other people.
Bodies of Subversion: A Secret History of Women and Tattoo by Margot Mifflin
Women and tattoos. Reads like a undergrad research paper at times, but it has great pictures.
The Best American Comics: 2006 edited by Harvey Pekar and Anne Elizabeth Moore
Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris
Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris
I just started reading David Sedaris this year. I love him.
The Chelsea Whistle by Michelle Tea
One of the best memoirs I've ever read.
Fear and Loathing in America: The Gonzo Letters, Volume II by Hunter S. Thompson
These letters are contemporary with his classic works of the 1960s/1970s. Great background.
x-posted to 50bookchallenge
Holy Blood, Holy Grail by Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh, and Henry Lincoln
This book was so awesome it made my eyes cross in my head and it changed my entire relationship to the universe with its relentless sweet insanity. The delightful mindfuck of "You can't prove it didn't happen, therefore it did!" raised to ultimate artfulness. In terms of enjoyment, this is in my top-five for the year.
Babel Tower by A.S. Byatt
This is a great novel. It's the story of a woman leaving her abusive husband in 1960s England . . . mixed in with a mysterious novel about the aftermath of the French Revolution facing a trial for obscenity . . . and a committee to reform the teaching of English to schoolchildren. Don't question it. It is enthralling.
The Alienist by Caleb Carr
This is your run-of-the-mill New York cops and psychiatrist in a race against time with a demented serial killer . . . only it is set in the early 20th century when psychiatry was new. Good book.
A Slight Trick of the Mind by Mitch Cullin
This was the last great novel I read this year. It's the story of Sherlock Holmes in 1947, 93 and facing the inevitable decline of his mental facilities. A blurb on the back said "This is what a novel should be." I can't improve on that review.
The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion
My favorite of Didion's. Heartbreaking.
Debunking 9/11 Myths: Why Conspiracy Theories Can't Stand Up to the Facts edited by David Dunbar and Brad Reagan
Sweet rationality and science--ruining everything!
Lunar Park by Bret Easton Ellis
My favorite novel of the year. I find myself reading the last few pages every week just so I can recapture that feeling.
The Big Over Easy by Jasper Fforde
Something Rotten by Jasper Fforde
Fforde is one of my favorite novelists working today. My Mom just finished The Big Over Easy and said--"It's one of the best mysteries I've ever read!" If you'd like to say that about a book featuring Humpty Dumpty as murder victim, read it posthaste.
Housekeeping vs. the Dirt by Nick Hornsby
Hornsby is a master of the book review.
Bag of Bones by Stephen King
One of the best books he's published for years.
Chuck Klosterman IV: A Decade of Curious People and Dangerous Ideas by Chuck Klosterman
I adore Chuck Klosterman. The end.
Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith by Jon Krakauer
Our Guys by Bernard Lefkowitz
Two great non-fiction books about the horrible things that people do to other people.
Bodies of Subversion: A Secret History of Women and Tattoo by Margot Mifflin
Women and tattoos. Reads like a undergrad research paper at times, but it has great pictures.
The Best American Comics: 2006 edited by Harvey Pekar and Anne Elizabeth Moore
Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris
Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris
I just started reading David Sedaris this year. I love him.
The Chelsea Whistle by Michelle Tea
One of the best memoirs I've ever read.
Fear and Loathing in America: The Gonzo Letters, Volume II by Hunter S. Thompson
These letters are contemporary with his classic works of the 1960s/1970s. Great background.
x-posted to 50bookchallenge