Book List, 2011
Key:
Hyperlinked: top rated -- books that I loved for various reasons. They could be great literature, or they could be total brain crack. But I loved them.
Bold: second rated. Worth a read -- very good, but not AMAZING.
Plain: third rated. Not a waste of time, by any means, but not something I would recommend on a wide basis.
Undelined: don't bother
F: Adult Fiction
GN: Graphic Novel
JF: Juvenile Fiction
NF: Nonfiction
SS: Short Stories
YA: Young Adult Fiction
I read a lot of picture books for work, too, but don't write them down. But if anyone is just burning up for some picture book recommendations, I'd be happy to send them to you.
1. Fist Stick Knife Gun: A Personal History of Violence, A True Story in Black and White by Geoffrey Canada GN 1-10
2. Y: The Last Man: Vol 5: Ring of Truth by Brian K Vaughan GN 1-15
3. Y: The Last Man: Vol 6: Girl on Girl by Brian K Vaughan GN 1-16
4. The Lemon Table: Stories by Julian Barnes SS 1-18
5. The Walking Dead, Vol 8: Made to Suffer by Robert Kirkman GN 1-25
6. Amphigorey Also by Edward Gorey NF 1-25
7. Trickster: Native American Tales, a Graphic Collection ed. by Matt Dembiki GN 1-26
8. The Walking Dead, Vol 9: Here We Remain by Robert Kirkman GN 1-27
9. The Walking Dead, Vol 10: What We Become by Roberty Kirkman GN 1-27
10. The Walking Dead, Vol 11: Fear the Hunters by Robert Kirkman GN 1-28
11. Prime Baby by Gene Luen Yang JF 1-29
12. The Walking Dead, Vol 12: Life Among Them by Robert Kirkman GN 1-31
13. The Walking Dead, Vol 13: Too Far Gone by Robert Kirkman GN 1-31
14. Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi YA 1-31 *Printz Winner*
15. Stop in the Name of Pants by Louise Rennison YA 2-4
16. The Poison Eaters, and Other Stories by Holly Black YA / SS 2-4
17. Nylon Road: A Graphic Memoir of Coming of Age in Iran by Parsua Bashi GN 2-8
18. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lack by RebeccaSkloot NF 2-10
19. The Living Dead 2: Original Stories edited by John Joseph Adams SS 2-10
20. Y the Last Man, Vol 7: Paper Dolls by Brian K Vaughan GN 2-11
21. Y the Last Man, Vol 8: Kimono Dragons by Brian K Vaughan GN 2-15
22. Electric Barracuda by Tim Dorsey F 2-18
23. Palo Alto: Stories by James Franco SS 2-21
24. Mini Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella F 2-23
25. Y the Last Man, Vol 9: Motherland by Brian K Vaughan GN 3-14
26. Y the Last Man, Vol 10: Whys and Wherefores by Brian K Vaughan GN 3-14
27. Some Girls: My Life in a Harem by Jillian Lauren NF 3-16
28. Bayou, Volume 2 by Jeremy Love GN 3-19
29. Freaks of the Heartland by Steve Niles and Greg Ruth GN 3-21
30. Swim to Me by Besty Carter F 3-24
*31. The Nimrod Flipout by Etgar Keret SS 3-26
32. Potential: The HighSchool Chronicles of Ariel Schrag by Ariel Schrag GN 3-26
33. The Fall by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan F 4-9
34. Ouran High School Host Club by Bisco Hatori GN 4-11
35. The Great Typo Hunt: Two Friends Changing the World, One Correction at a Time by Jeff Deck and Benjamin D. Henson NF 4-13
36. Charley Harper: An Illustrated Life ed. by Todd Oldham NF 4-13
37. Sweet Valley High Confidential: Ten Years Later by Francine Pascal F 4-21
38. @Large by Ahmed Hoke GN 4-23
39. Episodes: My Life as I See It by Blaze Ginsburg YANF 4-28
40. The Guinea Pig Diaries: My Life as an Experiment by A.J. Jacobs NF 4-28
41. Pretty Monsters: Stories by Kelly Link SS 5-3
42. Skinned by Robin Wasserman YA 5-11
43. This World We Live In by Susan Pfeffer YA 5-14
*44. Nancy Drew, Girl Detective: The Demon of River Heights by Stefan Petrucha GN 5-17
*45. Lies: A Gone Novel by Michael Grant YA 5-18
46. Chew, Vol 3: Just Desserts by John Layman and Rob Guillory GN 5-21
47. If I Stay by Gayle Forman YA 5-25
48. Escape from Special by Miss Lasko-Gross GN 6-1
49. Running the Books: The Adventures of an Accidental Prison Librarian by Avi Steinberg NF 6-6
50. The Dead Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan YA 6-8
51. Crashed by Robin Wasserman YA 6-9
52. A Mess of Everything by Melissa Lasko-Gross GN 6-11
53. When I Was Five I Killed Myself by Howard Buten F 6-14
54. Bloodthirsty by Flynn Meaney YA 6-17
55. Such a Pretty Girl by Laura Weiss YA 6-19
56. We're Just Like You, Only Prettier: Confessions of a Tarnished Southern Belle by Celia Rivenbark NF 6-21
57. On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan F 6-22
58. Moving Pictures by Kathryn and Stuart Immonen GN 6-23
59. Rapture of the Deep: Being an Account of the Further Adventures of Jacky Faber, Soldier, Sailor, Mermaid, Spy by L. A. Meyer YA 6-27
60. Anya's Ghost by Vera Brosgol GN 6-28
61. Empire State: A Love Story (or not) by Jason Shiga GN 7-5
62. This is a Book by Demetri Martin NF 7-6
63. Mother Tells You How: Over 100 Essential Skills for Modern Young Women by Girl Magazine NF 7-12
64. I Kill Giants by Joe Kelly and JM Ken Niimura GN 7-12
65. Against the Wall: The Art of Resistance in Palestine by William Parry NF 7-13
66. Lies that Chelsea Handler Told Me by Chelsea's Family, Friends and Other Victims NF 7-15
67. Likewise: The High School Comic Chronicles of Ariel Schrag by Ariel Schrag GN 7-18
68. Stolen by Lucy Christopher YA 7-20
69. The Wake of the Lorelei Lee: Being an Account of the Further Adventures of Jacky Faber, On Her Way to Botany Bay by L.A. Meyer YA 7-21
70. The Reapers are the Angels by Alden Bell F 7-26
71. Turn of Mind by Alice LaPlante F 8-1
72. Tollins: Explosive Tales for Children by Conn Iggulden JF 8-4
73. Bowery Girls by Kim Taylor YA 8-6
74. The Grave Robber's Daughter by Richard Sala GN 8-10
75. Brain Camp by Susan Kim, Laurence Klavan and Faith Hicks GN 8-16
76. The Best American Comics: 2006 ed. by Harvey Pekar 8-19 GN
77. The Reluctant Dragon by Kenneth Grahame JF 8-20
78. Sombrerro Fallout by Richard Brautigan F 8-27
79. Syncopated: An Anthology of Nonfiction Picto-Essays ed. by Brendan Burford GN 8-29
80. Things Undone by Shane White GN 9-2
81. Heist Society by Holly Black YA 9-2
82. Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea by Guy Delisle NF/GN 9-4
83. The Chosen One by Carol Lynch Williams YA 9-6
84. Ready to Hang: Seven Famous New Orleans Murders by Robert Tallant NF 9-10
85. Shenzhen: A Travelogue from China by Guy Delisle NF/GN 9-14
86. Zombies vs. Unicorns ed. by Holly Black and Justine Larbalestier YA/SS 9-22
87. Ominous by Kate Brian YA 9-24
88. Vengeance by Kate Brian YA 9-26
89. Food Rules: An Eater's Manual by Michael Pollan NF 9-28
90. Crank by Ellen Hopkins YA 10-4 Banned Book
91. Dawn of Zombie Haiku by Ryan Mecum Poetry 10-5
92. Plague: A Gone Novel by Michael Grant YA 10-6
93. Rare: Prtraits of America's Endangered Species NF 10-10
*94. Four Kitchens: My Life Behind the Burner in New York, Hanoi, Tel Aviv, and Paris by Lauren Shockey NF 10-11
95. The Definition of Bounce: Between Ups and Downs in New Orleans by 10th Ward Buck NF 10-12
*96. Meet Cecile by Denise Patrick JF 10-16
*97. Meet Marie-Grace by Sarah Buckey 10-16
*98. iZombie, Vol 1: Dead to the World by Chris Roberson and Mike Allred GN 10-25
99. American Widow by Alissa Torres GN 10-25
100. Generation Dead by Daniel Waters YA 11-2
101. Zombie Haiku by Ryan Mecum YA 11-2
102. Miss Don't Touch Me by Hubert and Kerascoet GN 11-2
103. Chew 4: Flambe by Rob Guillory and John Layman GN 11-4
104. The Griff by Christopher Moore and Ian Corson GN 11-5
105. Bogus to Bubbly by Scott Westerfeld NF 11-12
106. I Survived Hurricane Katrina 2005 by Lauren Tarshis JF 11-13
107. The Night Eternal by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan F 11-16
108. Level Up by Gene Luen Yang GN 11-17
109. My Boyfriend is a Monster: I Love Him to Pieces by Evonne Tsang GN 11-19
110. Dark Song by Gail Giles YA 11-20
111. Koko Be Good by Jen Wang GN 11-22
112. The Walking Dead Vol 14: No Way Out by Robert Kirkman GN 11-23
113. My Boyfriend is a Monster: Made for Each Other by Paul Storrie GN 11-23
114. Spoiled by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan YA 11-26
115. You'll Never Know: A Graphic Memoir by C. Tyler GN/NF 11-27
116. Pride and Prejudice: The Graphic Novel by Nancy Butler (and Jane Austen) 11-30
117. Chimichanga by Eric Powell GN 11-30
118. Lost Voices by Sarah Porter YA 12-1
119. Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick JF 12-2
120. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever by Jeff Kinney JF 12-3
121. Americus by MK Reed and Jonathan Hill GN 12-5
122. The Little Prince: The Graphic Novel ill by Joann Sfar GN 12-7
123. Sweets: A New Orleans Crime Story by Kody Chamberlain GN 12-7
*124. Hopeless Savages: Greatest Hits 2000-2010 by Jen Van Meter GN 12-8
125. Stuck in the Middle: Seventeen Comics from an UNPLEASANT Age ed. Ariel Schrag GN 12-13
126. It's Complicated: The American Teenager by Robin Bowman NF 12-14
127. The Beginners by Rebecca Wolff F 12-17
128. Geek Girls Unite: How Fangirls, Bookworms, Indie Chicks, and Other Misfits are Taking Over the World by Leslie Simon NF 12-20
129. Cringe: Teenage Diaries, Journals, Notes, Letters, Poems, and Abandoned Rock Operas ed. by Sara Brown NF 12-22
130. The Fox Inheritance by Mary Pearson YA 12-27
*31: There are a few stories in this collection that I was not all so impressed by. However, the other stories are fabulous enough for me to recommend the book. Just don't be surprised to find it a bit uneven.
*44. Dumbed down for the cartoon generation. Reminded me more of a Scooby Doo episode than a Nancy Drew book.
*45. Looking for a series for teen boys? This is a good one.
*94. This is not a great book. But it's a really interesting book if you are interested in professional kitchens, various types of cuisines and cooking styles, and foreign culture. There are parts that annoyed me, and it didn't blow me away with its writing. At the same time, I couldn't really put it down, because I am interested in all those things. So there you are.
*96 and 97. These are the new American Girl books, set in New Orleans in 1853. It's the first time they've released two at the same time and in the same place, and they're actually full of historical facts and pretty neat. I think any young girl in New Orleans would like them. One of the girls is a free person of color, and the other is white, and they're friends.
*98. This is not great the way I think that The Walking Dead is great. But it is fun and clever and looks good, and really, that's enough for me.
*124. I loved all this except for Book 3, which I was not impressed by. However, I loved the rest enough to highly recommend it.
Quit reading after 50 pages:
Footnotes in Gaza by Joe Sacco GN -- too convoluted for me, as I don't have a firm grasp on Palestine-Israel-Egypt history and relations. Which is what I was hoping to get from this book.