Laura’s Top Ten Books of 2009

I’m a little late getting to my annual list of favorite books of the year. My top ten books include books I read in the year 2009, but that weren’t necessarily published in 2009. I didn’t count books that I read again for at least a second time as I obviously love them, such as Wuthering Heights, Sense and Sensibility, Outlander, My Sister’s Keeper, Twilight, etc.

I read many good books in the year 2009 and was excited to join challenges for the first time, such as The Victorian Challenge , The Everything Austen Challenge, and The Classics Challenge. The books I picked for this list are books that I read, thought about, pondered, and have stayed with me through the year. (Also see my top picks for 2007 and 2008).

In no particular order, my top ten books of 2009:

1. Watchmen by Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons: This was my first graphic novel, and it was definitely a great first impression. Moore and Gibbon’s tale of an alternate world populated by super heroes was fascinating and thought provoking. The story, within a story “The Black Freighter” was also riveting and provided a great parallel to the story.

2. The Piano Teacher by Janice Y.K. Lee: The Piano Teacher was an unforgettable love story set in Hong Kong at the start of WWII. It was a painful story of what one sometimes has to do to survive.

3. The Help by Kathryn Stockett: The Help is a multi-faceted story, on one hand it is a great story about racism in the 1960’s south, but on the other hand, it is the story of a group of very strong women and their friendship. Overall, it is unforgettable.

4. Pride & Prejudice & Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith: I read many great Jane Austen spin-offs this year as part of the Everything Austen Challenge. PP&Z was my favorite though as it was a totally original concept that made me laugh out loud . . . a lot! Seth Grahame-Smith kept much of Austen’s original text, but changed just enough to create a great Zombie story. I like how Grahame-Smith was able to make a lot of inside jokes that Pride and Prejudice lovers would love as you read through the book. Now there are a lot of similar type spin-offs, but I’m not sure about them. For more serious spin-offs, I loved The Other Mr. Darcy by Monica Fairview and I think it is the best Pride and Prejudice sequel I have ever read.

5. An Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon: I LOVE Diana Gabaldon. The only thing I don’t love is the long wait in between the books of her Outlander series. The long wait for An Echo in the Bone did not disappoint. It was a great novel and the only negative was that it had to end. The Outlander series is a fantastic historical fiction saga with great love, great characters, and great description. If you haven’t read the Outlander series, what are you waiting for?

6. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury: I finally read this classic for the first time and loved it. In beautiful prose, Bradbury wrote a great adventure story that includes the evils of banning books as well as the evils of being caught up too much in an electronic world.

7. The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder: What is the meaning of random “Acts of God?” Are some people’s lives worth more than others? This beautiful and short book explores very deep themes. I loved it!

8. Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout: Olive is not a woman that I liked, but her story is unforgettable. My entire book club loved this book and all for different reasons. A series of short stories that all involve the character of Olive Kitteridge, this book was a very interesting study on perception.

9. True Compass by Edward M. Kennedy: Whatever your politics, Ted Kennedy lived a fascinating life. His candid biography was riveting and really brought history to life.

10. Say You’re One of Them by Uwem Akpan: I listened to the audiobook of Say You’re One of Them, and it was painful at times. It is hard to believe that such evil can still exist in the world. The stories did make you think about what it means to be human and what life is like outside of the United States.

And for a Bonus, a good light book for a good laugh, Bet Me by Jennifer Cruise.

What are your thoughts on these books? What favorite books did you have in 2009?

Giveaway and Review: True Compass by Edward M. Kennedy (Audio)

No matter what your political persuasion is, you have to admit that Ted Kennedy lived a fascinating life. I wasn’t sure what to expect of this memoir. I had attempted at one point to read each of the Clinton’s respective biographies only to toss them aside once I determined they were mostly political pandering. True Compass is not a “political” memoir per say, instead it is an engrossing story of a man at the end of his life who is looking back on the events that shaped him for the good and the bad. I found the book to be many things, but what surprised me most is that is there were several excellent sections and chapters (such as “The Living Rose”) where Kennedy has some really deep, well-written thoughts on life that brought a tear to my eye.

True Compass is a long audiobook (17 CDs), but I found myself deeply interested and engrossed as if it were a non-fiction novel. John Bedford Lloyd read the novel. While he lacks Kennedy’s distinctive Boston accent, his voice for me became Ted Kennedy’s. He did an excellent job.

My husband is not a fan of the Kennedys, but while I was listening to this novel, he would often stop and listen to the sections too as he found them interesting. I must admit thought, that some of the interest was because Kennedy’s life is so very different from our own. Descriptions of sailing yachts, taking first communion from the Pope, etc. shows as Fitzgerald once said, “Let me tell you about the very rich. They are different from you and me.”

That aside, I found the description of the historical events of Kennedy’s life, especially the turbulent 1960’s, to be riveting. This novel is the modern history of the United States, as seen through one very prominent man’s eyes. In interest of full disclosure, I was a tad bit bored of the 1970’s and 1980’s political discussion.

My favorite parts of the book were when Kennedy not only described a historical event or piece of legislation, but talked about his feelings on it personally. The highlights of the book were these personal touches and moments of great prose and deep thought.

I admire that although Kennedy did live a life of privilege; he was deeply thoughtful and concerned about the common man and took this concern to the Senate. I also greatly admire how he took care of the fatherless nieces and nephews and really made family a priority.

He does talk about Chappaquiddick in this novel, but only briefly. He has brutally honest thoughts about it and one great line that was something along the line of “Atonement is an act that never ends.”

Kennedy a very spiritual man and as a Catholic myself, I enjoyed his thoughts on faith. I also liked the love story between his second wife Victoria and himself. She sounds like a great woman, and the perfect one for him. I also liked how he talked about his first wife Joan, but never in a negative light.

Overall, this book is a fascinating look at Ted Kennedy’s life and the modern history of the United States. I thoroughly enjoyed it and highly recommend it.

Audiobook Source: Review Copy from Hachette Book Group. Thank-you!

Giveaway Details

Now for the details you are really looking for . . .Anna of the Hachette Book Group has been kind enough to offer three audiobook copies of True Compass for this giveaway.

If you would like to enter this contest do any of the following:

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There are three ways to enter, but you can put all three entries as one comment. I will be using random.org to pick the winners from the comments.

This contest is only open to US and Canadian residents (Sorry!).

No P.O. Boxes.

The deadline for entry is midnight, Monday January 4th. Good luck!