Sunday, February 8, 2015

2014: The Year in Books

This was my worst reading year, quantitatively, in years. I read 36 books, down 2 books books from last year, which was a considerably slower year than others. I'd like to say I'm starting off better this year, but so far I've only finished a few books by mid-February. Nonetheless, I read some great books this year and a lot of OK books.


Top 10 Books Read in 2014
Blessings (Anna Quindlen)****
The Book Thief (Marcus Zusak)***** {multiple reread}
Burial Rites (Hannah Kent)****
Gone Girl (Gillian Flynn)*****
The Graveyard Book (Neil Gaiman)****
In the Sanctuary of Outcasts (Neil White)****
Last Girls (Lee Smith)****
Ocean at the End of the Lane (Neil Gaiman)****
Riding the Bus with my Sister (Rachel Simon)*****
Sycamore Row (John Grisham)****


I think I would have to say that Gone Girl was my favorite book of 2014. It's a super disturbing book, but absolutely engrossing and so well written. I thought the movie was quite well done, too.

I added 34 books to my TBR list in 2014, and I crossed off only eight.


Below is the total list of books read, minus the juvenile fiction and most of the classics. Each link leads to a review or, rarely, to amazon.com if I didn't get a chance to review it. My star-ranking system is as follows: 5 stars--absolutely must read; 4 stars--highly recommended; 3 stars--enjoyable; 2 stars--ick; 1 star--no, no, no.
 

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