What's the best book/books you've read this year?

Hi all,

I'm a newbie, thought I'd pop in for a look to see what you all get up too and thought I'd get the ball rolling by asking a simple question.

The best books I've read this year, I've decided to name 5 as I don't think the page would be long enough for the list:

Sold by Patricia McCormick
Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom
Salt by Maurice Gee
Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones
Charlie Bone and the Wilderness Wolf by Jenny Nimmo
and many more

I read a lot of YA fiction.

Hi
I am looking for exceptionally good book group reads!
I need help! My book group is nearing 5 years in age. I started it, I run it, I do all the work and I am burnt out!!! I love it, but it's so much work and with school and a full time job, I am finding very little left over to dedicate to it. I have to choose 3 more books to end off the 08-09 season and am looking for good solid reads.
Please send any and all suggestions! Tried and true or otherwise!
:) Cheers from Canada
Clamato

#1, and for that matter #2: I'm away from my books, but the ones that stand out for me this year are:

Fiction

The Cazalet Chronicles (four-book series) by Elizabeth Jane Howard

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao

Poetry

My Iron Spine by Helen Rickerby
Moonshot by Harvey Molloy

Mister Pip was one of my favourites, too! Also,

To Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee
Norwegian Wood - Haruki Murakami

Good reads for me this year included: Rachael King's The Sound of Butterflies, Linda Grant's The clothes on their backs, Ben Okri's The Famished Road, and David Golder by Irène Némirovsky.

Kate de Goldi's 'The 10pm question' is awesome. (sorry about the lack of touchstones)

#4: I'd rate To Kill a Mockingbird as one of my three or four best books of 2009 to date - first read it for high school, re-read it recently & still loved it.

#6: My son was given The 10pm Question as a Christmas present - he hasn't read it yet. Do you think it would appeal to a 12-year-old boy?

I'd be interested to know how he finds it. I read it and thought it would appeal more to adults.

#8 I agree it would appeal to adults more, particularly adults that have an interest in children and how they think. I think there are some thoughtful, intelligent kids that would enjoy it though. I thought it was very good.

avatiakh and fabtk, I'll let you know how he gets on if and when he finally decides to read it. FWIW, the most recent book he's completed is Nicky Hager's The Hollow Men!

ok Tim, I reckon he may go for it. (and probably point out a few clangers in 'kidspeak' we oldies missed)

Any word on what Salt by Maurice Gee is like? I have just finished reading Meg and I really enjoyed Plumb

double post

Salt is a teen dystopian novel - it's very good and the sequel is Gool

(Sharp Objects) by ((Gillian Flynn)). Shades of the first ((Donna Tartt)) novel.

xantheselkie, if you replace those ()s by left and right square brackets, they should work correctly - at least most of the time, as the system's a bit unreliable!

My sister, who is high school librarian, says she knows of only one boy who has read The 10pm question (and did he enjoy it? IDK) but every adult she has asked loves it!

No book suggestions, but our group works like this; we each take a turn at choosing a book, which circulates round the group, then the one who chose it leads the discussion. Seems to work; we get to read some things we'd never choose for ourselves (not always a bad idea!) and it does spread the load among the 11 members of the club.

Pohutukawa (New Zealand)