Stewart O'Nan, Last Night at the Lobster Mordecai Richler, Barney's Version Lewis Shiner, Collected Stories and Glimpses Charles Portis, True Grit Joe R. Lansdale, All the Earth, Thrown to the Sky Stephen King, 11/22/63
If we're talking mysteries it will be tougher to narrow it down. Here are a handful:
Wallace Stroby, Cold Shot to the Heart Deon Meyer, Thirteen Hours Brett Battles, The Cleaner David Gordon, The Serialist Frank Bill, Crimes in Southern Indiana (ss)
Yes. And I came close to doing Jules Feiffer's autobiography (and did post about it and the first volume of the Complete POGO by Walt Kelly), and did do Carol Emshwiller's retrospective collection THE COLLECTED SHORT FICTION V. 1, among my FFB citations, among books issued in the last two years. I'm not quite as flexible as George with my insertions, but like him will bend that rule hard for small-press, particularly brilliant small-press items.
Reading the fiction magazines always gives me a few new folks to look out for...in the copious free time...Alice Sola Kim was one of last year's "discoveries" for me...
Diane read EMILY ALONE and loved it. I read THE MOVIEGOER years ago and loved it. My choices for FAVORITE BOOKS, MOVIES, etc. will be on my blog next week.
Non-crime? That narrows my list down to almost nothing.
One Soldier's War (2007) by Arkady Babchenko. The Silent Men (2002) by Richard H Dickinson. Chronicles of Prydain (1964-1968) by Lloyd Alexander. Sarah Court (2010) by Craig Davidson.
The Islanders by Christopher Priest Devil Red by Joe Lansdale A Drop of the Hard Stuff by Lawrence Block The Devil All the Time by Donald Ray Pollock Wyatt by Gary Disher Prague Fatale by Philip Kerr The Drop by Michael Connelly Regicide by Nicholas Royle Collected Stories by Carol, Emshwiller
I began blogging this year, which prevented me from looking at non-crime books, such as the Artemis Fowl series (stuck halfway through it), but allow me to make a recommendation for next year: Michael Ende's The Never-Ending Story. It's simply an amazing story and should be considered as a modern classic.
Note to self: bring back the variety in my reading habits and don't allow my blog/mystery addiction derail me from that. I will be strong, resolute and stalwart!
just read WE THE ANIMALS...there's so many others...but that one is definitely in the top 5 along with EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE. so much crime and mystery...gah.
Kieran-how I have missed you!! Haven't heard of this book but I will check on it. Can't wait to see the movie of EL&IC although Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock have me worried.
Since I subscribe to Jane Smiley's assertion that every novel is at heart a mystery in that something unknown is always being uncovered, I can't really separate my favorites by mystery v. non-mystery, but here are my favorite fictional reads of 2011 (most of them, indeed, "mysteries"):
Patrick Hamilton - 20,000 STREETS UNDER THE SKY (three interconnected short novels about London in the late 1920s).
Jessica Mann - A PRIVATE INQUIRY
Louise Penny - BURY YOUR DEAD
Georges Simenon - MAIGRET'S BOYHOOD FRIEND
Lynn Freed - THE MIRROR
Allison Pearson - I THINK I LOVE YOU (this is a great book for any woman born in the late 1950s/early 1960s who had a crush on David Cassidy of the Patridge Family).
Kate Atkinson - STARTED EARLY, TOOK MY DOG
Ben Elton - DEAD FAMOUS
Graham Joyce - THE SILENT LAND
Holly LeCraw - THE SWIMMING POOL
Favorite non-fiction:
Elizabeth Hess - NIM CHIMPSKY
Keith Richards - LIFE (although some would assert that all of Richards's life is a wild fiction).
Jeff Gunn - GO DOWN TOGETHER (about Bonnie & Clyde, the decidedly non-glamorous side).
Jessie Sholl - DIRTY SECRET (memoir of growing up with a hoarder mother).
Have never read that Simenon. If I were to make a list of my favorite crime novels, the Atkinson book would be on it. Jackson Brody is swoon-worthy. And I forgot about Judy's bio. Thanks for the reminder.
I read the first four Factory novels by Derek Raymond, and the first, HE DIED WITH HIS EYES OPEN, was my favorite and probably the best book I read this year.
Now I can't wait for the fifth "lost" novel, DEAD MAN UPRIGHT.
Stewart O'Nan, Last Night at the Lobster
ReplyDeleteMordecai Richler, Barney's Version
Lewis Shiner, Collected Stories and Glimpses
Charles Portis, True Grit
Joe R. Lansdale, All the Earth, Thrown to the Sky
Stephen King, 11/22/63
Jeff M.
If we're talking mysteries it will be tougher to narrow it down. Here are a handful:
ReplyDeleteWallace Stroby, Cold Shot to the Heart
Deon Meyer, Thirteen Hours
Brett Battles, The Cleaner
David Gordon, The Serialist
Frank Bill, Crimes in Southern Indiana (ss)
Jeff M.
Almost all my recreational reading was reported in FFB posts...hard to narrow it to five...
ReplyDeleteInteresting to see how Bill's novel Donnybrook is.
ReplyDeleteThat means you read exclusively older books, Todd.
I liked EMILY ALONE a lot but RED LOBSTER was his best (IMHO).
ReplyDeleteYes. And I came close to doing Jules Feiffer's autobiography (and did post about it and the first volume of the Complete POGO by Walt Kelly), and did do Carol Emshwiller's retrospective collection THE COLLECTED SHORT FICTION V. 1, among my FFB citations, among books issued in the last two years. I'm not quite as flexible as George with my insertions, but like him will bend that rule hard for small-press, particularly brilliant small-press items.
ReplyDeleteReading the fiction magazines always gives me a few new folks to look out for...in the copious free time...Alice Sola Kim was one of last year's "discoveries" for me...
ReplyDeleteDiane read EMILY ALONE and loved it. I read THE MOVIEGOER years ago and loved it. My choices for FAVORITE BOOKS, MOVIES, etc. will be on my blog next week.
ReplyDeleteNon-crime? That narrows my list down to almost nothing.
ReplyDeleteOne Soldier's War (2007) by Arkady Babchenko.
The Silent Men (2002) by Richard H Dickinson.
Chronicles of Prydain (1964-1968) by Lloyd Alexander.
Sarah Court (2010) by Craig Davidson.
These are all new titles for me. Will look into them.
ReplyDeleteI'll be waiting to see, George.
The Islanders by Christopher Priest
ReplyDeleteDevil Red by Joe Lansdale
A Drop of the Hard Stuff by Lawrence Block
The Devil All the Time by Donald Ray Pollock
Wyatt by Gary Disher
Prague Fatale by Philip Kerr
The Drop by Michael Connelly
Regicide by Nicholas Royle
Collected Stories by Carol, Emshwiller
I began blogging this year, which prevented me from looking at non-crime books, such as the Artemis Fowl series (stuck halfway through it), but allow me to make a recommendation for next year: Michael Ende's The Never-Ending Story. It's simply an amazing story and should be considered as a modern classic.
ReplyDeleteNote to self: bring back the variety in my reading habits and don't allow my blog/mystery addiction derail me from that. I will be strong, resolute and stalwart!
"A Rip through time!:"
ReplyDeleteYes, Roth's Nemesis is a very good novel. Made my last year's top.
ReplyDeleteI am going to have a nice list when this is done.
ReplyDeletejust read WE THE ANIMALS...there's so many others...but that one is definitely in the top 5 along with EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE. so much crime and mystery...gah.
ReplyDeleteKieran-how I have missed you!! Haven't heard of this book but I will check on it.
ReplyDeleteCan't wait to see the movie of EL&IC although Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock have me worried.
Since I subscribe to Jane Smiley's assertion that every novel is at heart a mystery in that something unknown is always being uncovered, I can't really separate my favorites by mystery v. non-mystery, but here are my favorite fictional reads of 2011 (most of them, indeed, "mysteries"):
ReplyDeletePatrick Hamilton - 20,000 STREETS UNDER THE SKY (three interconnected short novels about London in the late 1920s).
Jessica Mann - A PRIVATE INQUIRY
Louise Penny - BURY YOUR DEAD
Georges Simenon - MAIGRET'S BOYHOOD FRIEND
Lynn Freed - THE MIRROR
Allison Pearson - I THINK I LOVE YOU (this is a great book for any woman born in the late 1950s/early 1960s who had a crush on David Cassidy of the Patridge Family).
Kate Atkinson - STARTED EARLY, TOOK MY DOG
Ben Elton - DEAD FAMOUS
Graham Joyce - THE SILENT LAND
Holly LeCraw - THE SWIMMING POOL
Favorite non-fiction:
Elizabeth Hess - NIM CHIMPSKY
Keith Richards - LIFE (although some would assert that all of Richards's life is a wild fiction).
Jeff Gunn - GO DOWN TOGETHER (about Bonnie & Clyde, the decidedly non-glamorous side).
Jessie Sholl - DIRTY SECRET (memoir of growing up with a hoarder mother).
Judy Collins - SWEET [sic] JUDY BLUE EYES
Have never read that Simenon. If I were to make a list of my favorite crime novels, the Atkinson book would be on it. Jackson Brody is swoon-worthy.
ReplyDeleteAnd I forgot about Judy's bio. Thanks for the reminder.
I left off one.
ReplyDelete1Q84 by Murakami-probably my favorite non genre writer right now.
A friend just recommended that to us last night.
ReplyDeleteI read the first four Factory novels by Derek Raymond, and the first, HE DIED WITH HIS EYES OPEN, was my favorite and probably the best book I read this year.
ReplyDeleteNow I can't wait for the fifth "lost" novel, DEAD MAN UPRIGHT.
I have the first one. It waits.
ReplyDelete