THE YEAR IN BOOKS

          After losing our house and my father in 2010, 2011 was a year of gains – people, places, adventures. Not least was purchasing a Kindle. Of all the books I read in 2011, only two were book-books.  The rest came to me over the air, magically, at the touch of a button.  I read in bed, on the couch, waiting in doctors’ offices, at the airport and on the recumbent bike at the gym. Some samples didn’t quite grab me but I may reconsider.   

          I’d love to hear your recommendations.

NON-FICTION

Excellent: In the Land of Invisible Women by Qanta Ahmed, a female doctor’s year in Saudia Arabia; Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand, a World War II survival story. 

Good: The Autobiography of Ben Franklin; Animalish by Susan Orlean about her love of animals; The Getaway Car by Ann Patchett, on writing; In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson, American ambassador to Germany on the eve of WWII; Time to be Earnest by P.D. James, a memoir; Bossy Pants by Tina Fey, a memoir; Like Fallen Snow by Ruth Rosenthal, stories from her life.

Samples not finished: Gotham, a History; Prime Time by Jane Fonda; Walk with Me by Mike Birgiglia; Unfamiliar Fishes by Sarah Vowell, A History of the World in Six Glasses;  If You Ask Me by Betty White.

FICTION

Excellent: Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese, Ethiopia in the 1960s; People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks, follows an ancient manuscript back to its creation.

Good: Caleb’s Crossing by Geraldine Brooks; Driving on the Rim by Thomas McGuane; The Little Bride by Anna Solomon; The Patron Saint of Liars by Ann Patchett; Please Look After Mom by Kyung-Sook Shin; The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest by Stieg Larson; Half Broke Horses by Jeannette Walls; Berlin Stories by Christopher Isherwood, U is for Undertow by Sue Grafton; Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand by Helen Simonson; Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier; Room by Emma Donaghue.

Couldn’t finish: The Finkler Question by Howard Jacobson.

Samples not finished: State of Wonder by Ann Patchett; The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides;  Everywhere That Mary Went by Lisa Scottoline; V is for Vengeance by Sue Grafton; Fearless Mrs. Goodwin; The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbach.

Kindle also has some fun games that help wake up my brain when I get tired:  Scrabble isn’t as much fun as playing with friends on Facebook; Everyword Crossings sometimes stumps me; my most recent free purchase is Jig Saw Words, check it out!