I read 25 books in 2011. 2 were re-reads.
5 were autobiographical.
4 were non-fiction.
16 were fiction.
Apparently I needed a lot of escape this year, because I was way heavier on fiction than I normally am. This was a good year for me as far as finding a lot of books I really enjoyed. Normally, when I look back over my list for the year, there are only 1 or 2 that really stand out and that I say, "Oh, yeah, I really loved that one." This year, there are at least a handful that I not only liked, but would read again.
Picking my favorite is tough, because in a year where I read A Tree Grows In Brooklyn and The Help and was introduced to Anne Perry for the first time?? It's really difficult to decide.
I have to go with Encompassing Charity, however, because it completely broadened and expanded my understanding and now sits in a short stack of books that I refer to as my "life textbooks." There are a few books that have so overwhelmingly and profoundly taught me things that change who I am and how I feel about core principles, that I mark them to death with highlighters and scribble in the margins as I consider how what is written fits into and expands what I already know, and they become books that I go back to again and again. Encompassing Charity has become one of these books for me.
For my least favorite, I'll say Bossypants. It has gotten such buzz and I love Tina Fey, but I wasn't thrilled with it. There was a chapter or two that were really good, but a lot of it was dismissive and snarky--and not in a good way. I love snark and sarcasm when it's done well, I just didn't feel like this was. It didn't help that I read 2 Nora Ephron books, one before Bossypants and one after, because Tina really suffers by comparison. Nora is a genius at the New York humor. I still love Tina, she's just no Nora Ephron.
So, what are you going to read this year?
On my "to read" list:
The Particular Sadness Of Lemon Cake, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, the Harry Potter series
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