It's totally not fair that Ninja Jenny and I read and love a lot of the same books. So, I am sorry if some of my books are the same as hers, but that just means they are so flippin' awesome that you should read them, too. Not all of my books were published in 2009, but I did read them in 2009. And I also cheated like Jenny (cheater!!) and chose two for my number 5 because I loved them both.
Amy's Top 5 Books of 2009
5.
I chose two graphic novels for this slot because I couldn't leave either of them out.
Stitches: a memoir by David Small is cataloged as an Adult book here at the Arlington Public Library, but some places consider it Young Adult.
Stitches was one of five books nominated for the National Book Award in the category of Young People's Literature and I really wish it had won. I read it in one sitting and actually went back and re-read it because I couldn't believe it ended so quickly (despite being 329 pages - of course, it is a
graphic novel). You won't believe the strange childhood the author/illustrator had. It has to be read and seen to be believed.
Tales From Outer Suburbia by Shaun Tan is much lighter fare than
Stitches but still contains some melancholy themes now and again. But there are lots of funny parts, too. It contains 15 illustrated short stories set in the suburbs of Australia. I've been a fan of Shaun Tan since his book
The Arrival, so I'm a bit biased. =)
4.
I have to admit that I didn't like the first cover that
Lament: the faerie queen's deception by Maggie Stiefvater was published with (not the one shown here), but I made myself pick it up just to give it a chance. Boy was I glad! Teen harpist Deirdre meets a strange flute-playing boy named Luke at a competition and gets roped into performing a song with him. Before she knows it, Deirdre is thrown into a world she didn't know existed: faeries and monsters and of all types, some of whom want to use her for rather nefarious purposes. Romance, action, and supernatural creatures abound.
3.
Ninja Angela got me to read
Wake by Lisa McMann, along with the sequel,
Fade. Some people may be surprised to see this on my list, but the truth is that I was really floored by the simple yet very deliberate style in which McMann wrote the book. It was not what I expected and was much darker and inventive than a lot of the supernatural YA fiction out there. Main character Janie falls into people's dreams, but especially their nightmares, and doesn't seem to have control over it. Makes a school day rather difficult.
2.
Yes, I know that Jenny chose this book, too! But this is the book that got me to eat healthier and stop drinking sodas. I'm not kidding.
Fat Cat by Robin Brande might not change your life, but it is one of my very favorite books EVER and, if nothing else, Brande tells a great story with characters you can't help but love. Cat decides to get a little crazy with her 7-month-long science project and not only begins to eat as closely to the way our earliest ancestors (hominims, specifically the homo erectus) ate, she also gives up as much technology as possible. Crazy!
1.
And where do I start with
The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness? Oh, Patrick Ness, how I love thee (don't tell my boyfriend!). Set in a town where there are only men and everyone can hear each other's thoughts (even animals), Todd realizes that his upcoming birthday, which will "make him a man", is something to dread. Where did all the women go? And why can they all hear each other's thoughts? I read this. My mom read it. My brother read it. My best friend read it. My mom's boyfriend read it. And several librarians here have read it. When are you going to read it? Soon, I hope.
Amy's Top 5 Books to Look Forward to in 2010
Okay, so I cheated and did 6, but I couldn't forget the third
Hunger Games book even if Jenny already did that one, too. Grr!!! Also, I have been waiting for
Strange Fate to be published
since I was 18 years old. I will turn 30 before this book is published. Haven't I waited long enough, Simon & Schuster? Haven't I???
1 comment:
Dude...don't be sad I took all your books. I can't help the fact that I
1- read awesome things 2- had the brilliant idea to do a Top 5 post and 3- am sneaky like a Ninja so I could post first. I knew what books you'd choose!!!
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