A Year in Reading (Favorite reads of 2011)

Like any other year, 2011 was a mixed bag of sorts for me. I read about 85 books this year (15 short of my original target) - but many were books that I enjoyed at so many levels that I'm not too fussed by the number. There were a few I could have done without, but overall, it's been a good year in reading.

Of the 85 books I read, 36 were 2011 releases. I'm quite impressed with that because I imagined I read far less 2011 books. Depending on which side of the bed I wake up from each day, I either like reading more current books or not. It's a fluctuating thing - sometimes I wish I read more classics, but the very next day, I'm all into the new releases.

Still, 36 isn't a huge number, so I'm going to list the books that made an impression on me, without looking at their publication dates. I read a total of 62 fiction titles, so I'm listing 10 titles that I would gladly recommend to you.

Favorite fiction reads

1. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
2. Good Neighbors by Ryan David Jahn
3. Miss Entropia and the Adam Bomb by George Rabasa
4. The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka
5. Far to go by Alison Pick
6. Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
7. Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
8. Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami
9. The Four Ms. Bradwells by Meg Waite Clayton
10. Repeat it Today with Tears by Anne Peile

Favorite nonfiction reads

1. A Thousand Lives by Julia Scheeres
2. Bringing Adam Home by Les Standiford
3. The Good Daughter by Jasmin Darznik
4. The Long Goodbye by Meghan O'Rourke
5. The Freedom Writers' Diary by Erin Gruwell

The first four titles above were all ARCs. I was intrigued that most of the nonfiction titles I read are those offered as review copies. Lately though, I've been looking out for more nonfiction titles, so I hope the stats change next year.

Favorite graphic books

1. Maus 1 & 2 by Art Speigelman
2. Anne Frank by Sid Jacobson and Ernie Colon
3. Green River Killer by Jonathan Case and Jeff Jensen
4. Vietnamerica by GB Tran
5. Lucille by Ludovic Debeurme

I read about 20 graphic books this year and loved most of them. I hope to continue reading more of them next year.

Some of the books I loved when I first read them no longer seem to hold me in the same awe now, so I did change a few ratings today, but on the whole, I remember most of the books to be just as good as I first wrote about them. Have you read any of these?