The Wrap Up

So that's it; that's the year in books for me. It was a good one, though I think I worried a bit more than I should have about the accomplishment of reading, rather than the enjoyment of it; I got a little wrapped up in reading as many books as possible, writing stellar reviews for all of them, and keeping careful count of how many books I read and when I read them. I blame the Amazon reviewer ratings for most of that. Or my own obsessions and competitive mania. Either way.


Best Book of the Year: There wasn't a single book that stood out above the rest, really, but I'm most glad about getting to read the Anita Blake series. So pick any book out of those.

Worst Book That I Finished: You know, thanks to Jaime and her book review books, and my own curiosity about crap piles like Venti Jesus and Stubby Amberchuk, I read a lot of bad books this year. A lot. But I'm giving the prize to Breaking Dawn and fucking Renesmee: that book wasn't just bad, it actually ruined three good books because it made the whole series bad.

Worst Book That I Didn't Finish: Probably Eldest, because the author is so clearly arrogant and condescending in the book that it isn't only unpleasant, but also offensively bad.

Book That Was the Most Fun to Make Fun of: Happy Hour of the Damned

Most Surprisingly Enjoyable Book: Either Heloise and Abelard or The BFG.

Most Inspiring Book: As a writer, Tree and Leaf. As a person, Fifty Acres and a Poodle.

Most Demoralizing Book: Twinkie Deconstructed

Book That Made Me Laugh the Most: Why We Suck

Saddest Book: Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee.


On to 2009! Woo hoo!


Book List 2008:
1. The Broom of the System by David Foster Wallace 1/2/08
2. Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews 1/4/08
3. Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman 1/6/08
4. Through Wolf's Eyes by Jane Lindskold 1/12/08
5. Sandman I: Preludes and Nocturnes by Neil Gaiman 1/13/08
6. You Suck by Christopher Moore 1/15/08
7. Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood 1/20/08
8. Kitty Goes to Washington by Carrie Vaughn 1/21/08
9. Empire by Orson Scott Card 1/30/08
10. Hairstyles of the Damned by Joe Meno 2/1/08
11. Twilight by Stephanie Meyer 2/5/08
12. The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett 2/7/08
13. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne 2/9/08
14. Lamb by Christopher Moore 2/16/08 (?)
15. Sandman II: The Doll's House by Neil Gaiman 2/23/08 (?)
16. Hex and the City by Simon R. Green 3/2/08
17. Ricochet River by Robin Cody 3/6/08 (?)
18. Greywalker by Kat Richardson 3/11/08
19. Mimi and Toutou Go Forth by Giles Foden 3/16/08
20. New Moon by Stephanie Meyer 3/22/08
21. The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger by Stephen King 3/24
22. The Codex Alera Book I: The Furies of Calderon by Jim Butcher 3/28
23. Twinkie, Deconstructed by Steve Ettlinger 4/2
24. Eclipse by Stephanie Meyer 4/7
25. Venti Jesus, Please by Greg Stier 4/7
26. Parrot in the Oven: Mi Vida by Victor Martinez 4/11
27. Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr 4/15
28. White Knight by Jim Butcher 4/19
29. Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson 4/23
30. The Outlaw Demon Wails by Kim Harrison 5/2
31. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey 5/10
32. The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer 5/11
33. Resistance by Owen Sheers 5/16
34. Achilles' Choice by Larry Niven and Steven Barnes 5/17
35. The Drawing of the Three by Stephen King 5/20
36. Sunrise over Fallujah by Walter Dean Myers 5/24
37. Kitty Takes a Holiday by Carrie Vaughn 5/26
38. Heloise and Abelard: A New Biography by James Burge 6/1
39. Definitely Dead by Charlaine Harris 6/3
40. The Life and Crimes of Bernetta Wallflower by Lisa Graff 6/7
41. All Together Dead by Charlaine Harris 6/10
42. Never Cry Wolf by Farley Mowat 6/14
43. From Dead to Worse by Charlaine Harris 6/15
44. The Iron Ring by Lloyd Alexander 6/17
45. Goblin Quest by Jim C. Hines 6/20
46. Small Favor by Jim Butcher 6/22
47. The Wastelands by Stephen King 6/29
48. Happy Hour of the Damned by Mark Henry 7/2
49. Utopia by Thomas More 7/6
50. Guilty Pleasures by Laurell Hamilton 7/7
51. Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller 7/8
52. The Laughing Corpse by Laurell K. Hamilton 7/13
53. Conquistador by S.M. Stirling 7/18
54. Circus of the Damned by Laurell K. Hamilton 7/21
55. Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson 7/29
56. The Lunatic Cafe by Laurell K. Hamilton 7/30
57. His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik 7/31
58. Bloody Bones by Laurell K. Hamilton 8/1 Woo! Four in a row!
59. The Traveler by John Twelve Hawks 8/4
60. The Killing Dance by Laurell K. Hamilton 8/6
61. Goblin Hero by Jim C. Hines 8/8
62. Breaking Dawn by Stephanie Meyer 8/11
63. Burnt Offerings by Laurell K. Hamilton 8/13
64. Stubby Amberchuk and the Holy Grail by Anne Cameron 8/16
65. Blue Moon by Laurell K. Hamilton 8/18
66. Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Brown 8/21
67. Obsidian Butterfly by Laurell K. Hamilton 8/27
68. Throne of Jade by Naomi Novik 8/29
69. Narcissus in Chains by Laurell K. Hamilton 9/2
70. The Drunkard's Walk: How Randomness Rules Our Lives by Leonard Mlodinow 9/5
71. Cerulean Sins by Laurell K. Hamilton 9/8
72. Black Powder War by Naomi Novik 9/11
73. Incubus Dreams by Laurell K. Hamilton 9/16 (?)
74. I, robot by Isaac Asimov starring Will Smith by Howard S. Smith 9/21
75. Micah by Laurell K. Hamilton 9/21
76. Tree and Leaf by J.R.R. Tolkien 9/22
77. Descartes' Bones by Russell Shorto 9/27
78. Danse Macabre by Laurell K. Hamilton 10/1
79. The Sea of Trolls by Nancy Farmer 10/6
80. The Harlequin by Laurell K. Hamilton 10/8
81. Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe 10/10
82. Eon: Dragoneye Reborn by Allison Goodman 10/12
83. Sandman III: Dream Country by Neil Gaiman 10/13
84. Fifty Acres and a Poodle by Jeanne Marie Laskas 10/16
85. Blood Noir by Laurell K. Hamilton 10/22
86. Possession by Chris Humphreys 10/25
87. Blood Bound by Patricia Briggs 10/28
88. Iron Kissed by Patricia Briggs 10/31
89. Wizard and Glass by Stephen King 11/8
90. The BFG by Roald Dahl 11/9
91. Academ's Fury by Jim Butcher 11/13
92. Fer-de-Lance by Rex Stout 11/17
93. A Kiss of Shadows by Laurell K. Hamilton 11/21
94. Walking in Circles Before Lying Down by Merrill Markoe 11/22
95. Fool's Errand by Robin Hobb 11/29
96. Will the Vampire People Please Leave the Lobby? by Allyson Beatrice 12/2
97. One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksander Solzhenitsyn 12/4
98. Dope Sick by Walter Dean Myers 12/5
99. Then We Came to the End by Joshua Ferris 12/9
100. A Universal History of the Destruction of Books by Fernando Baez 12/13
101. Dave Barry Is Not Making This Up by Dave Barry 12/15
102. In The Best Families by Rex Stout 12/16
103. A Caress of Twilight by Laurell K. Hamilton 12/19
104. Dog Days by John Levitt 12/23
105. King's Property by Morgan Howell 12/26
106. Why We Suck by Dr. Denis Leary 12/27
107. Goblin War by Jim C. Hines 12/30
108. The Rule of Four by Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason 12/31



**Tried and Rejected:
Be Sweet: A Memoir of Conditional Love by Roy Blount, Jr.
Crossroads of Twilight (Put off temporarily)
The Essays of Ralph Waldo Emerson (Put off temporarily -- twice)
The Tyranny of the Night by Glen Cook
The Man Who Ate the 747 by Ben Sherwood
Perdido Street Station by China Mieville
Shadow Play by Charles Baxter
Wolf's Head, Wolf's Heart by Jane Lindskold
Eldest by Christopher Paolini
V for Vendetta: The Novelization of the Film by Steve Moore