The Best and Worst Books of 2009: A Pictorial History

[trinityofone]

Better late than never: My favorite books of 2009 and a year of reading in review!

TOP FIVE FICTION

5.

4.

3.

2.

1.

TOP FIVE GRAPHIC NOVELS

5.

4.

3.

2.

1.

TOP FIVE YOUNG ADULT

5.

4.

3.

2.

1.

TOP FIVE NONFICTION

5.

4.

3.

2.

1.

FIVE WORST BOOKS

5.

4.

3.

2.

1.

And now some gratuitous statistics!

Types of Books:
Fiction: 81%
Nonfiction: 19%

In Fiction:
Sci-Fi/Fantasy: 30%
Mystery: 8%
Graphic Novel: 18%
Literary/Other: 35%

Books Acquired:
Library: 39%
Borrowed: 22%
Gifts: 1%
Internet: 1%
BookMooch: 12%
Bought: 11%
ARCs: 13%

Sex of Author:
Male: 141
Female: 59
Ratio: 2.39:1 (oy)

Books by People of Color:
Total: 34
Percentage: 16% (*facepalm*)

Old vs. New:
New: 97%
Reread: 3%

But now it is a new year! A fresh start! Please rec me:

1. Awesome books by women!
2. Awesome books by POC!
3. Goofy-fun books with angels in ’em!

Obviously, any that are three-in-one would be amazing.

Comments

[ravurian]

Elizabeth Knox's 'The Vintner's Luck' is awesome, and has an angel. It's set in Napoleonic France - a young man, Sobran, spurned by the woman he loves, sneaks off to get drunk in the vinyard and meets an angel named Xas. They agree to meet again on the same night every year. It's a book of love and life and death, of improbable relationships, of theology and wars (Napoleon's, and the one in Heaven), and of wine, and it's beautiful.

[trinityofone.livejournal.com]

I actually read The Vintner's Luck two years ago (2008) and you're right, it's beautiful. I wish there were more books like it!

[ravurian]

Oh cool - I almost wish that someone would write the SPN version, LOL. After all, the difference between Xas and Cas might only be a matter of pronounciation and universe...

Also (also) if you loved TVL, please, please, please stay away from its newly released sequel. I mean, I've heard of a couple of people who loved it, but not many. I had to put it down after the first 80 pages. It's badfic. IMO.

Since you've read TVL, let me instead recommend 'Rapture' by David Sosnowski which, while written by a man, has angels and awesome...

[soho-iced.livejournal.com]

The sequel, The Angel's Cut, is also wonderful, if you happened to miss it? I read recently that she is planning a third book about Xas, which made me extremely happy.

(A Supernatural/Vinter's Luck fusion occured to me too, though unfortunately I lack any writing talent.)

Other angel books - the Samaria series by Sharon Shinn, starting with Archangel, though they are a might romance-y in tone. Stronger recommendation for the wonderful Damiano trilogy by RA MacAvoy, featuring the Archangel Raphael.