85 replies to this topic

[glitterbot]

My 2009 book list. Wanted to do 104 and made it to 91. I guess 91 books for 2009 isn't too bad. Now that I am used to keeping track I will definitely make it at least to 100 next year. (My notes were a little sketchy from last January, so I may have omitted something.) Yes, I like Horror. And if you saw this on my FB page, sorry for the double post.
I get most of my books from Bookmans and Amazon and love discovering new authors. Bookmans is great for discoveries. I also belong to the Leisure Horror book club, so some of the books I read were not my actual picks. I read some really terrible Leisure horror, some forgettable books, and was happily surprised a few times by some fantastic authors. I always have a huge credit at Bookmans and I like to go there and pick up like 10-12 books at a time.
Notably new to me this year was Mike Carey, Jeff Strand, Sarah Pinborough and Tom Piccirilli. I LOVED The Devil You Know, Pressure, Feeding Ground and The Dead Lettters so much that I read pretty much everything I could find by those four authors, with varying results. I found out that I don't like Tom Piccirilil at ALL and that The Dead Letters must have been a fluke for me. I also found out that I can't wait for each new book by Carey, Strand and Pinborough. I read The Traveling Vampire Show by Richard Laymon and liked it so much I read like 10 more of his books, only to be disappointed in every one of them. I vowed that Night in the Lonesome October would be the last time wasted on Laymon. Missing this year was a new book by Phil Rickman, who is one of my favorite authors. (The last I read was To Dream of the Dead September 2008.) I was excited by the new Stephen King and not at all disappointed in Under the Dome. I re-read a few books this year, but not as many as usual. I put an * next to all re-reads. I found out I like Brian Keene and not Bryan Smith, even though I can never remember which is which when I am out at Bookmans. Christopher Moore is one of my all-time favorite authors but I was a little disappointed in Fool. The Terror by Dan Simmons was so hyped when it came out in 2007, but it took me like two years to get around to reading it. I should have waited another twenty years. It was grueling. All I remember is snow, and like, paragraph after paragraph detailing which crew members were eaten, along with their rank and function on the ship. Snoresville. (Although I love Dan Simmons and think A Winter Haunting is one of his best books, but I read that in 2008)
I guess I cheated a little on this list, as one is a childrens book (Beedle the Bard) and two are graphic novels (Locke & Key). The Locke & Key series is so awesome, though, that I had to count them as books for the list. I finished off the year on a bad note with The Resurrectionist by Wrath James Wright. This was a Leisure book club choice and it was BAD. His last book was so bad I only read like 2 chapters and sent it off to Bookmans, then wrote an email to Leisure to complain about their poor choice in book club novels. Guess it didn't do much good. Next time I will just send back any WJW unread and get my $4 back. Today I am starting an anthology that will start the new year of properly, Best New Horror 20. Yay for books!


1.The Academy – Bentley Little (liked)
2.Dark Terrors 6 – Jones & Sutton A (neutral)
3.Fears Unnamed – Tim Lebbon (neutal)
4.Risen – J Knight (forgettable)
5.The Keep – F Paul Wilson * (an old favorite)
6.Just After Sunset – Stephen King (loved)
7.The Traveling Vampire Show – Richard Laymon (loved)
8.Castaways – Brian Keene (blech)
9.Soultaker – Bryan Smith (forgettable)
10.The Dead Letters – Tom Piccirilli (loved)
11.Four Dark Nights – Little, Clegg, Golden, Piccirilli A (neutral)
12.Wastelands: Stories of the Apocalypse – John Joseph Adams A (Liked)
13.Dark Mountain – Richard Laymon (meh)
14.Crimson – Gord Rollo (forgettable)
15.Tales of Beedle the Bard – JK Rowling (liked)
16.The Devil You Know - Mike Carey (loved! Started me off on a big Carey kick.)
17.The Terror – Dan Simmons (HATED)
18.Vicious Circle – Mike Carey (loved)
19.Fool – Christopher Moore (disappointed)
20.A Dirty Job – Christopher Moore * (one of my favorites ever)
21.The Revelation – Bentley Little (liked)
22.The Night Class – Tom Piccirilli (BORING)
23.Dead Men's Boots – Mike Carey (loved)
24.Thicker Than Water – Mike Carey (loved)
25.Pride and Prejudice and Zombies – Graham Smith (waaaaay overhyped)
26.Dominion – Bentley Little (pretty good)
27.The Deceased – Tom Piccirilli (forgettable)
28.The Select – F Paul Wilson * (another old favorite)
29.Night Cage – Andrew Harper (decent)
30.Into the Fire – Richard Laymon (liked)
31.Rage of Echoes – Simon Clark (boring...major dislike)
32.Rabid Growth – James A Moore (liked)
33.Pressure – Jeff Strand (loved...this one started me on a Strand kick,)
34.Bestial – Ray Garton (forgettable)
35.Cover – Jack Ketchum (ok)
36.A Lower Deep – Tom Piccirilli (forgettable)
37.Grave Robbers Wanted – Jeff Strand (loved)
38.Singe White Psychopath Seeks Same – Jeff Strand (loved)
39.Casket for Sale – Jeff Strand (loved)
40.The Sub – Thomas Disch (liked)
41.Aftershock – F Paul Wilson (liked...looking forward to the next Repairman Jack)
42.Locke & Key – Joe Hill (loved)
43.Bone Factory – Nate Kenyon (liked)
44.The Golem – Edward Lee (ok)
45.The Cellar – Richard Laymon (forgettable)
46.Harry Potter – JK Rowling * (I like to re-read these before each movie. Nerd!)
47.Harry Potter II – JK Rowling *
48.Harry Potter III – JK Rowling *
49.Harry Potter VI – JK Rowling *
50.Harry Potter VII – JK Rowling *
51.The Home – Scott Nicolsen (ok)
52.November Mourns – Tom Piccirilli (forgettable)
53.Far Dark Fields – Gary Braunbeck (loved!)
54.Urban Gothic – Brian Keene (double-blech. Predictable.)
55.Velocity – Dean Koontz (ok)
56.Death Mask – Graham Masterson (forgettable)
57.Sacrifice – John Everson (decent)
58.In this Skin – Simon Clark (forgettable)
59.Flesh – Richard Laymon (why do I keeping reading him?)
60.Wolf's Gambit – WD Gagliani (ok)
61.The Naming of the Beasts – Mike Carey (loved)
62.The Church of Dead Girls – Stephen Dobyns (loved!)
63.Mandibles – Jeff Strand (liked)
64.Locke & Key: Head Games – Joe Hill (loved)
65.The Dust of Wonderland – Lee Thomas (ok)
66.The Lake – Richard Laymon (seriously, WHY?)
67.Depraved – Bryan Smith (forgettable)
68.Feeding Ground – Sarah Pinborough (loved this!)
69.The Everlasting – Tim Lebbon (decent)
70.Ghoul – Brian Keene (liked)
71.Night in the Lonesome October – Richard Laymon (hated! boring & pointless)
72.Benjamin's Parasite – Jeff Strand (loved)
73.The Black Train – Edward Lee (decent)
74.Under the Dome – Stephen King (loved!!)
75.The Dead that Walk – Stephen Jones A (hit & miss, like most anthologies.)
76.The 13th – John Everson (ok)
77.The Road – Cormac McCarthy (Yes, it is as good as everyone says.)
78.Breeding Ground – Sarah Pinborough (liked)
79.Dark Hollow – Brian Keene (decent)
80.The Taken – Sarah Pinborough (loved!!)
81.Wicked Things/Scramburg – Thomas Tessier (liked)
82.The Abandoned – Douglas Clegg (forgettable)
83.Ghost Monster – Simon Clark (hated! This! Book!)
84.The Summoning – Bentley Little (liked)
85.The Reckoning – Sarah Pinborough (loved)
86.The Keeper – Sarah Langan (liked)
87.Damnable – Hank Schwaeble (liked)
88.Cold Black Hearts – Jeffrey Mariotte (liked)
89.The Harrowing – Alexandra Sokoloff (ok...somewhat lame.)
90.Deeper – James A Moore (disappointed)
91.The Resurrectionist – Wrath James Wright (HATED this book. What a lousy way to end the year.)

[allisonorphan]

in 2009 the only book unrelated to my thesis i read was Anna Karenina. had a month off of work and school and interning in August so it fit in perfectly. awesome read!

over winter break, i had another 2 week down time so I ventured into the world of David Foster Wallace and picked up The Girl With the Curious Hair.

[unluckycharm]

I've been reading Dr. Zhivago, very slowly.

[danielle]

Wow, 91 is amazing!!

Here are the ones I read last year. Very heavy on fantasy, my new addiction! My favorites have an asterisk.

Books Read in 2009

1. Tigana by Guy Gavriel Kay*
2. Possession by A.S. Byatt
3. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke
4. A Princess of Roumania by Paul Park
5. The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss*
6. Lobster by Guillaume Lecasble
7. Ysabel by Guy Gavriel Kay
8. The Briar King by Gregory Keyes
9. The Charnel Prince by Gregory Keyes
10. The Blood Knight by Gregory Keyes
11. The Born Queen by Gregory Keyes
12. The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie*
13. Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie
14. Last Argument of Kings by Joe Abercrombie
15. Christine Falls by Benjamin Black
16. The Silver Swan by Benjamin Black
17. The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan*
18. Winter Rose by Patricia A. McKillip
19. New Librarian, New Job by Cory Tucker
20. A Shadow in Summer by Daniel Abraham
21. A Song for Arbonne by Guy Gavriel Kay*
22. The Lions of Al-Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay
23. Critique of Criminal Reason by Michael Gregorio
24. The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery*
25. A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin
26. The Tombs of Atuan by Ursula K. Le Guin
27. Sabriel by Garth Nix
28. Lirael by Garth Nix
29. The Magicians by Lev Grossman
30. The Last Light of the Sun by Guy Gavriel Kay
31. Kushiel’s Dart by Jacqueline Carey*
32. Kushiel’s Chosen by Jacqueline Carey
33. Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood
34. Kushiel's Avatar by Jacqueline Carey*

[dharma_bum]

Charles Bukowski, 'The last night of the earth poems'

[weener]

I read 53 this year, and that includes graphic novels. It would have been about double that except I got distracted by being in a band and a bunch of stuff midway through the year.

1.Girl by Blake Nelson
2. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
3. Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life by Bryan Lee O'Malley
4. Twice Told: Original Stories Inspired by Original Artwork
5. Looking for Alaska by John Green
6. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World by Bryan Lee O'Malley
7. Death Note: Kindred Spirit by Tsugumi Ohba
8. Death Note: Finis by Tsugumi Ohba
9. Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together by Bryan Lee O'Malley
10. Boy's Life by Robert R. McCammon
11. Persepolis II: The Story of a Return by Marjane Satrapi
12. Scott Pilgrim & the Infinite Sadness by Bryan Lee O'Malley
13. Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech
14. Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: The Miles Edgeworth Files (Phoenix… by Capcom
15. Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things by Lenore Look
16. The Afterlife by Gary Soto
17. Reinventing Comics by Scott McCloud
18. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
19. The Crystal World by J. G. Ballard
20. The Adventures of Johnny Bunko: The Last Career Guide You'll Ever… by Daniel H. Pink
21. Lost Girls by Alan Moore
22. Watchmen by Alan Moore
23. Singularity by William Sleator
24. How They Met, and Other Stories by David Levithan
25. Armageddon Summer by Jane Yolen
26. Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson
27. The First Part Last by Angela Johnson
28. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz
29. If I Stay by Gayle Forman
30. Go Girl! by Trina Robbins
31. Hard Time: 50 to Life by Steve Gerber
32. Flygirl by Sherri L. Smith
33. I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
34. Interstellar Pig by William Sleator
35. The Coldest Winter Ever by Sister Souljah
36. Confessions of a Blabbermouth by Mike Carey
37. The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi
38. Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott
39. On the Beach by Nevil Shute
40. Alien Child by Pamela Sargent
41. House of Java (Volume 1) by Mark Murphy
42. The Bumblebee Flies Anyway by Robert Cormier
43. Nana, Volume 2 by Ai Yazawa
44. What Happened to Cass McBride? by Gail Giles
45. Below the Root by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
46. The Pillowman by Martin McDonagh
47. Escape from "Special" by Miss Lasko-Gross
48. Going Too Far by Jennifer Echols
49. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
50. Bayou by Jeremy Love
51. Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane by Sean McKeever
52. Bizenghast, Volume 1 by M. Alice LeGrow
53. The Road by Cormac McCarthy

This is largely a ton of graphic novels and teen literature, because reading that stuff is part of my job. A lot of it is also awesome. The best stuff I read this year were The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, Hunger Games, The Pillowman, the Road, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, I Capture the Castle, and If I Stay.

Books. Yum yum.

[Tom Piccirilli]

Hey Glitterbot:

First off, thanks greatly for your initial kind words about my novel THE DEAD LETTERS, as well as your willingness to read more of it. Sorry you didn't dig on my earlier horror novels. Hope I can persuade you to try at least another. Since you dug TDL, one of my more recent crime-noir-horror crossovers, I hope you'll give a go to the likes of THE MIDNIGHT ROAD or SHADOW SEASON, which are written in a similar narrative style with similar mood and themes. In any case, thanks for making the effort.

best, Tom Piccirilli
www.thecoldspot.blogspot.com

[weener]

Way to google yourself!

[Jacki O.]

Oh shit! Tom Piccirilli called you out!!!! He's gonna find out where you live and make you re-read his books!!!


actually that's pretty fucking awesome

[Tom Piccirilli]

Of course I have a Google alert so I can stay on top of reviews and comments from fans who love the fiction and readers who don't dig the work. And I'm not calling Glitterbot out at all. He's certainly not the first person to pan the books.

[glitterbot]

Thanks for the message, Tom, it is really cool to hear from you! I really appreciate the suggestions. And don't take any of the other posts to heart; sarcasm is "shizz" for "welcome to the board." (I sent you a PM, also, because I can never figure out how to email from this board.)