Well my reading seems to have dwindled this past year, not that I have anything else to show for it. And while I think I was less diligent about noting what I read this last year, even worse I can barely remember some of the books. But nonetheless it’s the end of the year(ish) and time to make some notations:

• The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman – I really enjoy a multiple POV work and this look from various folks at and English language based paper in Rome does a great job of telling each story and the overarching tale, I thought it was a very good read.
• Divisidaro by Michael Ondaatje – Another multi part piece, these three parts almost form a novel and I liked two of the three enough to enjoy the story of a broken family, though being in SF I was a little bummed for a less strong tie to Divisidaro street (don’t call it NOPA).
• Skippy Dies by Paul Murray – We know he dies in the first handful of pages, which makes the tragedy of this prep-schooler’s tragic death more palatable as we go back to tell the story leading up to things with the challenges all around the students, families, and faculty.
• You Don’t Love Me Yet by Jonathan Lethem – I can always count a good deal of random with Lethem and in this odd little riff centering on a gal touching on experimental installation art and music I was entertained enough on the ‘complaint line’ becoming hit tunes and the random relationships.
• What Should I Do With My Life by Po Bronson – I think I told a friend I wanted this to be more of a self-help book, but Bronson gathers a good range of people’s stories and finding their ‘purpose’ while imparting a bit of his own story and narrative to wrap it all up that I found it intriguing.
• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo/The Girl Who Played with Fire/The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest by Stieg Larrson – I put these off for some time, for no real reason, but kicked in prior to catching the first US flick and I was surprised by how slightly off the formula these various tales of uncovering corruption and murders and various crimes focused from the investigative journalist’s perspective, the character of ‘the girl’ is always compelling even when she’s actually less present.
• A Drink Before the War/Darkness Take My Hand by Dennis Lehane – I picked up the start of this old series and was engaged by the Boston detective and his gal pal PI as they get far too involved in far too violent crimes, they hold up to time though I laugh at the use of old technology.

And a few less than stellar notations:

• The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides – I really dug both The Virgin Suicides and Middlesex but never quite got into this love triangle of post collegiate overly intellectualizing. 
• Freedom by Jonathan Franzen – There is a way to make an unappealing character interesting to me and then there are just well described super annoying people, I know enough annoying people in real life.
• Riven Rock by T.C. Boyle – My mom had a bunch of TC Boyle in her stacks of books and as my first try… I actually finally gave up on this densely written book about a turn of the century sexually psychotic dude under care.

This year I vow to read more, and I also vow to stop reading books that I don’t dig. What are you reading?

As most folks know, I don’t get around to books right away. Even the paperbacks that I purchase on initial release mostly sit stacked in the corner of my apartment, so clearly I haven’t gotten around to any of these. I will probably refer to this list for purchases next year and in years to come, and about now am referencing last year’s list. Stay tuned for the best of what I read this year.

• The Middlesteins by Jami Attenberg – Am
• Telegraph Avenue by Michael Chabon – MK
• This Is How You Lose Her by Junot Diaz – Ti
• Hologram for the King by Dave Eggers – Am, MK, NYT, SFG
• The Round House by Louise Erdrich – Am, PW, SFG
• Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn – Am, JM
• Canada by Richard Ford – WP
• Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk by Ben Fountain – Am, JM, SFG, Ti, WP
• Broken Harbor by Tana French – WP
• The Fault in Our Stars by John Green – Am, Ti
• Arcadia by Laren Groff – JM, WP
• The Orphan Master’s Son by Adam Johnson – Am
• The Devil in Silver by Victor LaValle – PW
• Truth Like the Sun by Jim Lynch – JM
• Watergate by Thomas Mallon – JM
• Bring Up the Bodies by Hilary Mantel – Am, JM, NYT, PW, Ti, WP
• The Twelve Tribes of Hattie by Ayana Mathis – MK
• Sweet Tooth by Ian McEwan – Am
• Dear Life by Alice Munro – SFG
• Happiness Is a Chemical in the Brain by Lucia Perillo – PW
• The Yellow Birds by Kevin Powers – Am, MK, NYT
• The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling – Ti
• Where’d You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple – JM, Ti
• NW by Zadie Smith – NYT, Ti
• At Last by Edward St. Aubyn – Ti
• The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There by Catherynne Valente  – Ti
• Building Stories by Chris Ware – NYT, PW, Ti, WP

I feel like my suppliers for top ten book lists has shrunken, anyone have any other good lists?

Am – Amazon, JM – Janet Maslin, MK – Michiko Kakutani, NYT – New York Times, PW – Publisher’s Weekly, SFG – SFGate, Ti – Time, WP – Washington Post

We’ve heard from the critics but what have I got? This year I sadly did less reading than last, though that didn’t stop me from purchasing books… So while I try to up my ratio here’s a look at some of the books I enjoyed. And I’m going with alphabetical order by author.

• Men & Dogs by Katie Crouch – The main character Hannah is a product of her father’s mysterious disappearance and she’s an unlikable mess that we can’t help but like, as well as the rest of her southern family she’s forced to revisit along with her past, I should mention Katie is a friend of mine.
• A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan – Parts of this book are great, introducing intriguing characters with interconnected lives, the stylistic explorations of form sometimes work but toward the end push too far in what felt like the sake of pushing it and sort of lost me.
• Star Island by Carl Hiaasen – I always enjoy an eco political campy pop star romp through Florida though I think these capers have gotten even more convoluted, if they weren’t so quick I don’t know that I’d keep up.
• Heart Shaped Box by Joe Hill – I stopped reading Stephen King some time ago, though I hate to make the comparison to his father, but I haven’t had a good ghost story in a long time, even if I apparently have reached an age where I prefer to read less suspenseful text before bed.
• Nina Here Nor There by Nick Krieger – A wonderful memoir that explores the lines of gender, opening up a window to a new world for many while remaining incredibly relatable and funny and touching to all, Nick is also a friend of mine.
• Chronic City by Jonathan Lethem – His writings are always a touch irregular and this latest follows suit, we’re never quite sure what’s going on with our former child star and his new friends as they look into culture, politics, mysticism and their fair share of getting high, maybe not as compelling a tome as Fortress of Solitude but an engaging ride.
• One Day by David Nicholls – We check in with Dexter and Emma each year to see how their doing individually and together, although obviously somewhat contrived the character’s growth and change over the years makes an interesting tale, I did skip the Anne Hathaway flick version.
• Mr Peanut by Adam Ross – I really liked a lot of this book, its dark look at relationships with the reveal of the story of a murder suspect whose wife may have choked on a peanut, as well as the parallels with the lives of the two detectives relationships, but it was a bit too convoluted to be completely satisfying.
• Man Gone Down by Michael Thomas – This book quickly brought me in with its poetic look at a man on the brink, looking at his past and his present, his surroundings New York and Boston, his struggles with class and race, and his relationships, though the poetry of the language didn’t keep me as engaged throughout.