(symptom: being excessively engaged in tasks that require exquisite attention to detail, such as list-making)
Summary
76 books by 68 different authors (having read 3 by Reginald Hill and Lian Hearn, and 2 each by William Gibson, Steve Hamilton, Barry Hughart, and Nalo Hopkinson). With only 2 exceptions (Iceland and Denmark), the books I read this year were written by people from the United Kingdom and its past and present colonies.
Genres
Short stories, 1%Western, 1%
Young adult, 3%
Horror, 4%
Nonfiction, 4%
Thriller/suspense, 11%
Humor, 12%
Action & adventure, 12%
SciFi, 12%
Romance, 14%
Fantasy, 16%
Historical, 20%
General & literary fiction, 20%
Mystery & detective, 32%
(total greater than 100 due to some books fitting multiple categories)
46 of the 76 (61%) won a major award or were named to a Best Of list in their year of publication
My Ratings (out of 10)
9 or 10, 4%
7 or 8, 29%
5 or 6, 41%
4 or less, 26%
Top 10 Reads of 2005
- Replay, by Ken Grimwood (1987 - science fiction)
- Cognitive Therapy of Depression, by Aaron T. Beck (1987 - nonfiction)
- Veronica, by Mary Gaitskill (2005 - literary fiction)
- Scar Tissue, by Michael Ignatieff (1994 - literary fiction)
- Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow, by Peter Hoeg (2000 - mystery & detective)
And the following tied for 6th:
- The March, by E. L. Doctorow (2005 - historical fiction)
- A Star Called Henry, by Roddy Doyle (1999 - literary/ historical fiction)
- Pattern Recognition, by William Gibson (2003 - mystery & detective/ speculative fiction)
- A Good Scent from Strange Mountain, by Robert Olen Butler (1992 - short stories)
- The Salt Roads, by Nalo Hopkinson (2004 - fantasy)
- Serenity House, by Christopher Hope (1992 - literary fiction)
- Earthly Powers, by Anthony Burgess (1980 - literary fiction)
- All the Pretty Horses, by Cormac McCarthy (1992 - action/ adventure/ romance with cowboys)
- The Three Junes, by Julia Glass (2002 - literary fiction)
(I truly couldn't bring myself to pick just 10.)
Least Favorite Books of 2005
- Shot in the Heart, by Mikal Gilmore (1995 - autobiography)
- The Christ Clone Trilogy: In His Image; Birth of an Age; Acts of God, by James BeauSeigneur (1998 - Christian science fiction)
- The Second Coming, by John Dalmas (2004 - Christian science fiction)
- What Was She Thinking?: Notes on a Scandal, by Zoe Heller (2004 - humor/ literary fiction)
- Trace, by Patrician Cornwell (2004 - general fiction with forensic science)
- Midnight Robber, by Nalo Hopkinson (2000 - science fiction)
- Trick of the Eye, by Jane Stanton Hitchcock (1992 - mystery & detective)
- Slow River, by Nicola Griffith (1995 - science fiction)
- Cell, by Stephen King (2006 - horror)
- Queen of the Tambourine, by Jane Gardam (1995 - humor/ literary fiction)
The Chronological List
January
Cognitive Therapy of Depression, by Aaron T. Beck
Cognitive Therapy: Basics and Beyond, by Judith S. Beck
In the Ruins, by Kate Elliott
Life of Pi, by Yann Martel
Anansi Boys, by Neil Gaiman
Queen of the Tambourine, by Jane Gardam
All the Pretty Horses, by Cormac McCarthy
Poor Things, by Alasdair Gray
Shot in the Heart, by Mikal Gilmore
Virtual Light, by William Gibson
February
Preston Falls, by David Gates
A Cold Day in Paradise, by Steve Hamilton
The Ordinary Seaman, by Francisco Goldman
Flesh & Blood, by John Harvey
What Was She Thinking?: Notes on a Scandal, by Zoe Heller
The Maltese Falcon, by Dashiell Hammett
Codex, by Lev Grossman
Native Tongue, by Carl Hiaasen
The Love of Stones, by Tobias Hill
March
Replay, by Ken Grimwood
A Star Called Henry, by Roddy Doyle
Slow River, by Nicola Griffith
The Ghost Writer, by John Harwood
Tropic of Night, by Michael Grubert
Deep Sleep, by Francis Fyfield
Veronica, by Mary Gaitskill
Kingdom of Shadows, by Alan Furst
April
Seduction of Water, by Carol Goodman
Three Junes, by Julia Glass
Pattern Recognition, by William Gibson
Snow Falling on Cedars, by David Guterson
North of Nowhere, by Steve Hamilton
May
The Great Fire, by Shirley Hazzard
Trace, by Patricia Cornwell
The Christ Clone Trilogy: In His Image; Birth of an Age; Acts of God, by James BeauSeigneur
The Second Coming, by John Dalmas
June
Under the Frog, by Tibor Fischer
Nowhere Man, by Aleksandar Hemon
Bones and Silence, by Reginald Hill
Across the Nightingale Floor, by Lian Hearn
Cell, by Stephen King
Letter from Home, by Carole G. Hart
July
A Good Scent from Strange Mountain: Stories, by Robert Olen Butler
Grass for His Pillow, by Lian Hearn
The March, by E. L. Doctorow
March, by Geraldine Brooks
Brilliance of the Moon, by Lian Hearn
Black Fly Season, by Giles Blunt
August
Camouflage, by John Haldeman
The Sea, by John Banville
Feed, by M. T. Anderson
Hannibal, Thomas Harris
The Havanna Room, by Colin Harrison
On Beulah Height, by Reginald Hill
Trick of the Eye, by Jane Stanton Hitchcock
September
Abarat, by Clive Barker
Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow, by Peter Hoeg
Tidewater Blood, by William Hoffman
Prince of Thieves, by Chuck Hogan
Good Morning, Midnight, by Reginald Hill
The Folding Star, by Alan Hollingworth
Mythago Wood, by Robert Holdstock
Midnight Robber, by Nalo Hopkinson
October
Serenity House, by Christopher Hope
Voyage from Yesteryear, by James P. Hogan
Bridge of Birds: A Novel of an Ancient China That Never Was, by Barry Hughart
Hot Springs, by Stephen Hunter
Silence of the Grave, by Arnaldur Indridason
Scar Tissue, by Michael Ignatieff
The Underground Man, by Mick Jackson
Eight Skilled Gentlemen, by Barry Hughart
An Artist of the Floating World, by Kazuo Ishiguro
The Salt Roads, by Nalo Hopkinson
November
Earthly Powers, by Anthony Burgess
Next, by Michael Crichton
December
A Taste for Death, by P. D. James
Money: A Suicide Note, by Martin Amis
