Readers’ bloc 2007
Time for the annual round-up. I’ve asked several readers to name their five favorite books of the year. Go ahead and post your own list.
Tina Cuyugan, an imperialist running dog and political incorrectness guru.
All these writers underwent a form of incarceration/isolation—sometimes self-imposed,
sometimes not. It did something to their writing.
MY NAME IS RED, a novel by Orhan Pamuk (2001). This murder mystery/romance set in the paranoid world of Ottoman miniaturist painters is narrated in bits by a dog, a painted horse, and the murder victim himself, among others. Once you get past the jaw-tightening suspense—anyone can be garroted by order of the Sultan at a moment’s notice, for one thing—the novel reveals itself as an elegant disquisition on art, religion and perception. Pamuk dropped out of college and hunkered down in his mom’s Istanbul flat for a decade, just scribbling away and completing… nothing much. A quarter-century later, he won the Nobel Prize for literature. Hermit-geeks of the world, take heart.
MEMOIRS FROM THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD, a fictionalized memoir by Fyodor Dostoyevsky (1862). Just as he was about to be executed at age 28 for the subversive act of owning a printing press, Dostoyevsky was sentenced instead to four years’ hard labor in remotest Siberia, recounted in this book. Don’t put off reading it out of fear of Russian histrionics; it’s his most detached work, with finely observed characters and set pieces. Even filthy and fettered, with half their heads shaved (don’t ask why only half; they just do things differently in Russia), the prisoners are vividly individualistic, boastful, class-conscious and status-obsessed. For nausea value, you can’t beat his description of donning a never-washed hospital dressing gown previously worn by many diseased and tortured prisoners. Wonderful Christmas reading. All that snow.
THE CAMOMILE LAWN, a novel by Mary Wesley (1984). As a London debutante and as an aristocrat’s wife, Wesley had many lovers (so numerous, she would in later years count them like sheep, to lull herself to sleep). She then met and married the love of her life. When he died she was devastated. For 10 years she struggled to write, destitute and living in an isolated cottage. Her first novel, published at age 70, launched her as a literary sensation, a startlingly fresh voice cheerfully recounting tales of illicit passion, incest, twins, threesomes, and other permutations. The Camomile Lawn captures the world of a group of young cousins just before and during WWII, and the complications (sexual and otherwise) that draw them together and apart over decades. Wesley is a master of tight dialogue. Little old ladies rule.
ALL AUNT HAGAR’S CHILDREN, short fiction by Edward P. Jones (2006). As the son of an illiterate hotel maid, Jones had a weirdly nomadic upbringing in just one city, Washington, D.C. He worked for almost 20 years as the news writer of Tax Notes, a trade journal for accountants. For sheer ennui, this probably beats a jail stint in Siberia. But a marvelous blossoming was taking place in Jones’ imagination, and at 52—he’d just been fired from Tax Notes—he wrote The Known World, his first novel, about a freed slave who
himself owns slaves. It’s a deeply humane novel, of a sadness beyond sadness. His stories are just as richly textured, carrying the reader forward and backward in time, and in and out of the minds and hearts of Washingtonians never seen on CNN. The man seems
incapable of writing a cheap line.
LOVE IN A FALLEN CITY, short fiction by Eileen Chang (1943). After her chic flapper mom fled to Europe, Chang grew up the household of her opium-addicted, concubine-fondling father, who literally locked her up for six months (and denied her medical treatment for dysentery), for being “disrespectful.†Her stories of entrapment, manipulation and doomed attempts to escape are recounted in a cool, calm voice, very precise. Don’t be fooled by the references to flowers and glimpses of Shanghai glamour. Chang’s world is Darwinian at its core, especially when prospective lovers and family members are involved. The terrifying black quarry seen at the end of Ang Lee’s film
adaptation of “Lust, Caution†lies ahead for us all.
Butch Perez, film director. Five “entertainmentsâ€, in the order I read them:
THE EAGLE’S THRONE by Carlos Fuentes
BANGKOK HAUNTS by John Burdett
THE ECHO MAKER by Richard Powers
THE THEORY OF CLOUDS by Stéphane Audeguy
THE SAVAGE DETECTIVES by Roberto Bolaño
Budjette Tan, advertising creative director by day, aspiring superhero by night. My top 5 graphic novels for 2007 (more like Top 5 comic books I read the past year and highly recommend – in no particular order)
1. ALL-STAR SUPERMAN by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely. After a very long while, here’s a Superman title that anyone can pick up and enjoy and not have to worry about decades of continuity history. It’s just a whole lot of wild, weird, wacko stories that only Morrison and Quitely can deliver.
2. BATMAN DETECTIVE by Paul Dini. Dini delivers one-shot/self-contained mysteries. Each issue is drawn by a different artist, each issue puts Batman’s deductive skills to the test and reminds us why he is called the Dark Knight Detective.
3. FELL: FERAL CITY by Warren Ellis and Ben Templesmith. Detective Richard Fell is assigned to Snow Town, a city with just two and half detectives. No costumed crime fighters in this comic book, by the killers and murders in Snow Town would definitely make the Joker feel right at home.
4. THE IMMORTAL IRON FIST by Ed Brubaker, Matt Fraction, and David Aja. Billionaire + kung-fu artist + crime fighter = a very kick-ass updated version of that 1970s Marvel
character.
5. ELMER by Gerry Alanguilan. Chickens all over the world, have started to talk and
nobody knows why. Now, humans have to put up with these intelligent fowl (or is it the other way around?)
Jaime Augusto Zobel, corporate overlord, publisher of Flip, Bruce Wayne?
– DIVISADERO by Michael Ondaatje
(Novel has two parts and much discussion on which is better. The first part, which involves sibling relationships in rural California and a tragic event that changes their lives, is haunting and eloquent).
– BLUE AFTERNOON by William Boyd
(Set in turn of the century Manila! Brief literary glimpse into the period of American occupation with some interesting side stories that include a, supposedly, real Filipino inventor. Well written.)
– DEPTHS by Henning Mankell
(WW1 Naval Commanders, obsessive protagonist with a strange emotional void. Told in a sparse, unsettling way. Very desolate, cold and slightly depressing. Still, quite engaging).
– THE GHOST by Robert Harris
(Thriller with a fictional take on a Former British Prime Minister who starts to write his memoirs. The protagonist is the spitting image of Tony Blair. Entertaining and intelligent)
– THE UNCOMMON READER by Alan Bennett
(Queen Elizabeth starts to read from a mobile library—fun!)
Honorable Mention!
– THE RELIGION by Tim Willocks
(No great literary work as it reads more like a movie script. Turkish Siege of Malta in the early 1500s. Not for those with a weak stomach but for those who like the world of graphic novels, this makes for interesting reading. I will be in the minority…but I liked it. First part of a Trilogy).
Answers to questions you might be asking, unless you wandered onto this site purely by accident >>>
December 19th, 2007 at 12:05
This was a horrible year in reading for me (in terms of volume … I’ve been too busy to read as many books as I normally do!). And I always read books a year after they’re released (so they have paperback versions) but off the top of my head I would say:
On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan
Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman by Haruki Murakami
Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl
Atonement by Ian McEwan (a re-read)
Garlic and Sapphires by Ruth Reichl
December 19th, 2007 at 18:04
I’ve managed to read 2 books this year :(
The winter of our discontent by John Steinbeck
How I became Stupid by Martin Page
December 19th, 2007 at 18:58
This year is mainly Gaiman year, in terms of number works I bought. My list, however, would include only one Gaiman book:
Good Omens by N. Gaiman and T. Pratchett
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion
The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
December 19th, 2007 at 20:48
hmmm….
i bought my two twisted boooks so they’re on the list. heheh
TWISTED 6 by who else, Jessica Zafra
Twisted Travels by Jessica Zafra
Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince
Stainless Longganisa by Bob Ong
MacArthur by Bob Ong
i haven’t read Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows… it would have been included… tsk…
December 19th, 2007 at 21:25
My top 5, in no particular order:
ANGELICA Arthur Phillips
THE YIDDISH POLICEMEN’S UNION Michael Chabon
AFTER DARK Haruki Murakami
BANGKOK HAUNTS John Burdett
THE PRESTIGE Christopher Priest
December 19th, 2007 at 22:43
Atonement- Ian Mcewan
The Road- Cormac McCarthy
I am America and So Can You- Stephen Colbert
1984- George Orwell
I can’t decide on a 5th book.
December 20th, 2007 at 08:44
In no particular order (and mostly not releases from this year):
Mencken Chrestomathy – H. L. Mencken
The History of the Decline & Fall of the Roman Empire – Edward Gibbon
Twisted 1 through 7 – Jessica Zafra
The House of Sleeping Beauties and Other Stories – Yasunari Kawabata
Rumpole and the Reign of Terror – John Mortimer
December 20th, 2007 at 08:46
My top five out of 20 are…
1. The Blind Assassin by MARGARET ATWOOD
2. The Reader by BERNARD SCHLINK
3. Divining Women by KAYE GIBBONS
4. Protect and Defend by RICHARD NORTH PATTERSON
5. The Stone Diaries by CAROL SHIELDS
December 20th, 2007 at 13:14
my top 5. i should have included persuasion by jane austen but i haven’t finished the book yet.
1. harry potter and the deathly hallows by JK rowling
2. twisted travels by jessica zafra :) fyi, my friend gave this book to me as a gift
3. the art of seduction by robert greene
4. his dark materials by philip pullman (i’ll treat the whole series as a single entity, hehe)
5. preludes and nocturnes by neil gaiman
December 20th, 2007 at 13:34
Mine would be
DH Lawrence: Story of an Outsider
The Whistling Woman by AS Byatt
Letting Go by Philip Roth
Bleak House by Charles Dickens
The Plumed Serpent by DH Lawrence
December 20th, 2007 at 14:04
1. Notes on a Scandal – Zoe Heller
2. 84 Charing Cross Road – Helene Hanff
3. Q’s Legacy – Helene Hanff
4. The Bell Jar – Sylvia Plath
5. Eat, Pray, Love – Elizabeth Gilbert
December 20th, 2007 at 15:46
Here’s my top 5 list:
1. Teach Us to Outgrow Our Madness – by Kenzaburo Oe
2. Salamanca – Dean Alfar
3. Expidition – (Winners of 1st Phil Graphic/Fiction Awards by Fullybooked)
4. Fragile Things – by Niel Gaiman
5. The Holy Quran – a muslim friend gave it to me (but i insist to pay him)
December 20th, 2007 at 18:20
i hear brian de palma wants to turn the Blue Afternoon into a movie.
December 20th, 2007 at 21:36
Zobel broke the 5 rule so I guess it’s ok. And this is not really a “best of”; more like a confession list of the only books I was able to finish this year. Seriously, w/ my short attention span, I’m always in the middle of at least 10 books at any time so it’s a real wonder I can even do a list like this:
1.) “How to Talk About Books You Haven’t Read” – Pierre Bayard; English translation by Jeffrey Mehlman (It’s serious, I swear! It was prominently featured on the NY Times Book Review and the review was great. Here it is if you don’t believe me: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/11/books/review/McInerney-t.html )
2.) “The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha” – Miguel de Cervantes; new English translation by Edith Grossman (I’m just about 1/5-way through; gimme a break, it’s almost a thousand pages w/ tiny font!)
3.) “god Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything” – Hitch
4.) “Why I Am Not a Christian” – Bertrand Russel
5.) “Twisted Travel” – JZitch
6.) “Einstein: His Life & Universe” – Walter Isaacson
7.) “Double Cross” – James Patterson (I know, I know! Don’t judge me; I am not a book. I was at the airport and it was the ‘only’ book available…snort…actually, it was 50% off at Borders on Thansgiving Weekend…well, no I missed that, it was 30% discount at a mall I happened to be at…What a fucking turd of a book. I want my 70% back! Plus the 30% discount. And tax. And Starbucks. The store.)
8.) “Harrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine”, 16th ed – Kasper, et al. (Sorry, I tried to avoid it this year but Dr. Harrison’s ghost just wouldn’t stop haunting me.)
Well, #1 is really still being shipped to me as I type this so it’s probably more like 5 + 1/5 + x (various undetermined fractions) so technically I didn’t break the rule. Bwehe.
December 21st, 2007 at 09:22
this year was CS Lewis year for me. in no particular order:
Mere Christianity by CS Lewis
Screwtape Letters by CS Lewis
Problem of Pain by CS Lewis
1984 by George Orwell
Enduring Love by Ian Mcewan
December 21st, 2007 at 12:21
Totally out of topic but… I just got myself a copy of Twisted 8: The Night of the Living Twisted.
It’s out, yay!
December 21st, 2007 at 20:28
1. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (by J.K. Rowling)
– a most fitting ending to a beloved series of books
2. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time (by Mark Haddon)
– the mystery of a murdered dog told from the point of view of a 15 year old autistic savant
3. The Virgin Blue (by Tracy Chevalier)
– a modern day woman’s life is paralleled with that of a 16th century ancestor, as they both experience the torments of being a woman with secrets
4. The Hours (by Michael Cunningham)
– three women at three different times in history, whose stories are somehow linked together by a book, Mrs. Dalloway
5. The Hamilton Case (by Michelle de Krester)
– set in exotic Ceylon, the murder case referred to in the title is just a small part of the interesting story of the decline of a prominent family
December 21st, 2007 at 22:19
Yay. Twisted 8 is not out yet in the provinces (my province in particular). And I am still looking for the Chicken Pox for the Soul. My soul needs it, badly.
December 22nd, 2007 at 05:27
Top 5 favorites of all time:
– House of the Spirits – Isabel Allende
– Dragonlance Chronicles – Margaret Weiss and Tracy Hickman
– The Count of Monte Cristo – Alexandre Dumas
– Cyrano de Bergerac – Edmond Rostand
– King Lear – Shakespeare
December 22nd, 2007 at 09:47
I’d be really interested to see the answers to a different Top 10 list like this instead of the usual: http://www.pulp.net/top10/index.html (answered by various writers)
Here’s a sample by Erica Wagner, literary editor of The Times:
Top 10
1.) Best short story I’ve ever read
‘Bartleby, the Scrivener’ by Herman Melville
2.) Book that should be on the national curriculum
Masterworks of the Classical Haida Mythtellers and Their World by Robert Bringhurst. Epic poetry from the Haida people of North America’s Northwest Coast.
It’s three beautiful volumes. One: A Story as Sharp as a Knife. Two: Nine Visits to the Mythworld: Ghandl of the Qayahl Llaanas. And three: Being in Being: The Collected Works of a Master Haida Mythteller, Skaay of the Qquuna Qiighawaay. It’s published in Canada by Douglas & McIntyre. Seek it out.
3.) Best film of the book I’ve seen
David Lean’s film of Great Expectations.
4.) Most pernicious/irritating literary myth
That poetry is a forbidding art form.
5.) My favourite opening line of a novel
“There was no possibility of taking a walk that day.†—Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte.
6.) My favourite novel that no one else seems to have heard of
Easy Travel to Other Planets by Ted Mooney.
7.) The book I’d most like to reread, if I could find it again
I lost a book I had and loved, Birds through a Ceiling of Alabaster: Three Abbasid Poets; an old Penguin Classic. Then I found it again and I was very glad indeed. 9th-10th century love poems from what is now Iraq. I wish it wasn’t out of print.
8.) My favourite bookshop
McNally Robinson in New York City. It’s on Prince Street. http://www.mcnallyrobinsonnyc.com
9.) Author I’d like to nominate for the Nobel Prize for literature
Alan Garner.
10.) Deceased author I’d most like to … walk across the Brooklyn Bridge with
Walt Whitman.
December 24th, 2007 at 00:50
Not exactly the top 5, more like the top 7 but I can’t stop reading these books that I consider work as a distraction:
1. Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman
2. Absolute DC: New Frontier by Darwyn Cooke
3. A Spot of Bother by Mark Haddon
4. After Dark by Haruki Murakami
5. Possible Side Effects by Augusten Burroughs
6. Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman by Haruki Murakami
7. A Long Way Down by Nick Hornby
December 24th, 2007 at 06:24
Well, since the top-having-only-five-items implied term seems to have died the death, I will add to my list the following:
The Poverty of Memory – Red Constantino
Definitely one of the best books I’ve read.
December 25th, 2007 at 01:32
alright…
Do Textbooks and the Guinness Book of World Records count?
December 29th, 2007 at 16:27
Couldn’t decide on 5 books only so made my own best for 2007:
6 Fiction from 3 Authors
1. Nine stories/Franny and Zooey–JD Salinger
2. Immortality/The Unbearable lightness of being–Milan Kundera
3. Sirens of Titan/Time quake–Kurt Vonnegut
5 Best Non-Fiction
1. Rubicon : the triumph and tradegy of the Roman Republic–Tom Holland
2. A Man without a country–Kurt Vonnegut
3. The Journals of Sylvia Plath, 1950-1962
4. A Room of one’s own–Virginia Woolf
5. Kitchen confidential–Anthony Bourdain
5.1 Twisted travels–JZ hehehe sorry…