Best book of 2008 - can you do it?

[Michelle]

Ok, looking back over 2008, can you pick just one that stood out for you.. for whatever reason?

[Kell]

The one that stood out head and shoulders above the rest for me was a book about books - The Book Club Bible - reView HERE.

[Ben Mines]

Do you mean of the books you read, or of the book you read that came out this year?

[~Andrea~]

I think it's the book you read, whenever it came out.

 

It's a toughie - lots of good books this year, I thoroughly enjoyed Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, a great ripping yarn and a close second, but for sheer quality, I would have to pick This Sweet Sickness by Patricia Highsmith - a tense psychological thriller, brilliantly written.

[Ben Mines]

Well, I re-read several favourites this year—Borges, Joyce, Melville, Nabokov, etc. Excluding those, the best books I read for the first time were:

 

Time Arrow, Martin Amis

The Anatomy of Melancholy, Robert Burton

Don Quixote, Cervantes

Mary, Vladimir Nabokov

Islands in the Stream, Hemingway

[Michelle]

Ben, I was thinking of the books that you'd read this year, no matter when published. And, I see that the answer is no, you can't pick just one!

[Nici]

Angels watching over me ~ Jacky Newcombe. I read this book when mum passed away and it gave me a lot of comfort.

[BookBee8]

I think everyone's ready to kill me with my near obsession but it has to be the Twilight series. I know that's four books but I can't choose between Twilight and Eclipse . Plus, I loved Double Cross by Malorie Blackman

 

2008 was a good year!!

[Tiger]

Easy. Waves by Sharon Dogar...... must buy it for myself one day!

[lexiepiper]

Yeah, I'd have to say Twilight (& series) as my favourite this year also

[Echo]

For me, it's a tie between Germinal by Emile Zola and Aberrations by Penelope Przekop. Both were outstanding. A lot of the other books I read were re-reads.

[Nollaig]

Either Twilight or Black Sun Rising.......

 

I think its only fair to say Twilight, its not the better book by a long shot, but it did have the greatest impact, particularly on my funds =[

[Angel]

That's hard narrowing down to 1!

 

Revelation - CJ Sansom

[The Library Nook]

I can't decide! Mind you I can barely remember what I have read;)

[Ruth]

There were several books I loved in 2008, but the one that stands out most of all is Betty Blue, by Philippe Dijan. I just thought it was such a passionate, tragic story. I loved it.

[Ben Mines]

Ben, I was thinking of the books that you'd read this year, no matter when published. And, I see that the answer is no, you can't pick just one!

 

One on that list is my favourite. I just included the others because I didn't want to hurt their feelings.

[landevale]

I think my favorite from this year would probably be The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy. It's just so beautifully written and has such a powerful message!

 

I realized something from thinking about what my answer to this question would be. I think that in 2008 I didn't allow books to "speak to my soul" as much as I would have liked. I approached them more intellectually than personally, and so I had a hard time thinking about which book I would choose as the one which impacted me the most (rather than just being my favorite). (I know that's not exactly what this thread is about, but that's where my musings took me.) I think I would like to start thinking more about what life lessons I can take from the books that I am reading, in addition to reading for all of the more intellectual elements. So here's to a New Year's resolution to read more deeply for personal meaning!

[madcow]

I can't pick just one book from this year but I've managed to narrow it down to 2 authors Tess Gerritsen and Linda Gillard, I've enjoyed every one of their books

[Charm]

I've thought about this and have decided I just can't pick one ... it needs to be two . They would be 'The Sinner' by Tess Gerritsen and 'The Rosary Girls' by Richard Montanari. Both these books led me to read two great series' of books which were the highlights of my reading year Both authors I would wholeheartedly recommend

[lexiepiper]

I've managed to narrow it down to 2 authors Tess Gerritsen and Linda Gillard

 

Yes, I really loved Tess Gerritsen this year, I read about 8 or so of her books and loved every single one!

[Kate]

Nope! I have enjoyed so many books this year that I cannot pick just one

[pipread]

I can`t pick one particular book, but I can say Tess Gerritsen was the author. I only discovered her when I joined BCF, and I`m so glad I did!

[poppy]

I think I'm going to have to say Peace Like a River by Leif Enger. Muggle recommended this and I can see why. To me it was on a par with To Kill a Mockingbird.

But I would also have to give very honourable mention to Water For Elephants by Sara Gruen and Small Island by Andrea Levy, both excellent books.

[Janet]

It would be a toss up between...

 

The Book Thief - Markus Zusac and A Thousand Splendid Suns - Khaled Hosseini.

 

Oh, and Cider with Rosie by Laurie Lee for non-fiction.

 

[Raven]

I think I will have to go with Microserfs by Douglas Coupland, as I really enjoyed it.

 

If I had to go for a book that was published in 2008 then it would have to be Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale by Russell T. Davis and Benjamin Cook.