We’re nearly at the end of 2007, and it’s time for me to look back through a year’s worth of book reviews and pick my ten favourites. Hard to know what criteria to apply — “literary quality” is such a nebulous thing, and not always what makes a book memorable for me. I guess I’ll just go with those that linger longest with me, the ones I will be most likely to reread and recommend to others.
I reviewed 46 novels and 21 works of non-fiction this year — which is pretty much what I read, except that I don’t usually review books I reread, and there were several of those throughout the year. Out of that list, my top ten picks (with links to my reviews) are:
1. Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
3. Cloud of Bone by Bernice Morgan
4. A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
5. The Irresistible Revolution by Shaine Claiborne
6. Grace, Eventually by Anne Lamott
7. Passion by Jude Morgan
8. Gentlemen and Players by Joanne Harris
9. The Boleyn Inheritance by Philippa Gregory
10. Digging to America by Anne Tyler
AND NOW …. AN EXCITING CONTEST!!! You (yes you!!) can WIN any a copy of any one of these ten books (your choice) simply by entering my New Year’s Book Giveaway. Here’s what you have to do.
Look at the header of this blog (if you’re reading in a feed, you have to actually click to the blog to make this work). On the shelf behind my head are about 50 books. The large ones right behind my head are photo albums: don’t worry about those. There’s another section of books I wrote myself: ignore those; they don’t count for contest purposes. From the other books behind me on the shelf, how many can you identify (title and author’s name)?
Use whatever technical wizardry is at your disposal to enlarge the photo if that will help (but the resolution is poor, so it may not). Any of these spines look familiar, even if you can’t pick out the words?
Five people who can send me a list of FIFTEEN of the books on the shelf behind my head (excluding the ones I wrote), will win any book they choose from this year’s Top Ten list. Don’t put your list in the comments below; email it to me at trudyj65@hotmail.com . Good luck; I hope I get to send out some books!
7 Comments
December 28, 2007 at 4:46 am
Oooh, so fun! Now, to find the time to enter…
I’m happy to say I’ve read Books 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6 on your list (loved 1, 2, and 4 as you already know, and enjoyed 5, 6). I’ll look up the others!
December 28, 2007 at 4:27 pm
That leaves 5 books to choose from if you win … please enter!!
December 28, 2007 at 6:25 pm
Can even relative strangers give it a go? I don’t expect to win a book . . . but contests make my competitive streak itch for action.
December 28, 2007 at 7:34 pm
No-one’s a stranger here, Inkslinger … you’re welcome to participate.
December 28, 2007 at 10:19 pm
ACK! Do you want to DESTROY me? I cannot possibly resist the challenge, but I SOOOO don’t have time for it.
December 28, 2007 at 10:32 pm
Contest is open till January 6, Katrina. You can do it!!
I should mention that if I don’t get five people who can name 15 titles, I’ll take the people with the next most correct titles, so even if you can only identify some, it’s worth entering.
January 3, 2008 at 9:51 pm
I sent you what I could figure out. It wasn’t 15 though.
blogged ya here:
http://laurawilliamsmusings.blogspot.com/2007/12/monday-edition-of-contests-galore_31.html