Tag Archives: bibliophilia

Lists: Best Books Read in 2011 – # 2

Best Books Read in 2011

2. The Christ-Haunted Landscape: Faith and Doubt in Southern Fiction by Susan Ketchin

The Christ-Haunted Landscape takes its name from a quote by Flannery O’Connor: “I think it is safe to say that while the South is hardly Christ-centered, it is most certainly Christ-haunted.” Having grown up in the South, this rang true. Rarely do I spend so much time thinking about a book while reading it or take 5 months to do so. Comprised of interviews with and excerpts from the works of 12 authors, this book reminded me of where I am from. I recommend it to anyone interested in writing or in the interaction between beliefs and reality.

Original Review

3. Winesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson
4. The Forever War by Dexter Filkins
5. Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson
6. People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks
7. The Long Goodbye by Raymond Chandler
8. Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey
9. A Great & Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
10. The Color of Magic by Terry Pratchett


Lists: Best Books Read in 2011 – # 6

Best Books Read in 2011

6. People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks

An exquisite, unique and very old book, a story that is part truth and part skillful invention, and beautiful writing. Need I say more?

Original Review

7. The Long Goodbye by Raymond Chandler
8. Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey
9. A Great & Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
10. The Color of Magic by Terry Pratchett


Review: The Dickens With Love

The Dickens With LoveThe Dickens With Love by Josh Lanyon
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The Dickens With Love was first brought to my attention by the illustrious karen whose review of it is far, far funnier than mine. Seriously. Her review is here. Go read it. Then come back to mine.

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Review: People of the Book

People of the BookPeople of the Book by Geraldine Brooks
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

People of the Book is a stunningly beautiful book about another stunningly beautiful book. It fictionalizes the true story of the Sarajevo Haggadah, a unique, 500-year old version of a book read at Jewish Passover Seders. It illustrates the story of how and why Passover came to be. People of the Book looks at the fascinating story of the Haggadah’s travels through the years and creates a story from them. All of the characters are fictional and some of the chapters are admittedly entirely fiction while others contain more factual information. While reading I did not care at all which was which and I am not certain I do now. Geraldine Brooks.ostensibly tells the story of a book, but as the title hints, what she really tells is the story of a people.

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