I’ve always read a lot. Starting Story Carnivores with Brian is the first time that I’ve ever really kept track of what I read. I’ve never even thought about a top ten list for books (or films either, which is coming soon!) So, this list was lots of fun to work on.
Like Brian, my film list will be 2012 movies, but this book list is books I read for the first time in 2012, regardless of when they were written.
1. Easily the best book I read in 2012 was Nancy Farmer’s The House of the Scorpion. It has a string of awards on its cover, and it deserves every single one. This story sucked me in from the first page and wouldn’t let me go until I reached the end. It’s inventive, intense, and mind bending. Of all this books I read this year, this is the one that most left me wanting to become a better writer. I want to leave my readers in the state that Nancy Farmer left me.
2. K. L. Going’s Fat Kid Rules the World has stuck with me all year. It’s the characters of Troy and Curt that make it. They are fabulous, their relationship is amazing. In fact everything about every relationship in this book was amazing. Here’s what I love most about this book: in this crazy year, where I’ve had to face the idea of doing all kinds of things I’ve never done before, I’ve thought about Troy. I love the idea of becoming more than you ever thought you could be. This is a must read.
3. The book cover is James Dashner’s The Maze Runner, but slot three for me goes to the whole series. The Maze Runner series is tense and a little scary and smart. It’s really well written. I’ve read many first-in-a-series this year, but this is the only one where I could not wait to get to the next one.
4. I was utterly charmed by the film version of Cloud Atlas. My husband gave me David Mitchell’s book for my birthday, and I loved it just as much. It was not an easy or fast read, but it was so enthralling and so enchanting. It’s been three months, and I’m still thinking about it. It’s funny to me that the novellas that I loved the most in the book were not the same as the parts of the movie I loved the most. I’m not usually big on literary fiction, but this book is really something special.
5. I’m a big Neil Gaiman fan. The Graveyard Book did not disappoint. It was a pure joy to read. I loved the way it read like little short stories, but was so cohesive that it came together as a novel. The Man Jack was terrifying, Bod was endearing, and this was just a great story. That’s what I love about Neil Gaiman, he’s a true story teller, and I don’t think that shines anywhere more clearly than it does in The Graveyard Book.
6. Stephen Chosky’s The Perks of Being a Wallflower was just a pure joy to read. I loved that it was set in the late 80s/early 90s, which is the time when I was in high school. It felt nostalgic. It reminded me of what it felt like to be very young and to feel infinite. We read it together before the movie, but the movie made me love the book even more. All-in-all, this is the book I read in 2012 that I wish I had read earlier. It’s small and packed with goodness.
7. Octavia Butler’s Bloodchild and Other Stories was my pick for a short-lived book club I was involved with earlier this year. Butler is one of my all-time favorite authors. Her book of short stories was like little bites of everything I love about her writing. Tense, sparse, to-the-point, and thought-provoking, every single story in this book made me happy. If you’ve never read Octavia Butler before, this is a great place to start.
8. John Green’s Looking For Alaska was the book that started this blog. I’ll love it forever, just for that. It’s also well written, and the kind of story that compels you to read on. It’s a little sad for me, which is why it didn’t reach higher on my list. But, over all, John Green is a fantastic YA voice and this is a great example of his style.
9. Laurie Halse Anderson’s Speak was one of the most powerful books I read in 2012. It’s one of those books that reaches in deep and speaks to the parts of you that need to hear it. It sat on my shelf for months, mostly because the cover is so lackluster. I had no idea that it held something so fantastic. Anderson became one of the authors I look for this year. Her style is so readable, even when what you’re reading is intense to the point of pain.
