The 20 Best Books of the Decade (2000-2009)

This according to Paste Magazine. I. Freaking. Love. Lists. Especially lists involving books, except that they usually make me feel like a slacker. For Paste's commentary, go here. Otherwise, you are about to be subjected to my thoughts:

20. Chuck Klosterman: Killing Yourself to Live: 85% of a True Story [Scribner] (2005)

Might add this to my list.

19. Malcolm Gladwell: The Tipping Point [Little Brown] (2000)

Sounds very interesting.

18. Donald Miller: Blue Like Jazz [Thomas Nelson] (2003)

Not on my list.

17. Carl Wilson: Let’s Talk About Love (A Journey To The End Of Taste) [Continuum] (2007)

Really?? A book about Celine Dion?? Pass.

16. Joseph O’Neill: Netherland [Vintage] (2008)

Haven't heard of it. Boo for me.

15. Eric Schlosser: Fast Food Nation [Houghton Mifflin] (2001)

Not yet. Might be too scared to learn too much.

14. J.K. Rowling: Harry Potter [Bloomsbury] (1998-2007)

I aspire to read these little ditties someday. But the list before them is entirely too vast right now.

13. Ian McEwan: Atonement [Nan A. Talese] (2002)

Had this one as an audiobook from the library. Tried to listen a few times, but kept drifting off. Then when my iPod decided to erase all my music, etc., I lost it. Will probably try again someday though.

12. Doug Blackmon: Slavery By Another Name: The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II [Doubleday] (2008)

Not really the kind of book I usually read.

11. David Sedaris: Me Talk Pretty One Day [Little, Brown and Company] (2000)

Hilarious. Loved it. Think about it all the time.

10. David Foster Wallace: Consider The Lobster And Other Essays [Little, Brown and Company] (2005)

I guess Last Night at the Lobster doesn't count, huh?!

9. Jonathan Safran Foer: Everything Is Illuminated [Harper Perennial] (2002)

Don't know it.

8. Joan Didlon: The Year of Magical Thinking [Knopf] (2005)

Sounds really good. Totally my type.

7. Craig Thompson: Blankets [Top Shelf Productions] (2003)

Possible future list item.

6. Markus Zusak: The Book Thief [Knopf] (2005)

I've had my fill of Young Adult novels this year, thank you very much.

5. Jeffrey Eugenides: Middlesex [Picador] (2002)

Funny, touching and fabulous!!

4. Marilynne Robinson: Gilead [Farrar, Straus and Giroux] (2004)

Haven't heard of this one either.

3. Cormac McCarthy: The Road [Knopf] (2006)

Faithful readers of Read My Mind! know that I am obsessed with this book. It's also the hardest I ever cried while reading a novel.

2. Dave Eggers: A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius [Simon & Schuster] (2000)

List. Added. You're welcome.

1. Michael Chabon: The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay [Random House] (2000)

Do I have to read this just because it's #1??



So there you have it. Three. Lame. But I can make myself feel slightly better because these books span all genres and subject matter. Are there any that I haven't read that I simply must? Please weigh in.

The Condition

I've been a very slow reader these days. I think it's just that at this time of year, all I want to do is sleep. And not wake up until spring.

I grabbed this book from the library back in September and it's now so overdue I think the RRPL might start sending me hate mail. I honestly don't mind paying late fees though...it's still cheaper than buying your own books and it supports (or in my case, funds the new wing!) my local library.

The Condition has been on my to-read list for some time now. The description caught my attention right away: A proper family, a daughter with Turner's syndrome and the family's imminent decline. The writing, by author Jennifer Haigh, was good. Very good. Each character was both dynamic and flawed. Yet I couldn't help but feel that something was missing. I wanted more. More descriptions. More nitty-gritty into each McKotch life. The small amount of info I got wasn't good enough. I need to know more about this syndrome, more about Billy (the closeted, successful doctor) and more about the affair Scott's wife was having. Believe me, that one was a shocker and yet pretty funny at the same time. I wanted to focus on these things a little more. But maybe that was the author's intention in the first place. To leave the reader intrigued but still guessing. I know it sounds like a funny thing to say, I liked the book, just wanted it to be longer.

I'm still going to recommend reading The Condition. I'd love to hear other opinions. Maybe I missed something big and you are reading this calling me an idiot right now. I need to know!

My next read is much lighter subject matter and I'm thinking I'll fly through it. Stay tuned.

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