It's That Time Again!

Yes, it's that time of year when all of the major publications start issuing their "best of the year" lists. In January we will announce the Broadway Books Bestsellers list for 2008, but in the interim these will have to suffice. We'll start off with the Ten Best Books of 2008 according to The New York Times:

FICTION:

1. Dangerous Laughter: Thirteen Stories, Steven Millhauser

2. A Mercy, Toni Morrison

3. Netherland, Joseph O'Neill

4. 2666, Roberto Bolano

5. Unaccustomed Earth, Jhumpa Lahiri

NONFICTION:

1. The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned into a War on American Ideals, Jane Mayer

2. The Forever War, Dexter Filkins

3. Nothing to be Frightened of, Julian Barnes

4. This Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War, Drew Gilpin Faust

5. The World is What it is: The Authorized Biography of V.S. Naipaul, Patrick French

Personally I've never understood how people can come up with a "best books of the year" list, particularly narrowing it down to ten or even fewer, but I'm glad they're willing to try! The books I read are so varied and dependent upon my mood -- although good writing is good writing, darn it! But I tend to be overly influenced by what I've read most recently. Call me shallow. Right now I'm reading American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House, by Jon Meacham, and I'm liking it just fine.