From my list of 2009 reads, I LOVED:

Olive Kitteredge (Eliz Strout), Truth & Beauty (Ann Patchett) and Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Society.

Edgar Sawtelle I enjoyed and then the ending made me furious -- as if I had wasted my time reading it. I couldn't stay with Mercy by Toni Morrison or Cloud Atlas -- but that could change.

For me, the best so far were:
Unaccustomed Earth
The Hunger Games
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
The Girl Who Played with Fire

And my least favorites were:
Peony in Love
The Sea, The Sea
Eucalyptus A Novel
The Strain

Liz B wrote: "How fun!

I haven't read any 5-star books yet this year. I think I'd have to say that my favorite so far is Lucifer's Hammer. I'm a sucker for post-apocalyptic fiction. The Sparrow by Mary Doria Ru..."

Hi Liz,
I read The Sparrow awhile back and loved it. Did you know that there is a sequel - Children of God? I thought it was just as good.

As for my best and worst.

Best:
This Is Where I Leave You by Jonathan Tropper
A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller
The Mystery of Grace by Charles DeLint
Turn Coat by Jim Butcher

Worst: (Or should I say the most disappointing)
Intensity by Dean Koontz
Fool by Christopher Moore
Glory Road by Robert A. Heinlein

Sarah wrote: "It is really all about what you pick out in the first place isn't it. That's key. "

Yes, enjoying the book(s) you are reading is one important factor. I always say you should read what you enjoy. I've met a lot of people who allow the fun to be removed from reading by reading what they think they "should" read rather than something that want to read. Don't get me wrong--there are books in this world I think we should all read. But that shouldn't be ALL you read.

Good question!
My favorite books so far this year have been Stephen King's Dark Tower novels. I loved all of them! Also, Nonviolent Communication continues to influence me, and I know I'll go back and reread it.
It's interesting, at this point I don't have a "worst" book. If I don't like a book right away, I don't bother reading it.

I can't do my 50 this year! I think because I had hyperthyroidism, but I'll still keep trying. I have some books lined up. I LOVED Jane Eyre also, I know that I wouldn't love Atonement, won't even try that one. Gotta go try reading again. It is really all about what you pick out in the first place isn't it. That's key.

My fave of the year so far
Kindred By Octavia E. Butler

My least fave of the year so far is Dewey A Small Town, a Library and the World's Most Beloved Cat By Vicky Myron

Best so far:
In the Night Garden by Catherynne M. Valente
Bloodhound by Tamora Pierce
and all the books I read by Agatha Christie

Worst so far:
Death of a Lady's Man by Leonard Cohen

I am another one that couldn't get into Atonement or Middlesex. Such a disapointment on both fronts!

I have two 5 star reads in my 2009 booklist do far.
Gone With The Wind (an old favourite)
Beach Music (new to me - but amazingly engrossing from the first few pages)

I was disapointed in (but finished):

Wicked The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West This book definitely did not live up to the hype and I really wanted to like it but I just couldn't.
Virgin Earth A Novel I didn't like the characters, especially the main character and I was really disapointed in the ending.
Change of Heart I normally enjoy Jodi Picoult but this one really rubbed me the wrong way. For the firsat half I felt like I was reading either Stephen King's The Green Mile or John Grisham's The Chamber. To be truthful I only finished the book to find out whether or not my hunch was correct and yes it ended the way I though it would after about 100 pages in.

My absolute favourites this year so far are:

The Master Butchers Singing Club by Louise Erdrich
The 13th Tale by Diane Setterfield

Also rans would be:

The Unfortunates by Laurie Graham
Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith
Villette by Charlotte Bronte
What was lost by Catherine Flynn

Books I really disliked:

The Soldiers Return by Melvyn Bragg
Middlemarch by George Eliot (I didn't finish this book which is unusual for me as I do persevere)

I agree with Danine, I *loved* "Jane Eyre," and I can't believe I waited this long to read it. I also really enjoyed "A Fraction of the Whole" by Steve Toltz and "The Year of Living Biblically" by AJ Jacobs.

I really didn't like "And All Shall be Well...." by Tod Wodicka. I think I only finished it because it's so short. And I didn't really like "Knockemstiff," by Donald Ray Pollock, though not because it wasn't well written and "good," but more because it was so hard to read and maybe reminded me too much of where I grew up. I also didn't really care for "Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard." I thought it was attempting to be something, quirky? whimsical with a deeper meaning? and didn't really hit it.

I first answered this question a few months ago, but have read some really good (and some really bad) books since, so I feel the need to change my answer...

Best
My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult
Moloka'i by Alan Brennert
Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel

Worst (that I've actually finished)
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
Size 12 is not fat by Meg Cabot

Best:
Cockroach
The Law of Dreams
Midnight's Children
What is the What
Atonement

Worst:
The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen
The Motorcycle Diaries

I only have 35 books (I'm on #36) but here are my BEST:

Crooked Little Heart: A Novel by Ann Lamott
Marley & Me: Love and Life with the World's Worst Dog by John Grogan
Harold and Maude by Colin Higgins

And my WORST:

Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn

The other 30 have just been in the middle somewhere.

Of the books I've read so far this year (still a long way from my goal of 50), my "BEST" are:
*Cold Sassy Tree byOlive Ann Burns
*A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

The "WORST" are
*Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia by Elizabeth Gilbert which I'm not even sure I finished
*Atonement: A Novel by Ian McEwan. I was at the beach. Maybe I just wasn't in the right frame of mind.

I'm curious to know what you hated about Slaughterhouse, Andrew. I just read that again and can't help thinking that it's pretty fantastic.

Pretty much every book I read for classes this year were the worst of the list, most noticeably The Way to Rainy Mountain, and the Henry James.

Best would be Hunger, Cancer Ward, The Clown, and The Temple of the Golden Pavilion.

I too was thoroughly disappointed with Atonement. I thought I was the only one. The Life of Pi was one that as soon as I finished it I was passing it along to others so I could have someone to discuss it with. I loved it!

Best....
1984 George Orwell
Frankinstien Mary Shelly
Wicked Lovely Melissa Marr

Worst:
Slaughter House 5 kurt Vonnegut
Cathrine Called Birdy ????
Wicked Gregory McGuire

Best Books:

Atonement, Ian McEwan
Saturday, Ian McEwan

I have read all of Ian McEwan's books in 2008 (all 14!) and these two are by far the most ambitious and thought-provoking. I think the second tier would be On Chesil Beach, Enduring Love, and First Love, Last Rites.

Ian McEwan is not as well-known in the states as in England, so many have asked me what led to my time investment in McEwan.

My answer is this: I think he uses his novels as a springboard to discuss literature, music, and science in interesting ways. Yes, like many novelists who've written a number of novels, he revisits pet themes. But in contrast to authors who say their piece in their first couple of novels and then taper off, McEwan continues refine his voice, so that his most recent novels-- in building on his prior works and echoing their ideas-- are the most ambitious and rewarding ones to date.

"Atonement" is a luminous meditation on writing and the creative impulse, and examines the idea of the unreliable narrator, and what might well be termed the unreliable perspective.

As I wrote in another post on goodreads, not since "The French Lieutenant's Woman" have I been so blown away by an ending. It forced me to reconsider EVERYTHING that came before in the novel.

Worst:
The Alchemist, Coelho
The Notebook, Nicholas Sparks

OK, so I didn't read these books in 2008, but they had to go on my list because I despise them so.

I find it frightening that sentimental, treacly fable-telling, in which the keys to life's mysteries are represented by trivial and manipulative plot devices, has become so popular.

I made the mistake of trying The Color of Magic first out of Terry Pratchett's books and then decided that he must not be as great as everyone thinks he is. I discovered later, though, that it's just those first couple books that are terrible. The rest really are great. I recommend you try one more before you give up entirely. Make it something like Wyrd Sisters or The Wee Free Men. You probably won't regret it.

I have read 145 books so far this year and two that I loved were Dune by Frank Herbert and The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield.

Two I could live without are Love Story by Erich Segal and The Color of Magic by Terry Pratchett.

Off my list only:

Worst was Wilbur Smith's "The Triumph of the Sun". It read like a historical soap opera or what I imagine the historical Romance novels read like.

Best so far: Alan Furst's "The Polish Soldier". Best characterized as "Spy Literature". Great writing, characters, plots, suspense, drama, yadda, yadda.

I struggled with The Gathering too, I thought it was boring. I had had huge expectations for it and it definitely fell short. I thought I was the only one.

jlynn

I was surprised by how much I loved Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell and The Road by Cormac McCarthy. Those were two books that I didn't think would be my kind of thing but they were amazing!

I hated The Gathering by Anne Enright and Falling Man by Don DeLillo. They were struggles to get through.

What a great question!

We are talking about our list to date, right? Not all time reading?

The Golden Rose is my least favorite of my 20 so far. I like fantasy, but this was just a little juvenile, in fact, I think I could recommend it to my middle school students.

I'm torn between Jeffery Deaver (Lincoln Rhime series)The Broken Window and James Lee Burke's Swan Peak and The Strange Incident of the Dog in the Night-time. All incredible and very different from each other.

Yes, I'm a junk food mystery addict. If mysteries had calories, I'd weigh A LOT.

When I read "Atonement", I had the same reaction. Really? People love this. I was disappointed. I thought it was ok, not great.

I loved "Julie & Julia," although I have heard people complain about it. There were points in the book where I laughed out loud, and that doesn't happen very often.

My best book lately: "The War for Wealth" by German journalist Gabor Steingart. This book will explain why the US is in the economic mess it is today, and even though there is a lot of history and economics, it is never once boring. This book made me rethink so many things!

Don't have a worst book yet. I'm sure it's coming.

Best:

The Crazyladies of Pearl Street by Trevanian
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
The Shack by William P. Young
A Complaint Free World by Will Bowen

I haven't read any truly terrible books this year, but I'd have to say the worst so far:

The Love Machine by Jacqueline Susann
The Secret of Lost Things: A Novel by Sheridan Hay

worst, Memory Keepers Daughter. I didn't even read it this year, but it remains on the worst list. Let's see, my 2 fluff Danielle Steeles, My Latest Grievance by Elinor Lipman, and Hunger Point. Truly awful.

best, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and Eat,Pray,Love. Not only two of the best this year, but 2 on my permanent "changed my life" list. Also The Kite Runner, The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets, The Book Thief, and The Truth Machine.

And I loved Julie & Julia, but then I have that sense of humor. However, Fahrenheit 451 was close to unreadable, so buried in emotional "deep" dreck was the plot.

Best so far this year...Kite Runner, The Book Thief, The Thirteenth Tale, and P.S. I Love You,

The Worst...Baby Love by Catherine Anderson (too lovey-dovey), The Gatecrasher by Madeleine Wickham.

The two worst I have encountered were "The Memory Keeper's Daughter" and "Julie & Julia."
I know other people loved these books, but I just didn't like 'em!

The best: Pride and Prejudice, Love Walked In, and Garden Spells

I don't know that there are many of my completed list that I would count as worst. If a book doesn't grab me, or rubs me the wrong way for some reason, I won't finish it. Hence, I do have a list of books I started and didn't finish. I will include those in my "worst" list as well as a few from my completed list that I felt were a waste of time.

Best:
-- Time Traveler's Wife: Just loved this book, it took me a while to get into it...once I did I couldn't put it down!

-- Marley and Me: Hands down THE BEST book I have read so far this year!

-- The Virgin Suicides: One of my favorite movies...and now one of my favorite books!

Worst:
-- A Million Little Pieces: I didn't finish this one...I just was not into the writing style of the author and it bothered me to no end. I found this book to be very confusing and hard to follow who was saying what due to the way it was written.

-- The Phantom Tollbooth: I didn't like this when I was younger and I got about 1/2 way through and decided I had no desire to finish it.

-- Visions of Sugar Plums: I love all of Janet Evanovich's books, but this one just didn't do it for me. I love the Stephanie Plum series, but this was one of her between-the-numbers books and I just couldn't get into all of the supernatural stuff that went on.

No tomatoes here, don't worry. I didn't hate Middlesex, just didn't like it as much as I thought I would or as much as other people seemed to like it. I definitley liked it better than Life of Pi though.

Oh, I just have to say, after all the negative comments, that Middlesex is one of my all time favorite novels...

You may throw rotten tomatoes at me now.

I had to divide my list up into Good, Great, Bad, Horrible, and Neutral to really discover which books I liked and hated. Some of them I had absolutely no opinion of whatsoever! luckily, out of 55 books, I have only hated four of them. I guess that isn't too bad considering I am experimenting in genres I don't usually read.

The Worst: ( in order)

Owls Well that Ends Well
The Stone Diaries
Atonement
Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister

The Best:

Frankenstein Unbound
Ice Station Zebra
Ladies of Missalonghi
Life of Pi ( the only modern novel I've read and really enjoyed.)

I think I have a really hard time reading lists of books that people didn't like that I loved, like Pillars of the Earth and Bridge of Sighs. Two I didn't like was The Emporer's Children and Almost Moon. My favorites this year, are Pillars, Bridge of Sighs and World Without End.

Yay! I hated Life of Pi. Always fun to find other people who dislike a book everyone else seems to love.


(Although I did like Middlesex.)

I felt that way about Middlesex too! I just wanted him to get the hermaphrodite stuff already! I didn't enjoy Life of Pi either and I know so many people loved it, oh well.

For my books this year some of the best were-
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn loved it, can't believe I had never read it before now. The Time Travelers Wife was awesome, I was totally obsessed with that one-thought about the characters all the time. I know there are more, I'll have to check my list and come back-for ones I didn't like too.

Nan - no, I've never heard of that book before, but it sounds interesting! I'll have a search through the library catalogue and see if I can find some of her books. Thanks for the recommendation!

Jessica, to be fair, I didn't find Middlesex to be all that interesting until I was pretty well into it. It really did deliver after what I thought was a bit of a slow beginning. I enjoyed it quite a bit.

Jessica....I completely agree with you on both Eat, Pray, Love and Middlesex. I'm glad when some one agrees with my view point!

Rachel- Have you read Women of the Silk? If you like to read about different places and times then I think you would like that book as well as other books written by that author.

I have been surprised by several books this year that I've given 5-star ratings to:
1) "The Reluctant Journey of David Connors" by Don Locke, an emotional and allegorical journey of faith.
2) "Double Vision" by Randall Ingermanson, a fun sci fi/romantic comedy.
3) "Counting on Grace" by Elizabeth Winthrop. I found this in the children's book section at my library. It's historical fiction about a young girl's life in the textile mills of New England).
4) "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel, which I could not put down (despite its awful goriness) and which kept me thinking about the character constantly for several days after I finished the book.

I was also pleasantly surprised by "Babylon Rising" by Tim LaHaye. I liked it better than the books from his "Left Behind" series.

I loathed "Pillars of the Earth" by Ken Follett. I finally gave up on that one after the first 200 or so pages.

I also very much disliked "Never Again Good-Bye" by Terri Blackstock because the main female character seemed totally dense and utterly selfish.

I could not finish Middlesex. Honestly, I couldn't even get very far into it. I found it to be so boring. When I asked a few friends who read it if it took a while to get into the story, everyone said 'No, I got sucked in right away', that's when I decided it just wasn't for me.

I also had to put Eat, Pray, Love down. Maybe it was all the hype. The first chapter was bearable (although, if I moved to Rome for a few months, I wouldn't be so whiney!), but I could only make it a few pages into India. Had to give up.

I totally am addicted to Janet Evanovich's series about Stephanie Plum, bounty hunter extraordinaire. Not deep litterature, but it's fun, light, entertaining reading. Great for airplane and/or beach reading.

I recently finished Empress Orchid by Anchee Min and loved it. Although the description in it made it a long read, I really enjoyed it. To tell the truth, I love most books which give you an insight into a time period or place in time, hence why I also really enjoyed The Last Town on Earth by Thomas Mullen. Sometimes I find it more interesting to read about things which have happened in the past than the incredibly modern quick reads which you can find on any library shelf.

There's only been one book which I've read so far this year which I wouldn't class good (most of them would get four or five stars, and this one was closer to two or three), and that was Life on the Refrigerator Door by Alice Kuipers. I picked it up with the intention to flick through it, and ended up reading 1/3 of it in twenty minutes! I found the characters very 2D and hard to connect with, and that the story passed through so quickly that it reached the end before you were ready for it. Yes, a sad story. Yes, a good plot. But the writing style wasn't good enough to fulfill the author's intentions for the novel. There are books out there, written in notes and letters, which are brilliant - such as Jaclyn Moriarty's teenage novels - but this was not one of them.

I like all of the books I have read and finished, especially The Book Thief by Markus Zaduk and Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut. There were two that I disliked so much that I didn't even get half way through them. They are Bridge of Sighs by Richard Russo and Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen.

Best so far? For my money, it has to be The Great Gatbsy (one of my all time favorites). TO be fair, I have been going back and reading some classics that probably sould be on this list that go without saying (Gatsby, Old Man and the Sea, etc.)

As far as more contemporary novels are concerned, I really liked Blood Meridian (McCarthy), The Innocent (McEwan), Handmaid's Tale (Atwood) and Breakfast of Champions (Vonnegut).

The worst? The Devil and Miss Prym (Coelho) is the worst so far, but I have a few more runners up in mind.

Ask again in December!

How fun!

I haven't read any 5-star books yet this year. I think I'd have to say that my favorite so far is Lucifer's Hammer. I'm a sucker for post-apocalyptic fiction. The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell and Agnes and the Hitman were also great, for very different reasons--The Sparrow was fascinating, thought-provoking, and haunting, while Agnes and the Hitman was just plain fun.

The worst book of the year (among those I've actually finished) was Jo Frost's Confident Baby Care. I finished it just so I could review it fairly--and say how awful it was.

I LOVED The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollen and I really enjoyed Fingersmith by Sarah Waters and The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison.

I absolutely detested The Secret Gospel of Mary Magdalene by Michele Roberts. I also did not care for The Second Mrs. Gioconda by E.L. Kingsburg, although I usually have a healthy respect for Konigsburg's work..

Thanks for starting this discussion, Danine. I'm interested in learning about everyone's best and worst as well.