What are your favorites so far for 2009?

[Lee]

Do you already know one that will be on your favorites list for this year?

[Lee]

My two favorites this year are Outliers and The Art of Racing in the Rain, I recommend both. Outliers will give you something interesting to think about, while The Art of Racing in the Rain will give you something touching to feel about.

[Julie]

I just finished Skeletons at the Feast by Chris Bohjalian, and it will definitely be on my list of favorites for 2009 and possibly, all time favorite books. The story covers a difficult setting - Germany, during the end of WWII, and one family's flight from the Russian invasion. This story is vivid and heart-wrenching. If you were moved by Stones from the River or The Book Thief, then you will want to listen to this book. Narrator Mark Bramhall does a great job with a wide range of voices and accents and lets you lose yourself in this poignant story. 5+ stars.

[Ann]

My favorite for 2009 so far is: "Whole New Mind" by Daniel Pink

A whole New Mind in a high concept and high touch age.

[Janice]

My favorite for 2009 are:
1. "Peaks and Valleys" by Spencer Johnson
2. "Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World" by Vicki Myron
3. "Change Your Thoughts - Change Your Life: Living the Wisdom of the Tao" by Dr. Wayne Dyer

[Julie]

I have another book to add to my list of favorites. I just finished Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri. A collection of short stories about Bengali immigrants - this book will touch your heart. Lahiri does a wonderful job in her portrayal of a wide cast of complex characters. As an American with immigrant parents, I can completely relate to the stories about children worrying that they can't achieve their parents' high expectations. 'What?? No PhD? How can we face our neighbors?' The narration of this audiobook is performed by Sarita Choudhury and Ajay Naidu. They are absolutely perfect and made this audiobook a joy from begining to end. 5 stars!

[Julie]

I am adding another favorite for 2009 - Suzanne Collins' book, The Hunger Games . The setting for this speculative fiction title is a future where different regions of the United States have to offer a boy and a girl teenager as tribute to the ruling government. The tributes from all of the territories participate in the Hunger Games - a reality show 'Survivor' game, but the losers don't get voted off the game ... they get killed. This book is enjoyable on so many different levels. The plot is fast and gripping (plan to stay up late listening to this one). But the story also raises some very good ethical questions and makes some subtle comments about our fascination with reality tv shows. The audio version is great - wonderful narration by Carolyn McCormick. And the best news yet? There is a sequel - Catching Fire - due out in September - can't wait!

[Susan]

Always Looking Up - by Michael J. Fox. It's a memorable book because Michael narrates - and once you hear how difficult it is for him to do so many things, you've got to admire the guy for mustering the courage/strength to read his own work. He does a fantastic job, but there are sections where you can hear his voice struggling - and that just makes the message all that more powerful.

[Julie]

By far one of the best books I have listened to this year is Jonathan Safran Foer's Extremely Loud, and Incredibly Close. Appropriately, I finished this book yesterday, 8 years after the attack on the World Trade Center. The 9 year old hero, Oskar Schell, loses his father in the 9/11 terrorist attack. After finding a key hidden in his father's closet, Oskar embarks on a search of the 5 boroughs of NYC, looking for the lock that will fit this key.
In the days and weeks following 9/11, I remember reading every article about what was happening in NYC. But eventually, all those sad stories - families torn apart, people putting up posters looking for someone, people holding hands as they jumped out of the WTC - would make me cry and I had to stop. This book made me relive some of the horror and sadness of those days. But while I was listening, I found the process cathartic. Did I cry? Buckets -but I also laughed and I absolutely loved this book. Extremely well done and Incredibly moving - 5 stars.

[Diana]

Isn't Extremely Loud fantastic? I have read the book and also listened to the audiobook, and I have to say the experience was very different for each form. If you can get your hands on a copy of the book, I'd recommend checking it out because its unique formatting and images really enhance the story.

[Julie]

Thanks for the tip, Diana! Wow - you've really raised my curiosity - can't imagine what the print copy must look like. I'll definitely get a copy!

[Spuddie]

So far my favorite audio books of the year are (I had to look back at my journal to refresh my memory as I read and listen a lot!)

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society--this is the first audio I've listened to with a "cast" of readers, more than one person. It was a great story and the production was stellar!

Hoot by Carl Hiassen, a young adult story. Excellent!

The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry, read by one of my favorite readers, Alyssa Bresnahan

A Beautiful Place to Die by Malla Nunn, a mystery set in 1950's South Africa, read very skillfully with a number of interesting accents by Saul Reichlin.

I've also much enjoyed several of Margaret Maron's Judge Deborah Knott series this year, read by C.J. Critt.

Cheryl