Best Book You Read in 2011

[Juliana Es]

Whether or not you managed to achieve your reading challenge in 2011, let's share the best book you read last year. It can be either a fiction or non-fiction, and tell us why you found it to be the best book you ever read.

You might be tempted to list down more than one, so here's a little leeway. One for English fiction, one for Malay fiction. Then one for English non-fiction, and one for Malay non-fiction.

Let me start.

Malay Fiction

Dwilogi Padang Bulan - Andrea Hirata

IMHO, Andrea Hirata has even surpassed JK Rowling with his magical, nearly flawless, writing. It's not a magical world, but the storyline and the characters are so convincing that you feel this has to be real. And to have it in two-in-one at one go (not having to wait for the sequel) is a sheer bonus!

I felt so recharged, so full of go-go-go spirit after reading both books. Simply mesmerising.

[cheryna27]

Hmmm...mine?

Okay, these are the ones:


(English fiction)

And..

(Malay fiction)

Still re-reading the book in 2012:)

[Khairul Hezry, I hate people but not you. You, I like.]

Simple. Just check out my Reading Challenge 2011. Very few books received 5 stars. Of those, my favourite was:

English non-fiction:

Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World through Islamic Eyes which is my favourite English non-fiction of last year. Thought provoking, educational and entertaining to read. Not many books can do all three.

English fiction:

The Help. Black servants overcome their fear and tell a white liberal woman of their experiences working in the segregated South. Funny, heartbreaking. Good Heavens! Did I just read (and enjoyed) a chic-lit??

Malay Fiction:

I don't read Malay fiction (as most of you know) but I tried FIXI's Pecah and it was entertaining enough. A bank heist but not really. They're filming an adaptation right now, doncha know?

Malay non-fiction:

The only Malay non-fiction I read tend to be Islamic books. I didn't even list them in Goodreads. I'll just leave this one empty then, shall I?

[Juliana Es]

Khairul H. wrote: "Simple. Just check out my Reading Challenge 2011. Very few books received 5 stars."

Duh, of course we can do that, but this thread will make it easier for everyone to have a glance through. I missed the opportunity of voting for 2011 Goodreads Choice Awards, and I saw that only 2 of GRMY members voted. That's how this thread came to be.

BTW, I can't believe you read The Help. Not that I meant to say it's not good (because I haven't read it myself), but because you are not the kind who likes to read bestseller.

[cheryna27]

You read The Help?

Here I am thinking that I'm outdated. I have been eyeing The Help for quite sometime but I am still stuck with the ones that I bought in BBW and all other book fest. Not to mention that I am a BookXcess freak.

It looks like I really...really need to get the book.

Anyway,I like this thread a lot. I mean, it makes it easier and less time consuming to find good books. I get to ask if I want to:)

[Khairul Hezry, I hate people but not you. You, I like.]

I read The Help on a whim. It was a pleasant surprise.

[Najmuddin, Tok Mudin]

2011 - hanya sebuah buku yang saya berikan 5 bintang.

Atonement, oleh Ian McEwan.

Jadi inilah buku terbaik yang saya baca pada tahun lalu, dalam kategori English fiction. Kenapa buku ini ya? Lepas baca buku ini, saya menyebut wow, wow beberapa kali. Jadi buku ini - simply wow!!!

[Nur 'Azzyati]

Buku terbaik dibaca walaupun hanya beri 4 bintang. Plot yang unik dan mengajar, bahasa yang mudah dan indah. Sangat gemar ayat ini " Menulis adalah baik. Berfikir adalah lebih baik. Kepandaian adalah baik, kesabaran adalah lebih baik".

[Nor, dari khutubkhanah USIM]

English fiction.
Saya cuma baca satu buku kategori ini & pada saya ianya biasa2 saja.

Malay fiction.
Daerah Beta oleh Azizi Haji Abdullah
Sutera Bidadari karya Ramlee Awang Murshid.
Dan kata2 yang menarik untuk diamalkan - "Adalah lebih baik tersilap ampun tetapi jangan sesekali tersalah hukum".

English non-fiction.
The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch

Malay non-fiction.
Indahnya Hidup Bersyariat oleh Ismail Kamus

[Syahira]

I rarely read malay books for leisure.. plus I wrote a thesis in scientific malay for 2011 and I found that my writing in proper Malay suffered and it was traumatic. blergh..

Non-Fiction
I would say among my readings, Mark Logue's The King's Speech but whats really useful in my real life? --> "Serial Murder: Multi-Disciplinary Perspectives For Investigators" <-- found my true calling

Fiction
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
p/s: its a NaNoWriMo novel and it didnt won in GRCA because of Divergent (which I dont like)

[Faizah Roslaini]

Ada beberapa yang paling ingat 2012. Bermula dari Gladwell, saya kini berani kata sudah jadi peminat non-fiction.

Outliers: The Story of Success - Bukan self help. Do you know that there are people who has IQ higher than Oppenheimer, but never ended up similarly 'successful'.

No God But God: The Origins, Evolution and Future of Islam - Best. Walaupun KH complain kata incline kepada Syiah.

Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide - Johnny rekomen. Saya inspired nak baca Muhammad Yunus pulak lepas ini tapi tak beli-beli lagi. HAHAHAHAHA

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks - Johnny dah baca tapi tak sure dia ada rekomen ke tidak.

Muhammad - Best. Kena baca kalau nak tahu fasal Sirah Nabi. Penceritaan nya macam baca buku cerita. Saya terasa macam ada di zaman Rasulullah baca buku ini. Best.

Fiction: Cekik dan Amerika. Deridda dan postmodernis. Ada berani?

[❀ Hana]

Buku terbaik yang saya baca pada 2011. Maaflah, buku-buku bukan fiksyen nampaknya mendominasi senarai saya:

1. Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide - sama macam Faizah, dicadangkan oleh Johnny. :)

2. Muhammad: Man and Prophet - KH rekomen. Sirah Rasulullah saw yang terperinci. Bahasanya mudah difahami.

3. In the Footsteps of the Prophet: Lessons from the Life of Muhammad - terbaik daripada Prof. Dr. Tariq Ramadan. Dibaca pula sejurus selepas Muhammad: Man and Prophet.

4. Room - fiksyen yang buat saya hampir percaya buku ini ditulis oleh seorang kanak-kanak berusia 6 tahun.

5. From Beirut to Jerusalem tulisan Dr. Ang Swee Chai, paramedik sukarela yang bertugas ketika peristiwa hitam Sabra dan Shatila September 1982 berlaku. Dicadangkan oleh Ainun Nazrin.

6. The Alchemy of Happiness tulisan Imam Al-Ghazzali terjemahan oleh Claud Field.

7. Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World through Islamic Eyes - buku sejarah terbaik yang pernah saya baca. Ada unsur humor. Bayangkan, buku sejarah yang punya unsur humor! Kalau saya jadi Menteri Pendidikan, saya akan jadikan buku ini teks wajib di sekolah-sekolah.

[SUZA]

Rawak :)


1.
2.
3.
4.

Erk..rasanya semua fiksyen Y_Y

[Khairul Hezry, I hate people but not you. You, I like.]

Hana wrote: "7. Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World through Islamic Eyes - buku sejarah terbaik yang pernah saya baca. Ada unsur humor. Bayangkan, buku sejarah yang punya unsur humor! Kalau saya jadi Menteri Pendidikan, saya akan jadikan buku ini teks wajib di sekolah-sekolah."

Setuju. Ada edisi BM tapi tak pernah baca yg tu. Tak pasti samada unsur humornya berjaya dialih bahasakan atau tidak. Mungkin tidak.

[Lolliepop]

my favourite:



and



both are english fiction, apparently. :)

[Deviki]

I have wayyyy too many to conclude which is my favorite, i read many types of fictions so i have way too many .....

[Zul]

1.All the Shah's Men: An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East Terror
2.Halsey's Typhoon: The True Story of a Fighting Admiral, an Epic Storm, and an Untold Rescue
3.Angels and Demons
banyak lagi yang best sebenarnya tapi tak ingat.

[Najibah, Penterjemah yang mencintai kata-kata]

Saya tak baca banyak buku tahun lepas, hanya sekitar 20 buah (blame my motherly instinct to protect my young - this is quite a good number, considering during last 'breeding season', I read less than 10 when kid under two, :D).

Yang terbaik bagi saya tahun lepas, dua-duanya bukan fiksyen:

Minda Tertawan



Aku, Buku dan Cinta

[Afiq]

1. The Complete Persepolis
2. Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen
3. In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto
4. Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook
5. Sandman series #2-7

[Faizah Roslaini]

Afiq wrote: "1. The Complete Persepolis
2. Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen
3. [book:In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifes..."

If I am not married I would date you

[Fariza]

faizah!!! LoL... haha

[Afiq]

Faizah, trust me you dont want to date a guy like me. But nonetheless, I take that as a compliment. hahaha.

Ok, back to the topic, I already have candidates for best book I read in 2012:

1. Everything is Illuminated
2. High Fidelity
3. Ghost World
4. Batman: The Killing Joke

[Afiq]

Eh, i forgot one more book I read in 2011 which I love so much, one of the best graphic novel in fact.

Y: The Last Man - The Deluxe Edition Book One

[Nor, dari khutubkhanah USIM]

Khairul H. wrote: "Hana wrote: "7. Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World through Islamic Eyes - buku sejarah terbaik yang pernah saya baca. Ada unsur humor. Bayangkan, buku sejarah yang punya unsur humor! Kalau s..."

Macam best aje. Kena cari nampaknya.:)

[Juliana Es]

Faizah Roslaini wrote: "If I am not married I would date you"

OOOOH! Sounds like an interesting topic to start a thread. Faizah, care to elaborate?

This is completely off-topic, but since Faizah started it, I think if I were not married, I'd rather date a guy who has a passion or an interest in something other than books, so that I get to learn new things from him.

[ajeep]

The Sealed Nectar: Biography of the Noble Prophet

saya suka. sebab finally dapat baca sejarah Nabi yang tak terlalu akademik.

ayah saya pernah beri satu buku/kitab pasal sejarah Nabi, sangat terperinci dan terlalu akademik untuk saya. pening. baca 2 3 chapter terus gave up.

[Khairul Hezry, I hate people but not you. You, I like.]

Juliana Es wrote: "

OOOOH! Sounds like an interesting topic to start a thread. Faizah, care to elaborate?

This is completely off-topic, but since Faizah started it, I think if I were not married, I'd rather date a guy who has a passion or an interest in something other than books, so that I get to learn new things from him."

Like a serial killer? That would be so cool in a creepy kind of way.

[Juliana Es]

Khairul H. wrote: "Like a serial killer? That would be so cool in a creepy kind of way."

HAHAHA! Of course that's not what I meant :-p

[Ulya A.K]

Khairul H. wrote: "Like a serial killer? That would be so cool in a creepy kind of way...."

Khairul.. that is creepy.. kekeke..

[Juliana Es]

Khairul ni extreme thinker. Dia takde istilah tengah-tengah: it's either 1 or 0.

[Nor, dari khutubkhanah USIM]

Macam kod komputer.

[Faizah Roslaini]

Macam European. hahah

[Lyla]

1. = Old school is still the best ever..

2. = dakwah itu indah.

3. = very interesting. Bukan senang nak buat narrative seorang budak berumur 5 tahun.

4. = just wow.

5. = orang kata buku ni banyak penipuan dari kebenaran. But, it's still a moving story.

[ajeep]

pasal buku banyak tipu tu? tak baca betul2 sangat pasal kes tu, tapi lepas dapat tahu, saya anggap itu sebagai fiksyen sahaja.

[fahmee]

Saya tak banyak baca buku..
Dalam tak banyak buku yang saya baca, saya dapati "Ayat-Ayat Cinta" oleh Habiburrahman sangat menarik