Friday, December 11, 2009

Making a List...

Best Fiction Books, 2009
As 2009 draws to a close, expect to be inundated with "best book" lists. Though we cannot image how difficult it must be to choose a handful of books from a much longer list of goodies, here's the top five fiction picks by the sometimes venerated but always influential New York Times.

A short story collection by the author of Liars and Saints.

Chronic City by Jonathan Lethem
The latest from the very inventive and genre-bending writer of Gun, With Occasional Music and the superb Motherless Brooklyn.

A Gate at the Stairs by Lorrie Moore
This compelling post 9/11 backdrop novel is Moore's first in more than decade.

Half Broke Horses : a True-Life Novel by Jeannette Walls
An autobiographical novel by the author of the stunning memoir, The Glass Castle.

A Short History of Women by Kate Walbert
Walbert (The Gardens of Kyoto) definitely writes about and for women; here about five generations of women whose options, choices, and priorities change over time.