Top 10 Books - 2008
The Year in Literature
Illustration by Alyson Muraski and Pete Dulin.
PresentMagazine.com tapped critics, librarians, editors, readers, and assorted lovers of literature to list their Top 10 books for the year in any genre for fiction, nonfiction, poetry, or graphic novel. Of course, the designation of "top" or "best" is entirely subjective so we intentionally didn't try to qualify what that criteria might be. Different standards apply for different people. By including a variety of voices, we hope that these lists will spark ideas for readers to seek out a book for yourself or as a gift.
Thanks to all of our participants. Have a list or suggestion of your own? Send it to present@presentmagazine.com and we'll add it to this collection of suggestions.
Cheers,
Pete and Pam
Alicia Ahlvers, Branch Manager
Waldo Community Branch
Kansas City Public Library
www.notablereading.blogspot.com
1. Life and Death are Wearing Me Out: A Novel by Mo Yan - Alternating between funny and horrifying, this satire sends executed landowner Ximen Nao through the second half of 20th century China in a variety of reincarnated forms, starting as a donkey and finally ending as a child. In each form, he witnesses the results of the Land Reform Movement and Great Leap Forward into present day China. In spite of the light tone, this is a profoundly disturbing and enlightening look at the impact each change had on the Chinese people.
2. Names on a Map: A Novel by Benjamin Alire Saenz - Names on a Map: A Novel is the story of one week in 1967 that brings momentous change to the Espejo family. When a draft notice is delivered to the oldest son, Gustavo, he is forced to make a choice between disappointing his father or following his conscience. Mirroring the turmoil that infects El Paso and the nation, each family member's reaction to this event shapes the story of their lives. The alternating viewpoints give you a compelling picture of each family member and the impact each decision has on the character and the family.
3. My Revolutions: A Novel by Hari Kunzru - Hari Kunzru explores the question of what happens to revolutionary characters after the revolution. In this page-turning novel, college student Chris Carver joins the revolution in London which quickly turns terrorist causing him to leave behind his identity and create a new life for himself. Every page infuses fresh life into the often told story of 1960s idealism and Chris’ need to change the world, a world that abruptly erupts into violence and terrorism.
4. The Song of Everlasting Sorrow: A Novel of Shanghai by Wang Anyi – This lovely novel opens with exquisite descriptions of Shanghai and its distinct and mysterious longtang - neighborhoods that are as much a character as Wang Qiyao, a former beauty queen whose life has gone sadly awry. Wang Oiyao, comes together with people, only to drive them away in the end, as unaware of her impact on others as her country is on its people.
5. The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway – Inspired by an actual event during the 1992 siege of Sarajevo, a cellist watches as 22 of his neighbors are gunned down. His decision to play the cello in the square every day for 22 days to honor the dead profoundly impacts the lives of four ordinary citizens struggling not only to survive but retain their humanity.
6. The Door by Margaret Atwood - From "Owl and Pussycat, Some Years Later", a witty retelling of the well-known nursery rhyme, to the darker poem "The Hurt Child", Margaret Atwood revisits familiar themes and explores new territory. In this collection, she highlights the dark side of personal, environmental and political landscapes in taut, spare verse proving once again her virtuosity with words.
7. Seneca Falls and the Origins of the Women's Rights Movement by Sally McMillen - Most of us know about Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony but how many of us have heard of Lucretia Mott and Lucy Stone, two powerhouses of the Women's Movement in the United States? Sally McMillen does a masterful job of illustrating the achievements and the powerful legacy left by these remarkable women. From their initial involvement in the movement to the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention and beyond, this thorough history makes these women live again in this compelling read.
8. Major: A Black Athlete, A White Era, and the Fight to be the World's Fastest Human Being by Todd Balf - Marshall Major Taylor was one of the United States most unlikely heroes. During an era of Jim Crow laws and lynching, Taylor managed to rise to the top of America’s favorite new sport to become the “fastest man alive.” Despite racial injustice and setbacks, he never lost his dignity, moral virtue, or his love for the sport of bicycle racing. This is a classic underdog story detailing the life of a little known American hero.
9. Physics of the Impossible: A Scientific Exploration into the World of Phasers, Force Fields, Teleportation, and Time Travel by Michio Kaku - In Physics of the Impossible, author Michio Kaku explores the fantastical world of science fiction and tells us exactly which of these “impossible” inventions are actually possible, at least according to our understanding of the current laws of physics. While most of these will not be seen in our lifetime, this intensely readable text makes it fun to imagine the possibilities that await future generations. Kaku does an outstanding job of making physics understandable and enjoyable, a remarkable feat for a science writer.
10. The Wisdom of Whores: Bureaucrats, Brothels, and the Business of AIDS by Elizabeth Pisani - The author, first a journalist and later, an epidemiologist researching AIDS, has worked for a variety of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO's). This work has allowed her to evaluate programs around the world and come to some conclusions about what is working in preventing spread of the AIDS virus and what is not. Her conclusion that until governments stop putting restrictions on money, especially by not allowing a program to give out condoms and needles, the battle to stop the HIV virus will be a losing one. In her view, programs are failing because nations cannot be realistic and pragmatic about what prevents AIDS. AIDS prevention does not work when the focus is on stopping premarital sex, extra-marital sex and drug use. It is most successful when the focus is on preventing unsafe sex and the sharing of needles.
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