Books are Wonderful

The Best of 2011

Of the 69 books that I’ve read in 2011, these are on the top of my list as the best:

Children’s

Only Brian Selznick can write about automaton, an orphan boy, a retired movie maker and a train station in Paris and create a wonderful story. The Invention of Hugo Cabret is a beautifully illustrated book with a wonderfully touching story.  

See more about Brian Selznic on the blog

See more about Brian and Hugo online. 

Fantasy

Daughter of Smoke and Bone tops the list of books I’ve read this year and takes it for the fantasy category. 

Laini Taylor is traveling up my list as one of the best author’s I’ve read so far. I adore her descriptive and imaginative writing. 

See more of Laini Taylor on the blog

See more of Laini Taylor online.

Historical

Scott Westerfeld is one of my favourite authors. His stories are so imaginative and smart. His Leviathan trilogy takes WWI as we know it and adds an imaginative twist that Scott pull off smoothly and quite believably.

Goliath is filled with steampunk fun and the illustrations are brilliant. I cannot wait for The Manual of Aeronautics, a companion piece of the trilogy. 

See more of Scott Westerfeld on the blog. 

See more of Scott Westerfeld online.  

Mystery

I’ve always though of Holly Black as the mistress of Faery-tales but White Cat shows that Holly isn’t just a Faery expert but a wonder story-teller across genres. 

White Cat starts the Curse Workers trilogy where magic is illegal and used by the mafia for their own gain. With a wonderful world-building and a twist that I did not see coming, White Cat was a gripping read from start to finish. 

See more of Holly Black on the blog. 

See more of Holly Black online.

Dystopian

Birthmarked, the debut novel of Caragh O’Brien, is a strong and well thought out dystopian novel that delves into what-ifs that don’t seem far off. From this she spins a realistic tale of a young girl who questions whether everything she ever grew up believing in is really accurate. Definitely not for the faint of heart, but a great dystopian novel. 

See more of Caragh O’Brien on the blog. 

See more of Caragh O’Brien online. 

Realistic Fiction

I can tell that Shine was a great book, because there are days when I still remember the story that Lauren Myracle told. It’s a very hard story to read, but it’s real and it makes the reader think.

I loved this story and thought that Lauren did a wonderful job in raising questions without forcing answers on the reader. It’s a book that makes will haunt you for days after the cover is closed. 

See more of Lauren Myracle on the blog. 

See more of Lauren Myracle online. 

Debut

Witch Song is a story about singing witches. That may sound comical, but Amber Argyles debut novel is no laughing matter. 

I followed her blog before her book was published and I was lucky enough to receive a digital arc and a hard copy of the published book sits on my shelf - that’s how much I liked it. It’s more a high fantasy novel than most YA novels out there. It’s also a great read and a wonderful adventure. I cannot wait to see what else Amber has in store. 

See more of Amber Argyle on the blog. 

See more of Amber Argyle online. 

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