Five Minutes Peace

Diane's top ten books of 2009

I aimed to read 100 books this year. I totally failed, "only" racking up 86, but that still left a lot to choose from when whittling it down to ten. So I narrowed it down to the best books I read that were published this year. (For the purists among you, some of these were first published last year in hardback, this year in paperback; others were published in 09 for the first time.)

American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld

An epic novel (based on the life of Laura Bush) which aims to answer the question "what do you do when the man you love has completely different political views than you do... then becomes President?" Intriguing, compelling, and yes, important.

The Family Man by Elinor Lipman

A welcome return from a favourite of mine, The Family Man is definitely one of her best. Easy to read and full of Lipman's trademark Austen-esque wit.

Speed Shrinking by Susan Shapiro

First (but not the last) novel from the American memoirist. Not much happens but all it's well-written, funny and charming.

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Simply my favourite book of the year. Read it!

BOOK REVIEW: Jumping in Puddles by Claire Allan

It seems fitting that this review is my last one for 2009. Because, quite simply, Jumping In Puddles by Claire Allan is my favourite book of the year. All the things I look for in a good book are there.  Great plot, great characters coming together with their own stories and that fabulous Irish warmth and humour. I was completely and utterly enraptured.

Detta O'Neill has returned to Rathinch to set up a support group for four lone parents (or Mad Mammies as one lone mum's friend calls it). Except it isn't just for Mad Mammies. There is also a struggling Daddy too.

BOOK CLUB: December - Waiting for Birdy by Catherine Newman

I think everyone probably knows what I think of this book by now, since I've gone on and on about it here, there and everywhere. 

It is, quite simply, one of my favourite books of all time. It changed the way I felt about having a second child. It changed the way I feel about parenting in general. It made me laugh a lot and cry quite a lot too. I want everyone to read it. 

Did you read it? (Please say yes!) Did you love it? (You MUST have loved it!)

Best wishes to all our readers!

[Happy Holidays Letterpress Card in Green by Letterpress Delicacies]

BOOK COVERS: The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry

    

The other day, I spotted the cover second from the right and thought, "Ooh! Pretty!" But then when I googled it, I was faced with an array of covers. I haven't read the book, so I'm not sure which one suits it best, but my favourite aesthetically is the fifth one (black with lace). The one on the left irritates me being yet another total Jodi Picoult rip-off. Which one's your favourite (click to enlarge)? 

The book has a gorgeous website and I love that the author's blog is called The Bru-haha plus there's a pretty interesting story behind the book's publication. It was originally self-published, but after getting rave reviews, was picked up by HarperCollins for $2million and became a New York Times bestseller. 

Anyone read it? 

MOVIE NEWS: Getting Carried Away

I must admit when they announced a second film I was a little (actually a lot) sceptical. But seeing this trailer, well I got a teeny tiny (well, a lot) excited.

Keris's Top 10 books of the year

I was only going to do five, but as I went back through the archives I picked out more and more that I just couldn't resist and ended up with a nice round 10. They're not necessarily the best books I read this year, but they're the books I didn't want to put down, the books I took up to bed or read in the car or told the children, "Hang on, let me just finish this chapter..."

In no particular order...

    

50 Ways to Find a Lover by Lucy-Anne Holmes; The Lost Child by Julie Myerson; Twilight by Stephenie Meyer; The Brightest Star in the Sky by Marian Keyes; The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. 

     

It Sucked and then I Cried by Heather Armstrong; Unsticky by Sarra Manning; The Disengagement Ring by Clodagh Murphy (review coming soon); Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver (review coming soon); One Day by David Nicholls. 

Twitter Authors' 2009 favourites

One of the many things I love about Twitter is that it is crammed with authors. (And readers. And publishers, agents, publicists, and more. All passionate about books.) And so I asked via my own Twitter (@Keris) what their favourite book of 2009 was. 

Caroline Rance: A Kind of Intimacy by Jenn Ashworth

Caroline Smailes: An A-Z of Possible Worlds' by A.C. Tillyer

Sarah Fox: The Children's Book by A S Byatt

TELEVISION REVIEW: Enid Blyton

It's been a few weeks now since Enid was aired on BBC 4 as part of their Women We Loved season. It has taken me until this last week to start watching it. Then a few days more to digest it. See, I'm a fan of Enid Blyton. Strike that. Make that a massive fan. Her books, her children's books, comfort me. They entertain me and transport me to other worlds, other lifetimes and secret passageways. Or to an island called Kirrin. I distinctly remember as a child devouring whole Famous Five books in bed, waking up gritty eyed in the morning from lack of sleep.

I did start watching Enid on the night it aired. Immediately the screen was filled with Helena Bonham Carter. After a few seconds Helena disappeared and I just saw Enid. But then we had to stop watching. I just wasn't ready yet for my heroine to be portrayed in a way I would find uncomfortable, perhaps ruining her books for me forever.

CHRISTMAS LIST: My favourite picture books

 

I love picture books (and thankfully so do my kids) and these three are my current favourites. All the World is absolutely gorgeous in every way and perfect for boys *and* girls. I Love You Through and Through is also perfect for both, but the illustration is a boy and so may be slightly better for boys. Someday is probably the most gorgeous picture book I've ever read (just try and get through it without crying), but it's all about having a daughter.

I can't imagine anyone not liking any of these books.