Books Read in 2009

The list below is all the books I read in 2009 in chronological order.  I will try to summarize my thoughts on each, but with some my memory is a bit hazy already.  The ones I remember are probably also the best literature (with some exceptions).

  1. The Tales of Beedle the Bard - Very cute book of short stories from the wizarding world, by J.K. Rowling.

  2. Asking for Murder - To be honest, I hardly remember this book by Roberta Isleib. I gave it a 5.5/10, though, so take from that what you will.

  3. Preaching to the Corpse - Another by Roberta Isleib that I hardly remember. It also received a 5.5/10.

  4. The Alchemist - A fable by Paulo Coelho that I did not really enjoy.

  5. High Marks for Murder - I was powering through these murder mysteries for a while. This one is by Rebecca Kent and I gave it a 5.4/10.

  6. The Wind in the Willows - I actually wrote a review of this book by Kenneth Grahame.

  7. Eragon - I really enjoyed this book by Christopher Paolini. My exact words from my "books I've read" spreadsheet are: "sooo good! can't wait to read the next 3 books; almost made me depressed at how good it is, because this guy was 15 when he wrote it! I wish so much that I could write a fantasy book like this. I love fantasy."

  8. Ringing in Murder - Another that I have no recollection of (how sad is that?), by Kate Kingsbury. I gave it a 5.3/10.

  9. Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death - I do enjoy M.C. Beaton's books, both the "Agatha Raisin" series and the "Hamish MacBeth" series. This was the first of all the Agatha books and I gave it a 7/10.

  10. The Last Sin Eater - This was an excellent book by Francine Rivers. I didn't do a real review of it on the blog, but I did mention and quote from it.

  11. Kissing Christmas Goodbye - Another "Agatha Raisin" book by M.C. Beaton. I gave this one a 7.5/10 (I have been enjoying her recent ones more than her earlier ones).

  12. Mrs. Pollifax Pursued - To quote from my spreadsheet, "Mrs. Pollifax just seems a rather flat character after reading so many Agatha Raisin books." The book is by Dorothy Gilman and I gave it a 5/10.

  13. Port Royal - This is the first in "The Buccaneers" series by Linda Chaikin. If you like Christian Spice (which I do), these books are for you.

  14. The Pirate and His Lady - The second in "The Buccaneers" series. If you follow the link to the Amazon page, please ignore the cover art for these books.

  15. Jamaican Sunset - The last book in "The Buccaneers" series. I gave these books a 9.1/10, 9.2/10, and 9/10, consecutively and I'm not ashamed to admit that. I found them to be both entertaining and uplifting. My comments from my spreadsheet: "loved this series; writing is very good, especially for a Christian author: she does her research very well as her settings are usually historical; also thumbs up for the bit of romance =)"

  16. The Bachelor's Bargain - Another Christian Spice book by Catherine Palmer. I gave it a 8.9/10.

  17. Anna Karenina - It may look like I was reading a lot of Christian Spice there for a while, but I was taking breaks from reading Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy, which I found depressing. I did, however, give it a 7/10 and my comments were: "Every time I read a classic, I realize again how inadequate my rating system is. Most of the time I rank on pure enjoyment, but I can't really say I enjoyed this book (except the parts with AK, who I identified with, and that scared me), and I know I would probably appreciate it more with the proper studying of it, but I think a 7 rating shows a combination of the enjoyment factor as well as good literature factor (see ratings for 1984 and Little Women)."

  18. The Secret Adversary - This is the first "Tommy and Tuppence" novel written by Agatha Christie. It was a very good mystery.

  19. A Spoonful of Poison - Another "Agatha Raisin" novel, by M.C. Beaton, that I can't remember for the life of me. I gave it a 7.8/10, though, so I must have enjoyed it.

  20. N or M? - Another good "Tommy and Tuppence" novel by Agatha Christie.

  21. Postern of Fate - The final "Tommy and Tuppence" novel by Agatha Christie, which was surprisingly boring. I gave it a 4.2/10, as opposed to the 7's and 8's that the previous "Tommy and Tuppence" books received.

  22. Agatha Raisin and the Terrible Tourist - Yet another M.C. Beaton book. I gave this one a 7.6/10, although looking back I think that was probably too generous.

  23. The Skeleton in the Closet - Another M.C. Beaton... blah blah blah... 7.7/10.

  24. Silk - First book in "The Heart of India" series by Linda Chaikin. Another excellent Christian Spice series.

  25. Under Eastern Stars - Second book in "The Heart of India" series.

  26. Kingscote - Final book in "The Heart of India" series.

  27. Eldest - Second book in the "Inheritance" series by Christopher Paolini. I am really enjoying this series and gave this one a 9.2/10. My comments from my spreadsheet: "only gave it lower rating than Eragon because I found the parts with Roran to be a bit boring at times. Otherwise excellent and highly engaging."

It was good for me to write this list because I realized how few books are on here that I am actually proud of finishing.  In fact, while many of these books were really good, entertaining, and/or worthwhile for other reasons, the only one I am proud of finishing is Anna Karenina.  Now I know I have to set my standards higher this year.  (That probably won't happen.)

If you have any questions regarding my list or would like further information about specific book, please feel free to email me or check out my "books I've read" spreadsheet for every book I've read since the summer of 2002 (when I first started it).