List the Books You Read in 2012, and Rate Them

[Mutatis-Mutandis]

Note: My ratings are based mostly on enjoyment of the text.

1. Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood -- 9/10. 2012 is off to a good start. This book was excellent. A compelling story that really kept me turning the pages. I loved the back and forth timeline; it was brilliantly utilized. Ths was my first Atwood book, and I'm looking forward to reading more from her.

2. Dubliners by James Joyce -- 7/10. If it wasn't by James Joyce and I didn't feel an overwhelming need to have liked it more than I did, it would have probably received a lower rating. I'm just not a huge fan of "slice of life" stories, now matter how beautifully written (and, honestly, I was expecting more in that department). I did find some of the stories charming, though, and the last paragraph of "The Dead" was particularly brilliant.

3. The Book of Joby by Mark J. Ferrari -- 8/10. It's the story of a bet made between god and the devil on whether a kid (Joby), by the age of 40, will choose to be good and evil, and all of creation depends on his decision. I found it to be a very good read, very engaging, and I became very attached to the characters, while really hating others. One of the things that really bothered me, and something that knocked it down a point, is the author's overuse of italics. It became distracting. Still highly recommended, though.

4. Collected Fictions by J.L. Borges -- 8/10. Definitely some of the most interesting short stories I've read. I loved some, wasn't too crazy about others, and sometimes I just didn't know what the hell was going, but his originality really struck me as brilliant.

5. American Gods by Neil Gaiman --7/10. I wanted to like this book more than I did, even though I did really enjoy it. After all the praise, I was expecting too much, though. The ideas were original, but I just didn't find the main character's attitude about his situations believable.

6. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë -- 7/10. It was good. The writing was good, but I just can't say that the story intrigued me throughout. I much preferred her experiences as a child and with the mad woman over the romance stuff, which was boring.

7. Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie -- 8.5/10. I'm becoming more of a fan of magical realism, and this book is why. Strange story, well (and unusually) written, interesting characters. What more is there to say?

8. The City and The City by China Meiville -- 8/10. This is an author I've been meaning to read for some time,*and he didn't disappoint. The story was good, the world well built and original, and the writing nice and fast-paced. Just a very enjoyable read. I will definitely be checking out more of his work.

9. The Aeneid by Virgil -- 8/10. This was surprisingly enjoyable (I never have high expectations when going reading epic poetry, enjoyment wise). It was an excellent adventure story and quite fast paced. Plus, I loved the gory battle scenes. Movies like 300 really aren't far off the mark, it seems.

10. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien -- 10/10. This is a a semi-autobiographical book of (connected) short stories about the Vietnam war. I found it to be an amazing read; it's beautifully written; at times funny, horrifying, sad, and always poignant; a wonderfully quick paced read; and a non-heroic look at the Vietnam war. And don't think it's a book just for people interested in war--it's themes are universal. I seriously could not find a single flaw in this book.

11. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins -- 6.5/10. I enjoyed this more than I thought I would, though I found some inconsistencies with the main character and a particularly annoying plot turn near the end. All in all, though, and enjoyable read. Read my review here.

12. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larson -- 6/10. A good read with some pretty obvious flaws. It's a bit long-winded, often giving more backstory than the reader wants or needs, and the climax comes way to early. Salander, (the character referenced to on the title) is an excellent character, though.

13. The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafron -- 9/10. A beautifully written gothic mystery that brought to mind Poe and Hawthorne. The imagery was great, the prose lyrical, the story captivating, and the characters excellently crafted. A really good book.

14. The Iliad by Homer -- 6/10. I just couldn't get into this. Just too long and too much rambling on about so-and-so killing so-and-so and what not. It's been a long time since I've read it, but I think I enjoy The Odyssey much more.

15. Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke -- 9/10. I think this is really one of the greatest prices of sci-fi ever written. Clarke seems to get short-changed whsn people discuss the great sci-fi authors, but he wrote some wonderful stuff--one just needs to find them within his huge oeuvre. Wonderful story, quickly paced, and incredibly thoughtful. A definite must read for any sci-fi fan.

16. Trumpet by Jackie Kay -- 8/10. A very unique novel about a female jazz singer who lived his life as a man, and the perspectives of those who knew him. The prose is absolutely beautiful--it's clear that Kay is a primarily a poet--but there just wasn't much of a plot . . . barely any at all, actually. That's fine for some, but not for me. If it had a bit more narrative, it would've gotten a 10.

17. The Pagoda by Patricia Powell -- 6/10. Another book similar to Trumpet, it is about a transgender man (I read both books for a class I'm currently taking), particularly a Chinese immigrant to Jamaica during the early 1900s. Maybe it's because I just read Trumpet, but I just couldn't get interested in this book, even though it was quite well written and compelling.

18. The Best Short Stories by Guy de Maupassant -- 6/10. Sometimes I read a book and think, "Am I missing something?" Well, file this collection of short stories in that category, because I didn't find them all that great. There were a couple I enjoyed, but after hearing over and over how Maupassant is one of, if not the, greatest short story writer of all time, I'm thoroughly unimpressed.

[lawpark]

1. The Vision of God - Vladimir Lossky. 7/10. About Orthodox theology, written middle of last century. Vladimir is a Russian theologian living in the emigre community in France; his father N.O. Lossky is a philosophy who has written a History of Russian Philosophy with the last section covering his own son Vladimir.

2. Pathways of Modern China - Ray Huang. 8/10. Chinese book. A refresher for me about Ray Huang's view on history. I find it more authentic than last I read him (about a decade ago), as he is honestly trying to interpret Chinese history in the 20th century such that the sacrifices of his fathers' and his own generation are not all wasted.

3. The Christian Tradition: A History of the Development of Doctrine. Volume 1- Jeroslav Pelikan. 8/10. A 5-volume classic completed in 1970's. Trying to account for doctrinal development in a somewhat "objective" style.

4. Sophocles I / Three Tragedies - 9/10. This the Grene / Lattimore edition of the 3 Theban Plays. I find myself liking them a lot - mostly because the plays are quite fast-paced. Among the three, I personally like Oedipus the King the most.

5. An Outline of a Theory of Civilization - by Fukuzawa Yukichi. 9/10. Written in 1875. I read the Chinese translation. Actually very impressed by this pragmatic visionary (he is truly that, despite the apparent contradiction in the phrase). What he write over 130 years ago still strikes me as true and right direction if we were put back to 1875 again. This dude deserves to have his face printed on 10,000 Yen bills!

6. Lectures on Divine Humanity - by Vladimir Solovyov. 7/10. Lectures in 1878-1811. Most interesting is his "Sophiology" - but he didn't expound much on it actually. Vs. Fukuzawa (they wrote at around the same time), he was clearly the idealistic visionary who got things wrong. The first half building up as to why Christianity is more true / advanced than other religions are quite hopelessly out-of-date, even though they are still somewhat treated in similar way a century later by leading theologians like Hans Ur von Balthasar.

7. Toynbee on Toynbee - A Conversation between Arnold J. Toynbee and G. R. Urban. 8/10. Book was published in 1974 based on a radio conversation when Toybee was 83 years old. The two parts of this small book shows how a) the world of historiography (i.e. the fundamental issues faced with doing / writing history) really has not changed that much (despite post-modernization or globalization), while b) the world itself has changed quite a bit (at the time of the conversation, clearly the intellectual interest of history was still revolving around how the U.S.S.R. and Marxism would evolve.

8. Gita Govinda. Original by Jayadeva in Sanskrit, translated into English by Lee Siegel. Part of the now bankrupt Clay Sanskrit Library series. 8/10. Dual theme of erotic love and bhakti devotion to Krishna, written in poem / song form. Actually quite similar to several books I read in the second half of 2011 (Kalidasa's Birth of Kumura (about Shiva, 10/10), Nammalvar's poems (about Vishnu, 9/10), and Hala's Sattasai, 10/10) in its themes about love, intermingled with the vast ocean of mythologies at the background. Somehow, at least this translation I read, I do not feel it is as good as the others I have read several months ago.

9. Nationalism: A Very Short Introduction - written by Steven Grosby. 6/10. One of the Oxford pocketbooks. The book itself is actually not bad, my low ratings just reflect my lack of interest in the subject. It is one of the few VSI's that I wish is actually shorter. I read the first half of the book last year, and finished the second half in several hours. One argument (which I buy) is nations exist in pre-modern world (Israel, Sri Lanka, Japan and Poland was used as examples to illustrate the formation of nations with myths, history, legal codes, power center, religion and language). The supposedly provoking question is why do human beings identify themselves with imagined communities, and why sometimes the priority of this identify becomes so high to be destructive? Of course, no clear answers (except that biological explanations are discredited) emerge.

10. On the Epochs of History (German Title: Über die Epochen der neueren Geschichte)- by Leopold Ranke. 8/10. I read a Chinese translation. It was a set of lectures delivered to the Duke of Bavaria in 1854, published after Ranke's death in 1888. My general impression is it is very similar to Guizot's History of Civilization in Europe (French work published in 1828), except that it starts earlier and ends till 19th century. Ranke was founder of modern history as an academic discipline - yet in this work this aspect of Ranke is by now means clear. On the other hand, it is still quite a fast-paced sweeping story of Western history, and at times insightful. His description of formation of larger states in Europe in the 17th/18th century reminds me of the transition from Spring & Autumn to the Warring States period in China. Ranke was concerned about his contemporary history, and highlighted the importance he saw as the founding of a democratic republic in USA - this was his foresight. Of course, his Euro-centrism did show through, yet he interestedly (maybe to me only) phrase it as the "Roman-Germanic Idea" - given it a more defined "centrism" on Western European.

11. African History: A Very Short Introduction - by John Parker and Richard Rathbone. 8/10. Another one in the Oxford series. It is really a book an the "meta-historiography" of African history rather than African history itself. Clarified many of the ideological basis of the various historiographies. Also highlighted how litter we actually knew about pre-modern African history, and how almost everything we know as happening in Africa has its roots during the modern (roughly post-1400) period.

[Mutatis-Mutandis]

Note: My ratings are based mostly on enjoyment of the text.

1. Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood -- 9/10. 2012 is off to a good start. This book was excellent. A compelling story that really kept me turning the pages. I loved the back and forth timeline; it was brilliantly utilized. Ths was my first Atwood book, and I'm looking forward to reading more from her.

2. Dubliners by James Joyce -- 7/10. If it wasn't by James Joyce and I didn't feel an overwhelming need to have liked it more than I did, it would have probably received a lower rating. I'm just not a huge fan of "slice of life" stories, now matter how beautifully written (and, honestly, I was expecting more in that department). I did find some of the stories charming, though, and the last paragraph of "The Dead" was particularly brilliant.

3. The Book of Joby by Mark J. Ferrari -- 8/10. It's the story of a bet made between god and the devil on whether a kid (Joby), by the age of 40, will choose to be good and evil, and all of creation depends on his decision. I found it to be a very good read, very engaging, and I became very attached to the characters, while really hating others. One of the things that really bothered me, and something that knocked it down a point, is the author's overuse of italics. It became distracting. Still highly recommended, though.

4. Collected Fictions by J.L. Borges -- 8/10. Definitely some of the most interesting short stories I've read. I loved some, wasn't too crazy about others, and sometimes I just didn't know what the hell was going, but his originality really struck me as brilliant.

5. American Gods by Neil Gaiman --7/10. I wanted to like this book more than I did, even though I did really enjoy it. After all the praise, I was expecting too much, though. The ideas were original, but I just didn't find the main character's attitude about his situations believable.

6. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë -- 7/10. It was good. The writing was good, but I just can't say that the story intrigued me throughout. I much preferred her experiences as a child and with the mad woman over the romance stuff, which was boring.

7. Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie -- 8.5/10. I'm becoming more of a fan of magical realism, and this book is why. Strange story, well (and unusually) written, interesting characters. What more is there to say?

8. The City and The City by China Meiville -- 8/10. This is an author I've been meaning to read for some time,*and he didn't disappoint. The story was good, the world well built and original, and the writing nice and fast-paced. Just a very enjoyable read. I will definitely be checking out more of his work.

9. The Aeneid by Virgil -- 8/10. This was surprisingly enjoyable (I never have high expectations when going reading epic poetry, enjoyment wise). It was an excellent adventure story and quite fast paced. Plus, I loved the gory battle scenes. Movies like 300 really aren't far off the mark, it seems.

10. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien -- 10/10. This is a a semi-autobiographical book of (connected) short stories about the Vietnam war. I found it to be an amazing read; it's beautifully written; at times funny, horrifying, sad, and always poignant; a wonderfully quick paced read; and a non-heroic look at the Vietnam war. And don't think it's a book just for people interested in war--it's themes are universal. I seriously could not find a single flaw in this book.

11. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins -- 6.5/10. I enjoyed this more than I thought I would, though I found some inconsistencies with the main character and a particularly annoying plot turn near the end. All in all, though, and enjoyable read. Read my review here.

12. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larson -- 6/10. A good read with some pretty obvious flaws. It's a bit long-winded, often giving more backstory than the reader wants or needs, and the climax comes way to early. Salander, (the character referenced to on the title) is an excellent character, though.

13. The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafron -- 9/10. A beautifully written gothic mystery that brought to mind Poe and Hawthorne. The imagery was great, the prose lyrical, the story captivating, and the characters excellently crafted. A really good book.

14. The Iliad by Homer -- 6/10. I just couldn't get into this. Just too long and too much rambling on about so-and-so killing so-and-so and what not. It's been a long time since I've read it, but I think I enjoy The Odyssey much more.

15. Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke -- 9/10. I think this is really one of the greatest prices of sci-fi ever written. Clarke seems to get short-changed whsn people discuss the great sci-fi authors, but he wrote some wonderful stuff--one just needs to find them within his huge oeuvre. Wonderful story, quickly paced, and incredibly thoughtful. A definite must read for any sci-fi fan.

16. Trumpet by Jackie Kay -- 8/10. A very unique novel about a female jazz singer who lived his life as a man, and the perspectives of those who knew him. The prose is absolutely beautiful--it's clear that Kay is a primarily a poet--but there just wasn't much of a plot . . . barely any at all, actually. That's fine for some, but not for me. If it had a bit more narrative, it would've gotten a 10.

17. The Pagoda by Patricia Powell -- 6/10. Another book similar to Trumpet, it is about a transgender man (I read both books for a class I'm currently taking), particularly a Chinese immigrant to Jamaica during the early 1900s. Maybe it's because I just read Trumpet, but I just couldn't get interested in this book, even though it was quite well written and compelling.

18. The Best Short Stories by Guy de Maupassant -- 6/10. Sometimes I read a book and think, "Am I missing something?" Well, file this collection of short stories in that category, because I didn't find them all that great. There were a couple I enjoyed, but after hearing over and over how Maupassant is one of, if not the, greatest short story writer of all time, I'm thoroughly unimpressed.

19. Bel Canto by Ann Pratchett -- 7/10. A good novel, but the plot got pretty slow at points and the second half of the book is almost exclusively a romance story, which I'm not a fan of. My favorite aspect of this novel was the incorporation of classical music.

[OrphanPip]

1. Aphra Behn - History of the Nun - 6/10, I get a lot of enjoyment out of how ridiculous early prose stories can be.
2. Aphra Behn - The Fair Jilt - 7/10. This one is more ridiculous than the other, and thus better in my book.
3. Eliza Haywood - Love in Excess - 6/10. Not big on amatory fiction really, but this is one of the 3 best selling novels of the 18th century.
4. Charles Dickens - Oliver Twist - 9/10. Not really one of Dickens' best, but it's one of his funnier novels, and who can forget Fagin, Mr. Bumble, or Sikes.
5. Lynn Breedlove - One Freak Show - 7/10, a transcription of lesbian/trans man musician and comic Lynn Breedlove's show One Freak Show, essentially a series of humorous anecdotes about her life and the status of trans people in the LGBT community in the United States. Some parts of it are not that great, but it's a short breezy read, so the bad parts are easy to overlook.
6. Richardson - Pamela - 5/10. This is a painful read but a very influential book, the first part is much better than the "how to be a good housewife" manual that forms the final part of the novel.
7. Arthur Conan Doyle - Sign of Four - 8/10. Campy, fun Sherlocke Holmes novel that is terribly racist in parts.
8. Jane Austen - Northanger Abbey - 9/10. Probably Austen's funniest novel, we all know a girl like Isabella Thorpe.
9. Robert Louis Stevenson - Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde - 9/10. This is a re-read, but it's always a fun light read.
10. Craig Thomson - Habibi - 8.5/10. Wonderful graphic novel, but a bit long in parts. I particularly like the tongue and cheek retelling of the Noah's arc story. I don't think it's as powerful a comment on how people relate to religion as Blankets, maybe because of the lack of personal depth that Thomson's earlier work had.
11. Henry Fielding - Joseph Andrews and Shamela - 7/10. A fun read. To get the most out of Shamela you have to read Pamela first.
12. Daniel Defoe - Journal of the Plague Year - 5/10. I thought I had included this since I read it in January, but oh well. It's an OK read, a lot of it is terribly boring reprinting of death statistics and Defoe's meandering philosophizing on the best way to handle a plague, but it is occasionally spiced up with Defoe's clever little "slice of life" stories. Defoe's Rebecca is a much better novel, I read it last year and it was a lot of fun.
13. Horace Walpole - The Castle of Otranto - 6/10. Bizarre novel that opens with someone being mysteriously crushed by a giant helmet that appears out of nowhere.
14. Henry James - The Aspern Papers - 8/10. There's something special about this that's hard to place a finger on.
15. Michael Adams - Unlikely Utopia: The Surprising Triumph of Multiculturalism in Canada - 8/10. Great book that addresses a lot of the misinformation and media hysteria about immigrants with actual empirical evidence. Pollster Michael Adams doesn't shy away from waxing philosophical on ideas like Canadian and Quebecois national identity, which is probably the weakest part of his book when he tries to explain why the data is as it is. However, the data he gathers itself is compelling evidence that multiculturalism has not failed, but has been successful and is continuing to be even more successful as a strategy of integration for a just and liberal society.
16. Arthur Conan Doyle - The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - 6/10. Some of the short stories from this collection are better than others, but there's a definitely recognizable formulaic tendency that makes many of the less original "cases" a little boring. Although, plenty of the fun campy nonsense of Holmes.
17. Margaret Harkness - In Darkest London - 7/10. Mixed feelings about this admittedly poorly constructed novel, but there is a certain power in the stark depictions of the impoverished East End of London in the 1880s. Reminiscent of The Jungle.
18. Michael Moorcock - Elric of Melnibone - 7/10. Interesting little fantasy novel that is surprisingly still a fresh departure from the normal range of fantasy despite its age.
19. Michael Moorcock - The Sailor on the Seas of Fate - 8/10. I like this one too.
20. Philip Pullman - Northern Lights - 6/10. Interesting fantasy novel.
21. Philip Pullman - The Subtle Knife - 8/10. I find this one a lot more interesting than the first in the series. There's a strikingly difference of tone and feel between novels in this series, much like in Moorcock's series.
22. William Godwin - Caleb Williams - 7/10. An early social critique of the state in novelistic form, showing Godwin's own scepticism towards any form of institution. There's something very Frankensteinish in some scenes where Caleb is being chased across Great Britain by Lord Falkland, I'm sure it influenced his daughter's novel.
23. Oscar Wile - The Picture of Dorian Gray - 10/10. Always worth a re-read.
24. Robert A. Heinlein - Starship Trooper - 5/10. Meh, there's something interesting about the narrative structure of this text, and how little action there is in the novel that is mostly about the idea of civic responsibility and military service. The political philosophizing is preposterous but amusing like most of Heinlein's wacko ideas.
25. Ann Pratchett - Bel Canto - 8/10. Read for the forum book club, a fun book that's an easy read, sharply written but probably not going to have much lasting impact on me.
26. Steven Ericson - Garden of the Moon - 5/10. Wordy, meh.
27. John Cleland - Fanny Hill: Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure, 5/10. I wonder how difficult it was for Cleland to come up with so many ways to describe penises and vaginas.

[Babyguile]

Nothing To Envy: Real Lives in North Korea Barbara Demick

Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave Frederick Douglass

Singing the Master: The Emergence of African American Culture in the Plantation South Roger D. Abrahams

Night Show Richard Laymon

Forest Mage Robin Hobb

The Curse of the Mistwraith Janny Wurts

Women in Athenian Law and Life Roger Just

The Yellow Wallpaper Charlotte Perkins Gilman

David Copperfield Charles Dickens

Never Let Me Go Kazuo Ishiguro

[Mutatis-Mutandis]

Note: My ratings are based mostly on enjoyment of the text.

1. Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood -- 9/10. 2012 is off to a good start. This book was excellent. A compelling story that really kept me turning the pages. I loved the back and forth timeline; it was brilliantly utilized. Ths was my first Atwood book, and I'm looking forward to reading more from her.

2. Dubliners by James Joyce -- 7/10. If it wasn't by James Joyce and I didn't feel an overwhelming need to have liked it more than I did, it would have probably received a lower rating. I'm just not a huge fan of "slice of life" stories, now matter how beautifully written (and, honestly, I was expecting more in that department). I did find some of the stories charming, though, and the last paragraph of "The Dead" was particularly brilliant.

3. The Book of Joby by Mark J. Ferrari -- 8/10. It's the story of a bet made between god and the devil on whether a kid (Joby), by the age of 40, will choose to be good and evil, and all of creation depends on his decision. I found it to be a very good read, very engaging, and I became very attached to the characters, while really hating others. One of the things that really bothered me, and something that knocked it down a point, is the author's overuse of italics. It became distracting. Still highly recommended, though.

4. Collected Fictions by J.L. Borges -- 8/10. Definitely some of the most interesting short stories I've read. I loved some, wasn't too crazy about others, and sometimes I just didn't know what the hell was going, but his originality really struck me as brilliant.

5. American Gods by Neil Gaiman --7/10. I wanted to like this book more than I did, even though I did really enjoy it. After all the praise, I was expecting too much, though. The ideas were original, but I just didn't find the main character's attitude about his situations believable.

6. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë -- 7/10. It was good. The writing was good, but I just can't say that the story intrigued me throughout. I much preferred her experiences as a child and with the mad woman over the romance stuff, which was boring.

7. Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie -- 8.5/10. I'm becoming more of a fan of magical realism, and this book is why. Strange story, well (and unusually) written, interesting characters. What more is there to say?

8. The City and The City by China Meiville -- 8/10. This is an author I've been meaning to read for some time,*and he didn't disappoint. The story was good, the world well built and original, and the writing nice and fast-paced. Just a very enjoyable read. I will definitely be checking out more of his work.

9. The Aeneid by Virgil -- 8/10. This was surprisingly enjoyable (I never have high expectations when going reading epic poetry, enjoyment wise). It was an excellent adventure story and quite fast paced. Plus, I loved the gory battle scenes. Movies like 300 really aren't far off the mark, it seems.

10. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien -- 10/10. This is a a semi-autobiographical book of (connected) short stories about the Vietnam war. I found it to be an amazing read; it's beautifully written; at times funny, horrifying, sad, and always poignant; a wonderfully quick paced read; and a non-heroic look at the Vietnam war. And don't think it's a book just for people interested in war--it's themes are universal. I seriously could not find a single flaw in this book.

11. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins -- 6.5/10. I enjoyed this more than I thought I would, though I found some inconsistencies with the main character and a particularly annoying plot turn near the end. All in all, though, and enjoyable read. Read my review here.

12. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larson -- 6/10. A good read with some pretty obvious flaws. It's a bit long-winded, often giving more backstory than the reader wants or needs, and the climax comes way to early. Salander, (the character referenced to on the title) is an excellent character, though.

13. The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafron -- 9/10. A beautifully written gothic mystery that brought to mind Poe and Hawthorne. The imagery was great, the prose lyrical, the story captivating, and the characters excellently crafted. A really good book.

14. The Iliad by Homer -- 6/10. I just couldn't get into this. Just too long and too much rambling on about so-and-so killing so-and-so and what not. It's been a long time since I've read it, but I think I enjoy The Odyssey much more.

15. Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke -- 9/10. I think this is really one of the greatest prices of sci-fi ever written. Clarke seems to get short-changed whsn people discuss the great sci-fi authors, but he wrote some wonderful stuff--one just needs to find them within his huge oeuvre. Wonderful story, quickly paced, and incredibly thoughtful. A definite must read for any sci-fi fan.

16. Trumpet by Jackie Kay -- 8/10. A very unique novel about a female jazz singer who lived his life as a man, and the perspectives of those who knew him. The prose is absolutely beautiful--it's clear that Kay is a primarily a poet--but there just wasn't much of a plot . . . barely any at all, actually. That's fine for some, but not for me. If it had a bit more narrative, it would've gotten a 10.

17. The Pagoda by Patricia Powell -- 6/10. Another book similar to Trumpet, it is about a transgender man (I read both books for a class I'm currently taking), particularly a Chinese immigrant to Jamaica during the early 1900s. Maybe it's because I just read Trumpet, but I just couldn't get interested in this book, even though it was quite well written and compelling.

18. The Best Short Stories by Guy de Maupassant -- 6/10. Sometimes I read a book and think, "Am I missing something?" Well, file this collection of short stories in that category, because I didn't find them all that great. There were a couple I enjoyed, but after hearing over and over how Maupassant is one of, if not the, greatest short story writer of all time, I'm thoroughly unimpressed.

19. Bel Canto by Ann Pratchett -- 7/10. A good novel, but the plot got pretty slow at points and the second half of the book is almost exclusively a romance story, which I'm not a fan of. My favorite aspect of this novel was the incorporation of classical music.

20. My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk -- 5/10. A murder mystery set in the 16th century Turkish art world. Despite the beautiful writing and interesting narrative style (why it actually got a 5), the story too often got bogged down in long descriptions and philosophical meanderings. Plus, I found none of the characters likable. A disappointing read from a Nobel prize winning author.

[Mutatis-Mutandis]

Nothing To Envy: Real Lives in North Korea Barbara Demick

Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave Frederick Douglass

Singing the Master: The Emergence of African American Culture in the Plantation South Roger D. Abrahams

Night Show Richard Laymon

Forest Mage Robin Hobb

The Curse of the Mistwraith Janny Wurts
What did you think of Douglas's Slave Narrative and "The Yellow Wallpaper."

Women in Athenian Law and Life Roger Just

The Yellow Wallpaper Charlotte Perkins Gilman

David Copperfield Charles Dickens

Never Let Me Go Kazuo Ishiguro

What did you think of Douglas's Slave Narrative and "The Yellow Wallpaper"?

[Paulclem]

1. The Departure by Neal Asher. A solid sci fi about an overcrowded dystopian earth that has become ruled by a world government - with frequent references to the Eurozone - which has decided to annihilate a large portion of the billions who would die anyway. Our hero, Adam Saul, has developed an organic interface to computers and implanted it in his brain in order to overcome the military backed bureacracy. Pacy beginning to a new series. 7/10
2. The House of the Dead by Doestoyevsky. A brilliant depiction of life in a Siberian jail in the 19th century. The characterisation, the relentless drudgery described, the themed chapters that veer away from a chronological account, the events that punctuated the years in jail and the pathos of the men and animals all combine in to a life of slow horror. 10/10
3. The Battle for Crete by Anthony Beevor. An interesting and comprehensive account of the fall of Crete in WW2 when the Germans launched their first and only parachute invasion. It charts the dithering and incompetence of the British command, and how they lost a battle they nearly won. 8/10
4. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip Dick. Set in a dystopian, nuclear future, a Bounty Hunter is charged by the police department to "retire" 6 new androids produced by a shady corporation. It examines the relationship of man to living and non-living beings in an autopsy of empathy. A good, though provoking read. 8/10
5. Nightwatch by Terry Pratchett. This concerns the time travels and trials of Commander Vimes in Ankh-Morpork. It's a great plot, and an enjoyable read. The thing with Pratchett's books is the weak humour, often based upon tired stereotypes such as the "Aunties" that patrol certain streets and are reputedly deadly with an umbrella. We've seen this kind of thing with the Grannies in Monty Python. Nevertheless a good read. 7/10
6. Embassytown by China Mieville. You never know quite what you're going to get with Mieville's work, as the blurb never does justice to the story. I had a space opera preconception about this book, but was surpried to find it being about language - the hosts of an alien planet have a unique way of communicating with humans - which may prove to be an allegory about the failure of human cultures to speak and understand one another. There's political intrigue, exotic aliens and landscapes, and a story that is both surprising and interesting. 8/10
7. The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole. This book has everything, love, death, betrayal, hermits, ghosts, giant hands, helmets and feet, murder, corsairs, a lost child, a discovered son, a mad Lord, sentences of death, usurpers, piety, familial love, tragedy, coincidence, melodrama, imprisonment, escape. divine justice... For a book written over 200 years ago, it has it's qualities and flaws. It is plot driven with little development of character or a sense of place, but, as one of the first gothic novels it deserves a whirl. 6/10
8. Archangel by Robert Harris. A very good thriller set in post Glasnost Russia. Fluke Kelso, a hisorian whose specialism is Stalin, is drawn into a political intrigue that takes him to the heart of Russian politics laced with murder, insanity and power. 9/10
9. The Reality Dysfunction by Peter F Hamilton. Very good sci fi with credible, well thought out worlds, and an interesting take on ethnicity and religion in space. It races at a thumping pace - all 1100 pages - and this is only part one of a trilogy. 8/10
10. A Dance with Dragons by George RR Martin. The story continues apace whilst we catch up with Bran, Jon, Davos and Tyrion to mention but a few. An excellent read with great, grotequeries of characters roaming an evocative and dangerous landscape. 9/10

[lawpark]

1. The Vision of God - Vladimir Lossky. 7/10. About Orthodox theology, written middle of last century. Vladimir is a Russian theologian living in the emigre community in France; his father N.O. Lossky is a philosophy who has written a History of Russian Philosophy with the last section covering his own son Vladimir.

2. Pathways of Modern China - Ray Huang. 8/10. Chinese book. A refresher for me about Ray Huang's view on history. I find it more authentic than last I read him (about a decade ago), as he is honestly trying to interpret Chinese history in the 20th century such that the sacrifices of his fathers' and his own generation are not all wasted.

3. The Christian Tradition: A History of the Development of Doctrine. Volume 1- Jeroslav Pelikan. 8/10. A 5-volume classic completed in 1970's. Trying to account for doctrinal development in a somewhat "objective" style.

4. Sophocles I / Three Tragedies - 9/10. This the Grene / Lattimore edition of the 3 Theban Plays. I find myself liking them a lot - mostly because the plays are quite fast-paced. Among the three, I personally like Oedipus the King the most.

5. An Outline of a Theory of Civilization - by Fukuzawa Yukichi. 9/10. Written in 1875. I read a Chinese translation. Actually very impressed by this pragmatic visionary . What he wrote over 130 years ago still strikes me as true and right direction if we were put back to 1875 again. This dude deserves to have his face printed on 10,000 Yen bills!

6. Lectures on Divine Humanity - by Vladimir Solovyov. 7/10. Lectures in 1878-1811. Most interesting is his "Sophiology" - but he didn't expound much on it actually. Vs. Fukuzawa (they wrote at around the same time), he was clearly the idealistic visionary who got things wrong.

7. Toynbee on Toynbee - A Conversation between Arnold J. Toynbee and G. R. Urban. 8/10. Book was published in 1974 based on a radio conversation when Toybee was 83 years old. The two parts of this small book shows how the world of historiography (i.e. the fundamental issues faced with doing / writing history) really has not changed that much.

8. Gita Govinda. Original by Jayadeva in Sanskrit, translated into English by Lee Siegel. 8/10. Part of the now bankrupt Clay Sanskrit Library series. Dual theme of erotic love and bhakti devotion to Krishna, written in poem / song form.

9. Nationalism: A Very Short Introduction - written by Steven Grosby. 6/10. One of the Oxford pocketbooks. The book itself is actually not bad, my low ratings just reflect my lack of interest in the subject. It is one of the few VSI's that I wish is actually shorter.

10. On the Epochs of History (German Title: Über die Epochen der neueren Geschichte)- by Leopold Ranke. 8/10. I read a Chinese translation. It was a set of lectures delivered to the Duke of Bavaria in 1854, published after Ranke's death in 1888. Ranke was founder of modern history as an academic discipline - yet in this work this aspect of Ranke is by now means clear.

11. African History: A Very Short Introduction - by John Parker and Richard Rathbone. 8/10. Another one in the Oxford series. It is really a book an the "meta-historiography" of African history rather than African history itself. Highlighted how almost everything we know as happening in Africa has its roots during the modern (roughly post-1400) period.

12. The World from 1450 to 1700 - by John Wills Jr. 8/10. A fast pace worldwide tour through the "pre-modern" world in the new tradition World History in less than 160 pages, written by the author 1688: A Global History.

13. The Completion of Traditional China (by two Japanese authors). 7/10. A pocket-book published in 1977 in Japan, as a 11-volume series of "Eastern Ocean History". I read a Chinese translation from Taiwan. Narrative stopped very abruptly right before the Opium War - but the focus on foreign trade and silver-based economy is innovative for its time.

14. Who made the history of the past 500 years - by Han Yuhai. 9/10. A Chinese work that tries to integrate World Systems Theory and other authors into a cohesive viewpoint of modern World History and Chinese History - divided into two-phases of the Long 16th Century and the Long 19th Century.

Note: I am trying to limit my comments to at most 3 lines - re-edited some comments published before

[Mutatis-Mutandis]

Note: My ratings are based mostly on enjoyment of the text.

1. Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood -- 9/10. 2012 is off to a good start. This book was excellent. A compelling story that really kept me turning the pages. I loved the back and forth timeline; it was brilliantly utilized. Ths was my first Atwood book, and I'm looking forward to reading more from her.

2. Dubliners by James Joyce -- 7/10. If it wasn't by James Joyce and I didn't feel an overwhelming need to have liked it more than I did, it would have probably received a lower rating. I'm just not a huge fan of "slice of life" stories, now matter how beautifully written (and, honestly, I was expecting more in that department). I did find some of the stories charming, though, and the last paragraph of "The Dead" was particularly brilliant.

3. The Book of Joby by Mark J. Ferrari -- 8/10. It's the story of a bet made between god and the devil on whether a kid (Joby), by the age of 40, will choose to be good and evil, and all of creation depends on his decision. I found it to be a very good read, very engaging, and I became very attached to the characters, while really hating others. One of the things that really bothered me, and something that knocked it down a point, is the author's overuse of italics. It became distracting. Still highly recommended, though.

4. Collected Fictions by J.L. Borges -- 8/10. Definitely some of the most interesting short stories I've read. I loved some, wasn't too crazy about others, and sometimes I just didn't know what the hell was going, but his originality really struck me as brilliant.

5. American Gods by Neil Gaiman --7/10. I wanted to like this book more than I did, even though I did really enjoy it. After all the praise, I was expecting too much, though. The ideas were original, but I just didn't find the main character's attitude about his situations believable.

6. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë -- 7/10. It was good. The writing was good, but I just can't say that the story intrigued me throughout. I much preferred her experiences as a child and with the mad woman over the romance stuff, which was boring.

7. Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie -- 8.5/10. I'm becoming more of a fan of magical realism, and this book is why. Strange story, well (and unusually) written, interesting characters. What more is there to say?

8. The City and The City by China Meiville -- 8/10. This is an author I've been meaning to read for some time,*and he didn't disappoint. The story was good, the world well built and original, and the writing nice and fast-paced. Just a very enjoyable read. I will definitely be checking out more of his work.

9. The Aeneid by Virgil -- 8/10. This was surprisingly enjoyable (I never have high expectations when going reading epic poetry, enjoyment wise). It was an excellent adventure story and quite fast paced. Plus, I loved the gory battle scenes. Movies like 300 really aren't far off the mark, it seems.

10. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien -- 10/10. This is a a semi-autobiographical book of (connected) short stories about the Vietnam war. I found it to be an amazing read; it's beautifully written; at times funny, horrifying, sad, and always poignant; a wonderfully quick paced read; and a non-heroic look at the Vietnam war. And don't think it's a book just for people interested in war--it's themes are universal. I seriously could not find a single flaw in this book.

11. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins -- 6.5/10. I enjoyed this more than I thought I would, though I found some inconsistencies with the main character and a particularly annoying plot turn near the end. All in all, though, and enjoyable read. Read my review here.

12. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larson -- 6/10. A good read with some pretty obvious flaws. It's a bit long-winded, often giving more backstory than the reader wants or needs, and the climax comes way to early. Salander, (the character referenced to on the title) is an excellent character, though.

13. The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafron -- 9/10. A beautifully written gothic mystery that brought to mind Poe and Hawthorne. The imagery was great, the prose lyrical, the story captivating, and the characters excellently crafted. A really good book.

14. The Iliad by Homer -- 6/10. I just couldn't get into this. Just too long and too much rambling on about so-and-so killing so-and-so and what not. It's been a long time since I've read it, but I think I enjoy The Odyssey much more.

15. Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke -- 9/10. I think this is really one of the greatest prices of sci-fi ever written. Clarke seems to get short-changed whsn people discuss the great sci-fi authors, but he wrote some wonderful stuff--one just needs to find them within his huge oeuvre. Wonderful story, quickly paced, and incredibly thoughtful. A definite must read for any sci-fi fan.

16. Trumpet by Jackie Kay -- 8/10. A very unique novel about a female jazz singer who lived his life as a man, and the perspectives of those who knew him. The prose is absolutely beautiful--it's clear that Kay is a primarily a poet--but there just wasn't much of a plot . . . barely any at all, actually. That's fine for some, but not for me. If it had a bit more narrative, it would've gotten a 10.

17. The Pagoda by Patricia Powell -- 6/10. Another book similar to Trumpet, it is about a transgender man (I read both books for a class I'm currently taking), particularly a Chinese immigrant to Jamaica during the early 1900s. Maybe it's because I just read Trumpet, but I just couldn't get interested in this book, even though it was quite well written and compelling.

18. The Best Short Stories by Guy de Maupassant -- 6/10. Sometimes I read a book and think, "Am I missing something?" Well, file this collection of short stories in that category, because I didn't find them all that great. There were a couple I enjoyed, but after hearing over and over how Maupassant is one of, if not the, greatest short story writer of all time, I'm thoroughly unimpressed.

19. Bel Canto by Ann Pratchett -- 7/10. A good novel, but the plot got pretty slow at points and the second half of the book is almost exclusively a romance story, which I'm not a fan of. My favorite aspect of this novel was the incorporation of classical music.

20. My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk -- 5/10. A murder mystery set in the 16th century Turkish art world. Despite the beautiful writing and interesting narrative style (why it actually got a 5), the story too often got bogged down in long descriptions and philosophical meanderings. Plus, I found none of the characters likable. A disappointing read from a Nobel prize winning author.

21. Night by Elie Wiesel -- 7/10. A good portrayal of the holocaust and all its horror. The writing is very minimalsric (it's easy to see why it's widely used in schools), but that's not a bad thing in this case, though it was a little too simple for my taste. It could have been longer, too.

[Babyguile]

What did you think of Douglas's Slave Narrative and "The Yellow Wallpaper"?

I don't have an opinion on them because I was too busy cramming other people's opinions on them into my head.

[Mutatis-Mutandis]

Note: My ratings are based mostly on enjoyment of the text.

1. Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood -- 9/10. 2012 is off to a good start. This book was excellent. A compelling story that really kept me turning the pages. I loved the back and forth timeline; it was brilliantly utilized. Ths was my first Atwood book, and I'm looking forward to reading more from her.

2. Dubliners by James Joyce -- 7/10. If it wasn't by James Joyce and I didn't feel an overwhelming need to have liked it more than I did, it would have probably received a lower rating. I'm just not a huge fan of "slice of life" stories, now matter how beautifully written (and, honestly, I was expecting more in that department). I did find some of the stories charming, though, and the last paragraph of "The Dead" was particularly brilliant.

3. The Book of Joby by Mark J. Ferrari -- 8/10. It's the story of a bet made between god and the devil on whether a kid (Joby), by the age of 40, will choose to be good and evil, and all of creation depends on his decision. I found it to be a very good read, very engaging, and I became very attached to the characters, while really hating others. One of the things that really bothered me, and something that knocked it down a point, is the author's overuse of italics. It became distracting. Still highly recommended, though.

4. Collected Fictions by J.L. Borges -- 8/10. Definitely some of the most interesting short stories I've read. I loved some, wasn't too crazy about others, and sometimes I just didn't know what the hell was going, but his originality really struck me as brilliant.

5. American Gods by Neil Gaiman --7/10. I wanted to like this book more than I did, even though I did really enjoy it. After all the praise, I was expecting too much, though. The ideas were original, but I just didn't find the main character's attitude about his situations believable.

6. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë -- 7/10. It was good. The writing was good, but I just can't say that the story intrigued me throughout. I much preferred her experiences as a child and with the mad woman over the romance stuff, which was boring.

7. Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie -- 8.5/10. I'm becoming more of a fan of magical realism, and this book is why. Strange story, well (and unusually) written, interesting characters. What more is there to say?

8. The City and The City by China Meiville -- 8/10. This is an author I've been meaning to read for some time,*and he didn't disappoint. The story was good, the world well built and original, and the writing nice and fast-paced. Just a very enjoyable read. I will definitely be checking out more of his work.

9. The Aeneid by Virgil -- 8/10. This was surprisingly enjoyable (I never have high expectations when going reading epic poetry, enjoyment wise). It was an excellent adventure story and quite fast paced. Plus, I loved the gory battle scenes. Movies like 300 really aren't far off the mark, it seems.

10. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien -- 10/10. This is a a semi-autobiographical book of (connected) short stories about the Vietnam war. I found it to be an amazing read; it's beautifully written; at times funny, horrifying, sad, and always poignant; a wonderfully quick paced read; and a non-heroic look at the Vietnam war. And don't think it's a book just for people interested in war--it's themes are universal. I seriously could not find a single flaw in this book.

11. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins -- 6.5/10. I enjoyed this more than I thought I would, though I found some inconsistencies with the main character and a particularly annoying plot turn near the end. All in all, though, and enjoyable read. Read my review here.

12. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larson -- 6/10. A good read with some pretty obvious flaws. It's a bit long-winded, often giving more backstory than the reader wants or needs, and the climax comes way to early. Salander, (the character referenced to on the title) is an excellent character, though.

13. The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafron -- 9/10. A beautifully written gothic mystery that brought to mind Poe and Hawthorne. The imagery was great, the prose lyrical, the story captivating, and the characters excellently crafted. A really good book.

14. The Iliad by Homer -- 6/10. I just couldn't get into this. Just too long and too much rambling on about so-and-so killing so-and-so and what not. It's been a long time since I've read it, but I think I enjoy The Odyssey much more.

15. Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke -- 9/10. I think this is really one of the greatest prices of sci-fi ever written. Clarke seems to get short-changed whsn people discuss the great sci-fi authors, but he wrote some wonderful stuff--one just needs to find them within his huge oeuvre. Wonderful story, quickly paced, and incredibly thoughtful. A definite must read for any sci-fi fan.

16. Trumpet by Jackie Kay -- 8/10. A very unique novel about a female jazz singer who lived his life as a man, and the perspectives of those who knew him. The prose is absolutely beautiful--it's clear that Kay is a primarily a poet--but there just wasn't much of a plot . . . barely any at all, actually. That's fine for some, but not for me. If it had a bit more narrative, it would've gotten a 10.

17. The Pagoda by Patricia Powell -- 6/10. Another book similar to Trumpet, it is about a transgender man (I read both books for a class I'm currently taking), particularly a Chinese immigrant to Jamaica during the early 1900s. Maybe it's because I just read Trumpet, but I just couldn't get interested in this book, even though it was quite well written and compelling.

18. The Best Short Stories by Guy de Maupassant -- 6/10. Sometimes I read a book and think, "Am I missing something?" Well, file this collection of short stories in that category, because I didn't find them all that great. There were a couple I enjoyed, but after hearing over and over how Maupassant is one of, if not the, greatest short story writer of all time, I'm thoroughly unimpressed.

19. Bel Canto by Ann Pratchett -- 7/10. A good novel, but the plot got pretty slow at points and the second half of the book is almost exclusively a romance story, which I'm not a fan of. My favorite aspect of this novel was the incorporation of classical music.

20. My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk -- 5/10. A murder mystery set in the 16th century Turkish art world. Despite the beautiful writing and interesting narrative style (why it actually got a 5), the story too often got bogged down in long descriptions and philosophical meanderings. Plus, I found none of the characters likable. A disappointing read from a Nobel prize winning author.

21. Night by Elie Wiesel -- 7/10. A good portrayal of the holocaust and all its horror. The writing is very minimalsric (it's easy to see why it's widely used in schools), but that's not a bad thing in this case, though it was a little too simple for my taste. It could have been longer, too.

22. The Best Short Stories of O. Henry by O. Henry -- 7/10. There's no doubt that O. Henry had quite a lot of skill with the written word, but his stories, while some of them being excellent, all followed the same "twist ending" formula that become obvious--I was rarely unable to guess the twist. It seemed some of his stories suffered in that the only goal they served was to trick the reader with a clever ending.

[Buckthorn]

1. Trust me I'm a junior doctor by Max Pemberton- 6/10. A very funny and eye opening account of a doctors first year in medicine
2. The last werewolf by Glen Duncan 6/10. A good story about the last werewolf on earth, this started out really well but I found it slowly went downhill.
3. Skipping Christmas by John Grisham 5/10. A story about a family who decide to skip Christmas. It was funny in some places and would be nice to read at Christmas.
4. Under the dome by Stephen King 7.5/10. This started out really well, a story about a town that suddenly gets cut off from the outside world by an invisible dome, its a good story but I was expecting a bit more from Stephen King
5. Small man in a book by Rob Brydon 6/10. Rob Brydon's autobiography, I'm not a huge fan of autobiography's but this was really interesting.
6. Where does it hurt by Max Pemberton 7/10. The junior doctors second year of medicine spent working in a drug and alcohol clinic is a real eye opener and really funny as well
7. The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey 8.5/10. I didn't think I would like this but I loved it, the story of a couple in 1920's Alaska who can't have children, then one night they build a child from snow.
8. The doctor will see you now by Max Pemberton 7/10. The junior doctors 3rd year in medicine back in hospital in dementia and A&E. This was funny but also touching.
9. Labyrinth by ACH Smith 8/10. This is a novelization of the movie Labyrinth, it was a fleshed out version of the movie but immensely enjoyable.
10. Do androids dream of electric sheep by Philip K Dick 8/10. An extremely thought provoking book, really like it.
11. Wolfsangel by M.D. Lachlan 7/10. A good fantasy about magic, gods and werewolves
12. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins 8/10. I didn't think I was going to like this a story about 24 kids from the districts of Panem forced to fight to the death, but I ended up loving it. It reminded me of the Running Man by Richard Bachman but was unputdownable
13. The words of making by David Forbes 8/10. The second book in the Osserian saga about a prince who is the most powerful wizard in hundreds of years. They are basic fantasy novels but there is something about the books that I really enjoyed
14. Catching fire by Suzanne Collins 7/10. Second book in the Hunger Games, a good book but not as good as the first.
15. The commanding stone by David Forbes 8/10. Third book in the Osserian saga, really enjoyable but a bit disappointing at the end. There was supposed to be a fourth book which would tie up all the loose ends, but its not going to happen.
16. The mockingjay by Suzanne Collins 7.5/10. The final book in the Hunger games, this was better than the second but still not as good as the first. Mockingjay had a good ending but the middle of the book felt sloppy and weak.

[Mutatis-Mutandis]

Note: My ratings are based mostly on enjoyment of the text.

1. Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood -- 9/10. 2012 is off to a good start. This book was excellent. A compelling story that really kept me turning the pages. I loved the back and forth timeline; it was brilliantly utilized. Ths was my first Atwood book, and I'm looking forward to reading more from her.

2. Dubliners by James Joyce -- 7/10. If it wasn't by James Joyce and I didn't feel an overwhelming need to have liked it more than I did, it would have probably received a lower rating. I'm just not a huge fan of "slice of life" stories, now matter how beautifully written (and, honestly, I was expecting more in that department). I did find some of the stories charming, though, and the last paragraph of "The Dead" was particularly brilliant.

3. The Book of Joby by Mark J. Ferrari -- 8/10. It's the story of a bet made between god and the devil on whether a kid (Joby), by the age of 40, will choose to be good and evil, and all of creation depends on his decision. I found it to be a very good read, very engaging, and I became very attached to the characters, while really hating others. One of the things that really bothered me, and something that knocked it down a point, is the author's overuse of italics. It became distracting. Still highly recommended, though.

4. Collected Fictions by J.L. Borges -- 8/10. Definitely some of the most interesting short stories I've read. I loved some, wasn't too crazy about others, and sometimes I just didn't know what the hell was going, but his originality really struck me as brilliant.

5. American Gods by Neil Gaiman --7/10. I wanted to like this book more than I did, even though I did really enjoy it. After all the praise, I was expecting too much, though. The ideas were original, but I just didn't find the main character's attitude about his situations believable.

6. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë -- 7/10. It was good. The writing was good, but I just can't say that the story intrigued me throughout. I much preferred her experiences as a child and with the mad woman over the romance stuff, which was boring.

7. Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie -- 8.5/10. I'm becoming more of a fan of magical realism, and this book is why. Strange story, well (and unusually) written, interesting characters. What more is there to say?

8. The City and The City by China Meiville -- 8/10. This is an author I've been meaning to read for some time,*and he didn't disappoint. The story was good, the world well built and original, and the writing nice and fast-paced. Just a very enjoyable read. I will definitely be checking out more of his work.

9. The Aeneid by Virgil -- 8/10. This was surprisingly enjoyable (I never have high expectations when going reading epic poetry, enjoyment wise). It was an excellent adventure story and quite fast paced. Plus, I loved the gory battle scenes. Movies like 300 really aren't far off the mark, it seems.

10. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien -- 10/10. This is a a semi-autobiographical book of (connected) short stories about the Vietnam war. I found it to be an amazing read; it's beautifully written; at times funny, horrifying, sad, and always poignant; a wonderfully quick paced read; and a non-heroic look at the Vietnam war. And don't think it's a book just for people interested in war--it's themes are universal. I seriously could not find a single flaw in this book.

11. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins -- 6.5/10. I enjoyed this more than I thought I would, though I found some inconsistencies with the main character and a particularly annoying plot turn near the end. All in all, though, and enjoyable read. Read my review here.

12. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larson -- 6/10. A good read with some pretty obvious flaws. It's a bit long-winded, often giving more backstory than the reader wants or needs, and the climax comes way to early. Salander, (the character referenced to on the title) is an excellent character, though.

13. The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafron -- 9/10. A beautifully written gothic mystery that brought to mind Poe and Hawthorne. The imagery was great, the prose lyrical, the story captivating, and the characters excellently crafted. A really good book.

14. The Iliad by Homer -- 6/10. I just couldn't get into this. Just too long and too much rambling on about so-and-so killing so-and-so and what not. It's been a long time since I've read it, but I think I enjoy The Odyssey much more.

15. Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke -- 9/10. I think this is really one of the greatest prices of sci-fi ever written. Clarke seems to get short-changed whsn people discuss the great sci-fi authors, but he wrote some wonderful stuff--one just needs to find them within his huge oeuvre. Wonderful story, quickly paced, and incredibly thoughtful. A definite must read for any sci-fi fan.

16. Trumpet by Jackie Kay -- 8/10. A very unique novel about a female jazz singer who lived his life as a man, and the perspectives of those who knew him. The prose is absolutely beautiful--it's clear that Kay is a primarily a poet--but there just wasn't much of a plot . . . barely any at all, actually. That's fine for some, but not for me. If it had a bit more narrative, it would've gotten a 10.

17. The Pagoda by Patricia Powell -- 6/10. Another book similar to Trumpet, it is about a transgender man (I read both books for a class I'm currently taking), particularly a Chinese immigrant to Jamaica during the early 1900s. Maybe it's because I just read Trumpet, but I just couldn't get interested in this book, even though it was quite well written and compelling.

18. The Best Short Stories by Guy de Maupassant -- 6/10. Sometimes I read a book and think, "Am I missing something?" Well, file this collection of short stories in that category, because I didn't find them all that great. There were a couple I enjoyed, but after hearing over and over how Maupassant is one of, if not the, greatest short story writer of all time, I'm thoroughly unimpressed.

19. Bel Canto by Ann Pratchett -- 7/10. A good novel, but the plot got pretty slow at points and the second half of the book is almost exclusively a romance story, which I'm not a fan of. My favorite aspect of this novel was the incorporation of classical music.

20. My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk -- 5/10. A murder mystery set in the 16th century Turkish art world. Despite the beautiful writing and interesting narrative style (why it actually got a 5), the story too often got bogged down in long descriptions and philosophical meanderings. Plus, I found none of the characters likable. A disappointing read from a Nobel prize winning author.

21. Night by Elie Wiesel -- 7/10. A good portrayal of the holocaust and all its horror. The writing is very minimalsric (it's easy to see why it's widely used in schools), but that's not a bad thing in this case, though it was a little too simple for my taste. It could have been longer, too.

22. The Best Short Stories of O. Henry by O. Henry -- 7/10. There's no doubt that O. Henry had quite a lot of skill with the written word, but his stories, while some of them being excellent, all followed the same "twist ending" formula that become obvious--I was rarely unable to guess the twist. It seemed some of his stories suffered in that the only goal they served was to trick the reader with a clever ending.

23. Mosses from an Old Manse by Nathaniel Hawthorne -- 8/10. Hawthorne really is a master of his craft. Barring a few, I found all the short stories in his first collection quite wonderful. His writing is absolutely beautiful. My favorite stories were "Young Goodman Brown," "Earth's Holocaust," "The Celestial Railroad'" and "Roger Malvin's Burial," the last of which being my favorite.

[Mutatis-Mutandis]

Note: My ratings are based mostly on enjoyment of the text.

1. Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood -- 9/10. 2012 is off to a good start. This book was excellent. A compelling story that really kept me turning the pages. I loved the back and forth timeline; it was brilliantly utilized. Ths was my first Atwood book, and I'm looking forward to reading more from her.

2. Dubliners by James Joyce -- 7/10. If it wasn't by James Joyce and I didn't feel an overwhelming need to have liked it more than I did, it would have probably received a lower rating. I'm just not a huge fan of "slice of life" stories, now matter how beautifully written (and, honestly, I was expecting more in that department). I did find some of the stories charming, though, and the last paragraph of "The Dead" was particularly brilliant.

3. The Book of Joby by Mark J. Ferrari -- 8/10. It's the story of a bet made between god and the devil on whether a kid (Joby), by the age of 40, will choose to be good and evil, and all of creation depends on his decision. I found it to be a very good read, very engaging, and I became very attached to the characters, while really hating others. One of the things that really bothered me, and something that knocked it down a point, is the author's overuse of italics. It became distracting. Still highly recommended, though.

4. Collected Fictions by J.L. Borges -- 8/10. Definitely some of the most interesting short stories I've read. I loved some, wasn't too crazy about others, and sometimes I just didn't know what the hell was going, but his originality really struck me as brilliant.

5. American Gods by Neil Gaiman --7/10. I wanted to like this book more than I did, even though I did really enjoy it. After all the praise, I was expecting too much, though. The ideas were original, but I just didn't find the main character's attitude about his situations believable.

6. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë -- 7/10. It was good. The writing was good, but I just can't say that the story intrigued me throughout. I much preferred her experiences as a child and with the mad woman over the romance stuff, which was boring.

7. Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie -- 8.5/10. I'm becoming more of a fan of magical realism, and this book is why. Strange story, well (and unusually) written, interesting characters. What more is there to say?

8. The City and The City by China Meiville -- 8/10. This is an author I've been meaning to read for some time,*and he didn't disappoint. The story was good, the world well built and original, and the writing nice and fast-paced. Just a very enjoyable read. I will definitely be checking out more of his work.

9. The Aeneid by Virgil -- 8/10. This was surprisingly enjoyable (I never have high expectations when going reading epic poetry, enjoyment wise). It was an excellent adventure story and quite fast paced. Plus, I loved the gory battle scenes. Movies like 300 really aren't far off the mark, it seems.

10. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien -- 10/10. This is a a semi-autobiographical book of (connected) short stories about the Vietnam war. I found it to be an amazing read; it's beautifully written; at times funny, horrifying, sad, and always poignant; a wonderfully quick paced read; and a non-heroic look at the Vietnam war. And don't think it's a book just for people interested in war--it's themes are universal. I seriously could not find a single flaw in this book.

11. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins -- 6.5/10. I enjoyed this more than I thought I would, though I found some inconsistencies with the main character and a particularly annoying plot turn near the end. All in all, though, and enjoyable read. Read my review here.

12. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larson -- 6/10. A good read with some pretty obvious flaws. It's a bit long-winded, often giving more backstory than the reader wants or needs, and the climax comes way to early. Salander, (the character referenced to on the title) is an excellent character, though.

13. The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafron -- 9/10. A beautifully written gothic mystery that brought to mind Poe and Hawthorne. The imagery was great, the prose lyrical, the story captivating, and the characters excellently crafted. A really good book.

14. The Iliad by Homer -- 6/10. I just couldn't get into this. Just too long and too much rambling on about so-and-so killing so-and-so and what not. It's been a long time since I've read it, but I think I enjoy The Odyssey much more.

15. Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke -- 9/10. I think this is really one of the greatest prices of sci-fi ever written. Clarke seems to get short-changed whsn people discuss the great sci-fi authors, but he wrote some wonderful stuff--one just needs to find them within his huge oeuvre. Wonderful story, quickly paced, and incredibly thoughtful. A definite must read for any sci-fi fan.

16. Trumpet by Jackie Kay -- 8/10. A very unique novel about a female jazz singer who lived his life as a man, and the perspectives of those who knew him. The prose is absolutely beautiful--it's clear that Kay is a primarily a poet--but there just wasn't much of a plot . . . barely any at all, actually. That's fine for some, but not for me. If it had a bit more narrative, it would've gotten a 10.

17. The Pagoda by Patricia Powell -- 6/10. Another book similar to Trumpet, it is about a transgender man (I read both books for a class I'm currently taking), particularly a Chinese immigrant to Jamaica during the early 1900s. Maybe it's because I just read Trumpet, but I just couldn't get interested in this book, even though it was quite well written and compelling.

18. The Best Short Stories by Guy de Maupassant -- 6/10. Sometimes I read a book and think, "Am I missing something?" Well, file this collection of short stories in that category, because I didn't find them all that great. There were a couple I enjoyed, but after hearing over and over how Maupassant is one of, if not the, greatest short story writer of all time, I'm thoroughly unimpressed.

19. Bel Canto by Ann Pratchett -- 7/10. A good novel, but the plot got pretty slow at points and the second half of the book is almost exclusively a romance story, which I'm not a fan of. My favorite aspect of this novel was the incorporation of classical music.

20. My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk -- 5/10. A murder mystery set in the 16th century Turkish art world. Despite the beautiful writing and interesting narrative style (why it actually got a 5), the story too often got bogged down in long descriptions and philosophical meanderings. Plus, I found none of the characters likable. A disappointing read from a Nobel prize winning author.

21. Night by Elie Wiesel -- 7/10. A good portrayal of the holocaust and all its horror. The writing is very minimalsric (it's easy to see why it's widely used in schools), but that's not a bad thing in this case, though it was a little too simple for my taste. It could have been longer, too.

22. The Best Short Stories of O. Henry by O. Henry -- 7/10. There's no doubt that O. Henry had quite a lot of skill with the written word, but his stories, while some of them being excellent, all followed the same "twist ending" formula that become obvious--I was rarely unable to guess the twist. It seemed some of his stories suffered in that the only goal they served was to trick the reader with a clever ending.

23. Mosses from an Old Manse by Nathaniel Hawthorne -- 8/10. Hawthorne really is a master of his craft. Barring a few, I found all the short stories in his first collection quite wonderful. His writing is absolutely beautiful. My favorite stories were "Young Goodman Brown," "Earth's Holocaust," "The Celestial Railroad'" and "Roger Malvin's Burial," the last of which being my favorite.

24. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins -- 7.5/10.*Even though most claim the it as their favorite, I enjoyed Catching Fire more than The Hunger Games, but maybe that's because I knew so much already before reading THG. It kept me turning the page, that's for sure, despite it's flaws--cliches and sappy love triangle, principle among them.

25. X-Men: Messiah Complex by Ed Brubaker, et al -- 9/10. I wasn't going to include comics in my list, but this was so good (and so long, at 350+ pages) I thought it deserved a spot. The story centers around rescuing the first mutant child after nearly all mutants' powers were taken away in a precious story line. The story is convoluted like all comics, but I found it to be well crafted, well thought out, and well written--the dialogue, especially.