Staff’s Favorite Books of 2013

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One of the great perks of working in a library is access to copious amounts of books to choose from for our reading pleasure.  One of the biggest drawbacks of working in a library is access to copious amounts of books!  The Cheshire Library staff love to read and I thought it would be fun for them to list their favorite books they read or listened to in 2013.  They were very busy readers!  Below is just a sampling of some of the titles our library staff submitted.

Adult Fiction

The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

The Burgess Boys by Elizabeth Strout

Canada by Richard Ford

The Good Lord Bird by James McBride

Life After Life by Kate Atkinson

Me Before Youby Jojo Moyes

Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan

Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett

Three Sisters by Susan Mallery

White Dog Fell From the Sky by Eleanor Morse

We Are Water by Wally Lamb

Romance

Bachelor Firemen (series) by Jennifer Bernard

The Bad Boys of Crystal Lake (series) by Julianna Stone

Bad Boys of Red Hook (series) by Robin Kaye

Cowboy Take Me Away by Jane Graves

Free Fall by Catherine Mann

The Sullivan Brothers (series)by Bella Andre

Thrill Rideby Julia Ann Walker

The Way Homeby Cindy Gerard

What She Wants by Sheila Roberts

Whiskey Creek (series)by Brenda Novak

Science Fiction

Retribution Falls by Chris Wooding

Mystery

A Book Town Mystery (series) by Lorna Barrett

Killer Librarian by Mary Lou Kirwin

The Snowman by Jo Nesbo

A Tea Shop Mystery (series)by Laura Childs

A Witchcraft Mystery (series) by Juliet Blackwell

Christian Fiction

For Every Season by Cindy Woodsmall

The House That Love Built by Beth Wiseman

Pearl In The Sand by Tessa Afshar

Take A Chance On Me by Susan Mary Warren

Adult Non-Fiction

The Autistic Brain: Thinking Across the Spectrum by Temple Grandin

Behind The Beautiful Foreversby Katherine Boo

Drunk Tank Pink by Adam Alter

Lost Empire of Atlantis by Gavin Menzies

The Smartest Kids in the World and How They Got That Way by Amanda Ripley

Biography

Caveat Emptor: The Secret Life of an American Art Forgerby Ken Perenyi

Walden on Wheels: On the Open Road From Debt to Freedom by Ken Ilgunas

Wild: From Lost to Found in the Pacific Coast Trail by Cheryl Strayed

Audiobooks

The Good House by Ann Leary – Read by Mary Beth Hurt

The Mermaid of Brooklyn by Amy Shearn – Read by Hillary Huber

The Orphan Master’s Son by Adam Johnson – Read by Tim Kang, Josiah D. Lee, James Kyson Lee, Adam Johnson

One Summer: America 1927 by Bill Bryson – Read by Bill Bryson

Young Adult

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saena

Boy 21 by Matthew Quick

The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

Children

Bugs in My Hair! by David Shannon

The Dark by Lemony Snicket

The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt

I’m A Frog! by Mo Willems

Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes by Eric Litwin

Amazon Picks Their Top 20 Romance Novels of 2013

best booksEach October, Amazon’s editorial team collects all their favorite books, looks at upcoming 2013 works, and casts ballots for Best Books of the Year.  In the Romance category,  Amazon originally selected J.R. Ward’s Lover At Last: A Novel of the Black Dagger Brotherhood as it’s top pick of 2013 so far, but in the end, Nora Robert’s Whiskey Beach beat it out as the best Romance novel of 2013.  Here are the final picks in the Romance category – in best-selling order:

Dark Witch by Nora Roberts

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

Whiskey Beach by Nora Roberts

Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

Rush by Maya Banks

Endless Knight by Kresley Cole

No Good Duke Goes Unpunished by Sarah Maclean

Fueled by K. Bromberg

Convicted by Aleatha Romig

Heart of Obsidianby Nalini Singh

Three Little Words by Susan Mallery

Destiny’s Surrender by Beverly Jenkins

The Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay

The Best Manby Kristan Higgins

Lover At Last by J.R. Ward

Once Upon A Tower by Eloisa James

Any Duchess Will Do by Tessa Dare

Tangled by Emma Chase

Love Irresistibly Julie James

The Heiress Effect by Courtney Milan

To see Amazon’s full list of best picks, click here.

Gentle Reads for Young Adults

Young adult books seem to be getting closer and closer to that new adult genre. Some of the books marked to teens now have more sexual situations or violence than parents or teachers might be comfortable with. While our world is changing and our young adults are too, some authors are still handling tough topics, and universal conflicts, without crossing the lines that might make adults uncomfortable recommending a book for someone else’s teen or younger advanced reader. Here are some ‘gentle reads’ that you can recommend without blushing that are well written and far from dull reads.

Fever, 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson
In 1793 Philadelphia, sixteen-year-old Matilda Cook, separated from her sick mother, learns about perseverance and self-reliance when she is forced to cope with the horrors of a yellow fever epidemic.

Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz
After the death of the uncle who had been his guardian, fourteen-year-old Alex Rider is coerced to continue his uncle’s dangerous work for Britain’s intelligence agency, MI6.

Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech
After her mother leaves home suddenly, thirteen-year-old Sal and her grandparents take a car trip retracing her mother’s route. Along the way, Sal recounts the story of her friend Phoebe, whose mother also left.

All these Things I’ve Done by Gabrielle Zevin
In a future where chocolate and caffeine are contraband, teenage cellphone use is illegal, and water and paper are carefully rationed, sixteen-year-old Anya Balanchine finds herself thrust unwillingly into the spotlight as heir apparent to an important New York City crime family.

Ten Miles Past Normal by Francis O’Roark Dowell
Because living with “modern-hippy” parents on a goat farm means fourteen-year-old Janie Gorman cannot have a normal high school life, she tries joining Jam Band, making friends with Monster, and spending time with elderly former civil rights workers.

The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt
During the 1967 school year, on Wednesday afternoons when all his classmates go to either Catechism or Hebrew school, seventh-grader Holling Hoodhood stays in Mrs. Baker’s classrooom, where they read the plays of William Shakespeare and Holling learns much of value about the world he lives in

Have you read all of these or just want more suggestions? In that case, these books might be of interest as well; Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen, Uglies by Scott Westerfeld, Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery, A Long Way from Chicago by Richard Peck, The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan, The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot, Beauty by Robin McKinley, A Mango Shaped Space by Wendy Maas, The Secret of the Old Clock by Carolyn Keene, Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce, Airborn (Matt Cruse, #1) by Kenneth Oppel, or All-American Girl by Meg Cabot.

2013 Goodread’s Choice Award Winners

Every year Goodreads lets its users nominate and vote on their favorite books of the year. This is the only major book award that I know of which is decided by the public rather than publishing and the media. I will admit to being a member of Goodreads, and having voted for my favorites in a number of categories. I am happy to say that I voted for a few of the winners. Here is a list of the best books of 2013 according to Goodreads and its membership.

Fiction: And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini

Mystery & Thriller: Inferno (Robert Langdon #4) by Dan Brown

Historical Fiction: Life After Life by Kate Atkinson

Fantasy: The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Niel Gaiman

Paranormal Fantasy: Cold Days (The Dresden Files #14) by Jim Butcher

Science Fiction: MaddAddam (MaddAddam Trilogy #3) by Margaret Atwood

Romance: Lover At Last (Black Dagger Brotherhood #11) by J.R. Ward

Horror: Doctor Sleep (The Shining #2) by Stephen King

Memoir & Autobiography: I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai with Christina Lamb

History & Biography: Jim Henson: The Biography by Brian Jay Jones
Nonfiction: The Autistic Brain: Thinking Across the Spectrum by Temple Grandin and Richard Panek

Food & Cookbooks: Tequila Mockingbird: Cocktails with a Literary Twist by Tim Federle ; illustrated by Lauren Mortimer

Humor: Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened by Allie Brosh

Graphic Novels & Comics: Beautiful Creatures: The Manga by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl; adaptation and illustration by Cassandra Jean and lettering by Abigail Blackman

Poetry: The Fall of Arthur by J.R.R. Tolkien; edited by Christopher Tolkien

Debut Goodreads Author: Tangled (Tangled, #1) by Emma Chase

Young Adult Fiction: Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

Young Adult Fantasy: Allegiant (Divergent, #3) by Veronica Roth

Middle Grade & Children’s: The House of Hades (The Heroes of Olympus, #4) by Rick Riordan

Picture Books: The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt, with pictures by Oliver Jeffers

Young Adult Audio Books to Share

Do you want to keep up with that your teens are reading but feel like you spend all your time in the car, or find that your teen says that they have no time to read? Well, thankfully there have been some fantastic teen reads made into audio books with wonderful narrators. With audiobooks, the narrator is just as important as the story itself, and the voice telling you the story can make or break any book. Here are some young adult books turned audio book that I would recommend for teens and adults alike. Perhaps all the car rides to sports practices, work, and school can be made better with the sharing of a great book. Maybe sharing a book can spark some discussion and bring everyone a little closer.

The Diviners by Libba Bray, read by January LaVoy
Seventeen-year-old Evie O’Neill has been exiled from her boring hometown and shipped off to the bustling streets of New York City. The only catch is that she has to live with her uncle Will and his unhealthy obsession with the occult. Evie worries her uncle will discover her dark secret: a supernatural power that has only brought her trouble. But when police find a murdered girl branded with a cryptic symbol and Will is called to the scene, Evie realizes her gift could help catch a serial killer.

Curveball: the Year I Lost My Grip by Jordan Sonnenblick, read by Luke Daniels
After an injury ends former-star pitcher Peter Friedman’s athletic dreams, he concentrates on photography, which leads photographer, and a deeper relationship with the beloved grandfather who, when he realizes he is becoming senile, gives Pete all of his professional camera gear.

The Watch That Ends the Night by Allan Wolf, read by Michael Page, Phil Gigante, Christopher Lane, Laurel Merlington, and Angela Dawe
Recreates the 1912 sinking of the Titanic as observed by millionaire John Jacob Astor, a beautiful young Lebanese refugee finding first love, “Unsinkable” Molly Brown, Captain Smith, and others including the iceberg itself.

Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley, read by Ben MacLaine, Hamish R. Johnson, and Chelsea Bruland
Told in alternating voices, an all-night adventure featuring Lucy, who is determined to find an elusive graffiti artist named Shadow, and Ed, the last person Lucy wants to spend time with, except for the fact that he may know how to find Shadow.

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness, read by Jason Isaacs
Thirteen-year-old Conor awakens one night to find a monster outside his bedroom window, but not the one from the recurring nightmare that began when his mother became ill–an ancient, wild creature that wants him to face truth and loss.

Looking for even more great listening? Well then,  check out some more young adult books that have been recorded for your listening pleasure: Son by Lois Lowry and read by Bernadette Dunne; Warriors Don’t Cry by Melba Patillo Beals and read by Lisa Renee Pitts; The Fire Chronicle by John Stephens and read by Jim Dale; Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz and read by Lin-Manuel Miranda;  Scarlet by Marissa Meyer and read by Rebecca Soler;  Kings of Colorado by David E. Hilton and read by Phil Gigante; Wonder by R.J. Palacio and read by Diana Steele, Nick Podehl, and Kate Rudd; The Fault in Our Stars by John Green and read by Kate Rudd ; or Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell and read by Rebecca Lowman and Maxwell Caulfield.