I remember this time last year lots of people were posting about whether or not they'd read 50 books in a year, or something like that. I had never really kept track of what I read, so I decided that I would try to for 2009. I still didn't bother to track non-fiction, poetry, or books that I reread, but the grand total was 78.

Since I'm incapable of mentioning books without recommending them I decided to list them under headings, similar to my last big book post, of:

Fantastic = the best of the best. The ones that I felt the urge to tell everyone bout, multiple times, including strangers on the bus. The ones that I bought other people because I had to share. The ones that I really, really enjoyed.
Great = the best of the rest. Books that I would reread, or lodged themselves in my head so thoroughly that rereading might be redundant.
Good = books that I enjoyed, but since book-lovers can't afford everything these ones you could save your money on and find them in the library.
Okay = I don't regret reading them, but I can't help feeling they could have been better.
(Forgettable = I find myself wondering why these books were published, at least without a solid editorial session.)

I've mentioned where a book is actually a graphic novel, just so you know whereabouts you'd be looking for them in a bookshop or library, but I've not used labels for YA, adult, genre etc. Considering that one book that made me cry was found in the age 8-10 section of a shop and the book that gave me nightmares was for teens, I thought I'd best not. I'll happily give an idea of these things though if asked.

Let the chatting about books commence!


Fantastic

The Guernsey and Literary Potato Peel Pie Society by Shaffer and Barrows
The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon
Fever of the Bone (4 of series) by Val McDermid
Watchmen (graphic novel) written by Alan Moore
Fragile Eternity (3 of series) by Melissa Marr
Flood by Stephen Baxter
Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson
The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga
Frostbitten (part of series, but can stand alone) by Kelley Armstrong
The Hunger Games (1 of trilogy) by Suzanne Collins
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2 of trilogy) by Suzanne Collins
Astonishing X Men: Torn, Dangerous, Gifted and Unstoppable (graphic novels/comics) written by Joss Whedon
Ways To Live Forever by Sally Nicholls
Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
The Sandman: The Dream Hunters (illustrated story/found with graphic novels) by Neil Gaiman and Yoshitaka Amano

Great

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
The Demon's Lexicon by Sarah Rees Brennan
Unseen Academicals by Terry Pratchett
Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger
13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
The Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham
Unwind by Neal Shusterman
The Awakening (2 of trilogy) by Kelley Armstrong
Grave Secrets (mid-series, but can be stand alone) by Kathy Reichs
Castle in the Air by Diana Wynne Jones
House of Many Ways by Diana Wynne Jones
Serenity: Better Days (graphic novel) written by Joss Whedon
Serenity: Those Left Behind (graphic novel) written by Joss Whedon
The Way of Shadows (1 of trilogy) by Brent Weeks
Shadow's Edge (2 of trilogy) by Brent Weeks
Beyond Shadows (3 of trilogy) by Brent Weeks
Coraline by Neil Gaiman
Valiant by Holly Black
Men of the Otherworld by Kelley Armstrong
Wicked Game by Jeri Smith-Ready
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
Mystery Man by Bateman
The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
Gone by Michael Grant
The Steel Remains by Richard Morgan
Ark (sequel to 'Flood') by Stephen Baxter
Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
The Witch of Portobello by Paulo Coelho

Good

La's Orchestra Saves The World by Alexander McCall Smith
Knife by R J Anderson
The Cure by Michael Coleman
Wicked by Gregory Maguire
Becka Cooper: Terrier by Tamora Pierce
Numbers by Rachel Ward
Sunshine by Robin Mckinley
How To Ditch Your Fairy by Justine Larbalestier
The Valley of Horses (2 of series) by Jean Auel
The Mammoth Hunters (3 of series) by Jean Auel
Daddy-Long-Legs by Jean Webster
Made to be Broken by Kelley Armstrong
The Supernaturalist by Eoin Colfer
Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
City of Glass (3 of trilogy) by Cassandra Clare
The Midwich Cuckoos by John Wyndham
Generation Dead by Daniel Waters
Skullduggery Pleasant: The Faceless Ones (3 of series) by Derek Landy
Wicked Lovely (1 of series) by Melissa Marr
Ink Exchange (2 of series) by Melissa Marr
Eleven Minutes by Paulo Coelho
Melting Stones by Tamora Pierce
By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept by Paulo Coelho
Devil Bones (part of series, but can be stand alone) by Kathy Reichs

Okay

Blood Price (1 of series) by Tanya Huff
Blood Trail (2 of series) by Tanya Huff
Brida by Paulo Coelho
A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
Deerskin by Robin Mckinley
The Accidental Sorcerer by K E Mills

Honourable mentions for the most entertaining and interesting non-fiction read in 2009:
High Heels and a Head Torch by Chelsea Duke
Stargazing: Memoirs of a Young Lighthouse Keeper by Peter Hill
On Writing by Stephen King

Re-discovered author in 2009: Michelle Magorian, author of Goodnight Mister Tom. I absolutely love Cuckoo in the Nest, which is heart-warming, wonderful and full of hilarity. Even my Dad, who generally turns his nose up at books that I try and lend to him unless they're crime fiction, enjoyed this.