the i in we

Gilead - Marilynne Robinson

The Pulitzer Prize winner in 2005, I came to it late on the recommendation of an ex-boyfriend’s friend-in-law’s rabid fandom of all things Marilyn Robinson. It didn’t disappoint. The story was good, but the writing – good lord, the writing. It touched some personal buttons, too, as it deals with a father’s death and takes place in the general area where Mr. S’ family lives (it was nice to read along, hit a reference to the East Nishnabotna river, and not have to stop and reread unfamiliar words). I finished in a monastery in St. Paul where I had a class, and wept and cheered as it ended.

The Year of Living Biblically – A.J. Jacobs

The editor of Esquire magazine adheres to the Bible for a year: ¾ of the year dedicated to the Old Testament, ¼ to the New. He wears all white, quits lying, has to carry around a stool so he doesn’t ever sit where a woman has menstruated…and more, all in New York. I loved it, and would recommend it for anyone with any measure of belief or unbelief.

Mountain Man Dance Moves - McSweeney’s Book of Lists

The first book I read in 2007 and the funniest. I read it on January 1 of last year, expecting to read a few pages and then go sleep; instead, I stayed up and finished the whole thing in one night. Mr. S had to come upstairs and check on me: I was making so much noise gasping (laughing so hard I was crying).

Grace (Eventually): Thoughts on Faith  - Anne Lamott

Annie doesn’t disappoint! This time, though, I was not so much in accord with her religious observations as much as her life observations. There’s one whole chapter I said “yes” to, out loud, almost paragraph by paragraph. (I’m not telling which).

The Gifts of the Body – Rebecca Brown

I’ve seen this book referred to as fiction, but Rebecca Brown has the same occupation as the protagonist, so fiction is definitely a stretch. She works as a home health aide for persons with AIDS, and it is heartbreakingly beautiful.

But Enough About Me: A Jersey Girl’s Unlikely Adventures Among the Absurdly Famous – Jancee Dunn

A fun biography by a former MTV vee-jay who now works primarily as a music journalist. It’s not deep and it’s not high art; it’s just fun.  I tend to think of music journalists as  native New York-types whose parents played Mott the Hoople or the like for them in the crib; she’s  not  like that at all, and it’s refreshing.

Let Your Life Speak – Parker Palmer

It’s hard to say anything about Parker Palmer that hasn’t already been said, but this was the first book I’d ever read by him and I was more than impressed. I’m a sucker for an old, wise, seemingly soft-spoken encouraging male believer, and he’s just about the perfect representation of that package.

Sharp Objects – Gillian Flynn

She’s a former writer for EW. The novel is about a girl going home to her small town while a mystery swirls about her. Her small-town is colorful and southern; her mom is 100% nuts; and the ending is heartbreaking.

The Collected Stories of Amy Hempel – Amy Hempel

Amazing short stories. I wanted to buy it for all my book-loving buddies as soon as I finished it.  She’s a “writer’s writer,” and this collection makes that title evident.

The Raw Shark Texts – Stephen Hall

The “House of Leaves” of this year; 2007’s “experimental” fiction in a novel. Any text is a savior against the “raw sharks” of the title. If Raw Sharks ever came into being, within this book we’ll find instructions on good uses for all the phone books we have sitting around.

God is Dead – Ron Currie

Connected short stories. The first is about God; who, while on earth in the form of a Sudanese woman, is raped, killed, and then eaten by wild dogs. The rest of the book explores what happens to the population of the world after they find out God is dead…and the fates of the dogs who ate God. Surprisingly not as gruesome as it sounds.

Love is a Mix Tape – Rob Sheffield

Another Rolling Stone writer, this time a male writing about the courtship of his wife, her death, and the music that they listened to all in between. It primarily takes place during the nineties, and although they had much better taste then I did, the music angle makes it fun.

The Kite Runner – Khaled Hosseini

I was super late to the game on this one, but it is as good as they all say. I much preferred the first half of the book to second – I thought it got too predictable – but I still enjoyed it over all.

Dead Boys – Richard Lange

Super depressing, very well-written collection of short stories, all told from a male’s perspective in Los Angeles.