- Graceling Kristin Cashore
- Fire Kristin Cashore
- Disgrace J.M. Coetzee
- Buffy Season 8 Vols. 1-7
- Bud, not Buddy Christopher Paul Curtis
- Diwata Barbara Jane Reyes
- Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake Sarah Maclean
- Ten Ways to Be Adored When Landing a Lord Sarah Maclean
- Faking It Jennifer Crusie
- Welcome to Temptation Jennifer Crusie
- Chinatown Beat Henry Chang
- Rosemary and Rue Seanan McGuire
- A Local Habitation Seanan McGuire
- An Artificial Night Seanan McGuire
- Open Andre Agassi
- Mark of the Demon Diana Rowland
- Blood of the Demon Diana Rowland
- Secrets of the Demon Diana Rowland
- Moon Called Patricia Briggs
- Blood Bound Patricia Briggs
- Iron Kissed Patricia Briggs
- Bone Crossed Patricia Briggs
- Silver Borne Patricia Briggs
- Fight Club Chuck Palahniuk
- Huntress Malinda Lo
- Beauty and the Beast Robin McKinley
- Speak Laurie Halse Anderson
- Late Eclipses Seanan McGuire
- River Marked Patricia Briggs
- Cry Wolf Patricia Briggs
- Hunting Ground Patricia Briggs
- The Thief Megan Whalen Turner
- The Queen of Attolia Megan Whalen Turner
- The King of Attolia Megan Whalen Turner
- A Conspiracy of Kings Megan Whalen Turner
- Blood and Chocolate Annette Curtis Klause
- Patricia Briggs Moon Called
- Faith Hunter Skinwalker
- Faith Hunter Blood Cross
- Faith Hunter Mercy Blade
- Michael Frost and Holly Black White Cat
- Holly Black Red Glove
- Ilona Andrews On the Edge
- Ilona Andrews Bayou Moon
- Ilona Andrews Magic Bites
- Ilona Andrews Magic Burns
- Ilona Andrews Magic Strikes
- Ilona Andrews Magic Bleeds
- Patricia Briggs Masques
- Patricia Briggs Wolfsbane
- Patricia Briggs Steal the Dragon
- Patricia Briggs The Hob's Bargain
- Patricia Briggs Dragon Bones
- Patricia Briggs Dragon Blood
- Patricia Briggs Raven's Shadow
- Patricia Briggs Raven's Strike
- Kathryn Harrison The Kiss
- Hat Full of Sky Terry Pratchett
- Wintersmith Terry Pratchett
- I Shall Wear Midnight Terry Pratchett
- Kitty and the Midnight Hour Carrie Vaughn
- Kitty Goes to Washington Carrie Vaughn
- Kitty Takes a Holiday Carrie Vaughn
- Kitty and the Silver Bullet Carrie Vaughn
- Kitty and the Dead Man's Hand Carrie Vaughn
- Kitty Raises Hell Carrie Vaughn
- Kitty's House of Horrors Carrie Vaughn
- Kitty Goes to War Carrie Vaughn
- Voices of Dragons Carrie Vaughn
- Leche R. Zamora Linmark
- Cold Magic Kate Elliott
- Magic Slays Ilona Andrews
- Kitty's Big Trouble Carrie Vaughn
- Carrie Vaughan Steel
- Scott Lynch The Lies of Locke Lamora
- J.K. Rowling Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone
- J.K. Rowling Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
- J.K. Rowling Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
- J.K. Rowling Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
- J.K. Rowling Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
- J.K. Rowling Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince
- J.K. Rowling Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
- a friend's novel MS
- Tess Gerritsen The Silent Girl
- Patti Smith Just Kids
- The Power of Six Pittacus Lore
- Knightley Academy Violet Haberdasher
- The Secret Prince Violet Haberdasher
- One Salt Sea Seanan McGuire
- Goliath Scott Westerfeld
- The Girl of Fire and Thorns Rae Carson
- Drink, Slay, Love Sarah Beth Durst
- Cold Fire Kate Elliott
- Wolf Mark Joseph Bruchac
- Alanna Tamora Pierce
- In the Hand of the Goddess Tamora Pierce
- The Woman Who Rides Like a Man Tamora Pierce
- Lioness Rampant Tamora Pierce
- Trickster's Choice Tamora Pierce
- Trickster's Queen Tamora Pierce
- Leviathan Scott Westerfeld
- Behemoth Scott Westerfeld
- The Thief Megan Whalen Turner
- The Queen of Attolia Megan Whalen Turner
- The King of Attolia Megan Whalen Turner
- A Conspiracy of Kings Megan Whalen Turner
- White Cat Holly Black
- Red Glove Holly Black
- Graceling Kristin Cashore
- Cold Magic Kate Elliott
- Wolf Mark Joseph Bruchac
- Daugther of Smoke and Bone Laini Taylor
- Troubled Waters Sharon Shinn
- A Posse of Princesses Sherwood Smith
- Coronets and Steel Sherwood Smith
- Mastiff Tamora Pierce
- The Grimm Legacy Polly Shulman
- Blood Spirits Sherwood Smith
- The Trouble With Kings Sherwood Smith
- Crown Duel Sherwood Smith
- Dead Witch Walking Kim Harrison
- The Good, The Bad, and the Undead Kim Harrison
- Every Which Way But Dead Kim Harrison
- A Fistful of Charms Kim Harrison
- For a Few Demons More Kim Harrison
- The Outlaw Demon Wails Kim Harrison
- White Witch, Black Curse Kim Harrison
- Black Magic Sanction Kim Harrison
- Pale Demon Kim Harrison
ETA: Whoops. I allowed this to automatically post without finishing it. I started this post at the beginning of the year and just added books to it as I read. I set it to post automatically on Jan. 2.
Anyway. As you can probably tell, Kristen Cashore's Graceling is my comfort read of choice. Love that book! Can't wait for her new one to come out next this year.
Read a few memoirs this year: Andre Agassi's Open, Patti Smith's Just Kids, and, finally, Kathryn Harrison's The Kiss; all "celebrated" and talked about memoirs, and all worth reading for various reasons. The Kiss has all the faults and stupidities that I hate in popular "literary" memoir: the deadness of emotion that seems so trendy, the exact sort of "poetic" language that contributes to said deadness, the beautification of an ugly and sordid episode in someone's life, etc. But it was good to read the book that -- sort of -- started it all. Smith's Just Kids was a celebrity tell-all memoir written by a poet -- albeit a poet who never grew past adolescence, a permanent Rimbaud. There are a LOT of hints in the book as to why she's stuck in that stage, artistically, not least that she disembodies herself in her work and takes on male personas (physical personas.) And the ghost writer of Agassi's memoir is simply a terrific biographer and ventriloquist, who wrote a wonderful book about drive, obsession, and what it takes to be a top competitor and athlete.
I read a LOTTTT of series in the "urban fantasy" or "paranormal romance" vein. Still not sure which these are. Seanan McGuire's October Daye series (plus I met McGuire at Wiscon, in an elevator, and drooled on her!), Diana Rowland's demon series, Patricia Briggs' werewolf serieses (how do you indicate more than one series?), Faith Hunter's skinwalker series, Ilona Andrew's Kate Daniels series and Edge series (the first another werewolf/demon thingy, and the second definitely a world in which paranormal romances take place), Carrie Vaughn's Kitty werewolf series, and finally, Kim Harrison's witch series. LOVE. All of them. Of course, they're trash of the highest order, but oh, what middle-aged woman wish fulfillment! I love how most of the heroines are in their early thirties, are mixed race (or have a mixed-race best friend; it's all about the exoticism and wish fulfillment, ladeez!), kick much ass, and have these sensitive, macho, alpha males as suitors. Doesn't say ANYTHING about me, does it?
And finally, did a lot of YA again, although nothing that really stands out, although I did re-read the stuff that I loved, including Graceling, and the Megan Whalen Turner series. Oh, and I really dug Drink, Slay, Love, and not just because of the title. Unicorns and vampires! Yay!
The only really serious reading I did was reviews for Hyphen. I should do more of those.
And I read more actual books this year, although so many were re-reads ... because I was reading so much comfort food. It's all about the illness, I'm afraid. I think I'll try to read slightly more challenging stuff in 2012, but there will still be a lot of comfort food.
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