Top Ten Best Books of 2011

The other I realised that I haven't done a top ten list of my favourite books of 2011. Shame on me. So without further ado I will dive straight into it. 

10) "The Collector" by John Fowles
In the review I wrote: "It is a fascinating read because both Miranda and Frederick call for pity even though both of them are really quite annoying and caught up in their own webs of self-deceit."

9) "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" by Junot Diaz
In the review I wrote: "What really caught me about this book was not the style or the story as much as Oscar himself. At some points, especially during his college years, I was moved to tears because he is such a sweet boy. Such a good man and so lonely, so misunderstood and so sad. I wanted to put my arms around him and tell him that everything was going to be okay. That, for me, is the must impressive part of the book."


8) "My Last Duchess" by Daisy Goodwin
In the review I wrote: "This is a lovely book, it is a great escape into a different time and as a romance it works really well without becoming too much." 


7) "The Heart-Shaped Box" by Joe Hill
In the review I wrote: "It is a bit of gem really, different from any other book I have read - the only book that it reminds me of is "Horns", also by Joe Hill, but I liked "Heart-Shaped Box" better, mostly because of the characters."

6) "The Last Samurai" by Helen DeWitt
In the review I wrote: "I loved the plot and the two characters. The hapless Sibylla who can hardly take care of herself not to mention a small wonder boy and who values books over anything else including food, is endearing! And Ludo, the clever little fellow who really really wants a father figure to look up to, is cute. The isolation that his intellect leads to is difficult to read about even though he doesn't completely understands it himself and his hunt for a dad is an emotional journey both for Ludo and for the reader."

5) "Forbidden" by Tabitha Suzuma
In the review I wrote: "By the end of this book I was ready to adopt the lot of them. They were so real to me and I felt so horrible for them, I was so sad when the book was over, I just wanted more. Which is why I am very happy that Tabitha Suzuma has written several other books that I will definitely be reading soon!"


4) "London Fields" by Martin Amis
In the review I wrote: "Capturing all of the details in this amazing book is impossible in a blog post. I had a hard time keeping track of it all as I was reading it but that was actually part of the attraction. It made me lose myself because I had to concentrate to follow the action and though none of the main characters are really likeable, they are all intriguing!"

3) "The Pregnant Widow" by Martin Amis
Didn't realise there were going to be two Martin Amis novels on this list. Really enjoyed both books though and they deserve their places here!
In the review I wrote: "It is a fantastic book if you ask me - I read it and loved it and some day I will read this in Italy on a warm summers day and it will feel like I am almost there with Keith as he faces the difficulties of youth and the conundrums of women. "

2) "A Discovery of Witches" by Deborah Harkness
This one was so good that I couldn't actually figure out how to review it... So instead I wrote a Ten Things I Love About... instead. And here one of the things I loved about it:
"The fact this this is the first in a trilogy! I was so worried that this was a stand alone because I want more! Luckily Harkness is already working on the sequel "Shadow of Night" and though I don't like that title as much as I loved "A Discovery of Witches", I am still really looking forwrad to getting my hands on it."

1) "Purge" by Sofi Oksanen
The best book of the year, no doubt. 
This is what I wrote in the review:
"The strengths of "Purge" are many. It is not sugarcoated, everything is exposed, all human flaws are there in plain view and even the main characters that as a reader, I sympathized with, are full of flaws. Another strength is the historical aspect. As a historical story, it works really well because it envokes an Estonia of the past (luckily) that is so different from modern-day Estonia, yet gives you a better chance of understanding Estonia and the other countries that suffered during the dark days of communism and Stalin. It is truly a scary read on so many levels, from the explicit violence and the vulnerability of the women in this story to the political environment and the men that will do anything for money, power, status or a casino."

Review: "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" - Wondrous indeed

As I wrote a post about earlier this week, I am taking part in the "Back to the Classics 2011" Challenge. As part of this challenge, I have to read a Pulitzer Prize winner or nominee and as I had "The Brief, Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" by Junot Diaz waiting for me on a bookshelf, I took this opportunity to read it. It has been widely praised and I have been quite sure that I would like it but at the same time have not starting reading it for fear that it would be a disappointment... I know, silly!

The Oscar of the title is Oscar de Léon whose family the reader gets to know intimately. His grandfather, the famous doctor living in Santo Domingo while it was governed by the dictator Trujillo who stopped at nothing to eliminate suspected enemies. In this country of spying neighbours and fear, Oscar's family is struck by a fuku, a sort of curse which might follow them for several generations. Then there is Oscar's mother Beli who immigrates to USA because of the aforementioned Trujillo and who seems to be forever dissatisfied with her life and whose love is tough. In her home in New Jersey, Oscar and his formidable older sister Lola grow up but while Lola is a strong girl, a survivor with legs that go on forever, Oscar is a geek, a nerd and a loser. He loves role play, dungeons and dragons, manga, playing computer for hours and to make his life even harder, he is horribly overweight and loves girls. Falling in love and loving fiercely are central themes in this novel which is told not in chronological order but stumbling from one decade to another as we get to know the de Leons better and better.
I loved that the author did not let himself by confined by a need for chronological order. It makes the story come to life and keeps the reader guessing. What will happen now? Who is the narrator?

The book is very very well-written. My favourite part is that it mixes English with an abundance of spanish words and slang which at first was every so slightly difficult to understand but soon became part of the story and it added flavour and authencity to the tale. I knew nothing about Santo Domingo when I started out reading the book but as the story unfolds, the island plays a central role and now I find myself wanting to learn more about Santo Domingo and the story and culture of Santo Domingo. So if you have any suggestions for books about this topic, please send me a comment.

What really caught me about this book was not the style or the story as much as Oscar himself. At some points, especially during his college years, I was moved to tears because he is such a sweet boy. Such a good man and so lonely, so misunderstood and so sad. I wanted to put my arms around him and tell him that everything was going to be okay. That, for me, is the must impressive part of the book. That it brings Oscar to life, makes to a real person and made me want to get to know him and spend time with him and his cool sister Lola. Being able to do that, create that magic, is the gift of a great story teller.