Best Books of 2011

In late summer of this year, I decided to start being more purposeful about what I read. I have long maintained a list of books I want to read, but I tend to devour them and then forget. I started writing down the books I read along with a short summary, and then rating them on a scale of 1-5. Here, for your viewing pleasure, are my fives.

• Brooks, Max. World War Z. Investigative report about the zombie wars of the world. Excellent and funny, as it includes false footnotes.




• Burke, John. Soul Revolution. Describes how God takes imperfect people and transforms them to become more like Him through intimate connection with God. Very challenging, and taught me to pray much more constantly.
  


• Card, Orson Scott. Ender's Game. Earth uses war games to train children and find a commander who can protect them from a world of bugs.
  


• Card, Orson Scott. Ender's Shadow. The story of Bean, Ender's back-up. Ender's Game from another point of view.
  


• Chevalier, Tracy. The Girl with the Pearl Earring. A young maid in 17th century Holland serves the painter Vermeer and struggles to maintain her ethics.
  


• Cloud, Henry and Thompson. Boundaries with Kids. Excellent book on establishing boundaries for yourself and your child.
  


• de Rosnay, Tatiana. Sarah's Key. A young girl's experience with the French Vel' d'Hiv' Jewish round-up is interwoven with the journalistic investigation of an American woman living in France.
  


• Dweck, Carol. Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. Describes scientific studies about motivation and compares fixed mindsets to growth mindsets. Will definitely affect how you view life and what you want to teach your children.
  


• Fey, Tina. Bossypants. A very funny memoir on Tina Fey's life and entrance into comedy.
  


• Forstchen, William R. One Second After. A small town survives after America is hit by an electromagnetic pulse bomb that wipes out all computers.
  


• Lupton, Rosamund. Sister. An American woman returns to England to investigate her sister's murder. Told in police interviews with a surprise ending.
  


• O'Brien, Caragh. Birthmarked. Prized. First two books in a trilogy. Set near the unlake Superior in the 24th century, a teenage midwife must save her parents from the Enclave. In Prized, Gaia chooses between suitors and meets the people of the Sylum.
  


• Patchett, Ann. State of Wonder. A medical researcher travels to the Amazon to find her missing co-worker and discovers his work and love for the natives.
  


• Paton, Alan. Cry, the Beloved Country. A rural priest looks for his son in Johannesburg; a hopeful book about apartheid in South Africa.




• Platt, David. Radical: Taking Back Your Faith From the American Dream. Describes how the gospel has been watered down by culture and how to return to a Biblical and authentic faith. Life-changing.
  


• Steinbeck, John. Of Mice and Men. A laborer in 1930's California protects his gentle giant friend.
  


• Watson, S.J. Before I Go to Sleep. A woman with amnesia keeps a journal of what little she remembers and discovers things are not what she has been told. Excellent psychological suspense.
  


• Willett, Jincy. The Writing Class. One member of a college writing class torments the others; the teacher and class must determine whom it is; very snarky and satiric about authors and writing.

On the opposite end, if you're curious, here are my ones and twos. Avoid these books!

• Adams, Douglas. Hitchhikers' Guide to the Galaxy. A man is saved by aliens right before earth is destroyed and goes on a tour of the alien world. 2/5.
  


• Atkinson, Kate. Started Early, Took My Dog. Not recommended. I gave up after the second chapter of unrelated characters and very little plot. 1/5.
  


• Bujold, Lois McMaster. The Vor Game. Miles Vorkosigan plays a mercenary leader to try to rescue himself and the Emperor from opposing galaxy forces. Decent start, but far too meandering and pointless. 2/5.
  


• Gold, Claudia M. Keeping Your Child in Mind. Psychological hooey about seeing the world through your child's eyes; blames the parents' past and emotional states for everything. 1/5.
  


• Hannah, Sophie. The Truth-Teller's Lie. An Englishwoman reports her missing married lover to the police as a rapist, and a serial rapist is found. Lots of psychological potential, but never carried through. A very unsatisfying ending. 2/5.
  


• Huxley, Aldous. Brave New World. A future world in which people are bred for happiness in their caste. 2/5.
  


• Rolvaag, O.E. Giants in the Earth. A Norwegian family of pioneers on the South Dakota prairie. The mother goes crazy and the father walks off and dies at the end. Basically a good book, but far too long to invest in such an unsatisfying ending. 2/5.
  


• Samson, Polly. Perfect Lives. A collection of short stories with some interrelated characters. 2/5.
  


• Wells, H.G. The War of the Worlds. Martians and their Heat-Rays devastate turn of the 20th century England until they are overcome by our foreign bacteria. 2/5.

Patterns I noticed: I like psychological fiction, surprise endings, apocalyptic plots, and classics. I either love or hate science fiction. If you are similar, try some of these books!