Best of 2012 — Better Late Than Never

I’m not one of those people who keeps track of the number of books I read. To me, it’s not a contest. And many times, by year’s end, I forget the books I read at the beginning of the year and wonder whether I’ll have to scramble to come up with 10 books. So it was a nice surprise that I had 9 books which I gave the top rating of 5 in Librarything. What was even nicer, was that there were even more 4s, so 2012 was a darn good reading year from my perspective.

Reading’s a personal thing, as you know and there are a myriad of factors that go into enjoying a book: your mood when you read it, your favorite author, impeccable wording, an engrossing plot, believable characters. These top 10 books have it all: I was in the right mood, it was my favorite author (or singer, in one instance), the plots ranged from family, to heroism, to illness and the characters were pretty much all people I would like to meet. So, here goes:

Although the top 5 are all magnificent books, I’ll always put a Beth Kephart book on the top of the list. She’s an incredible author whose words, many times, are poetic and lyrical and she outdid herself in Small Damages about a young pregnant girl who finds out that the true meaning of family isn’t always biological. If you read one of Beth’s books, you’ll find you have to read them all.

John Green’s Fault in Our Stars takes us through the harrowing ordeal of cancer but the love and friendship and perseverence that its characters exhibit is incomparable. It might just make you shed a tear. I described it as a book of strength, of philosophy, of humor and determination. It is all of those and more.

At the end of Wonder by R. J. Palacio, Mr. Tushman, Director of Beecher Prep School, addresses the 5th grade/6th grade classes with a quote from J. M. Barrie’s The Little White Bird: “Shall we make a new rule of life…always try to be a little kinder than is necessary.” That is the theme of this gem of a book. It is the realistic story of a boy born with a serious facial deformity, overcoming the odds by mainstreaming into the local school. Told from various points of view, once you start it, you won’t put it down.

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein comes in at number 4. It is a touching story about two young girls during World War II, one a pilot and the other a spy behind enemy lines in France, if you will. Their heroism and their friendship, while to them small, is huge. It is not like any other war story you’ve read. It is captivating (no pun intended) from the beginning.

Rounding out the top 5 is Natalie Merchant’s Leave Your Sleep. A five year labor of love, Merchant put to music children’s poetry written from the late 1800s to the mid 1900s and released a wonderful CD of the same name. She then, with illustrator Barbara McClintock, published a book with some of the poetry and beautiful illustrations. I’ve heard Merchant sing these poems several times in concert and have the CD, and as she said ““Poetry speaks of so much: longing and sadness, joy and beauty, hope and disillusionment…But poetry on the page can be difficult to penetrate; sometimes it needs to be heard.” But once heard, reading it and seeing the colorful illustrations adds a whole new perspective.

Since this is getting long, I’ll briefly mention the next 5:

The Bully Book by Eric Kahn Gale: if you’re the “grunt” who gets picked on, you want to find the Bully Book and destroy it. Bullying seems to be an epidemic and Gale tries to reverse the tide in this excellent book.

Period 8 by Chris Crutcher: Crutcher seems to have found his stride again in this honest book about honesty and relationship. Not as ‘in your face’ as Whale Talk or Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes (my two favorites), it’s still up there with his best.

Stay With Me by Paul Griffin: Violence is a fact of life to some people. Some people are good and some aren’t and what happens to them doesn’t always make sense. Stay With Me had me rivited and, it indeed, did bring on a tear or two.

No Crystal Stair: A Documentary Novel of the Life and Work of Lewis Michaux, Harlem Bookseller by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson: A marvelous picture book and more about Nelson’s great-uncle Lewis Michaux, a driving force for educating Blacks in Harlem. Michaux started out with nothing and built a tremendous bookstore in Harlem that attracted the likes of Malcolm X.

Almost Home by Joan Bauer: Bauer is one of the foremost writers for middle school readers and her stories are uplifting. In Almost Home Sugar Mae Cole survives her mother’s depression and a foster home by spouting the words of her grandfather, King Cole. A must read–plus the dog on the cover is adorable.

And the last of them are:

The Miseducation of Cameron Post by emily m. danforth

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

Ask the Passenger by A. S. King

Where Things Come Back by John Corey Whaley

I read so many more great books in 2012, but this is the best of the best, to me. I hope you enjoy some of them.

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Wonder by R. J. Palacio

At the end of Wonder, Mr. Tushman, Director of Beecher Prep School, addresses the 5th grade/6th grade classes with a quote from J. M. Barrie’s The Little White Bird: “Shall we make a new rule of life…always try to be a little kinder than is necessary.” That is the theme of this gem of a book by R. J. Palacio.

August Pullman was born with a variety of significant facial deformaties. Home schooled until age 10, his parents feel it’s time for him to go to a real school and learn to get along in the real world. It is probably the most difficult thing Auggie will have to do.

To ease the transition, Mr. Tushman asks three students to give Auggie a tour of the school prior to its start and to befriend him during the school year. The befriending part works with only a modicum of success. Julian, one of the students, makes no effort and outwardly mocks August.

At the same time, Summer, not one of the three chosen students, befriends Agusut on the first day of school, a total act of kindness.

Wonder is told from several points of view including: August’s; Via, August’s older sister by four years who has grown up knowing that August comes first and she comes second; Summer; and Jack, one of the chosen three students who likes August but bows to peer pressure to unfriend the ‘freak’.

Palacio takes August from the beginning of the school year to the end, recounting both the good and the bad…how students can be both kind and terribly unkind to those who are different. She touches on, but doesn’t dwell on, the fact that many of these behaviors are learned from parents.

Wonder is easy to read and absorbing. I couldn’t put it down. The characters are wonderful, each in his/her own way. It is realistic in every way. While it is geared for children ages 8-12, teens and adults will enjoy it and learn from it. It, hopefully, will make readers examine their own lives and feelings and actions. It is a powerful book in its own, quiet way. I must admit, the ending brought a tear to my eye.

The friend who loaned me the book said she thought it would be a Newbury contender and I tend to agree. Due out today, it should be on the top of your reading pile.

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The Postman Always Rings Twice by James M. Cain

I am truly amazed at what an author can do in 87 pages. The Postman Always Rings Twice has suspense, raw emotion, murder, sex. Cain didn’t have to write 200 pages to get his story told…87 was perfect.

And believe it or not, Lana Turner and John Garfield look exactly like I pictured Cora and Frank to look. Whoever cast the original movie…bravo.

Can’t wait to watch the movie. If you’re a mystery fan or a fan of great writing, read The Postman Always Rings Twice. Have to wait to read Double Indemnity until I finish a middle grade/YA book…Wonder by R. J. Palacio. I have it on good authority that it’s a great read.

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