2013 Recap - Top 10 Books

And here they are, my Top Ten Books Read in 2013:

 

Carry On, Warrior - Melton discusses her life and what she’s learned along the way.

Elizabeth the Queen - Smith recounts Queen Elizabeth II’s 60-plus year reign as the Queen of England.

Empty Mansions - An eccentric heir, her 20-year hospital stay, and how she dispenses with her fortune.

Happier at Home - Rubin returns to her happiness project with ideas to make her happier at home.

Home is a Roof over a Pig - Arrington and her husband take their three young children, one of whom was adopted from China, to live in China.

The Honest Toddler - A treatise on parenting from the toddler’s point of view.

The Hungry Ear - An anthology of 150+ contemporary poems about food and drink.

The Spark - Barnett tells about raising her autistic genius son.

Visiting Tom - Perry discusses his friend Tom, his rural life, and parenting daughters.

When We Were the Kennedys - Wood recounts the time following her father’s death in 1963, just months before JFK’s assassination.

Runners up:

Thanksgiving: How to Cook it Well - Sifton, former restaurant critic for The New York Times, explains how to cook Thanksgiving dinner—the right way.

The World’s Strongest Librarian - Hanagarne, a librarian, takes up weightlifting to deal with his Tourette’s Syndrome.

 

Best Memoir:

The Spark

 

Best Nonfiction Book (non-memoir):

Visiting Tom

 

Best Biography:

Elizabeth the Queen

 

Best Fiction:

 

Murder on the Orient Express - Twelve people are on a train when an old man turns up dead; it’s up to Hercule Poirot to find the murderer, who is presumably still on the train.

 

Best Parenting/Family Book:

The Spark

 

Best Project or Adventure Books:

Happier at Home

(I had a hard time choosing a project/adventure winner, I enjoyed all of these, almost equally: 7, Bringing Up Bébé, Coming to My Senses, Dancers among Us, Home is a Roof over a Pig, Maddie on Things, Summer at Tiffany, Wild, The World’s Strongest Librarian)

 

Best Poetry Book:

The Hungry Ear

 

Best Cookbook:

 

Pioneer Woman Cooks: A Year of Holidays

 

Best Photography/Art Book:

 

Dancers among Us - Matter photographs professional dancers planted in real-life situations.

 

Best Decorating Book:

 

An Affair with a House - Williams takes readers on a tour of her New England manor house and its grounds.