Book World's 10 Best of the Year

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Book World's 10 Best of the Year

Fiction

1. After This By Alice Mcdermott
   
   
   (literature and fiction)
   
   "There are no excesses, no look-at-me pyrotechnics in this story of a family over several decades in the middle of the 20th century. With the mastery of a fine poet, McDermott distills each life to its essence"
   
   


2. All Aunt Hagar's Children By Edward P. Jones
   
   
   (literature and fiction)
   
   "With this collection of 14 short stories about African Americans in Washington, D.C., Jones has established himself as one of the most important writers of the present day."
   
   


3. The Dream Life Of Sukhanov By Olga Grushin
   
   
   (literature and fiction)
   
   "A sophisticated, ironic and witty story about the midlife crisis of a Soviet art critic on the eve of glasnost."
   
   


4. The Road By Cormac Mccarthy
   
   
   (literature and fiction, sci-fi)
   
   "An unnamed man and his young son -- two of the last survivors on Earth -- walk through an incinerated wasteland foraging for food and hiding from gangs of cannibals. A frightening, profound tale."
   
   


5. Shahnameh: The Persian Book Of Kings By Abolqasem Ferdowsi
   
   
   (literature and fiction)
   
   "A new translation, by Dick Davis, of the great epic of ancient Persia, opening with the creation of the universe and closing with the Arab Muslim conquest. A violent and beautiful work."
   
   


Source:
http://www.washingtonpost.com

Non Fiction

1. The Classical World: An Epic History From Homer To Hadrian By Robin Lane Fox
   
   
   (history, nonfiction)
   
   "With erudition, drive and wit, an Oxford scholar triumphantly brings the Greeks' and Romans' civilizations to life."
   
   


2. Fiasco: The American Military Adventure In Iraq By Thomas E. Ricks
   
   
   (history)
   
   "A reporter's bristling, unflinching account shows that the war soured because of blunders made by a thousand fathers."
   
   


3. The Looming Tower: Al-qaeda And The Road To 9/11 by Lawrence Wright
   
   
   (history, nonfiction)
   
   "A chilling, beautifully written exploration of the rise of Osama bin Laden, his fanatical deputies and their murderous milieu."
   
   


4. The Omnivores Dilemma: A Natural History Of Four Meals By Michael Pollan
   
   
   (food and cooking, health, nonfiction, science)
   
   "This enthralling explanation of the sources of our diet persuades us that we are what we eat."
   
   


5. Stravinsky: The Second Exile : France And America, 1934-1971 By Stephen Walsh
   
   
   
   
   "The masterful, elegant conclusion to an epic biography of one of the 20th century's most influential composers."
   
   


Source:
http://www.washingtonpost.com

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