Posts Tagged ‘James Renner’

Jesse Bering's Bookshelf

With more and more books published every year, it’s increasingly difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff. Does this increase the usefulness of all the annual “Best of” lists? Perhaps. It’s irresistible when a critic distills a year of reading into a simple hierarchy, especially if her tastes match your own. It’s just so efficient. I tend to eschew those books awarded the most (or loudest) hosannas in favor of the previously unknown novels that slipped past me at publication. (This year it’s Ben Lerner’s excellent Leaving the Atocha Station.)

Sites like Salon, The Millions, and The Guardian go straight to the authors for their recommendations. I decided to do the same, canvassing our writers and editors. With a couple caveats: First, the editors couldn’t choose their own titles; Second, one’s choices didn’t need to be published in 2011, just read in 2011. Old classics and novels from 2010 and 2009 are all welcome.

Some submitted a straightforward list, while others penned brief summaries. (The Spanish-Argentinian novelist Andrés Neuman even separated his list by language.) I hope you’ll find your next favorite book among them.

Favorite Reads from 2011: (more…)

James Renner is the author of two books of nonfiction that detail his adventures in investigative journalism: Amy: My Search for Her Killer and The Serial Killer’s Apprentice. His novel The Man from Primrose Lane will be published by Sarah Crichton Books / Farrar, Straus and Giroux in February 2012. You can follow him on Twitter @JamesRenner.

The Evolution of Bruno Littlemore by Benjamin Hale
Cool idea: the first chimpanzee that learns speech. Sort of a modern-day Pinocchio. Wish it had been more fun, less creepy.

The Last Child by John Hart
Three mysteries are at the core of this thriller set in the Deep South. Hart’s in his prime as an author and beginning to explore with structure a bit. Great beach read.

The Stolen Child by Keith Donohue
What a fun book. An exploration of the changeling myth set in present time. A welcome change of pace from all the popular stories about vampires.

The Devil All the Time by Donald Ray Pollock
Hands-down my favorite book of the year. An ensemble of tragic and desperate characters in small-town America slowly converge on one another. Sparse, gritty, truthful. Brilliant.

The Long Tomorrow by Leigh Brackett
Found this one at a used-book store in Kinsman, Ohio, for two dollars. Brackett is best known for writing the first draft of The Empire Strikes Back. This is her story about what happens when only the Amish survive the end of the world.

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
The classic ghost or-is-it story. A study on tone. A companion to Jane Eyre. Good stuff.

At the Mountains of Madness by H. P. Lovecraft
A great fall read and the best way to jump into Lovecraft. You need to read this just to see how it influenced pretty much every sci-fi movie ever made.

Await Your Reply by Dan Chaon
Three separate tales of characters in search of identity: a twin tracking his brother to the Arctic Circle; a young man faking his death; a high-school girl eloping with her teacher. Then the stories begin to come together . . . and wow!

Last Night in Twisted River by John Irving
I wish I was always halfway through a John Irving novel. I love spending time with his fully realized characters. This one is about a father-and-son team on the run from a bad cop. But it’s also about logging, cooking, and, of course, writing.

All Authors’ and Editors’ Favorite Reads of 2011

The Introduction