2007 Year in Review: Books

This post will be slightly different in terms of my 2007 review. With books I'm usually well behind in reading recent releases so this list is based just on the books I read in 2007.

5. Lullaby by Chuck Palahniuk
Every since the movie version of Fight Club, I've worked my way through reading Palaniuk's novels. I've enjoyed each one as they provide a twisted view of the world using satire and shocking characters. This novel focuses on a reporter that discovers a culling song that kills once read aloud. He goes on a journey to destroy all copies, but still has struggles with the power of death at his fingertips.

4. The Memory of Running by Ron McLarty
This novel fits right in with A Confederacy of Dunces. In this tale by McLarty, a loser named Smithy Ide makes a cross country journey by bicycle to identify his sister's body in L.A. It is a journey of discovery for the character and a look at America, the good and the bad.

3. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
This was my big surprise of the year. The description sounded like a cheesy romantic novel, but within a few chapters I realized this was much more. The characters and story quickly captured me. It combines a tragic romance with a sci-fi element that should easily fascinate more than the romance crowd. It will be interesting to see how Hollywood adapts it when the movie is released later this year. Thanks to D for this one.

2. I Am Legend by Richard Matheson
Forget the Will Smith movie and two previous adaptations (The Last Man on Earth, The Omega Man), read the novel for the real experience. Each adaption has some good moments, but they all miss the overall feel and horror of Matheson's novel. One last human dealing with his solitary state while living with the deadly attacks of world that has succumbed to a mystery change creates a haunting and unforgettable novel.

1. A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah
I reviewed this autobiography in 2007. It is the tragic and touching story of a boy who survived being recruited as a soldier in the Sierra Leone civil war. It is a sad story of the world we live in, but shows the amazing ability for human survival and individual betterment.

The other books I read in 2007:

• An Unquiet Mind by Kay Redfield Jamison
• Cuba Libre by Elmore Leonard
• The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman
• I Love You, Beth Cooper by Larry Doyle
• King Dork by Frank Portman
• Perfect From Now On by John Sellers
• Perfume by Patrick Suskind
• Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs by Chuck Klosterman