>From it’s list of the 100 Notable Books of 2008, the New York Times has named the Best Books of 2008.
The fiction side of the list is very exciting:
Dangerous Laughter, by Steven Millhauser, which I somehow overlooked, although I’ve liked his earlier work.
A Mercy, by Toni Morrison (which I also loved and discussed in a recent post).
2666, by Roberto Bolano, which is sitting on my shelf asking to be read.
Netherland, by Joseph O’Neill, which I bought on the strength of James Wood’s glowing review but haven’t yet read.
Unaccustomed Earth, by Jhumpa Lahiri, which I also have, even though I’m a rare non-fan of her previous books.
The non-fiction half of the list is of less interest to me, but is also worth noting: Julian Barnes’s Nothing to be Frightened of, Drew Gilpin Faust’s This Republic of Suffering, Jane Mayer’s The Dark Side, Dexter Filkins’s The Forever War, and Patrick French’s The World Is What It Is, the Authorized Biography of V.S. Naipaul.
I’ve got lots of reading to do.
>”Unaccustomed Earth” is amazing. definitely one of my top five favorite books.