10 Best Books of 2008

The editors of the New York Times Book Review have selected 10 titles from the list of 100 Notable Books of 2008.

To view the entire list with a synopsis of each book, go to the Book Review page.

Fiction Titles include:
DANGEROUS LAUGHTER: Thirteen Stories By Steven Millhauser

A MERCY By Toni Morrison

NETHERLAND By Joseph O’Neill

2666 By Roberto Bolaño. Translated by Natasha Wimmer

UNACCUSTOMED EARTH By Jhumpa Lahiri

Nonfiction Titles:

THE DARK SIDE
The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned Into a War on American Ideals
By Jane Mayer

THE FOREVER WAR By Dexter Filkins

NOTHING TO BE FRIGHTENED OF By Julian Barnes

THIS REPUBLIC OF SUFFERING: Death and the American Civil War By Drew Gilpin Faust

THE WORLD IS WHAT IT IS
The Authorized Biography of V. S. Naipaul By Patrick French

Consider one of these for your vacation reading.

All Things Twilight

"Vampire hit lit" " Twilight opens to sold out shows". . . need I say more?
This is the moment Bella and Edward, the protagonists of Stephanie Myer's vampire saga Twilight, fans have been waiting for. Join in the mania and post your comments below. Was the movie as good as the book? Let other Twilight enthusiasts know what you're thinking!

NPR 'Twilight': For Teens, A Swooningly Risky Romance
Why ‘Twilight’ fascinates today’s teens

Author Michael Crichton died 11/4/2008

(AP Photo)

Author Michael Crichton died Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2008 in Los Angeles, at age 66. He had been privately battling cancer, according to his family. Read the Associated Press
obituary.

A New Genre: "Street Lit"

Anne Barnard explains the hugely popular emerging "street lit" genre in a NY Times article from October 23, 2008
From the Streets to the Libraries.

Readers are attracted to the genre because it speaks to their urban environment with authentic descriptions of ghetto life. Many libraries are embracing a sometimes controversial genre of “street lit” in an effort to attract new readers. Urban public librarians think that this genre is pulling in readers and often leads to expansion of their reading interests.

Judy Gressel

The Future of Reading

Is the Internet the enemy of reading, or has it created a new kind of reading, one that society should not discount? Read the New York Times series on the Future of Reading.
Literacy Debate: Online, R U Really Reading?By MOTOKO RICH--July 27, 2008
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/27/books/27reading.html?partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

The second article in the series appears in today’s New York Times.

Using Video Games as Bait to Hook Readers
By MOTOKO RICH --October 6, 2008
Publishers, authors and even libraries are embracing video games to promote books to young readers. I know that gaming has become very big in libraries, as a way to draw patrons. This article suggests that they really aren’t checking out any books.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/06/books/06games.html?partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

Judging by reader comments, most people are in agreement that video games cannot replace reading. But will this traditional view of reading hold in decades to come?

Early Reviewers: Free advance copies of books

Early Reviewers: Free advance copies of books

What is this? Publishers give us advance copies of books, and we give them to you. You get books for free and before everyone else, and a wide audience for your review.

Check out the rules and Frequently Asked Questions and learn more in the Early Reviewers group.

Eligibility: Publishers do things country-by-country. Check the flags to see which countries the book you want is available in.

The deadline to request a copy of this bonus batch book is Tuesday, September 30th at 6pm, EDT.