rebecca's pocket

» It's time to start thinking about holiday gift-giving. For the readers on your list, here are some book recommendations.

NYTimes: 100 Notable Books of the Year.

And these are the best books I read this year:

1. 1491, Charles C. Mann. This is the best book I've read in years.... [ my full review]
2. The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, Muriel Spark. Delightful. I thoroughly enjoyed both the style of the book and the humor. An impressive piece of writing.
3. Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies, Jared Diamond. Clear, readable, and unbelievably interesting.... [ my full review ]
4. Plainsong, Kent Haruf. Earnest, beautiful, stylized, gorgeous, life-affirming, unforgettable.
5. The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals, Michael Pollan. This is a great book: thoughtful, thought provoking, and well written.... [ my full review ]
6. Radio: An Illustrated Guide, Jessica Abel, Ira Glass. This book does exactly what it says: tell you how to plan, execute and broadcast a radio show. The technology is out of date, but I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in radio documentary or podcasting.
7. Don't Think of an Elephant, George Lakoff. This book really does make sense of the current political climate. I now better understand the right and the left.
8. To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee. Somehow, I never got around to reading this book before now. It is perfect. I'll read it again. I can't imagine a more compassionate depiction of childhood, small town life, the South, race in the United States, or humanity in general. Oh, and it's beautifully written. My nomination for the Great American Novel.
9. Convergence Culture, Henry Jenkins. Smart, interesting, and right on the money. A little academic for most people's taste, but I agree with almost everything Dr. Jenkins has to say. A compelling and non-hyped vision of the future of our culture.
10. Fans, Bloggers, and Gamers: Media Consumers in a Digital Age, Henry Jenkins. Just fantastic. Although it's much more academic, I enjoyed this book even more than Convergence Culture because it took me inside the world of fan communities, a world I've only barely glimpsed before now.... [ my full review]
11. And a tentative recommendation for Personal Finance for Dummies, Eric Tyson, which I am reading right now and finding surprisingly deep for a Dummies book. I read numerous personal finance books last year, and this one, so far, seems to at least equal the best of that bunch.

Update: Jordon Cooper posts his list of the 11 Best Books he read in 2006. If you post your own list, please ping me via trackback or add the link in comments. Non-blogging readers, please post your lists in comments, too. What were the best books you read this year?