Best of the Year: The Best Book I Read This Year (Via The Atlantic)

These are not the best books that I read personally this year, but these are the best titles read by the editors and writers at  The Atlantic. One of these titles, however, is one of my very favorite books ever. I like that this list covers a nice combination of new and old titles. Sometimes we just need to go back and pick something off of that "To read" list from years ago...

The Best Book I Read This Year (Via The Atlantic)

Best of the Year: Via Band of Thebes: 80 Authors Select the Best LGBT Books of 2010

This list of 100 titles selected by 80 authors is really expansive and varied. Mainstream media often overlooks titles in the LGBT category, so this is a great opportunity to find something fantastic to read--or a great gift--that you might have missed elsewhere.

Via Band of Thebes: 80 Authors Select the Best LGBT Books of 2010
This book received the most mentions on the list. Incidentally, it was also nominated for the National Book Award.

Best of the Year: Authors choose their favorite books of 2010 at Salon.com

So when they were slacking off and not writing their own stories this year, what were writers reading? I'm pretty sure it wasn't this blog or the Grass Roots Facebook page, but Salon.com made sure and asked a few:

Author favorites of 2010 at Salon.com
OMG! Curtis Sittenfeld (who wrote one of my favoritest books ever, Prep) picked this book. I read this book this year, too! We're, like, besties now!

Best of the Year: A&E Gift Guide from The Oregonian

In my quest for awesome gift guides, I thought I better look somewhere local, too. The Oregonian impressed me for including a couple of books that tie in to the TV show Mad Men. Hello! I love Mad Men. Maybe you'll find something here for yourself.

A&E Gift Guide from The Oregonian

Best of the Year: COOKBOOKS!

In case you haven't heard, my friends, I do LOVE a good cookbook. When looking at lists of gift suggestions and best books of the year, it's almost always the cookbooks I really want to read over. Is there something I missed???

The Huffington Post website has made this subject remarkably easy for me to post, as they did a post yesterday featuring Best Cookbook of 2010 lists from various sources. If you're a cookbook fan like me, you will appreciate all of these great resources in one convenient location. Here they are; begin drooling now.

Best of the Year: COOKBOOKS! via Huffington Post.

Best of the Year: Holiday Books Gift Guide from the L.A. Times

The L.A. Times' book sections is grand and respectable, and their list of holiday gift recommendations in books is pretty darn awesome, too. It is wonderfully broad, and divided into some handy subject categories, including the oh-so-challenging-unless-you-read-them categories of Graphic Novels and Young Adult. I'm also a really big fan of the LA Times' layout on this page because it's so visual. It really gives you the opportunity to judge the books by their covers, but if you click on the cover, they give you a description of it as well.

Holiday Books Gift Guide from the L.A. Times
My personal choice: It's a Book by Lane Smith. It is a fanTAStic children's picture book about how absorbing real books are, as opposed to electronic media.

Best of the Year: Best Books to Give to Kids...

Recommending great books to give to kids is challenging for me. I don't have kids, I don't know a lot of kids, and I don't really read too many kids books. A picture book will often catch my eye, but if a customer is looking for a book for an 11-year-old who reads above their grade level, I might have a problem. Fortunately, we have a GREAT children's book buyer who makes sure we have a wonderful variety to choose from. Then there are lists like this on the internet that really help me narrow it down:

Best Books to Give to Kids...Even Those You Don't Know Very Well
From the EarlyWord blog.

Best of the Year: Best Film Books for 2010

Sadly, not everybody is a reader and a book lover. I know, I know--how can that BE? It is true, however. That's when those of us who are book lovers need to find ways to present our friends and family with gifts that promote reading through their other interests. Sure, you could just buy that movie lover a boxed set of their favorite movies, but why not a book about their favorite director or actor? Aha... Here's a great list from the Huffington Post to give you some ideas in that direction:

Best Film Books for 2010

You're going have to supply the popcorn yourself, though.

Best of the Year: The Daily Beast Holiday Book Guide

I like this list from the Daily Beast because it is not the usual cast of characters. If you're looking for a really nice book for someone who would like something a little different, one of these titles may just hit the spot. I am especially enamored of the hardcover, annotated edition of Pride and Prejudice. It's sort of like pop-up video for literature, but when the book is so well-loved I don't mind the side trips.

The Daily Beast Holiday Book Guide

Best of the Year: O Magazine's Top 10 Books of 2010

I'll say this for Oprah: she has done great work to promote reading and books, and has certainly helped bookstores survive. For this reason, I present to you the list of the Top 10 Books of 2010 from O Magazine. Read on, Oprah.

O Magazine's Top 10 Books of 2010