Dec 27 09
by cara
at 9:37 PM
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Good Reads: Best Books of 2009

I’ve got a couple “Best of 2009” posts planned for the next few days, hopefully in addition to my regular posting.  First up, the best books I read in 2009!  (I know that makes this the 3rd post in a row about books…I promise to talk about something different tomorrow!)  Reading is my way of winding down at the end of each and every night and sometimes during naptime too.  It’s rare that I’m without a stack of books to read sitting on my nightstand, and with the new blog format, I hope you’ve enjoyed seeing some of the books I’m reading over there in the side bar on the right.

Here are the Best Books of 2009 (they may not be new to you or published in 2009, but they were new to me this year):

1.  Outlander Series, by Diana Gabaldon: Ok, I’m only on #1 and I’m already cheating by giving you a whole series instead of an individual book!  Since reading Outlander in September, I’ve devoured the first 6 books in this series.  Each book is LONG-600 to 1,000 pages each-so we’re talking thousands of pages.  I just can’t get enough!  In fact, I’m currently reading The Outlandish Companion…a book about the Outlander series, also by Diana Gabaldon.  I have previously reviewed the first book, Outlander, so start there if you’re interested.

Outlander

2.  The Twilight Saga, by Stephanie Meyer: (Yup, another series!) I resisted reading Twilight for the longest time, thinking that I would never enjoy a book about teen vampires.  Then I finally picked up the first novel, and couldn’t put it down.  I promptly rushed out to buy the other 3 books in the series!  I’ve read the entire series multiple times since this summer.  Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve probably read it too or seen the movie (or at least the trailers), so I won’t bore you with a summary.  If you haven’t read this series yet, what are you waiting for?

Twilight Saga

3.  The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes From an Accidental Country Girl, by Ree Drummond: My favorite cookbook of the year!  Ok, so I just got this cookbook, but some of the recipes are ones that I already knew about from her blog.  Delicious, easy, down home cooking, with beautiful photographs and stories of life on the ranch.

The Pioneer Woman Cooks

4.  The Total Money Makeover, by Dave Ramsey: I’m planning an extended review of this one sometime soon, but this was a life changing read for me this year.  I admire Dave’s no nonsense approach to money, and his baby steps toward financial freedom seem simple enough.  We’re working through the baby steps now (though we’re still very early on in our journey), and I’m planning to re-read this book as needed to maintain my motivation to follow a budget, pay down debt, and create an emergency fund.

Total Money Makeover

5.  Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, by Barbara Kingsolver: #5 was a tough choice for me…I knew I wanted it to be one of the real food books I read, but I had trouble deciding between Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, Real Food by Nina Planck, and What to Eat by Marion Nestle.  I decided on Animal, Vegetable, Miracle because I felt it was the easiest read, and I enjoyed all of the anecdotes Ms. Kingsolver shared about her family’s one year challenge to eat only local foods.  Check out my previous review of this book.

Animal Vegetable Miracle

What was YOUR favorite read this year?

Disclosure:  Some of the links above are Amazon affiliate links, which means I MIGHT receive a tiny compensation from Amazon if a whole bunch of people click on those links and order books. (Hasn’t happened yet, doesn’t appear to be happening any time soon.)  I have not been asked to review any of these books.  These are just some of my favorites I wanted to share!

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7 Comments
  1. I keep meaning to add Animal, Vegetable, Miracle to my list… thank you for the reminder!

  2. Ricki permalink

    Those are all great books!

  3. Kate permalink

    I love The Help by Kathryn Stockett and The Host by Stwphanie Meyer. The host is by the author of twilight but written for adults and in my opinion even better. There is less teen angst. It is a science fiction, futuristic love story! So good. The help is takes place in Mississippi during the 1960s and the narration alternates between a white woman and several black women. I recommend them and the library has both. 🙂

  4. I’ll be running a “Best of 2009” series this weekend too…and giving away some AMAZING products! I’m soooo excited.

    My favorite book of 2009 was “Too Small To Ignore” by Wess Stafford. Powerful and Moving. I also loved “How to Be Like Walt” – a great biography on the life of Walt Disney.

    I read all four books in the Twilight Saga this past year too. I have both good and bad things to say about them…maybe I’ll write a post about it sometime. Anyway, have you seen the second movie yet? I want to rent it when it comes out on DVD!

  5. Thanks for all the best of lists! I have to agree with the previous comment…The Help was my favorite this year. And Redeeming Love was good too.

  6. jenn permalink

    I picked up Outlander at the library based on your recommendation. I am reading it now as so far I am really enjoying it. Thanks for the great pick.

  7. trish permalink

    ok. I am loving your blog! I got the link from Counting Cocunuts.. I would have just bookmarked you for awhile and tried it out.. but I have been going back and reading all your posts and I can’t stop! You are a girl after my own heart.. I have bookmarked all your yummy recipes , you love the same books I do, and I love doign StArt projects and crafts with my kids! YAY A new blog I love!

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