Sarah Bagby.

"This is such a hard thing to do," Sarah claims because there are so many good books. But even so, her favorites:

• Sex Wars by Marge Piercy.

• Fallen by Maine: Read Bruce's review

• Saturday by Ian McEwan: Read Bruce's review

• Lost Painting by Jonathan Harr: Read Sarah's review

• Necessary Spectacle by Selena Roberts: Read Sarah's review

• One Soldier's Story by Bob Dole - a must read for all Kansans: Read Sarah's review

• The Changed Man by Francine Prose.

• Case Histories by Kate Atkinson: Read Sarah's review

• The Good Wife by Stewart O'Nan: Read Sarah's review

And also: "How about a 'things we wish we'd read?' Now THAT list would be long!"

 

See what Sarah is reading.

Bruce Jacobs.

Bruce says, "It was a good year for fiction." He especially liked:  

• Acts of Faith by Phillip Caputo: Read review

• Power of the Dog by Don Winslow: Read review

• On Beauty by Zadie Smith: Read review

• Fallen by David Maine: Read review

• Rules for Old Men Waiting by Peter Pouncey: Read review

• Saturday by Ian Mcewan: Read review

• Last Night by James Salter: Read review

• Dying Light and Other Stories by Donald Hays: Read review

But non-fiction had slimmer pickings: only Chronicles: Vol. 1 by Bob Dylan really tripped his trigger.

See what Bruce is reading.

Carolyn Kretzer.

Carolyn's top picks include a trio of powerhouse Watermark favorites. 'Cause Carolyn doesn't mess around, y'all:

• The Tender Bar by J. R. Moehringer: Read Carolyn's review

• Fallen by David Maine: Read Bruce's review

• The Lincoln Lawyer by Michael Connelly: Read Sarah's review

Todd Robins:

Todd particularly liked a true-life look into the art world and a great big classic novel made fresh in new translation:

• The Lost Painting by Jonathan Harr: Read Sarah's review

• Don Quixote by Cervantes, in the new translation by Edith Grossman.

See what Todd is reading.

Mark Bradshaw.

Mark believes that good things should come in threes, and a good non-fiction book should have an odd-numbered year in its title:

 

Fiction:

• The Promise of Happiness by Justin Cartwright: Read review

• Broken As Things Are by Martha Witt: Read review

• The Master by Colm Tóibín, a fictional life of Henry James (and a 2004 Man Booker Prize finalist): Read review

Non-fiction:

• Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001 by Steve Coll (2005 Pulitzer Prize winner): Read review

• 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus by Charles C. Mann: Read review

• A Year in the Life of William Shakespeare: 1599 by James Shapiro: Read review

For young readers:

• The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall (a 2005 National Book Award winner): Read review

• Airball: My Life in Briefs by L. D. Harkrader: Read review

• The Runaways series by Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona: Read review

See what Mark is reading.

Meridith Jones.

Meridith likes things funky and funny. These books are often both:

• Goodnight Steve McQueen: Read Meridith's review

• The Perfect Play also by Louise Wener: Read Bruce's review

• A Long Way Down by Nick Hornby: Read her review

• Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer: Read Bruce's review

• The Life and Times of a Teaboy by Michael Collins.

• Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs by Chuck Klosterman.

• Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by Dave Sedaris.

• The Book of Liz by Amy Sedaris (yes, his sister).

• Stranger Than Fiction by Chuck Palahniuk.

• Proof, a play by David Auburn.

• Pillowman by Martin McDonagh.

• The Memory of Water by Shelagh Stephenson.

• Never Coming to a Theatre Near You by Kenneth Turan: Read Jessica's review

• America: The Book by John Stewart.

• Eat, Love, Pray by Elizabeth Gilbert.

And for teenage girls:

• The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series by Ann Brashares: Read Meridith's review

See what Meridith is reading

Anne Frey. 

Anne is "all about" two new memoirs and a pair of paperback faves:

• My Friend Leonard by James Frey - sequel to A Million Little Pieces.

• The Tender Bar by J. R. Moehringer: Read Carolyn's review

• The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger,

• The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini: Read Mark's review

See what Anne is reading.

Jason Mallott.

Jason suggests a trio of books to wake you up and make you think:

• To the Wedding by John Berger.

• America, Fascism and God by Davidson Loehr.

• What Makes a Man by Rebecca Walker.

See what Jason is reading.

Angie Trienen & Cori Eck.

Angie and Cori teamed up on a list of favorite memoirs and great paperback fiction for book clubs:

• Julie & Julia by Julie Powell: Read Mark's review

• Wicked by Gregory Maguire.

• The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson.

• The Tender Bar by J. R. Moehringer: Read Carolyn's review

• The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini: Read Mark's review

• My Sister's Keeper and Vanishing Acts, both by Jodi Picoult.

• Case Histories by Kate Atkinson: Read Sarah's review

Julianne Ramsey.

Mixing equal parts mystery, hilarity, and drama, Julianne dishes up a list of new picks and paperbacks for your reading pleasure:

 

Fiction:

• The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova: Read review

• Birds of a Feather by Jacqueline Winspear.

• A Slight Trick of the Mind by Mitch Cullin: Read Juli's review

• Fluke by Christopher Moore.

• Enduring Love by Ian McEwan.

• Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden.

• Bel Canto by Anne Patchett.

• Matchstick Men by Eric Garcia.

Non-fiction:

• Devil in the White City by Erik Larson: Read review

• Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach: Read Julianne's review

• Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife, also by Mary Roach.

• Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris.

Plays:

• Angels in America by Tony Kushner.

• Pillowman by Martin Mc Donagh.

• Doubt by John Patrick Shanley.

Marlo Hamrick.

Marlo really, really liked The Electric Michelangelo. Check it out along with her other picks:

• The Electric Michelangelo by Sarah Hall: Read Marlo's review

• Sex Wars by Marge Piercy.

• Talk to the Hand by Lynne Truss.

See what Marlo is reading

Missy Abbott.

Missy enjoys a good story with some thrills in it. These two make the grade:

• Solomon vs. Lord by Paul Levine: Read Missy's review

• Black Rose by Nora Roberts: Read Missy's review

See what Missy's reading

Liz Sifford.

Liz rolls with the fascinating and the unusual, followed by a nice home-cooked meal.

• American Sideshow by Marc Hartzman.

• The American Splendor Anthology by Harvey Pekar.

• Invisible Monsters by by Chuck Palahniuk.

• Anthem by Ayn Rand.

• The Fannie Farmer Cookbook by Marion Cunningham.

 

 

Were you keeping score?

 

The Kite Runner, Case Histories, Saturday, Sex Wars, and The Lost Painting each had two votes, while The Tender Bar and Fallen led with three apiece. They're all winners, folks.

See Our Best Reads of 2004

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