Top Ten for 2006

I consider all of these 5* books (the best rating I would give a book, except where noted for some reason or other). Here is my list, in no particular order:
1. The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
2. My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult
3. Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt
4. Cane River by Lalita Tandemy
5. Red Leaves by Thomas H. Cook
6. Cage of Stars by Jacquelyn Mitchard
7. Plainsong and Eventide by Kent haruf (two books I know but the second is a sequel and both were great)
8. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver (would be a 5 but it drags on just a little too long, otherwise an excellent novel).
9. The Road by Cormac McCarthy (would be a 5 but it's just a tad too bleak, but an intense book that I think everyone should read).
10. Name All the Animals by Allison Smith

December Reads

Queen of Swords by Sara Donati 3*, not the best of the series. Revolved around Hannah, Luke and Jennet, not the rest of the usual main characters.....
The Keep by Jennifer Egan 3* weird and different....interesting story, just told from too many viewpoints, gets confusing, and I hated the ending
Picture Perfect by Jodi Picoult 2* predictable story and weak characters, definitely not her best!!
Salem Falls by Jodi Picoult 3*
Baby Shark by Robert Fate 3*
Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts 3* pretty good story, but dragged on wayyyyyy too much (932 pages)
The Tie That Binds by Kent Haruf 3* okay story but not his best
More Than You Know by Beth Gutcheon 3*
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote 3*
Ellen Foster by Kaye Gibbons 4* (quick easy read)
"The Life All Around Me by Ellen Foster" by Kaye Gibbons 3*, not as good as the first
The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls 5*
The Dollmaker by Harriette Arnow....halfway through, not sure if I'll finish it. Just VERY depressing....
The Ruins by Scott Smith 4* not my normal kind of reading, but very much a page turner!!
The Center Of Everything by Laura Moriarity 4*
The Pact by Jodi Picoult 4*
Small Island by Andrea Levy 3*
The Reader by Bernard Schlink 3*

Nov Reads

Sweet Ruin by Cathi Hanauer 3.5*
Household Gods by Judith Tarr and Harry Turtledove 3*
Any Bitter Thing by Monica Wood 3.5*
Eden Close by Anita Shreve 3*
Quality of Care by Elizabeth Letts 3*
The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield 3.5*
The Road by Cormac McCarthy 4* heartbreakingly sad and quite bleak but one I couldn't put down until I finished
Thirteen Moons by Charles Frazier 3* (started out strong but ended with a whimper. I was left thinking "what?? that's it?")
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver 4 * Made me literally laugh out loud and cry. Probably would have been 5 * but I felt it dragged on a little too long.
The Myth of You and Me by Leah Stewart 3*
Clay's Quilt by Silas House 2.5*
God-Shaped Hole by Tiffanie DeBartolo 3.5*
When Madeline Was Young by Jane Hamilton 2.5*, just rambled, never really went anywhere.....
Devil in the White City by Erik Larson 4*