End of the Year Listmania Examined
December starts the rush for year-end "best of" book lists. Every reader, reviewer and publisher with a publication (e or print) has an opinion about every category of every book. I am no different. I identified my Top 10 books in 2007 and 2008 . I most likely will do the same this year — if only to help me re-live the good books and banish the bad (and, alas, there are always, always bad books). I make my list at the end of December, so I can include all books for the calendar year. I understand that newspapers and magazines don't have the same flexibility as I do, but every year I feel bad for the December books. Those of us born in that dark, cold, busy month know it's easy to be overlooked, trampled in the holiday rush and crushed by the approaching end of the year listmania. I read book sections and reviews all year long, so rarely does the list completely surprise me. It does, however, distill for me what ultimately rises above medi...