I set out to read 50 books this year, but I only got to 30, which I can live with because I've read some really awesome books this year. So here it goes:
BOOKS
- Most imaginative: A Certain Slant of Light by Laura Whitcomb
- Funniest: An Abundance of Katherines by John Green
- Edgiest contemporary: Burned by Ellen Hopkins
- Creepiest SF/dystopia: I started 1984 by George Orwell but didn't get a chance to finish, but it makes the list.
- Most evocative historical: A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray (does this count)
- Best love story: Boy meets Boy by David Levithan. Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn
SCENES
- Most hilarious: Radar wearing a confederate t-shirt and all the Black Santas in Paper Towns by John Green
- Scariest: When Melinda has to confront her attacker in Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
- Most disturbing: Susie Salmon is raped and murdered in The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
- Steamiest: Love Scene between Pattyn and Evan from Burned by Ellen Hopkins
- Most exciting: Christopher's travels in the train station and on the train in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
- Biggest tear-jerker: The last half of Looking for Alaska by John Green
- Best plot twist/revelation (no spoilers!!) : Hannah's reason why Clay is on her list in Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
CHARACTERS
- Best couple: Gemma and Kartik from The Gemma Doyle Series by Libba Bray
- Who you'd want as your best friend(s): Pudge, The Colonel, Takumi, Lara, and Alaska from Looking for Alaska by John Green
- Who you fell in love with: Jacob from New Moon by Stephenie Meyer (yeah I'll admit it, hated the book though)
- Worst (best?) villain: George Harvey from The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
- Best character twist (who you loved, then hated, or vice versa): Margo Roth Spieglman from Paper Towns by John Green. Hannah Baker from Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
- Best character name: Scarlett Martin from Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson
- Worst character names: N/A, I think everyone had pretty standard names.
- Favorite all-around kickass female: Avery from The Bermudez Triangle by Maureen Johnson, Alaska from Looking for Alaska by John Green, Elvia from Highwire Moon by Susan Straight and Gemma Doyle for the Gemma Doyle Series by Libba Bray
- Favorite all-around kickass male: Kartik from the Gemma Doyle Series and Roiben from The Ironside Series by Holly Black
MISCELLANEOUS
- Best book cover: Realm of Possibility by David Levithan
- Best title: Highwire Moon by Susan Straight, The Far Sweet Thing by Libba Bray
- Most memorable voice: The characters from Dogeaters by Jessica Hagedorn
- Most memorable first line: "The way I figure it, everyone gets a miracle" by Q from Paper Towns by John Green
- Best setting: Europe from 13 Little Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
- Most beautiful writing: Ellen Hopkins and David Levithan
LAST BUT NOT LEAST...
- Will any of the books you've read in 2009 make your life list of Favorite Books? Yes indeedy. My Top Five off the top of my head.
- Looking for Alaska
- The Bermudez Triangle
- The Key to The Golden Firebird
- Thirteen Reasons Why
- The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
