Happy New Year! The Best Books of the Past Year (2013)

So perhaps it's a bit ironic that my last entry was titled in part "We Had the Greatest Expectations" as I had the greatest expectations of staying more on top of updating this blog. Alas, several months past with radio silence from me. While I've been at least occasionally doing some arts and entertainment type things I'd like to share with you all (or you all who are still kicking around here from time to time), I've been short on time to ever write about any of it. Now that it's a new year, I won't make the same mistake as before of promising to make updates more timely as, let's face it, that's not my forte. But I did want to pop in for a quick post with the obligatory year-end list (although it's now already the new year!). As I have done for the past few years, I'm providing here a quick list of the books I found the most compelling reads during 2013. Note, as always, these are not necessarily books released during 2013, simply books that I read during the last year and that have stuck with me. Hopefully this selection might prompt you to pick up some new books for your TBR pile!

Without any further ado, here's the list itself. It's broken down into two major categories: adult books and children's/YA books. Graphic novels and nonfiction books are indicated by these symbols respectively: ^ and **. Any books that I was re-visiting for a second read are marked with a (2) after the title. Each title is hyperlinked to my review of it on LibraryThing for anyone looking for more information on that particular book.

The Best Books of 2013   Adult

Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
Collected Stories by Graham Greene
The Dinner by Herman Koch
Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic**^ by Alison Bechdel
The Girls' Guide to Love and Supper Clubs by Dana Bate
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
I'd Know You Anywhere by Laura Lippman
Maus: A Survivor's Tale**^ by Art Spiegelman
Murder at the Frankfurt Bookfair by Hubert Monteilhet
We Need to Talk about Kevin by Lionel Shriver


Children's/Young Adult

123 versus ABC by Mike Boldt
Bear and Bee by Sergio Ruzzier
Fancy Nancy and the Boy from Paris (2) by Jane O'Connor
The Fantastic Jungles of Henri Rosseau** by Michelle Markel
How Are You Peeling? by Joost Elffers
Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein
Knuffle Bunny Free: An Unexpected Diversion by Mo Willems
What's So Terrible about Swallowing an Appleseed? by Harriet Lerner


** = nonfiction
(2) = re-read
^ = graphic novel

Happy reading to all and to all a good night!