FeaturesChristmas Special - Best Books of 2008
British newspapers have released their annual books of the year recommendations in time for Christmas.
The Observer Review's ‘Most Thrilling Books of 2008' include A Most Wanted Man by John Le Carré, Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith, Palestinian Walks by Raja Sheradeh, A Mercy by Toni Morrison and Cormac McCarthy's novel The Road. The Observer also recommends Gerald Martin's biography, Gabriel Garcia Marquez: A Life and Edward Stourton's book, It's a PC World: What It Means to Live in a Land Gone Politically Correct.
The Daily Telegraph's ‘Best Novels of 2008' include: The Act of Love by Howard Jacobson, A Fraction of the Whole by Steve Toltz and Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith and This Charming Man by Marian Keyes. They also include thriller writer Daniel Silva's novel Moscow Rules and The Broken Window by crime-thriller writer Jeffery Deaver. Tim Binding's children's fantasy novel Sylvie and the Songman, illustrated by Angela Barrett also appears on the list. The Telegraph also recommends Gerald Martin's biography - Gabriel Garcia Marquez: A Life. Also highly praised is Sue Townsend's The Lost Diaries of Adrian Mole 1999-2001. Among The Sunday Telegraph 'Seven' Magazine's suggestions for Books of the Year are A Most Wanted Man by John Le Carré and Oscar's Books by Thomas Wright.
In their ‘Year of Fantastic Fiction' article, The Sunday Times Culture magazine proposes Toni Morrison's novel A Mercy as Best Fiction Novel of the Year and also highly recommends Deaf Sentence by David Lodge. In their humour recommendations they list Victoria and Giles Coren's book, Chocolate and Cuckoo Clocks: The Essential Alan Coren.
The Financial Times has split their Christmas list into separate categories. Among other novels they highly recommend Siri Hustvedt's The Sorrows of an American, Steve Toltz's, A Fraction of the Whole, Toni Morrison's, A Mercy, Tom Rob Smith's, Child 44, John Le Carré's, A Most Wanted Man and Bernadine Evaristo's, Blonde Roots. In their Politics and Religion category, Thomas L. Friedman's book Hot, Flat and Crowded: Why We Need a Green Revolution - and How We Can Renew Our Global Future is highly recommended. The FT also praises Anthony Woodward and Robert Penn's book The Wrong Kind of Snow: The Complete Daily Companion to the British Weather.
Andy Riley's DIY Dentistry... and Other Alarming Inventions is a Christmas hit on the Independent on Sunday's ‘The New Review' of 30 November. The Independent on Sunday also list 2008's best sports books and include The Great Swim by Gavin Mortimer.
The Times recommends Deaf Sentence by David Lodge, A Fraction of the Whole by Steve Toltz and The Days of Judy B by Rose Heiney among others on their list. Also in The Times, John Le Carre's novel A Most Wanted Man makes it onto ‘Michael Parkinson's Pick' for 2008. Patricia Cornwell's Book Of The Dead is listed as a Top Five 2008 bestseller with Tim Butcher's travel memoir Blood River: A Journey to Africa's Broken Heart also listed as a Top Five non-fiction 2008 bestseller.
The Guardian runs a ‘Season's Readings' article where writers and politicians pick the best of 2008 and Tom Rob Smith's Child 44, David Lodge's Deaf Sentence and Raja Sheradeh's novel Palestinian Walks are all recommended.
Cormac McCarthy, Daniel Silva, Siri Hustvedt, Thomas L Friedman and Toni Morrison represented on behalf of ICM Books Ltd. Jeffery Deaver represented on behalf of Gelfman Schneider Ltd