December 28th, 2010
PEOPLE Book Review Index, 2010
People does not offer an online index to their book reviews. Below is EarlyWord’s index to reviews from 2010 .Links to the archives of indices from other years are here.
People archives the complete issues on the site, generally one week after publication. Links from the dates below are to the book section for that issue.
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Top Ten Books of 2010:
Life, Keith Richards, Little, Brown
Room, Emma Donaghue, Little, Brown
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Rebecca Skloot, Crown
I Remember Nothing, Nora Ephron, Random
A Visit from the Goon Squad, Jennifer Egan, Knopf
Unbroken, Laura Hillenbrand, Random
Just Kids, Patti Smith, HarperCollins/Ecco
Autobiography of Mark Twain, U. of Cal. Press
One Day, David Nicholls, Vintage
As Always, Julia, ed. by Joan Reardon, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt – (2010-12-01), 3.5 of 4 stars
Mentions:
The Lean Belly Prescription, Travis Stork MD, Peter Moore, Rodale Books – (2010-12-07)
William and Kate, Christopher Anderson, Gallery – (2010-12-21)
Rescue, Anita Shreve, Little Brown, People Pick and 4 of 4 stars
Of Love and Evil, Anne Rice, Knopf, 3.5 of 4 stars
An Object of Beauty, Steve Martin, Grand Central Publishing – (2010-11-23), 4 of 4 stars,
The Wolves of Andover, Kathleen Kent, Reagan Arthur Books – (2010-11-08), 3.5 of 4 stars
Living Large, Sarah Z. Wexler, St. Martin’s Press – (2010-10-26), 3.5 of 4 stars
Decision Points, George W. Bush, Crown, (2010-11-09), 3.5 of 4 stars
The Distant Hours, Kate Morton, Atria, (2010-11-09) 4 of 4 stars
Foreign Bodies, Cynthia Ozick, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, (2010-11-01), 4 of 4 stars
Louisa May Alcott, Susan Cheever, Simon & Schuster, (2010-11-02), 4 of 4 stars
Unbroken, Laura Hillenbrand, Random House, (November 16, 2010), 4 of 4 stars and a People Pick
The Mind’s Eye, Oliver Sacks, Knopf, (October 26, 2010), 4 of 4 stars
Full Dark, No Stars, Stephen King, Scribner, (November 9, 2010), 3.5 of 4 stars
Cleopatra: A Life, Stacy Schiff, Little, Brown, (November 1, 2010), 3 of 4 stars
Interview: Kat Von D, The Tattoo Chronicles, Collins Design, (November 1, 2010)
The Confession, John Grisham, Doubleday, 4 of 4 stars
I Remember Nothing, Nora Ephron, People Pick
Nora Recommends: “Three Books That Are Older Than I Am”
The Customs of the Country, Edith Wharton
Bleak House, Charles Dickens
The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald
Life, Keith Richards, Little, Brown (October 26, 2010), 3.5 of 4 stars,
Three titles listed under “Great Reads: Memoirs”
Autobiography of Mark Twain, Vol. 1, Mark Twain, University of California Press (November 15, 2010)
Even Silence Has an End, Ingrid Betancourt, Penguin Press, (September 21, 2010)
Kasey to the Rescue: The Remarkable Story of a Monkey and a Miracle, Ellen Rogers, Hyperion (November 2, 2010)
You Had Me at Woof, Julie Klum, Riverhead, (October 28, 2010), 3.5 of 4 stars and a People Pick
The above is the only title reviewed. Three more are mentioned as “Great Reads: New in Fiction”
The Pursuit of Happiness, Douglas Kennedy, Atria, (October 19, 2010)
Man in the Woods, Scott Spencer, Ecco, (September 14, 2010)
How to Read the Air, Dinaw Mengestu, Riverhead, (October 14, 2010)
Palo Alto, James Franco, Scribner, (October 19, 2010). This week, the section leads not with a review, but with an interview with actor James Franco about his book of short stories. Actually, they kind of review it, saying in the intro, “And guess what? It’s pretty good.”
The Charming Quirks of Others, Alexander Mccall Smith, Pantheon/Knopf (October 12, 2010), 3.5 of 4 stars
Buzz, Katherine Ellison, Voice (October 5, 2010), 4 of 4 stars
The False Friend, Myla Goldberg, Doubleday (October 5, 2010), 3 of 4 stars
Great House, Nicole Krauss, W.W. Norton, (Oct. 5, 2010), 3.5 of 4 stars
Bound, Antonya Nelson, Bloomsbury, (Sept. 28, 2010), 3.5 of 4 stars
By Nightfall, Michael Cunningham, FSG (Sept. 28, 2010), 2 of 4 stars
You Don’t Look Like Anyone I Know, Riverhead Hardcover (Oct. 14, 2010), Heather Sellers, 3.5 of 4 stars
At Home, Bill Bryson, Doubleday (October 5, 2010), 3.5 of 4 stars
Bury Your Dead, Louise Penny, Minotaur Books (September 28, 2010), 4 of 4 stars
Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk, David Sedaris, Little, Brown (September 28, 2010) 3 of 4 stars
Before You Suffocate Your Own Fool Self, Danielle Evans (Riverhead; Sep 23, 2010), 4 of 4 stars and a People Pick
Earth (The Book): A Visitor’s Guide to the Human Race by Jon Stewart and writers of The Daily Show (Grand Central; Sep 21, 2010), 4 of 4 stars
Gold Boy, Emerald Girl, Yiyun Li (Random House; Sep 14, 2010), 3 of 4 stars
The Wave, Susan Casey, Doubleday, 4 of 4 stars
Mini Shopaholic, Sophie Kinsella, Dial, 3 of 4 stars
Salvation City, Sigrid Nunez, Riverhead, 4 of 4 stars
Half Empty, David Rakoff, Doubleday , 4 of 4 stars
Room, Emma Donoghue, (Little, Brown, 9/13) 3.5 of 4 stars and a People Pick
Getting to Happy, Terry Mcmillan, (Viking, 9/7) 2.5 of 4 stars
Katie Up and Down the Hall: The True Story of How One Dog Turned Five Neighbors into a Family, Glenn Plaskin, (Center Street, 9/8) 3 of 4 stars
The Widower’s Tale, Julia Glass, (Pantheon, 9/7) 4 of 4 stars
Vermilion Drift, William Kent Krueger, (Atria, 9/7) 3 of 4 stars
Mockingjay, Suzanne Collins, Scholastic Press (August 24, 2010), 4 of 4 stars and a People Pick
Skippy Dies, Paul Murray, Faber & Faber (August 31, 2010), 3.5 of 4 stars
Last Night at Chateau Marmont, Atria (August 17, 2010), Lauren Wisberger, 3 of 4 stars
The Good Daughters, Joyce Maynard, Morrow (August 24, 2010), 3.5 of 4 stars
Body Work, Sara Partsky, Putnam (August 31, 2010) 3 of 4 stars
Freedom, Jonathan Franzen, FSG, (August 31, 2010), 4 of 4 stars and a People Pick
The Pain Chronicles, Melanie Thernstrom, FSG, (August 17, 2010), 3.5 of 4 stars
The Last Talk with Lola Faye, Thomas H. Cook, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (July 7, 2010), 3.5 of 4 stars
The Tower, the Zoo and the Tortoise, Doubleday, (August 10, 2010) 4 of 4 stars
How to Become a Scandal, Metropolitan Books (August 31, 2010), 3.5 of 4 stars
Great Reads: New Memoirs:
What We Have, Amy Boesky
Color Blind, Precious Williams
The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating, Elizabeth Tova Bailey
I’d Know You Anywhere, Laura Lippman, (Morrow, 8/17/10), 4 of 4 stars
My Hollywood, Mona Simpson, (Knopf, 8/3/10), 3.5 of 4 stars
The Rembrandt Affair, Daniel Silva, (Putnam, 7/20/10) 4 of 4 stars
I’m with Fatty, Edward Ugel, Weinstein Books – (2010-08-24), 3.5 of 4 stars
Let’s Take the Long Way Home, Random House – (2010-08-10), Gail Caldwell, 3 of 4 stars
How to Be and American Housewife, Putnam – (2010-08-05), Margaret Dilloway, 4 of 4 stars
Mentions:
Great Reads; Fiction Debuts
Bill Warrington’s Last Chance, James King, Viking – (2010-08-05)
Juliet, Anne Fortier, Ballantine Books – (2010-08-24)
Simply From Scratch, Alicia Bessette, Dutton Adult – (2010-08-05)
Star Island, Carl Hiasson, Knopf, 4 of 4 stars
Super Sad True Love Story, Gary Shtenygart, Random House, 3.5 of 4 stars
The Stuff That Never Happened, Crown, Maddie Dawson, 3 of 4 stars
Interview with Beverly Cleary, author of Beezus and Ramona (movie is about to launch), HarperColins
Murder at Mansfield Park, Lynn Shepherd, St. Martin’s Griffin (July 20, 2010); 3.5 of 4 stars
What Is Left the Daughter, Howard Norman, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, (July 6, 2010); 3.5 of 4 stars
Red Hook Road, Ayelet Waldman, Doubleday, 3 of 4 stars
Talking to Girls About Duran Duran, Dutton, Rob Sheffield, 4 of 4 stars
Lucy, Laurence Gonzales, Knopf, 3 of 4 stars
Zoo Story, Thomas French, Hyperion, 4 of 4 stars and a People Pick
Fly Away Home, Atria/S&S, Jennifer Weiner, 3.5 of 4 stars
The Cookbook Collector, Allegra Goodman, Dial Press, 4 of 4 stars and a People Pick
Little Girl Blue, Randy L. Schmidt, Chicago Review Press, 3 of 4 stars
They’re Watching, Gregg Hurwitz, St. Martin’s Press, 3 of 4 stars
The Lovers, Vendela Vida, Ecco, 3 of 4 stars
Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M, Sam Wasson, HarperStudio, 4 of 4 stars and a People Pick
It All Began in Monte Carlo, Elizabeth Adler, St. Martin’s Press, 3 of 4 stars
This Must Be The Place, Kate Racculia, Holt, 4 of 4 stars
On the Outskirts of Normal, Debra Monroe, Southern Methodist University Press, 3 of 4 stars
One Day, David Nicholls, Vintage, 4 of 4 stars and a People Pick
The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner, Stephenie Meyer, Little, Brown, 2.5 of 4 stars
Finding Chandra, 3.5 of 4 stars
A Visit From The Goon Squad, Jennifer Egan
How Did You Get This Number, Sloane Crosley
Beautiful Maria Of My Soul, Oscar Hijuelos
Still Missing, Chevy Stevens
Pray For Silence, Linda Castillo
Backseat Saints, Joshilyn Jackson
The Island, Elin Hilderbrand
Neighborhood Watch, Cammie Mcgovern
Fragile, Lisa Unger
The Summer We Read Gatsby, Danielle Ganek
Imperial Bedrooms, Bret Easton Ellis
Cakewalk, Kate Moses
Marcus Of Umbria, Justine VAN DER Leun
Walking Papers, Francesco Clark, Hyperion, 4 of 4 stars
Promises to Keep, Jane Green, Viking, 3 of 4 stars
Dear Money by Martha McPhee,Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 4 of 4 stars
The Passage, Justin Cronin, Ballantine, 3 of 4 stars
Heart of the Matter, Emily Giffin, St. Martin’s, 3 of 4 stars
Seven Year Switch, Claire Cook, Voice, 3 of 4 stars
Hitch-22, Christopher Hitchens, Twelve, 4 of 4 stars
Where’s My Wand?, Eric Poole, Amy Einhorn/Putnam, 4 of 4 stars
Welcome to Utopia, Karen Valby, Spiegel & Grau, 4 of 4 stars
The Lonely Polygamist, Brady Udall, Norton, 4 of 4 stars
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake, Doubleday, Aimee Bender, 4 of 4 stars
Peep Show, Joshua Braff, Algonquin, 4 of 4 stars
Spent, Avis Cardella, Little, Brown, 3 of 4 stars
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest, Stieg Larsson, Knopf, 3.5 of 4 stars
Give + Take, Stona Fitch, Thomas Dunne/St. Martins, 3.5 of 4 stars
Foxy, Pam Grier, Grand Central, 3.5 of 4 stars
War, Sebastian Junger, Twelve/Grand Central, 3.5 of 4 stars and a People Pick
My Fair Lazy, Jen Lancaster, NAL, 3 of 4 stars
Last Call, Daniel Okrent, Scribner, 4 of 4 stars
Spoken from the Heart, Laura Bush, Scribner, 3 of 4 stars
The Other Wes Moore, Wes Moore, Spiegel & Grau, 3 of 4 stars
Girl in Translation, Jean Kwok, Riverhead, 3 of 4 stars
Spoon Fed, Kim Severson, Riverhead, 4 of 4 stars
The Pregnant Widow, Martin Amis, Knopf, 3.5 of 4 stars
The Carrie Diaries by Candace Bushnell
Innocent by Scott Turow
Orange is the New Black by Piper Kerman
Stuff, Randy O. Frost & Gail Steketee, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, People Pick and 4 of 4 stars
The Bedwetter, Sarah Silverman, Harper, 4 of 4 stars
Scent of the Missing, Susannah Charleson, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 3.5 of 4 stars
Lies of the Heart, Michelle Boyajian, Viking, 3.5 of 4 stars
Rock and Roll Will Save Your Life, Steve Almond, Random House, 4 of 4 stars
Men and Dogs, Katie Crouch, Little, Brown, 3.5 of 4 stars
The Lake Shore Limited, Sue Miller, Knopf, 3.5 of 4 stars
Nowhere to Run, C.J. Box, Putnam, 4 of 4 stars
The Lotus Eaters, Tatjana Soli, St. Martins, 3.5 of 4 stars
The Swimming Pool, Holly LeCraw, Doubleday, 3 of 4 stars
When I Stop Talking, You’ll Know I’m Dead, Jerry Weintraub, Twelve, 4 of 4 stars
Something Red, Jennifer Gilmore, Scribner, 3 of 4 stars
The Last Time I Saw You, Elisabeth Berg, Random House, 3 of 4 stars
A Ticket to the Circus, Norris Church Mailer, Random House, 4 of 4 stars
Dimanche, Irene Nemirovsky, Vintage, 3.5 of 4 stars
“Great Reads”
Us, Lisa Oz, Free Press
You Look Fine, Really, Christie Mellor, Morrow
Just Let Me Lie Down, Kristin van Ogtrop, Little, Brown
Mentions:
Secrets of Jewish Mother, Jill Zarin, Dutton
Eaarth: Making a Life on a Tough New Planet, Bill McKibben, Times Books
Sleeping Beauties: Newborns in Dreamland, Tracy Raver and Kelley Ryden, Sellers Publishing (photo book)
Imperfect Birds, Anne Lamott, Riverhead, 3 of 4 stars
Solar, Ian McEwan, Nan A. Talese, 3 of 4 stars
The Solitude of Prime Numbers, Paolo Giordano, Pamela Dorman Books/Viking, 3.5 of 4 stars
Easy for You, Shannon Rouss, S&S original pbk, 3 of 4 stars
Mentions:
Insectopedia, Hugh Raffles, Pantheon
Heaven, Lisa Miller, Harper
Paul And Me, A.E. Hotchner , 3 of 4 stars
Love In Mid Air, Kim Wright, 3.5 of 4 stars
The Mapping Of Love And Death. Jacqueline Winspear, 3.5 of 4 stars
Caught .Harlan Coben, 3.5 of 4 starsMentions:
Lost, Alice Lichtenstein
Fragile Beasts, Tawni O’dell
The Hole We’re In, Gabrielle Zevin
The Weed that Strings the Hangman’s Bag, Delacorte, Alan Bradley, 4 of 4 stars and a People Pick
A Thousand Cuts, Simon Lelic, Viking, 3.5 of 4 stars
Imperfect Endings, Zoe Fitzgerald Carter, S&S, 3.5 of 4 stars
Mrs. Darcy and the Blue-Eyed Stranger, Lee Smith, Algonquin, 4 of 4 stars
The Heights, Peter Hedges, Dutton, 3 of 4 stars
Noted:
Dogplay: The Canine Guide to Being Happy, Kim Levin, Christine Montaquila, Stewart, Tabori & Chang
Shift Your Habit, Three Rivers Press/Crown, Elizabeth Rogers
The Best of Friends: Martha and Me, Harper, Mariana Pasternak
The Surrendered, Chang Rae Lee, Riverhead, 3 of 4 stars
The Opposite of Me, Sarah Pekkanen, Washington Square Press, 3.5 of 4 stars
The Irresistible Henry House, Random House, Lisa Grunwald,
Angelology, Danielle Trussoni, Viking, 3.5 of 4 stars
The Ask, Sam Lipsyte, FSG, 3.5 of 4 stars
The Man from Saigon, Marti Leimbach, Nan A. Talese/Doubleday, 3.5 of 4 stars
I am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced, Nujood Ali and Delphine Minoui, Three Rivers Press, 4 of 4 stars
The Wild Zone, Joy Fielding, Atria, 3 of 4 stars
So Much for That, Lionel Shriver, Harper, 3 of 4 stars
House Rules, Jodi Picoult, Atria, 4 of 4 stars
Union Atlantic, Adam Haslett, Talese/Doubleday, 3.5 of 4 stars
Saving Gracie, Carol Bradley, Howell Book House, 4 of 4 stars
Keeping the Feast, Paula Butturini, Riverhead, 3.5 of 4 stars
“Great Reads”
The Three Weissmanns of Westport, FSG, Cathleen Schine
Brava Valentine, Harper, Adriana Trigiani
Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand, Random House, Helen Simonson
The Postmistress, Sarah Blake, Amy Einhorn Books/Putnam, 3 of 4 stars
Making Toast, Roger Rosenblatt, Ecco, 3 of 4 stars
The Last Train from Hiroshima, Holt, Charles Pellegrino, 3.5 of 4 stars
Winter Garden, Kristen Hannah, St. Martin’s Press, 3.5 of 4 stars
Model Home, Eric Puchner, 4 of 4 stars
The Wife’s Tale, Lori Lansens, 3.5 of 4 stars
The Whale, Philip Hoare, 4 of 4 stars
You Say Tomato, I Say Shut Up, Annabelle Gurwitch and Jeff Kahn, 3.5 of 4 stars
Marry Him by Lori Gottlieb, 3 of 4 stars
Healing Hearts, Kathy E. Magliato, 4 of 4 stars
Devotion, Dani Shapiro. 4 0f 4 stars and a People Pick
Making the Rounds with Oscar, David Dosa, MD, 3.5 of 4 stars
The Brightest Star in the Sky, Marian Keyes, 3.5 of 4 stars
Notes from the Cracked Ceiling, Kornblut, Anne E., 3.5 of 4 stars
Roses, Leila Meacham, 4 of 4 stars and a People Pick
Marriage and Other Acts of Charity, Kate Braestrup, 3.5 of 4 stars
Fun with Problems, Robert Stone, 3.5 of 4 stars
Saving CeeCee Honeycutt, Beth Hoffman, 3 atars
Where the God of Love Hangs Out, Amy Bloom, 3.5 of 4 stars and a People Pick
Star, Peter Biskind, 3.5 of 4 stars
Wench, Dalen Perkins-Valdeza, 3.5 of 4 stars
Not My Daughter, Barbara Delinsky, 3.5 of 4 stars
Noah’s Compass, Anne Tyler, 3 of 4 stars