Co-owner of Anderson's Bookshop offers favorite reads of 2011
Becky Anderson has unfolded them in her lap, sometimes paging through them under a dim light when she really should be sleeping.
They are her favorite books of 2011. Fiction and nonfiction. Biographies and illustrated tales. A diverse list of books selected by the co-owner of Anderson's Bookshop stores in Naperville and Downers Grove.
Before delving headlong into the hottest books of 2012, Anderson says there are still plenty of entries from last year worth a look.
Among her favorites is “The Night Circus” by Erin Morgenstern. The novel centers on a circus that opens around the globe and the grooming of two magicians for a battle of their tricks.
“You find you read it in one sitting,” Anderson promises.
Another is “Turn of Mind” by Alice LaPlante — a thriller from the perspective of a woman's brilliant, but dementia-ravaged mind.
The popularity of one best-selling book at her independent bookstores reflects a continued fascination with a billionaire, a partially bitten apple and all those black turtlenecks.
“People are interested in what made him tick,” Anderson said of the successes and failures detailed in “Steve Jobs,” the biography of the Apple mogul by Walter Isaacson.
For a young adult, nonfiction read, Anderson recommends “Blizzard of Glass: The Halifax Explosion of 1917” by Sally M. Walker. The book recounts the collision of two ships in Halifax Harbor, resulting in the largest man-made blast at the time.
“You feel like you're reading fiction because she weaves the story of these personal narratives,” Anderson said.
Besides selling books, Anderson's lured authors like Regis Philbin and Caroline Kennedy last year for signings and discussions at North Central College in Naperville. This year, the shop is looking to attract George R.R. Martin, author of the “A Song of Ice and Fire” series.
“His fantasies are just incredible,” Anderson said. “His characters are so rich.”
Anderson also expects continued interest in the greatest generation. Laura Hillenbrand's “Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption,” published in 2010, is still drawing readers.
But there's one connecting thread to all her favorites from 2011.
“They're all so beautifully written,” Anderson said. “They'll just have you glued from beginning to end.”
Becky Anderson's best books of 2011
• “Ready Player One” by Ernest Cline (Random House); fiction
• “The Night Circus” by Erin Morgenstern (Knopf); fiction
• “Turn of Mind” by Alice LaPlante (Grove/Atlantic); fiction
• “Rin Tin Tin: The Life and the Legend” by Susan Orlean (Simon & Schuster); nonfiction
• “Steve Jobs” by Walter Isaacson (Simon & Schuster); nonfiction
• “Blizzard of Glass: The Halifax Explosion of 1917” by Sally M. Walker (Henry Holt); nonfiction
• “Wonderstruck” by Brian Selznick (Scholastic); fiction
• “Between Shades of Gray” by Ruta Sepetys (Penguin); fiction
• “Prudence Wants a Pet” by Cathleen Daly (Roaring Book Press); fiction
• “The Cheshire Cheese Cat: A Dickens of a Tale” by Carmen Agra Deedy (Peachtree Publishers); fiction
Looking to share your own favorite books? Anderson's Bookshop is planning a celebration of World Book Night on Monday, April 23, when thousands of readers will be distributing free books in communities nationally. Organizers of World Book Night are looking for volunteers to deliver provided copies of books from a selected list of 30 titles. An application is available at www.us.worldbooknight.org. For details, contact Anderson's Bookshop at (630) 355-2665.