As I review the list of books I read this past year I am amazed at the sheer quantity.  And the quality, too, for that matter.  Aside from a couple of Fluffs, my brain was able to wrap itself around some pretty interesting and enlightening tomes.

I’ve placed the books into six categories, and then made a few comments on each.  If the word sayonara appears after the author it means 1) I don’t recommend it and 2) it went straight to the Goodwill pile.  I only keep books I would either read again or heartily recommend.  The italicized books are my three favorites of the year.

FICTION:

Madame Bovary   Gustave Flaubert.   There’s a reason it’s a classic… memorable characters, well-written prose.
In a Dark Wood Wandering   Hella S. Haasse.   Engrossing historical fiction, aptly depicts the time period.
Bergdorf Blondes    Plum Sykes.   This book is, of course, a waste of a perfectly good tree.  It is Fluff Defined, really.  But there are months days when that’s all my brain can handle.  If you were amused by The Devil Wears Prada, it’s tres fun, a quick read, and good for several laughs.
Kite Runner    Kahled Hosseini.  
Uncle Tom's Cabin    Harriet Beecher Stowe.

MEMOIR/BIOGRAPHY:

I Loved a Girl  Walter Trobisch.    Candid and thought-provoking collection of letters between a priest and a young couple considering marriage.  Excellent.
Borrowed Time:  An AIDS Memoir   Paul Monette.     Sayonara.
Pirate Hunter:  The True Story of Captain Kidd   Richard Zaks.     Apart from being gratuitously crass in a few places – and occasionally getting the impression that some of the historical background that sets the scene throughout was added as filler - I enjoyed Pirate Hunter.  So did Jonathan.  It’s the only book he read last year.

DOCUMENTARY/HISTORY:

Fast Food Nation   Eric Schlosser.   Makes you re-think that McDonald’s burger for many, many reasons.
Vaccinated   Paul Offit.  (review)

OTHER NON-FICTION:

The Not So Big House   Sarah Susanka.    Inspiring ways to efficiently construct/design/renovate you home.
Adobe Illustrator CS3 Classroom in a Book    
Deceptively Delicious   Jessica Seinfeld.   (review)
All God's Children and Blue Suede Shoes    Kenneth A. Myers and Marvin Olasky.    Sayonara.
Bible:  Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Micah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, I and II Timothy, Titus, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Romans, 1 & 2 Corinthians, Galations, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 & 2 Thessalonians, 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews, James, 1, 2 & 3 John, Jude.    [Note:  In January of 2005 I set out to read the Bible through in one year.  Three years later, I’m one book away from that goal.  Out of it’s books I read in 2007, Hebrews resonated the most with me.]

ECONOMICS / MARKETING:

Freakonomics   Steven Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner.    Jonathan and I listened to this audiobook in the car en route to and from Sante Fe last spring.  Intriguing, enlightening, and entertaining.
Why We Buy:  The Science of Shopping   Paco Underhill.   Sayonara.

EDUCATION / PARENTING:

Good Kids, Bad Habits  Jennifer Trachtenberg.  (review)
Even June Cleaver Would Forget the Juice Box  Ann Dunnewold.  (review)
Girlfriend's Guide to Toddlers   Vicki Iovine.   The Girlfriend’’s Guides are always amusing and encouraging with quite a few helpful pointers throughout.
Practical Wisdom for Parents:  Demystifying the Preschool Years    Nancy Shulman and Ellen Birnbaum.   Despite the melodramatic subtitle, this book is a fairly extensive guide to both how children change during these years and how to choose an appropriate preschool environment for them.
Six Point Plan for Raising Healthy Happy Kids   John Rosemond.  Sayonara.
Tools for Teaching   Fred Jones.    Good resource for educators.
Teaching Preschoolers:  It’s Not Exactly Easy, But Here is How To Do It     Ruth Beechick.    A succinct and well-organized guide with emphasis on practical application.  I will be referring to this book often during the next few years.
The Bilingual Edge    Kendall King and Alison Mackey.  (review)

So....  what were your favorite reads of 2007?