The 5 star books from 2013

First, a reminder of how a book gets a 5 star rating:

• It has to interest me from the first page. 
• If it's a mystery, I can't guess the bad guy.
• I don't read the end to see if I should keep reading.
• I have to enjoy the way the book is written.
• Nothing irritates me. And believe me, after 57 years of reading I'm easily irritated.

The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey - I loved everything about this book. It had such a fairy-tale, dreamy quality to it. An older couple homesteading in Alaska make a snowgirl that seemingly turns into a real girl. Delves into grieving and communication.


The Art Forger by B A Shapiro - is a Degas a forgery or the real thing? There are two stories in this book - the main character is making a copy of a Degas that is supposed to be an original and at the same time she is becoming convinced that the original is a forgery.

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce - recently retired Harold receives a letter from an old friend and on his way to post a reply he begins a walk to see her almost by mistake. Quite a different book and I really enjoyed it.

The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman - a young couple living on an island tending a lighthouse in the 1920's find a baby in a lifeboat along with her dead father. Decisions are made which affect many people.

Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan - takes place in the near future. A young man takes a job in a bookstore and discovers all is not as it seems. He tries to figure out what's going on and stumbles across a mysterious group searching for eternal life. Really much lighter than it sounds and really hard to explain.

With or Without You by Domenica Ruta- a memoir of a very badly raised woman and she is still struggling with it.  Pretty raw and with language. I found it fascinating.

Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend by Matthew Dicks - Budo is the imaginary friend of Max, an autistic boy. When Max is in danger, Budo must rescue him in spite of the fact no one can see or hear him. I loved this book. The observations Budo makes about Max's parents and the other adults around them are quite interesting. My heart was really pounding near the end. Just the kind of quirky and different book I like.

 The World's Strongest Librarian: A Memoir of Tourette's, Faith, Strength, and the Power of Family by Josh Hanagarne - absolutely loved this book. He makes his parents sound wonderful, which is so refreshing. I felt he was quite honest about his struggles.

The Universe Versus Alex Woods by Gavin Extence - A 10 yo boy is hit in the head by a meteorite. He's already "different" and this makes him more so. He meets an elderly man and life takes an even more interesting turn. I love the way this author writes. I found it funny, sad and interesting even though I don't agree with his thoughts on God and life after death.

The Light in the Ruins by Chris Bohjalian - I loved the way this book flowed. It alternates between 1943 and 1955 in Italy. During the war an Italian family loses their villa and several members of their family. And in 1955 someone starts killing the remaining members. It's not really a mystery in the typical sense, but the story of the family and then one of the police officers in particular. Really had me going and I had no idea who the killer was. Totally surprised.

The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker - my library labeled this as historical but it should be labeled fantasy history. A Golem is made for a man on his way to America, but he dies on the journey and she is left masterless. A Jinni is accidentally released from his bottle in a small tin smith's shop in New York in 1898. Somehow the two meet and touch several lives. I really found myself immersed.

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt - a 13 year old boy is left parentless when his mother is killed in an explosion at a museum. He's shunted from family to family and basically left to raise himself.  A 771 page book that just kept me reading and reading.

The Other Typist by Suzanne Rindell - I was drawn into this book on the very first page and finished it in one sitting. The story of a mousy police typist during the 1920's. She's gradually drawn into a different world by one of the other typists. The ending was a shock, I still don't know what to think.