[NOTE: This page was taken offline (i.e., not
linked to the
homepage) in March of 2011. The data is correct, but the
contents have not been updated since June 2010]
Booklist
Fiction | Nonfiction
 This list is a compilation of
books recommended in the Omnilore Newsletter, The Bookshelf
column
edited
by
Mary Oran. Many of the titles have been recommended by
Omniloreans.
This is not a list of best-sellers, but rather a list of books
guaranteed to stay with youones you will not want to end...books with
soaring prose that allows us to learn, feel, think, and escape.
Below are two lists of books in alphabetical order: one fiction and
another nonfiction. Listed next to each book title and author is the
newsletter issue date where that book was described in The Bookshelf
column.
Use
the
issue date and the links in this table, below, to find
the description for the book on our Bookshelf
page which is an accumulation of all the Bookshelf column
articles in chronological order.
We need your recommendations in
order to make The Bookshelf column and this page a continued
success. Please share your reading experiences! Send your titles, with
author name and a brief description, to Patricia Edie. Put "Omnilore
Books" as the subject to your email. We look forward to hearing from
you.
Fiction
A Canticle for Leibowitz Walter J. Miller, Jr.
(Mar-Apr 07)
A Christmas Memory, One Christmas, and The Thanksgiving Visitor
Truman Capote (Nov-Dec 04)
A Very Long Engagement Sebastian Japrisot (Sept-Oct 04)
Absolution by Murder Peter Tremayne (Jan-Feb 06)
All the King's Men Robert Penn Warren (Nov-Dec 06)
An Eye For An Eye Bandula Chandraratna (Nov-Dec 05)
(also The Mirage)
Angell, Pearl and Little God Winston Graham (Mar-Apr 08)
Angle of Repose Wallace Stegner (Nov-Dec 04)
Anthem Ayn Rand (Sept-Oct 06)
Art of Racing in the Rain Garth Stein (Jan-Feb 09)
Autobiography of an Elderly Woman (Nov-Dec 07)
Away Amy Bloom (Mar-Apr 08)
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress Dai Sijie (Sept-Oct 09)
Birdsong Sebastian Faulks (Sept-Oct 08)
Birth of Venus Sarah Dunant (Nov-Dec 07)
Bless Me, Ultima Rudolfo a. Anaya (Mar-Apr 05)
Bone People, The Keri Hulme (Mar-Apr 05)
 Book Thief
Markus Zurak (July-Aug 08)
Bridge of San Luis Rey Thornton Wilder (Jan-Feb 05)
Brooklyn Colm Toibin (Sept-Oct 09)
Child of My Heart Alice McDermott (May-June 05)
Clara Callan Richard B. Wright (Sept-Oct 06)
Commoner, The John B. Schwartz (Nov-Dec 08)
Compelling Evidence Steve Martini (July-Aug 04)
Country of the Pointed Firs Sarah Orne Jewett (May-June 08)
Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time Mark Haddon (Sept-Oct
04)
Cutting for Stone Abraham Verghese (July-Aug 09)
Dante Club Matthew Pearl (Sept-Oct 06)
Death a La Fenice Donna Leon (July-Aug 08)
Death Comes to the Archbishop Willa Cather (Jan-Feb 06)
Easter Island Jennifer Vanderbes (Mar-Apr 06)
Elegance of the Hedgehog Muriel Barbery (Nov-Dec 09)
Ella Minnow Pea: a novel in letters Mark Dunn (July-Aug 04)
Embers Sandor Marai (July-Aug 04)
Empire Falls Richard Russo (Jan-Feb 09)
also Bridge of Sighs
Eyre Affair, The Jasper Fforde (July-Aug 04)
Fieldwork Mischa Berlinski (Jan-Feb 09)
Fig-Eater, The Jody Shields (Nov-Dec 04)
Five Smooth Stones Ann Fairbairn (Nov-Dec 04)
Forest Lover, The Susan Vreeland (Sept-Oct 05)
(also Girl in Hyacinth Blue; Life Studies)
Gonzalez and Daughter Trucking Co. Maria Amparo Escandon (Mar-Apr 06)
Gospel-Wilton Barnhart (Jan-Feb 05)
Guernica David Boling (May-June 09)
Guy Not Taken Jennifer Weiner (Sept-Oct 07)
Help,The Kathryn Stockett (Mar-Apr 10)
Housekeeper and the Professor,The Yoko Ogawa (Sept-Oct 09)
Hummingbird's Daughter Luis Alberto Urrea (Sept-Oct 08)
Ides of March Thornton Wilder (May-June 09)
Interpreter of Maladies Jhumpa Lahiri (Sept-Oct 04)
Interpreter, The Suzanne Glass (May-June 05)
Killer Angels Michael Shaara (Mar-Apr 07)
Lady and the
Unicorn Tracy Chevalier (Mar-Apr 06)
Lady Chatterley's Lover D.H. Lawrence (Mar-Apr 09)
Last Days of Dogtown Anita Diament (Nov-Dec 06)
Last Days of Summer Steve Kluger (May-June 07)
Love Stories in this Town Amanda Eyre Ward (July-Aug 09)
Man With a Load of Mischief Martha Grimes (May-June 05)
March Geraldine Brooks (Nov-Dec 06)
Measure of Love, A Christopher Wilkins (July-Aug 07)
Medicus: a Novel of the Roman Empire Ruth Downie (Sept-Oct 07)
Mercy of Thin Air Ronlyn Domingue (Jan-Feb 07)
The Milagro Beanfield War John Nichols (Nov-Dec 05)
Mister Pip Lloyd Jones (Sept-Oct 08)
Mistress of the Art of Death Ariana Franklin (July-Aug 07)
Mudbound Hillary Jordan (Mar-Apr 09)
My Jim Nancy Rawles (May-June 07)
My Sister's Keeper Jodi Picoult (Mar-Apr 09)
Next Michael Crichton (July-Aug 07)
Night Elie Wiesel (Sept-Oct 07)
No Highway Nevil Shute (Jan-Feb 07)
Noah's Compass Anne Tyler (May-June 10)
Old Filth and The Man in the Wooden Hat Jane Gardam (Mar-Apr 10)
Oliver Wiswell Kenneth Roberts (July-Aug 05)
On Chesil Beach Ian McEwan (May-June 08)
One Last Look Susanna Moore (May-June 07)
Ordinary Heroes Scott Turow (Jul-Aug. 06)
Oscar Season Mary MacNamara (May-June 08)
Our Simple Gifts Owen Parry (Nov-Dec 04)
Penelopiad Margaret Atwood (July-Aug 08)
Peony in Love Lisa See (Nov-Dec 08)
The Pickup Nadine Gordimer (Jan-Feb 07)
Pigeon and a Boy Miev Shalev (July-Aug 09)
Power and the Glory,The Graham Greene (July-Aug 05)
Princess of Borundi Kjell Eriksson (Jul-Aug 06)
Private Patient,The P.D. James (May-June 10)
Prodigal Spy. Joseph Kanon (May-June 07)
Q & A Vikas
Swarup (May-June 07)
Reasons I Won't Be Coming Elliot Perlman (Jul-Aug 06)
Recapitulation Wallace Stegner (Nov-Dec 09)
Red Carpet: Bangalore Stories Lavanya Sankaran (Sept-Oct 06)
Red Water Judith Freeman (Sept-Oct 05)
Remarkable Creatures Tracy Chevalier (May-June 10)
Roma Stephen Saylor (Nov-Dec 08)
Sarah's Key Tatiana De Rosnay (Mar-Apr 10)
Seventeen Syllables and Other Stories Hisaye Yamamoto (Jan-Feb 05)
Shadows on the Rock Willa Cather (May-June 09)
Silver Pigs Lindsey Davis (July-Aug 05)
Skinny Dip Carl Hiaassen (Jul-Aug 06)
Supreme Courtship Christopher Buckley (Mar-Apr 10)
The Skull Mantra Eliot Pattison (Jan-Feb 07)
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan Lisa See (Jan-Feb 06)
Soloist, the Mark Salzman (Sept-Oct 04)
Spoon River Anthology Edgar Lee Masters (Nov-Dec 05)
State of Fear Michael Crichton (July-Aug 05)
Still Alice Lisa Genova. (Nov-Dec 09)
Tepper Isn't Going Out Calvin Trillin (Jan-Feb 06)
Thousand Splendid Suns Khaled Hosseini (Sept-Oct 07)
To Spit Against the Wind Bernard Levin (Mar-Apr 08)
Too Much Happiness Alice Munro (Mar-Apr 10)
Travels in the Scriptorium Paul Auster (May-June 07)
Unaccustomed Earth Jhumpa Lahiri (Sept-Oct 09)
An Uncommon Reader Alan Bennett(Jan-Feb 08)
Water for Elephants Sara Gruen (Nov-Dec 06)
Whistling Season Ivan Doig (Nov-Dec 07)
Widow of the South Robert Hicks (May-June 07)
Year of Wonders Geraldine Brooks (Sept-Oct 05)
Nonfiction
1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die, 2nd ed
Peter Boxall (May-June 10)
1421: The Year China Discovered America Gavin Menzies (July-Aug. 04)
381 AD Charles Freeman (Sept-Oct 09)
84 Charing Cross Road Helen Hanff (Sept-Oct 04)
Alchemy of Mind: the Marvel and Mystery of the Brain Diane Ackerman
(Sept-Oct 08)
And Still We Rise Miles Corwin (Mar-Apr 07)
Anguished English
Richard Lederer (Sept.-Oct. 06)
Annotator,The Allan Keen & Roger Lubbock (Sept-Oct 06)
Audition Barbara Walters (Jan-Feb 09)
Benet's Reader's Encyclopedia (May-June 06)
Beowulf on the Beach Jack Murnighan (Nov-Dec 09)
Bibliotopia Steven Gilbar (Nov-Dec 06)
Black Girl Next Door Jennifer Baszile. (May-June 09)
Bobos in Paradise: the New Upper Class and How They Got There David
Brooks (July-Aug 07)
Book Lust; More Book Lust Nancy Pearl (May-June 06)
Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (May-June 06)
Color of Water James McBride (Mar-Apr 05)
Comfort Ann Hood (Nov-Dec 08)
A Continent for the Taking Howard W. French (Jan-Feb 07)
Da Vinvi Cod, The Don Brine (Sept-Oct 06)
Dark Star Safari Paul Theroux (May-June 05)
Darwin Awards Wendy Northcutt (Sept-Oct 08)
Darwin's Dangerous Idea: Evolution and Meaning of Life Daniel C.
Dennett (Jul-Aug 06)
Daughter of Persia: A Woman's Journey From Her Father's Harem
Sarrareh Farman Farmaian. (Jan-Feb 10)
Delights and Shadows Ted Kooser (plus 2)
(Jan-Feb 05)
Dictionary of Theories: One Stop to More Than 5,000 Theories (May-June
06)
Discovery of Poetry, The Frances Mayes (Mar-Apr 05)
End of Faith Sam Harris (Nov-Dec 07)
Fabric of America Andro Linklater (Nov-Dec 07)
Four Seasons in Five Senses David Mas Masumoto (July-Aug 05)
Future and Its Enemies,The Virginia Postrel (July-Aug 07)
Game Change John Heilemann and Mark Halperin (May-June 10)
Gertrude Bell Queen of the Desert Georgina Howell (Jan-Feb 08)
Glass Castle Jeanette Wells (Jan-Feb 08)
Godel,Escher,Bach:an eternal golden braid Douglas R. Hofstadter
(Sept-Oct 04)
Grayson Lynne Cox (Jan-Feb 08)
Growing Up
Russell Baker (Jan-Feb 09)
also The Good Times
Guns,Germs and Steel Jared Diamond (Jan-Feb 06)
Harpo Speaks Harpo Marx (Nov-Dec 04)
Here If You Need Me: A True Story Kate Braestrup (May-June 10)
Hidden Power: Presidential Marriages That Shaped History Kati Marton
(July-Aug 07)
His Brother's Keeper Jonathan Wiener (Jan-Feb 07)
History of God: the 4000 Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity &
Islam Karen Armstrong (July-Aug 05)
Honeymoon With My Brother Franz Wisner (Jul-Aug 06)
How Starbucks Changed My Life Michael Gates Gill (Sept-Oct 09)
Humor for the Holidays Shari MacDonald, compiler (Nov-Dec 08)
I Wish I'd Been There Byron Hollinshead (May-June 08)
In Defense of Food Michael Pollan (July-Aug 08)
In the Studio Tony Bennett, Mitch Albom & Mario Cuomo (Jan-Feb
10)
Inside the Kingdom Carmen Bin Laden (Nov-Dec 05)
John Adams David McCullough (Jan-Feb 10)
Late Night Thoughts on Listening to Mahlers Ninth Symphony Lewis
Thomas (May-June 05)
Liar's Club Mary Karr (Jan-Feb 08)
Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid Bill Bryson (Nov-Dec 08)
Life is So Good George Dawson (July-Aug 08)
Lipstick Jihad Azadeh Moaveni (Nov-Dec 05)
Living in a Foreign Language Michael Tucker & Jill Eikenberry
(Nov-Dec 07)
Mao's Last Dancer Li Cunxin (Mar-Apr 09)
Marley & Me: Life & Love With the World's Worst Dog John
Grogan (Nov-Dec 06)
Misia Arthur Gold and Robert Fizdale (July-Aug 05)
Modern Portfolio Theory and Investment Analysis,6th ed Elton, Gruber,
Brown, Goetzmann (May-June 09)
Mother Tongue Bill Bryson (Jan-Feb 08)
Murder in Amsterdam Ian Burama (Sept-Oct 08)
My Life in France Julia Child/Alex Prud'homme (Nov-Dec 09)
Nation of Secrets Ted Gup (Mar-Apr 08)
Natural History of the Senses, A Diane Ackermann (May-June 05)
Nickel and Dimed in America Barbara Ehrenreich (Jan-Feb 05)
Nine Parts of Desire: The Hidden World of Islamic Women Geraldine
Brooks (Sept-Oct 05)
No Ordinary Time Doris Kearns Goodwin (Mar-Apr 09)
Omnivore's Dilemma Michael Pollan (Jan-Feb 09)
On Gold Mountain
Lisa See (Jan-Feb 10)
On Her Own Ground: The Life and Times of Madam C.J. Walker A'Lelia
Bundles (Jan-Feb 10)
Outliers:the Story of Success Malcolm Gladwell (July-Aug 09)
Oxford Dictionary of Allusions (May-June 06)
Penguin Dictionary of Symbols (May-June 06)
A Poem A Day Karen McCosker and Nicholas Albery, eds. (Nov-Dec 05)
Quantum Enigma: Physics Encounters Consciousness Bruce Rosenblum and
Fred Kuttner (Mar-Apr 09)
Satchel: The Life and Times of an American Legend Larry Tye (Jan-Feb
10)
Savage Kingdom: True Story of Jamestown.... Benjamin Woolley
(Sept-Oct 08)
Sense & Nonsensibility: Lampoons of Learning and Literature
Douglas and George (Sept-Oct. 05)
Shadows of the Mind Roger Penrose (Sept-Oct 04)
Sit, Ubu, Sit Gary David Goldberg (July-Aug 09)
Soloist Steve Lopez (July-Aug 09)
Survivors Club Ben Sherwood. (May-June 09)
Team of Rivals Doris Kearns Goodwin (May-June 08)
Tender Bar J. R. Moehringer (Jul-Aug 06)
The Book That Changed My Life Roxanne J. Coady and Joy Johannessen,
eds. (Mar-Apr 07)
The Intellectual Devotional David S. Kidder and Noah D. Oppenheimer,
eds. (Mar-Apr 07)
The Know-It-All: One Man's Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person
in the World A.J. Jacobs (Mar-Apr 06)
The Piano Shop on the Left Bank Thad Carhart (Mar-Apr 06)
Travels with Charley John Steinbeck (Nov-Dec 04)
Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith Jon Krakauer
(Sept-Oct 05)
(also Into Thin Air; Into the Wild; Eiger Dreams)
War in Val D'Orcia Iris Origo (Mar-Apr 08)
Way Off the Road Bill Geist (May-June 08)
West With the Night Beryl Markham (Jan-Feb 06)
What's Great About America Dinesh D'Sousa (Jan-Feb 06)
Whats the Matter with Kansas? Thomas Frank (Mar-Apr 05)
White Guilt Shelby Steele (Sept-Oct 07)
Wild Swans Jung Chang (Mar-Apr 05)
World is Flat: a brief history of the 21st century Thomas J. Friedman
(Sept-Oct 07)
World That Made New Orleans Ned Sublette (Sept-Oct 08)
Year of Magical Thinking Joan Didion (Sept-Oct 07)
 Yellow-Lighted Bookshop Lewis Buzbee (July-Aug 08)
Zookeeper's Wife Diane Ackerman (Mar-Apr 08)
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