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Great Minds Think Alike: The Washington Post
December 2, 2007

We're all under siege from lists right now: year's best, best buys, best gifts, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. (NB: I'm still collecting blog readers' "Best of 2007" votes here, through December 15 -- if you're too shy to post, remember that you a) can make up any name you like and b) email me if you'd rather: thereadingwriter at gmail dot com).

Some lists, of course, are better than others. The best lists? The ones that confirm one's own good taste, naturally. Yes, I'm kidding -- but remember, I am writing for a publication that has a "Were We Right or Were We Right?" feature. Everyone critic likes to feel justified (in some cases, vindicated).

The Washington Post Book World Holiday Guide Fiction & Poetry list of 100 titles contains 30 books I've read this year, 20 others I'm eager to read, and 10 that I've featured in this blog as Recommended Reading (including Last Night at the Lobster, The Uncommon Reader, and The Melancholy Fate of Capt. Lewis). 

Yay me; sometimes I pick winners (by the way, Origin is on there, too... ). But as I was thinking about the list and why I was so pleased to see books I've read and considered on there, I realized that, as usual, it's the company, stupid! We think of reading as a solitary act, and it can be -- but to know that someone else has enjoyed the same book as you have enjoyed? That is truly a gift of holidays past, present, and future.

Posted by Bethanne Patrick on December 2, 2007 | Comments (1)