TV, Music down - we'll do books this evening. These weren't necessarily released this year - they were just the ones I read for the first time and thought were excellent. I read a lot of other books but these are the ones that stood out. And since we are talking about books, here is a picture of Kristin, myself and Nick Hornby when we met him this summer.

Spinning the Globe : The Rise, Fall, and Return to Greatness of the Harlem Globetrotters by Ben Green

The Miracle of St. Anthony: A Season with Coach Bob Hurley and Basketball's Most Improbable Dynasty by Adrian Wojnarwoski

A Series of Unfortunate Events Book 12 - The Penultimate Peril by Lemony Snicket

The Giver by Lois Lowery

The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog by Mo Willems

The Third Policeman by Flann O'Brien

Eragon by Christopher Paolini

A Long Way Down by Nick Hornby

The absolute worst book of the year was Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling. The parts where Harry and Dumbledore were searching for Voldemort's horcruxes were really good, the rest was trash. Apparently J.K. Rowling is looking to be a writer for MTV's Laguna Beach or some crappy show like that after she finishes the series.