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Best Books Of 2012 We're making our lists of the year's best reads. Find recommendations for fiction, graphic novels, short stories and more.
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Best Books Of 2012

We're making our lists of the year's best reads.
Great Reads In Store: Indie Booksellers Pick 2012's Best
Nishant Choksi

Review

Great Reads In Store: Indie Booksellers Pick 2012's Best

Susan Stamberg presents the year's best books, picked by independent booksellers around the country. Selections range from gritty, free-verse fairy tales to ballerina photographs and a grim Southern story about a small town that would rather its ghosts remain at rest.

Great Reads In Store: Indie Booksellers Pick 2012's Best

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Librarian Nancy Pearl's Picks For The Omnivorous Reader
Nishant Choksi

Review

Librarian Nancy Pearl's Picks For The Omnivorous Reader

The only thing that these books have in common is that NPR's go-to librarian likes them a lot. Nancy Pearl's self-described "higgledy-piggledy" list includes a book of cartoons, a Civil War history, a coming-of-age story, a spy novel and more.

Librarian Nancy Pearl's Picks For The Omnivorous Reader

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5 Young Adult Novels That You'll Never Outgrow
Nishant Choksi

Review

5 Young Adult Novels That You'll Never Outgrow

It was a strange and wonderful year for young adult fiction, says critic Maggie Stiefvater. This list rounds up five magical books for young adults and grown-ups alike.

5 Young Adult Novels That You'll Never Outgrow

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10 Books To Help You Recover From A Tense 2012
Nishant Choksi

Review

10 Books To Help You Recover From A Tense 2012

Fresh Air

2012 was a very jittery year — what with the presidential election, extreme weather events and the looming "fiscal cliff." Fresh Air critic Maureen Corrigan found that her favorite fiction and nonfiction this year directly confronted the atmospheric uncertainty of the age.

10 Books To Help You Recover From A Tense 2012

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Courage And Curiosity: The Best Heroines Of 2012
Nishant Choksi

Review

Courage And Curiosity: The Best Heroines Of 2012

This year's literary heroines aren't defined by their desire to love or be loved — or even to be especially lovable. Writer and critic Parul Sehgal celebrates five sublimely stubborn women, frequently at odds with themselves and always at odds with their times.

Courage And Curiosity: The Best Heroines Of 2012

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Romantic Reads From Shakespeare To Steampunk (Heavy On The Steam)
Nishant Choksi

Review

Romantic Reads From Shakespeare To Steampunk (Heavy On The Steam)

Writer Eloisa James gathers the best of 2012's romance subgenres. Expect lots of heat, in the most unexpected places and with some unlikely people: From the military to the paranormal, and from Shakespeare to steampunk, James' picks for the year skip across oceans and genres.

Romantic Reads From Shakespeare To Steampunk (Heavy On The Steam)

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True Originals: Biographies That Defy Expectations
Nishant Choksi

Review

True Originals: Biographies That Defy Expectations

Our list of this year's best biographies focuses on books about individuals who lived their lives off the beaten path. From the story of a spy turned chef to the story of the real Count of Monte Cristo, these books chronicle subjects who refused to conform to the expectations of others.

True Originals: Biographies That Defy Expectations

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Graphic Novels That Flew Under The Radar In 2012
Nishant Choksi

Review

Graphic Novels That Flew Under The Radar In 2012

It's been a great year for high-profile comics creators, producing landmark works destined for many "Best Comics of 2012" lists. But what about the lesser-known artists and their work? Glen Weldon points to outstanding works that haven't gotten the attention they deserve.

Graphic Novels That Flew Under The Radar In 2012

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The Year's Best Science Fiction Crosses Galaxies And Genres
Nishant Choksi

Review

The Year's Best Science Fiction Crosses Galaxies And Genres

From post-apocalyptic character studies to speculative paleontology, reviewer Annalee Newitz says this year's best science fiction stretches boundaries and crosses genres. She also sees a strong resurgence in political themes, with a focus on civilizations on the brink of transformation or collapse.

The Year's Best Science Fiction Crosses Galaxies And Genres

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Recipe Rebellion: A Year Of Contrarian Cookbooks
Nishant Choksi

Review

Recipe Rebellion: A Year Of Contrarian Cookbooks

The rebels, rule breakers and renegades who rule this year's Top 10 list aren't looking for a Ph.D. in Traditional Cooking. They're pleasure seekers whose books are filled with quirky facts, gorgeous pictures and ingredients deployed in unexpected places.

Recipe Rebellion: A Year Of Contrarian Cookbooks

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Short Stories To Savor On A Winter Weekend
Nishant Choksi

Review

Short Stories To Savor On A Winter Weekend

Author Hortense Calisher once called the short story "an apocalypse in a teacup." Critic Jane Ciabattari presents her favorite mini-apocalypses of 2012, from veteran authors like Sherman Alexie to newcomer Claire Vaye Watkins, who combines a unique voice and a shadowed family history in her debut collection.

Short Stories To Savor On A Winter Weekend

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A Wintry Mix: Alan Cheuse Selects The Season's Best
Nishant Choksi

Review

A Wintry Mix: Alan Cheuse Selects The Season's Best

Critic Alan Cheuse maps out a winter wonderland of fiction and poetry — from ancient Greece to the near-future visions of Walter Mosley, a selection of the best books to give and receive this holiday season. Cheuse says these five books strike the perfect balance between lyricism and narrative.

A Wintry Mix: Alan Cheuse Selects The Season's Best

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