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Best Books Of 2009 Our critics pick the year's best novels, mysteries, cookbooks, books for book clubs, gardening books, coffee-table books and more.

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Best Books Of 2009

The year's best novels, mysteries, cookbooks, coffee-table books and more.

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Season's Readings: Top Picks From Indie Booksellers

Gordon Studer

Season's Readings: Top Picks From Indie Booksellers

December 3, 2009 • Correspondent Susan Stamberg gathers recommendations for the season's best books from booksellers Rona Brinlee, Daniel Goldin and Lucia Silva. Their selections include comics about philosophy, novels about building families, and a box set that dives into the process of writing.

Season's Readings: Top Picks From Indie Booksellers

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Best Books For A Book Club? Lynn Neary's '09 Picks

Best Books For A Book Club? Lynn Neary's '09 Picks

December 15, 2009 • What makes a good book-club selection? Most of Lynn Neary's picks are quick reads. All are fiction. And, because some of the best conversations occur when people don't agree, a few are calculated to spark debate. So have a glass of wine, maybe a bite to eat, and let the discussions begin.

Librarian Nancy Pearl's 2009 Under-The-Radar Books

Heather Murphy

Librarian Nancy Pearl's 2009 Under-The-Radar Books

December 10, 2009 • The end of another year means another giant stack of books you missed during the past 12 months. Nancy Pearl, our favorite librarian, stops by to share recommendations that should keep old, young and 'tween readers content.

Librarian Nancy Pearl's 2009 Under-The-Radar Books

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The 10 Best Cookbooks Of 2009

The 10 Best Cookbooks Of 2009

November 25, 2009 • If you're the kind of person who's always believed that a book can teach you to do anything, this year's crop of cookbooks will prove you right. Cooks lacking confidence will find comfort in detailed instructions and comprehensive how-tos.

The 10 Best Cookbooks Of 2009

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The Year's Most Mesmerizing Mysteries

The Year's Most Mesmerizing Mysteries

December 11, 2009 • Holiday season have you feeling a touch homicidal? Critic Maureen Corrigan offers a selection of sleuth stories and hard-boiled whodunits to satisfy all your deepest literary desires.

Maureen Corrigan's Best Books Of 2009

Maureen Corrigan's Best Books Of 2009

Fresh Air

December 23, 2009 • Many of the picks from Fresh Air's book critic look back at tough times from earlier eras, or lives upended by disaster. The best books of the year include a work of nonfiction that reveals the hidden fantasy land of a founder of American industry, and a novel that doesn't apologize for the bad behavior of its characters. Plus, a bonus mystery pick.

Maureen Corrigan's Best Books Of 2009

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The Best Debut Fiction Of 2009

The Best Debut Fiction Of 2009

December 18, 2009 • Granta editor John Freeman picks the year's top five debuts by fiction writers. The list includes three collections of short stories and two novels. Freeman says the era of the splashy debut might be gone, but these authors demonstrate, despite their short publishing histories, that first-time writers can still make a big impression.

The Best Five Books To Share With Your Friends

E. Dean/Topical Press Agency/Getty Images

The Best Five Books To Share With Your Friends

December 2, 2009 • Some books you simply can't keep to yourself. Glen Weldon shares the titles he's recommended this year — from a history of women in comics, to a collection of very short short stories — what unites these books is the urge they spark to send them out into the world so that they might sink their hooks into someone else.

Alan Cheuse's Book Picks To Warm A Winter's Night

Opinion

Alan Cheuse's Book Picks To Warm A Winter's Night

November 23, 2009 • Book reviewer Alan Cheuse selects the highlights of this holiday season: futuristic dystopias; things that go bump in the night; portraits from Norman Rockwell's America; gay New York; a celebration of our immigrant adventures; one writer's journey to manhood; and, of course, Long John Silver.

Alan Cheuse's Book Picks To Warm A Winter's Night

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A World Of Novels: Picks For Best Foreign Fiction

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A World Of Novels: Picks For Best Foreign Fiction

December 4, 2009 • 2009's top works of foreign fiction, as picked by critic Jessa Crispin, feature a geography as wide ranging as their topics: genetic research, civil unrest, sibling resentment, and fairy-tale depictions of government corruption.

2009's Best Young Adult Fiction (Mostly)

2009's Best Young Adult Fiction (Mostly)

December 8, 2009 • Critic Jonathan Hunt's picks include love stories between historical figures; fantasy and supernatural fiction that doesn't concern vampires or werewolves; and time traveling mysteries.

Fit To Print: Top Five Current Affairs Books Of 2009

Fit To Print: Top Five Current Affairs Books Of 2009

December 29, 2009 • If these books prove anything, it's that the legacy of nonfiction storytelling is still very much alive. Steve Weinberg's picks reflect the depth and diversity of the 2009 current affairs library, ranging from investigations of the role of women in America to a look at what it means to sit supreme on the highest court in the U.S.

2009's Crop Of Great Gardening Books

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2009's Crop Of Great Gardening Books

December 17, 2009 • From an anti-lawn manifesto, to "sophisticated plant porn at its finest," Ketzel Levine shares this year's yield of great gardening books. She finds that geeky plant lust is officially outre, and memoirs of urban homesteads of produce and poultry are a budding new genre.

In The Year's Best Memoirs, Mirth And Melancholy

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In The Year's Best Memoirs, Mirth And Melancholy

December 14, 2009 • Heller McAlpin's picks include: the story of a lifelong crush on Albert Camus, a humorous take on middle-aged malaise, and a no-nonsense look at mortality. The sharp, fresh writing in these memoirs will bring you headfirst into each author's world, with your heart following close behind.

Big And Beautiful: Best Gift Books of 2009

John McAlley

Big And Beautiful: Best Gift Books of 2009

November 24, 2009 • Reviewer John McAlley selects gems from the worlds of fine art, fashion, photography, science, lit-crit and cartoons. These luxe volumes will be gracing coffee tables long after the lights and wrapping paper are gone.

Best Books of 2009: The Complete List

November 22, 2009 • Get all of NPR's Best Book of 2009 recommendations in this one list of lists.

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