What Are Your 10 Best Books of 2009?

Here I am writing about books again. We have so many things to talk about here at the Moultrie-Colquitt County Library, but today it's books. Again!
Yesterday I read through the list put out by The New York Times of its "10 Best Books of 2009." I wasn't impressed, but maybe I'm just too selective in what I like to read.
When I looked over another list by The Times, their "100 Notable Books of 2009," I did find three I think I'm going to put on my 2010 list of "must reads." Plus another I've wanted to read for a while
now.
"Lark and Termite" is a book I've kept my eye on for the past few months. When you have books stacked all over your house, sometimes you're hesitant to add one more to the pile. However, this little book by Jane Anne Phillips sounded intriguing. It revolves around a loyal sister and her impaired brother, who sees what others don't. "Shelter" is another book written by Phillips (1994).
"The Story of Edgar Sawtelle" by David Wroblewski on my list also. I didn't read it when it was a biggie on Oprah, but I've always kept my eye on it. This is a book about a speech-disabled Wisconsin youth, who bonds with three yearling canines and struggles to prove his sinister uncle is responsible for his father's death. This book wasn't
on The Times list of "100...," but I believe it's well worth
reading.
Another Times book is "Sag Harbor" by Colson Whitehead. Maybe 2009 was the year of youngsters, because this book is about a 15-year-old black hero, who lives in a world where life doesn't assault him, but rather affords him the time to figure out who he wants to be. Whitehead has also written "The Intuitionist" (1999), "John Henry Days: a novel" (2001), and "The Colossus of New York"
(2003).
As a lover of Southern writers, this book caught my eye on the "100" list. "Flannery: A Life of Flannery O'Connor" is authored by Brad Gooch. It's a nonfiction. The Times stated Gooch strives to make O'Connor, who was witty and obsessed into a quite normal person. But if you've ever read O'Connor's works, you can tell she was not quite the normal person. Gooch has also written "City Poet: the life and times of Frank O'Hara" (1993), "Godtalk: travels in a spiritual America" (2002), and "Scary Kisses" (1988).
If I add these books to what I already plan to read during 2010, I will have found four more wonderful reads. You know, we never have enough books. Of course, we don't have to go out and buy them. If they're not right here in our library, we can certainly put a hold on them through our Interlibrary Loan system.
So...what are you adding to your stacks of books to read in the new year? They don't necessarily have to be on someone's best 10 list or even their best 100!
(Source: NYTimes.com, Best Books of 2009)