Try as I might I can’t distill a year of wonderful reading into lists.
But I can answer a few questions from The Perpetual Page Turner …
Best Book of 2011
I have read some wonderful books this year, but if I have to single out just one, the book closest to my heart is The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey.
Worst Book of 2011
Oh dear. It has to be What They do in the Dark by Amanda Coe. It started beautifully, it had so much potential, but good ideas were ruined as things were taken much, much too far.
Most Disappointing Book of 2011
I have loved Susan Hill‘s crime novels in the past but I was disappointed in her most recent, The Betrayal of Trust. The plot and the characters came a very poor second to themes that the author clearly had strong feelings about but pushed much too hard for me.
Most Surprising (in a good way) Book of 2011
The idea of a novel in verse scared me, but Lettice Delmer by Susan Miles was a Persephone Book, it had appeared in a library sale, and so I gave it the benefit of the doubt. And I found a troubling story quite brilliantly told.
Book Recommended Most in 2011
I found Ten Days of Christmas by Gladys Bronwyn Stern in a bargain bin. It had no dust jacket, no synopsis, and so I did a few searches to try to find out more, but I couldn’t find anyone who had written about it. So I read, I wrote , and I’ve noticed a good few people have ordered copies and a couple more reviews have appeared. I really am thrilled.
Best Series You Discovered in 2011
I read and loved The Return of Captain John Emmett last year, and so I was eager to read Elizabeth Speller‘s second novel, The Strange Fate of Kitty Easton. I was surprised, and delighted to meet Lawrence Bartram again, to see his story progress, and to notice some very interesting hints about where his story might go next.
Favourite New Author in 2011
I’ve found a few new authors I want to keep tabs on, but if I’m going to pick out one I think it must be Rachel Hore. I read The Gathering Storm, I fell in love with her writing, and now I have an intriguing backlist to explore.
Most Hilarious Read in 2011
I am not a great lover of comic writing, but there’s something about Molly Keane, Time After Time was dark, sad, grotesque, and yet very, very funny.
Most Thrilling, Unputdownable Book of 2011
I was intrigued and confounded by True Things About Me by Deborah Kay Davies. I just couldn’t work out who this woman was, why she did the things she did.
Book Most Anticipated in 2011
Greenbanks by Dorothy Whipple was surely the most eagerly waited reissue of 2011. And it more than lived up to some very high expectations.
Favourite Cover of a Book in 2011
Most Memorable Character in 2011
Oh, Miss Ranskill! I shall never forget you, and I shall never forget The Carpenter. Barbara Euphan Todd told your story so well in Miss Ranskill Comes Home.
Most Beautifully Written Book in 2011
That would be a book I’m still reading. Vanessa Gebbie’s novel, The Coward’s Tale, uses words – their meanings, their sounds, their rhythms – quite brilliantly. I even find myself reading with a Welsh accent …
Book That Had the Greatest Impact on You in 2011
I was intrigued from the first moment I saw No Surrender by Constance Maud. A suffragette novel! I realised how little I really knew, and this book has inspired me to find out more – The Virago Book of Suffragettes is now sitting on the bedside table.
Book You Can’t Believe You Waited until 2011 to Read
I can remember seeing Mary Stewart‘s books on the library shelves years ago, when I moved up from the junior to the adult library, but it wasn’t until this year that I read one. It was Thunder on the Right, and I loved it …
… a wonderful year of reading … and now it’s time to start another …
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Fleur in her World 
Dear Jane: although I don’t always comment, I do always read your lovely blog. You have sent me scurrying in search of a book quite a few times this year – especially for “The Snow Child”, which isn’t available here yet (I have it on pre-order, however). My fervent and quite selfish wish is that you have another excellent reading year for 2012 and that you continue to share it all with us. All the best to you and Briar for the new year!
I’ve seen quite a few good things said about The Snow Child, one to look out for. Happy new year!
You’ve made me very excited about The Snow Child! Happy New Year!
I can’t remember if I’ve already said – but I’m first in line for The Snow Child when it finally arrives. I’ll also wish you a happy New Year with lots of wonderful books to share!
Happy New Year.
Thanks for all the book recommendations in 2011 I am looking forward to more in 2012.
I like the lists that everyone has posted as it is now adding enormously to my TBR pile!
A very happy new year to you.
Happy New Year to you all, and more great reading for 2012! I’m so glad you mentioned the Molly Keane novel – she is a writer who is rather neglected these days, but she has such a sharp wit and such a way with words, and her depiction of the Anglo Irish scene of the time, from an insider’s viewpoint, is absolutely hilarious! Well worth searching for her books.
Happy New Year, Jane! I look forward to reading your blog in 2012 and discovering more wonderful writers through you. Just reading your thoughts on your 2011 books has made me want to add quite a few of them to my TBR.