I’ve always been an avid reader, mainly of fiction, but now that I’ve made a go at writing my own novel I’ve come to appreciate the medium even more.
Note: several of the below titles didn’t come out in 2004, but I read them in 2004.
Fiction:
01: “The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay” by Michael Chabon
02: “Something Rotten” by Jasper Fforde
03: “Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell” by Susanna Clarke
04: “Black Projects, White Knights: The Company Dossiers” by Kage Baker (I discovered The Company books this year, and loved them all, but most recently read this book of short stories that ties it all together nicely)
05: “Anil’s Ghost” by Michael Ondaatje
Graphic Novels:
01: “Persepolis” by Marjane Satrapi
02: “Persepolis 2” by Marjane Satrapi
03: “Everyday Matters” by Danny Gregory
04: “Pop Gun War” by Farel Dalrymple
05: “Blankets” by Craig Thompson
Non-fiction:
01: “Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim” by David Sedaris
02: “No Plot? No Problem!” by Chris Baty
03: “The Partly Cloudy Patriot” by Sarah Vowell
04: “So Crazy Japanese Toys!” by Jimbo Matison
05: Picked up more zines this year than I have in a long while, some on the topic of parenting, directly or indirectly. Many that I enjoyed can be found via this list.
And lastly, there are oodles and oodles of fabulous children’s book, but my favorite that I found in 2004 is “Beegu” by Alexis Deacon.