My Favorite Books of 2009

I keep a small notebook with the books I've read all the way through as well as the films I have seen. Here is a list of my favorite books I read during the past year.

Favorite Fiction

Olive Kittridge by Elizabeth Strout

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time by Mark Haddon

Favorite Science Books

Death from the Skies!: These are the ways the World will End... By Philip Plait

This is a great book by one of my favorite astronomers. A wonderful read that teaches you why astronomy is so cool.

The Day We Found the Universe by Marcia Bartusiak

A fantastic history book on how astronomers discovered the universe was far bigger than just the Milky Way.

Remarkable Creatures by Sean B. Carroll

Dr. Carroll is one of my heroes and I have read all his books. In fact, I saw him back in November at the NABT meeting. His book is a remarkable collection of stories of important biological discoveries and the cast of characters he describes outshine any Indiana Jones movie.

Favorite General Nonfiction Books

Pictures at a Revolution by Mark Harris

This is a thoroughly enjoyable book that recounts the background and making of the five best picture nominees in one single remarkable year and the changes they represented in Hollywood and the culture at large.

The Conscience of a Liberal by Paul Krugman

Paul Krugman is a nobel prize winner and a fantastic economist. His book explains the history of the rise of the Middle Class in America and the advent and empowerment of Movement Conservatism that radicalized the Republican party.

Favorite Religion Books

The Bible Against Itself: Why the Bible Seems to Contradict Itself by Randel Helms

The central thesis of Helms' book is that many of the books of the bible are responses and rebuttals to previous books and should be read as such and not made out as some unified whole.

God's Problem: How the Bible Fails to Answer Our Most Important Question-Why We Suffer? by Bart Ehrman

My very favorite New Testament Scholar, Ehrman writes a very personal book and explores the bible's various and often contradictory takes on this central theological question.