In December we asked readers to tell us the best book they read in 2009 (the book didn’t necessarily have to come out in 2009). The results span genres from literary fiction to fast-paced bestseller to time-traveling romance. Several of these books overlap with our own Best of 2009 picks. The results are in order of votes.
1. The Help by Kathryn Stockett (Amy Einhorn/Putnam)
2. The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown (Doubleday)
3. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows (Dial)
4. South of Broad by Pat Conroy (Nan A. Talese/Doubleday)
5. Under the Dome by Stephen King (Scribner)
6. An Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon (Delacorte)
7. The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson (Knopf)
8. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson (Vintage)
9. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski (Ecco)
10. The Shack by William P. Young (Windblown Media)
11. I, Alex Cross by James Patterson (Little, Brown)
12. Finger Lickin’ Fifteen by Janet Evanovich (St. Martin's Press)
13. Sarah’s Key by Tatiana de Rosnay (St. Martin's Griffin)
14. The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein (Harper)
15. Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger (Scribner)
16. U is for Undertow by Sue Grafton (Putnam)
17. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins (Scholastic)
18. Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese (Knopf)
19. Half Broke Horses by Jeannette Walls (Scribner)
20. Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult (Atria)
21. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jame Ford (Ballantine)
22. Still Alice by Lisa Genova (Pocket)
23. The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton (Atria)
24. Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel (Holt)
25. The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver (Harper)
26. Ford County by John Grisham (Doubleday)
27. Nine Dragons by Michael Connelly (Little, Brown)
28. The Scarecrow by Michael Connelly (Little, Brown)
29. Little Bee by Chris Cleave (Simon & Schuster)
30. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley (Delacorte)
31. Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout (Random House)
32. Going Rogue by Sarah Palin (HarperCollins)
33. Have a Little Faith by Mitch Albom (Hyperion)
34. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (Knopf)
35. The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry (Morrow)
36. The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls (Scribner)
37. Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson (Penguin)
38. Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert (Viking)
39. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen (Algonquin)
40. A Gate at the Stairs by Lorrie Moore (Knopf)
41. Bed of Roses by Nora Roberts (Berkley)
42. Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann (Random House)
43. People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks (Viking)
44. Stones into Schools by Greg Mortenson (Viking)
45. The Angel's Game by Carlos Ruis-Zafrón (Doubleday)
46. The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe (Hyperion)
47. A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick (Algonquin)
48. Black Hills by Nora Roberts (Putnam Adult)
49. Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer (Little, Brown)
50. A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini (Riverhead)
