Amazon releases its Best Books of 2008 list; a little known British novel snags the top slot

November 10, 5:03 PMBook ExaminerMichelle Kerns

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Huzzah to Philip Hensher and his tale of two families in Sheffield, England, The Northern Clemency, which topped Amazon's newly released Best Books of 2008 list, beating out the likes of David Wroblewski, Marilynn Robinson, Stephen King, and Stephenie Meyer. When the list was released Sunday, there wasn't a single customer review of The Northern Clemency posted on Amazon; I have a feeling that will change very soon.

According to Amazon's staff reviewers, the 10 best books of 2008 were:

1. The Northern Clemency - Philip Hensher

2. Hurry Down Sunshine - Michael Greenberg

3. Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America - Rick Perlstein

4. The Forever War - Dexter Filkins

5. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle - David Wroblewski

6. The Likeness - Tana French

7. Serena: A Novel - Ron Rash

8. So Brave, Young and Handsome - Leif Enger

9. The Lazarus Project - Aleksander Hemon

10. The Ten-Cent Plague: The Great Comic-Book Scare and How it Changed America - David Hajdu

As always, the top customer favorites on Amazon differed pretty substantially from the reviewer picks; ranked according to customer orders from January through October, the top 10 customer picks were:

 

1. Breaking Dawn - Stephenie Meyer

2. The Last Lecture - Randy Pausch

3. Brisingr - Christopher Paolini

4. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle - David Wroblewski

5. The Tales of Beedle the Bard - J.K. Rowling

6. The Appeal - John Grisham

7. When You Are Engulfed in Flames - David Sedaris

8. In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto - Michael Pollan

9. The Revolution: A Manifesto - Ron Paul

10. The Host - Stephenie Meyer

Have a favorite book from 2008 that you think should have made the Amazon lists? Let us know about it: leave a comment or email your arguments to michellekerns@surewest.net

If you're a sucker for a great read take a look at completely biased and opinionated reviews of these tomes:

Maynard and Jennica - Rudolph Delson: a sassy little modern romantic comedy

Making Money - Terry Pratchett: the latest installment of the Discworld series

The Year of Eating Dangerously: A Global Adventure in Search of Culinary Extremes - Tom Parker-Bowles: try ant's nest salad and dog stew vicariously 

Starbucks Nation - Chris Ver Wiel: sarcastic humor meets a non-fat latte

Working for the Man: Inspiring and Subversive Projects for Residents of Cubicle Land - Jeffrey Yamaguchi: activities to make your time at work infinitely more interesting

Why Your Last Diet Failed You: And How This Book Won't Help You On Your Next One - Charlie Hills: diet humor extraordinaire