The Monster Librarian Presents:

Top Picks for 2009

    As the year winds down it is time for the Monster Librarian, in consultation with contributing reviewers, to reflect back on a year's worth of reading and reviewing. Each book on the list below was reviewed in the past year, although not all of the books were published in 2009. Books that made this list are exceptional examples of compelling writing, creativity, and original illustration or presentation. Many of them provided considerable food for thought as well as entertainment value. The choices were made only from books reviewed for the site, so there are many fine titles that do not appear here. The Monster Librarian's Top Picks for 2009, listed below, have not been ranked in any order.

Note for librarians and readers: As with all recommended reading lists, not all of The Monster Librarian's Top Picks for 2009 will be appropriate for or appreciated by every reader.  Please take the time to check out reviews of these titles at Monsterlibrarian.com before making a decision about reading them or recommending them to others.

For Adults

Sacrifice by John Everson
As Fate Would Have It by Michael Louis Cavilo
The 13th by John Everson
Benjamin's Parasite by Jeff Strand
The Resurrectionist by Wrath James White
Rot by Michele Lee*
Garbage Man by Joseph D’Lacey
Mama’s Boy and Other Dark Tales by Fran Friel
Personal Demons by Gregory Lamberson
Taste of Tenderloin by Gene O’Neill
Under by Bradd Quinn
The Unseen by Alexandra Sokoloff
The World is Dead edited by Kim Paffernoth
Zombies: Encounters with the Hungry Dead edited by John Skipp
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Classic Regency Romance – Now With Ultraviolent Zombie Mayhem! by Seth Grahame-Smith and Jane Austen
 

* Michele Lee is a staff member of MonsterLibrarian.com.  Her book Rot  was reviewed by Bret Jordan who subsequently chose it to be one of his top picks for the year. 

For Young Adults

Blood Coven series by Mari Mancusi
Death Valley by Johanna Stokes, Andrew Cosby, and Rhoald Marcellus
Generation Dead: Kiss of Life by Daniel Waters
Hannah’s Story: Vampire Love Never Dies by Giulietta Maria Spudich
Monster’s Proof by Richard Lewis
My Soul To Take by Rachel Vincent
Night Runner by Max Turner
The Chaos King by Laura Ruby
The Dare by Brett Williams
The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey
The Wall and the Wing by Laura Ruby
Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson
 

For Kids

A Practical Guide to Vampires by Treval Vorgaard
Coraline by Neil Gaiman
Darkness Slipped In by Ella Burfoot
Dhegdheer: A Scary Somali Folktale by Marian A. Hassan, illustrated by Betsy Bowen
I Need My Monster by Amanda Noll, illustrated by Howard McWilliam
Monsters on Machines by Deb Lund, illustrated by Robert Neubecker
The Dangerous Alphabet by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Gris Grimly
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
The Librarian from the Black Lagoon by Mike Thaler
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak


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