Best Reads of 2001

Recommended Reads

We list top books of the year including literary prize winners.

Staff Picks

Library staff let you know about their top reads.

Others’ lists

New Zealand Listener (December 29 2001) contained an article "Hey yeah right get a book" (pp.60-62) containing picks of the year’s best books:

Kate Camp chose:

• The Curative Charlotte Randall
• Portrait of a Lady Henry James
• The Commonplace odes Ian Wedde
• Taking off Emily Dickinson's clothes Billy Collins
• Selected poems Paul Celan
• Use me Elissa Schappell
• Before you sleep Linn Ullman
• Corfu Robert Dessaix
• War and Peace
• Who magazine

Faith Oxenbridge's favourites were:

• When I lived in modern times Linda Grant
• The world below Sue Miller
• A life's work: on becoming a mother Rachel Cusk
• Hey yeah right get a life Helen Simpson
• Hand in hand Carol Ann Duffy
• Taking off Emily Dickinson's clothes Billy Collins
• Realia Kate Camp
• Bad blood Lorna Sage
• Demonology Rick Moody
• A heartbreaking work of staggering genius Dave Eggers
• How to be good Nick Hornby
• The monkey's mask Dorothy Porter

Anna Jackson liked:

• Swallows and amazons Arthur Ransome
• Josie Smith Magdalen Nabbs
• Below Tim Corballis
• Chrome Paula Green
• The Commonplace odes Ian Wedde

David Eggleton selected:

• 30 days in Sydney Peter Carey
• The author of himself Marcel Reich-Ranicki
• Stonedogs Craig Marriner
• Len Lye: a biography Roger Horrocks
• Music therapy Peter Olds

5 hottest Listener book reviews of the year:

• Angel of the Anzacs: the life of Noala Luxford Carole van Grondelle
• Atonement Ian McEwan
• Before you sleep Linn Ullman
• The bells of St Babels Allen Curnow
• The means of escape Penelope Fitzgerald

5 of the coolest reviews:

• Black oxen Elizabeth Knox
• Dialectic of mud Richard Reeve
• Fury Salman Rushdie
• Szabad Alan Duff
• The uncle's story Witi Ihimaera

Guardian Unlimited contains lists of favourite reads from authors and critics, and best books in various genre including sports, talking books and stories for children.

Amazon

Amazon (US) editors selected the following literature and fiction titles:

• The Corrections Jonathan Franzen
• Peace like a river Leif Engel
• Sailing alone around the room: new and selected poems Billy Collins
• I, the divine Rabih Alameddine
• John Henry days Colson Whitehead
• Demonology Rick Moody
• Bel canto Ann Patchett
• Collected poems James Merrill
• Lightning field Dana Spiotta
• Up in the air Walter Kirn
• The Yokota officers club Sarah Bird
• Empire falls Richard Russo
• The Fourth hand John Irving
• Kissing in Manhattan David Schickler
• The Good people of New York Thisbe Nissen
• Dogwalker: Stories Arthur Bradford, Jordan Pavlin (Editor)
• The Last time they met Anita Shreve
• Back when we were grownups Anne Tyler
• How to be good Nick Hornby
• The Collected stories of Richard Yates
• Carter beats the devil Glen David Gold
• The Best American short stories 2001 Katrina Kenison (Editor)
• Among the missing Dan Chaon
• Fraud David Rakoff
• The Bonesetter's daughter Amy Tan