2004 STAFF PICKS

Recently we asked our reviewers to provide us with a list of some of their favorite books from 2004. Included is a mix of fiction and nonfiction titles, all published this year. Take a moment to read these varied lists of titles, and see if you agree with their selections! Please note that due to personal and professional commitments, all of our reviewers were not able to participate in this feature.

Kate Ayers

• A DEATH IN VIENNA by Daniel Silva
  
• THE COVENANT by Naomi Ragen
  
• OUTSIDE VALENTINE by Liza Ward
  
• STRANGE BUT TRUE by John Searles
  

• HEAVEN LAKE by John Dalton
  
• WITH by Donald Harington
  
• HEIR TO THE GLIMMERING WORLD by Cynthia Ozick
  
• THE DEW BREAKER by Edwidge Danticat
  
• THE PLOT AGAINST AMERICA by Philip Roth
  

• THE PACIFIC AND OTHER STORIES by Mark Helprin
  
• AN UNFINISHED LIFE by Mark Spragg
  

• THE HEARTBREAKER by Susan Howatch
  Howatch and the Church of England, a potent mix!
  

• NAPOLEON: A Political Life by Steven Englund
  
• THE ISLAND AT THE CENTER OF THE WORLD by Russell Shorto
  
• OFF SEASON by Ken McAlpine
  
• HIS EXCELLENCY: George Washington by Joseph Ellis
  
• MY LIFE by Bill Clinton
  

• HEART OF THE HUNTER by Deon Meyer
  I loved it!
  
  
• GARDEN OF BEASTS by Jeffery Deaver
  Excellent read.
  
  
• SARAH: Book One of the Canaan Trilogy by Marek Halter
  Great read!
  

• MISSING WITNESS by Craig Parshall
  
• R IS FOR RICOCHET by Sue Grafton
  
• EVERYTHING BURNS by Christopher Klim
  
• SHATTERED IMAGE by J.F. Margos
  
• THE GIRL NEXT DOOR by Patricia MacDonald
  

• BREACH OF TRUST by D.W. Buffa
  A rich wedding of plot and language. If (heaven forbid) you ever fall out of love with reading, pick this one up and you'll renew the affair immediately.
  
  
• PAST DUE by William Lashner
  Begins with one of the best descriptions of a crime scene that I have ever had the privilege to read, and maintains that quality of art through the very last page.
  
  
• THE HAVANA ROOM by Colin Harrison
  This year's cautionary tale. While illustrating how quickly things can go so terribly wrong, it nevertheless demonstrates the triumph of the human spirit, all within the context of a spellbinding, mesmerizing tale.
  
  
• BAD MEN by John Connolly
  An unpredictable, horrific story by an author who is quietly becoming a grandmaster of the suspense genre.
  
  
• THE 37TH HOUR by Jodi Compton
  One of the surprises of 2004. A riveting mystery with a couple of shocks at the end, masterfully written all the way through.
  

• FAITHFUL by Stewart O'Nan and Stephen King
  
• PLANET SIMPSON by Chris Turner
  
• HANK AARON AND THE HOME RUN THAT CHANGED AMERICA by Tom Stanton
  
• BIG RUSS AND ME by Tim Russert
  
• THE DC COMICS ENCYCLOPEDIA by Scott Beatty
  

• THE SECOND DEATH OF UNICA AVEYANO by Ernesto Mestre-Reed
  
• THE SUMMER GUEST by Justin Cronin
  
• THE GARDEN ANGEL by Mindy Friddle
  
• SOUL CITY by Toure
  
• THE COAL TATTOO by Silas House
  
• THE WINDMILL by Stephanie Gertler
  
• SNOWED IN by Christina Bartolomeo
  

• THE BIRTH OF VENUS by Sarah Dunant
  
• THE JANE AUSTEN BOOK CLUB by Karen Joy Fowler
  
• EATS, SHOOTS & LEAVES: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation by Lynne Truss
  
• MAGICAL THINKING by Augusten Burroughs
  
• AMERICA (The Book) by Jon Stewart and the writers of The Daily Show
  

• THE HAVANA ROOM by Colin Harrison
  

• RATS by Robert Sullivan
  
• THE INNER CIRCLE by T. C. Boyle
  
• LITTLE CHILDREN by Tom Perrotta
  
• GILEAD by Marilynne Robinson
  
• CANDYFREAK by Steve Almond
  

• IDEAL MARRIAGE by Peter Friedman
  
• BOBBED HAIR AND BATHTUB GIN by Marion Meade
  

• JONATHAN STRANGE & MR. NORRELL by Susanna Clarke
  
• THE SECRET LANGUAGE OF GIRLS by Frances O'Roark Dowell
  
• AN INNOCENT, A BROAD by Ann Leary
  
• MILLIONS by Frank Cottrell Boyce
  

• THE UNITED STATES OF EUROPE by T.R. Reid
  Eye opening and insightful
  
  
• GOING POSTAL by Terry Pratchett
  Best one yet in a long and successful satirical series
  

• ABSENT FRIENDS by S. J. Rozan
  
• THE STUPIDEST ANGEL by Christopher Moore
  
• AN ANTIC DISPOSITION by Alan Gordon
  
• SOMETHING ROTTEN by Jasper Fforde
  
• DEEP POCKETS by Linda Barnes
  

• WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH KANSAS? by Thomas Frank
  
• CROSSING CALIFORNIA by Adam Langer
  
• TED WILLIAMS: The Biography of an American Hero by Leigh Montville
  
• PERILOUS TIMES: Free Speech in Wartime by Geoffrey Stone
  
• THE GRAND SLAM by Mark Frost
  

• THE DEATH AND LIFE OF CHARLIE ST. CLOUD by Ben Sherwood
  
  
• THE COMPLETE STORIES OF TRUMAN CAPOTE by Truman Capote.
  I am still reading this but it is AMAZING. Best collection of short stories that I've seen in years from any author, and T.C. has been dead since '84! This is easily a classic.
  
  
• OBLIVION by David Foster Wallace
  

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