Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

I never would have thought that reading about a train circus set in the depression era could be so interesting to read.

Make no mistake; this novel is a work of fiction. However, in the author’s notes a lot of the anecdotes in the story were based upon real events.

Sara Gruen does an excellent job of bring not only the people to life, but also the key animals of the story.

I actually read this back in December, but this is easily my favorite book for all of 2008. Noting was as engrossing and overall enjoyable as this book. Do yourself a favor and check it out.

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

I have never read anything by John Steinbeck so I figured this book would be a good place to start. I was not disappointed. It's a short story of commitment, loneliness, hope and loss.

The story is just long enough to completely suck you in but short enough that it's easily a weekend read. I enjoyed this book so much I'm going to try and convince my wife to read it next When my girls are older it will be required reading.

This is a true classic and worth every bit of your time.

A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway

This was an enjoyable book. It still doesn't displace The Old Man and the Sea as my favorite Hemingway novel.

In a nut shell this is a story of Hemingway's time in Paris in the 1920's as part of the Lost Generation.

I particularly enjoyed the chapters concerning F. Scott Fitzgerald and Zelda.

Another thing to note is how Hemingway already considered himself a great writer. I'm surprised at this since for the majority of the book he hadn't published The Sun Also Rises yet. Perhaps it's either Hemingway's notorious ego or that fact that this was written towards the end of his life.

Anyway, this is a good yet short read, check it out.

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

This is the best first novel by a living author that I've read in a long, long time.

Diane weaves a fascinating tale that, once you get past the first couple of chapters, will hook you and make this book very difficult to put down.

I won't go into what the story is about as there's a lot of other places where you can get that, but this is a highly recommended read. If you enjoy a good story that will keep you guessing this is the book for you.

I will be looking forward to Diane's next book.

Now do yourself a favor and go out and grab a copy for yourself.