Burkhead's Best Reads for 2006, Genre Specific and Otherwise.

Burkhead’s Best Reads 2006, Genre Specific and Otherwise

A few caveats:

• I’m a big science fiction, fantasy, and horror buff, so a lot of the things below are from those genres. If you are looking for a purely “quality literature” list, this isn’t it.


• Having said that, there are a few things on the list that in my judgment cross the boundary from genre to good literature. I think those will be self-evident, but I’ll point them out anyway.


• Don’t be deceived by the “2006” moniker. Several of the books listed below are years old and I just happened to have read them in 2006. That is to say, not all of them are new publications.


• I’m mainly interested in letting people know about books I’ve enjoyed so other readers will be aware of them as well.


• Why? Because everyone else does their own year’s best list, and I felt left out. :D

So, without further preamble-Burkhead’s Best Reads for 2006!

The Lies of Locke Lammora-Scott Lynch-What a fun read! This is a rollicking tale of a band of young thieves/con men in the fantastical city of Camorra. The tale jumps back and forth between the apprenticeship of this band of brothers under their criminal mentor, and an elaborate set of underworld plots and plans in the present involving the local underworld, the authorities, and a new outside force. Not without some moral edification-becomes a study on the nature and psychology of revenge. If nothing else, proves the truth of “honor among thieves. This may be the most entertaining book I read in 2006.

Bridge of Birds-Barry Hughart-Lyrical fantasy based in Chinese myth, culture, and folklore. I had heard for years how good this book was but didn’t read until May, 06. Sorry I waited so long. Ki Lao the great scholar and his assistant the peasant boy Number 10 Ox are on a quest to save the children of Number 10 Ox’s village from a poisoned slumber. A heartfelt meditation on the meaning of purity of heart and purpose.

Anno Dracula-Kim Newman-What if Van Helsing, Harker, et. all failed in their attempt to kill Dracula? This thoughtful novel examines what might have been if Dracula were alive to plague Britain at the height of the empire. This book is as much mystery and political thriller as it is horror story, although it is plenty terrifying. Watch for the sly jokes about 90’s Goth culture and the literary in-jokes. A must read for classic vampire
story fans.

Evolution’s Shore-Ian McDonald-I read 3 books by this author about the same time, and after some reflection decided to recommend this one as the best. Something strange has fallen to earth and is completely transforming the biology of the world. Is it the next stage of human evolution or simply the end of the world? Set against the backdrop of modern Africa and her sorrows, this is a compelling tale of how we respond to a future out of human control.

World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War-Max Brooks-Who’d thought the son of the director of Blazing Saddles could write a horror novel? This one is most interesting for its global perspective on the great zombie war in our near future and for the way it is constructed, as a set of interviews with survivors, military and civilian. It seems to be modeled on World War II, and deals not just with land military actions but with politics, the changes in industry needed to meet the zombie threat, the conflict at sea (yes, you read that right) and everything in between.

The Border Trilogy-All the Pretty Horses, the Crossing, and Cities of the Plain- Cormac McCarthy. Here’s an entry that qualifies as “literature”. ;) I suppose these are best described as modern Westerns. They are set in the modern American West, and draw deeply on the mythology of the West-as-frontier. Wonderfully written and rich in symbolism, so much so as to be almost impenetrable at times. All the Pretty Horses and The Crossing double as coming-of-age tales, and Cities of the Plain brings the stories of boys-become-men to an epic and tragic conclusion. And among other things Cities of the Plain contains what may be best knife fight I’ve ever read put to paper.

The Dead Zone-Stephen King-This is one of King’s older books, but I found it to be one of his best. Part supernatural horror and part political thriller, it tells the tale of a man who after a horrifying car accident gets partial glimpses of the future when he touches another person, and what he sees when he bumps into a candidate for office in his state. Tense, paranoid, and heartbreaking, this is an early winner from one of our most prolific authors.

The Last Picture Show-Larry McMurtry-I told you there would be a few actual pieces of literature on the list. ;) Elegiac story of small town life, and the absolute despair of people who have no where else to go as their world gets smaller and smaller as they get older and older, from high school seniors to the town’s leading citizens. Change the oil fields and ranches of rural Texas to the cotton fields and red clay of Mississippi, and you have the towns I grew up in. The famous movie is completely faithful to the book, but I would urge you to read it anyway.

Shriek: An Afterword-Jeff Vandermeer-This easily qualifies as fantasy or horror, so I’ll leave it for you to decide. Elegantly written, lush, surreal novel about the secret history of the city of Ambergris as relayed by a brother and sister team of historian/writer/artists. Weird and strange, but gripping from page 1. Are the human inhabitants of the city in charge of their destiny, or are they really just pawns of the inhabitants of the city underneath Ambergris, the “mushroom people”, who clearly have their own, if undecipherable, agenda and plans? This novel succeeds on every level-characters, writing, imagined world fully realized, use of the language, plot. There is a consistent sub-plot commenting on the publishing industry for all you would be writers. Maybe the most literary novel I read in 2006.