2005 Favorite Books by Debut Authors

Recommended books found: 12

Page 1 of 1

Each year, BookBrowse subscribers rate their favorite books of the year to choose our Top 20 Best of Year titles. More about how the books are selected.

The Penderwicks

A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy

by Jeanne Birdsall

Hardcover: Jun 2005 | Paperback: Mar 2007

Critics' Consensus:

Deliciously nostalgic and quaintly witty, this is a story as breezy and carefree as a summer day. 2005 National Book Award Winner. Ages 8-12.

The Last Gentleman Adventurer

by Edward Beauclerk Maurice

Hardcover: Nov 2005 | Paperback: Nov 2006

Critics' Consensus:

As spare, gleaming, and exhilarating as the Arctic wastes and the gentle, stoic Eskimos who had mastery of this realm. His translucent prose is a sparkling and moving record of a bygone way of life.

The Historian

by Elizabeth Kostova

Hardcover: Jun 2005 | Paperback: Oct 2006

Critics' Consensus:

What does the legend of Vlad the Impaler have to do with the modern world? Is it possible that the Dracula of myth truly existed—and that he has lived on, century after century, pursuing his own unknowable ends? Elizabeth Kostova's debut ...

The Great Stink

by Clare Clark

Hardcover: Oct 2005 | Paperback: Oct 2006

Critics' Consensus:

With extraordinarily vivid characters and unflinching prose The Great Stink marks the debut of an outstandingly talented writer in the tradition of the best historical novelists.

Julie & Julia

365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen

by Julie Powell

Hardcover: Sep 2005 | Paperback: Sep 2006

Critics' Consensus:

With the humor of Bridget Jones and the vitality of Augusten Burroughs, Julie Powell recounts how she conquered every recipe in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking and saved her soul!

The Tender Bar

by J.R. Moehringer

Hardcover: Sep 2005 | Paperback: Aug 2006

Critics' Consensus:

In the grand tradition of landmark memoirs - a classic American story of self-invention and escape, of the fierce love between a single mother and an only son, it's also a moving portrait of one boy's struggle to become a man, and an ...

The Traveler

The First Novel of the Fourth Realm Trilogy

by John Twelve Hawks

Hardcover: Jun 2005 | Paperback: Jul 2006

Critics' Consensus:

The Traveler explores a parallel world that exists alongside our own. A world that exists in the shadows of our own. A conflict we will never see. One woman stands between those determined to control history and those who will risk their lives for...

Rules for Old Men Waiting

by Peter R. Pouncey

Hardcover: Apr 2005 | Paperback: Jun 2006

Critics' Consensus:

A brief, lyrical novel with a powerful emotional charge about three wars of the twentieth century and an ever-deepening marriage.

The Cry of The Icemark

by Stuart Hill

Hardcover: Mar 2005 | Paperback: Jun 2006

Critics' Consensus:

The Icemark is a kingdom in grave danger. Its king has been killed in battle. Its enemy lies in wait. And its fate rests on the shoulders of one girl.

Maybe A Miracle

by Brian Strause

Hardcover: Oct 2005 | Paperback: May 2006

Critics' Consensus:

By turns humorous and heartbreaking, personal and sweeping, familiar and extraordinary, Brian Strause's first novel takes readers on an unforgettable emotional journey into America's heartland.

The Poet of Tolstoy Park

by Sonny Brewer

Hardcover: Mar 2005 | Paperback: Mar 2006

Critics' Consensus:

A moving and irresistible book based on the true story of Henry Stuart who, given less than a year to live, moved to Alabama, discarded his boots and built a round hut that he lived in for the next twenty years.

The Ha-Ha

by Dave King

Hardcover: Jan 2005 | Paperback: Mar 2006

Critics' Consensus:

A deeply moving and unforgettable first novel about the cost of war and the infinite worth of human connection.

The reviewer of each book decides which categories it belongs in - but we're only human, mistakes happen. If you see a book that you think is in the wrong place, tell us!

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