Sonderbooks

What's New?

January 1, 2003

**NOTE: This page was reformatted in 2025 as part of #Sonderbooks25, my 25th year of posting Sonderbooks. Here is the original page, which is not in phone-friendly format. I've kept the wording the same.**

It's that time of year again: Time to look over the books I've read and decide which were my favorites to read. Although I enjoy giving my immediate reaction to a book, the test of a truly good book is whether it's memorable after time has passed.

I divided the books into categories, then ranked the books in each category according to how much I enjoyed them. It didn't seem fair to compare old favorites with books I'd only read once, so I separated books I'd reread into their own division.

Since I love Young Adult Fantasy, I'll start with that category. [Well, it's in the middle in this version.] I made the categories quirky, making them fit the books I selected. Enjoy these lists! I hope you find some books that you will love as much as I do!

Happy Reading!

—Sondra Eklund




Fiction
Cleopatra's Heir
  1. Cleopatra's Heir
    2. by Gillian Bradshaw

  2. Quentins
    3. by Maeve Binchy

  3. The Lovely Bones
    4. by Alice Sebold

  4. Five Quarters of the Orange
    5. by Joanne Harris

  5. Crocodile on the Sandbank
    6. by Elizabeth Peters

  6. China Run
    7. by David Ball

  7. Learning to Fly
    8. by April Henry



Fiction Rereads
Caravan
  1. Caravan
    2. by Dorothy Gilman

  2. Watership Down
    3. by Richard Adams

  3. Rebecca
    4. by Daphne du Maurier

  4. The Scarlet Pimpernel
    5. by Baroness Orczy


New Picture Books
The Princess and the Pizza
  1. The Princess and the Pizza
    2. by Mary Jane and Herm Auch

  2. Christmas Tapestry
    3. by Patricia Polacco

  3. Hungry Hen
    4. by Richard Waring
    illustrated by Caroline Jayne Church

  4. Elephant elephant
    5. by Pittau & Gervais

  5. The Teddy Bear
    6. by David McPhail


Young Adult and Children's Fantasy and Science Fiction
The Children of the Star
  1. This Star Shall Abide
    2. by Sylvia Louise Engdahl

  2. The Ropemaker
    3. by Peter Dickinson

  3. Water
    4. by Robin McKinley and Peter Dickinson

  4. Heir Apparent
    5. by Vivian Vande Velde

  5. The Fairy's Return
    6. by Gail Carson Levine
    illustrated by Mark Elliott

  6. For Biddle's Sake
    7. by Gail Carson Levine
    illustrated by Mark Elliott

  7. The Hunting of the Last Dragon
    8. by Sherryl Jordan

  8. Rat Boys
    9. by Thom Eberhardt

  9. Goddess of Yesterday
    10. by Caroline B. Cooney



Young Adult and Children's Fantasy Rereads
Blue Sword
  1. The Blue Sword
    2. by Robin McKinley

  2. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
    3. by J. K. Rowling

  3. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
    4. by J. K. Rowling

  4. Ella Enchanted
    5. by Gail Carson Levine



Young Adult Historical Fiction
The King's Swift Rider
  1. The King's Swift Rider
    2. by Mollie Hunter

  2. Crispin
    The Cross of Lead
    3. by Avi

  3. Shylock's Daughter
    4. by Mirjam Pressler


Young Adult Historical Rereads
The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle
  1. The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle
    2. by Avi

  2. Treasure Island
    3. by Robert Louis Stevenson


Young Adult Contemporary Novels
All-American Girl
  1. All-American Girl
    2. by Meg Cabot

  2. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
    3. by Ann Brashares


Young Adult and Children's Classic Rereads
Anne of the Island
  1. Anne of the Island
    2. by L. M. Montgomery

  2. Anne's House of Dreams
    3. by L. M. Montgomery

  3. Winnie-the-Pooh
    4. by A. A. Milne

  4. Thunderhead
    5. by Mary O'Hara

  5. Anne of Windy Poplars
    6. by L. M. Montgomery


Biographical Nonfiction
Angles of Reflection
  1. Angles of Reflection
    2. by Joan L. Richards

  2. In Code
    3. by Sarah Flannery
    with David Flannery

  3. Love, Greg and Lauren
    4. by Greg Manning

  4. The Christmas Box Miracle
    5. by Richard Paul Evans

  5. The Piano Shop on the Left Bank
    6. by T. E. Carhart

  6. Walking the Bible
    7. by Bruce Feiler

  7. Bringing Down the House
    8. by Ben Mezrich


Biographical Reread
Life Among the Savages
  1. Life Among the Savages
    2. by Shirley Jackson


Other Nonfiction
Small Wonder
  1. Small Wonder
    2. by Barbara Kingsolver

  2. A Mind at a Time
    3. by Mel Levine

  3. Storybook Travels
    4. by Colleen Dunn Bates & Susan LaTempa


Other Nonfiction Rereads
Knowing the Heart of God
  1. Knowing the Heart of God
    2. by George MacDonald

  2. Walking on Water
    3. by Madeleine L'Engle

  3. Of Other Worlds
    4. by C. S. Lewis


Children's Nonfiction
The Best of Times
  1. The Best of Times
    2. by Greg Tang
    illustrated by Harry Briggs