89. The Life and Times of the Thunderbold Kid, Bill Bryson

Fantastic and funny, although slightly depressing in the last chapter as Des Moines and the world move on. But that's life. Wonderful nostalgia.

88. People of the Book, Geraldine Brooks (Did Not Finish)

A wonderfully-written novel (of course), but as straight novels are not my favourite things, Wikipedia will do better for telling me about the Sarajevo Haggadah.

87. The Silver Pigs, Lindsey Davis

Mystery of disappearing silver ingots in ancient Rome and Britain. Magnificent sense of place. You are there, not reading about it from the future. Worth a second shot at the series. (Grammar maven: Since she loves Roman history, Davis might consider studying Latin -- or English -- grammar and learning something about pronouns and case. Very irritating lapse.)

86. The Hornet's Nest, Jimmy Carter

The South's part during the Revolution. Not very well put together, but interesting for the picture of everyday life as well as the war history.

85. Renato's Luck, Jeff Shapiro (Audio)

Lovely story of life in a small Italian village. Everyone has problems and they get solved in unexpected ways.

84. Agatha Raisin and the Perfect Paragon, M. C. Beaton

The perfect wife, the poisoned husband: business is booming for Agatha.

83. The Deadly Dance (Agatha Raisin), M. C. Beaton

Agatha has started her own detective agency. Same amount of fun and better plots.

82. A Secret History of the IRA, Ed Moloney

Well-written, accessible history of the IRA, concentrating on the years from the 70s. Extremely detailed and not usually for the general reader.