1983

We've pretty much worked the 80s over, but this year was particularly dreadful.

1. Return of the Jedi Storybook, Joan D. Vinge, adapt. 74 copies on LT

2. Poland, James A. Michener 425 copies

3. Pet Sematary, Stephen King 2,157 copies

4. The Little Drummer Girl, John Le Carré 542 copies

5. Christine, Stephen King 1,548 copies

6. Changes, Danielle Steel 96 copies

7. The Name of the Rose, Umberto Eco 6,208 copies

8. White Gold Wielder: Book Three of The Second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, Stephen R. Donaldson 856 copies

9. Hollywood Wives, Jackie Collins 115 copies

10. The Lonesome Gods,Louis L'Amour 135 copies

I did love The Name of the Rose. We had an unfortunate incident where I work with a vehicle which has since been dubbed Christine and which nobody will use any more. I assume this year was before they removed children's books from the best seller list.

Oh I don't know, I enjoyed Pet Sematary and Christine. Read The Little Drummer Girl, too & remember feeling a new sympathy for Palestinians.

OK, maybe I was a little harsh. Horror and potboilers aren't my thing.

I remember leafing through Return of the Jedi Storybook -- leaf - leaf - leaf.

I am not a fan of Stephen King, but I did like The Name of the Rose. This remains Umberto Eco's best book for me. And I did see the movie, which I also liked in a different way.

I've read Pet Semetary, Changes, and Hollywood Wives here and I know I loved Pet Semetary and Hollywood wives. I'm not crazy about Danielle Steel, but my mom insists that I am and buys me one of her books every year. Ugh!

I read and enjoyed The Name of the Rose, The Little Drummer Girl, and White Gold Wielder, though I'm not sure I'd read that last one again -- the anti-hero was a bit TOO anti for my taste! I don't generally read book spinoffs from movies or horror stories, and Danielle Steele just doesn't do it for me -- maybe because I used to read too much about her personal life in the local paper!

I was forced to read The Name of the Rose in a literature class. Hated it at the time. Perhaps it's worth a second reading as so many people love it so much.

For me, The Little Drummer Girl was absolutely riveting. The movie was truly memorable also.

It was while watching The Name Of The Rose that I walked out of the theatre, worn right out by the horror of it all. As for the book, I never did reach page 100, evidently a major hurdle, according to a reviewer.

I started both Poland and The Name of the Rose and got bogged down in both.

Poland is great if you like those sort of historical interlinked stories forming one great sweeping narrative - and I do.

US Non-fiction

1. In Search of Excellence: Lessons from America's Best-Run Companies, Thomas J. Peters and Robert H. Waterman Jr. 560 copies on LT

2. Megatrends: Ten New Directions Transforming Our Lives, John Naisbitt 211 copies

3. Motherhood: The Second Oldest Profession, Erma Bombeck 129 copies

4. The One Minute Manager, Kenneth Blanchardand Spencer Johnson 628 copies

5. Jane Fonda's Workout Book, Jane Fonda 42 copies

6. The Best of James Herriot, James Herriot 175 copies

7. The Mary Kay Guide to Beauty: Discovering Your Special Look 5 copies

8. On Wings of Eagles, Ken Follett 301 copies

9. Creating Wealth, Robert G. Allen 50 copies

10. The Body Principal: The Exercise Program for Life, Victoria Principal 10 copies

Michener again. How is it I've never read any of his books? Or why?

I should read James Herriot.

I got nothing on this one.

The only one I read was Name of the Rose, which, as I recall, was a dense, dark, lengthy medieval mystery. I know I enjoyed it, but I haven't read any more Eco since.

James A. Michener's novels are fairly lengthy. The most famous are The source and Hawaii. The "Source" unpacks history through stories back in time using a tell (archaeological dig) in Israel as a jumping off point. "Hawaii" is the fictional history of Hawaii told through the lens of the various groups that live there (Hawaiian, white, Japanese, etc).
They were very popular and readable at the time, but have lost their cache over the years since Michener's death.

I have read Christine and Pet Semetary

I've read, and loved, The Name of the Rose.

I have read The Name of the Rose which was good and Christine which was also good and The Lonesome Gods which I don't really remember.

Pet Sematary, Chrstine, Name of the Rose, The Little Drummer Girl and Hollywood Wives: five out of ten, not bad. Unlike me though to read so many popular books.