Best books of 2009

The New Yorker’s writers list some of their favorite books of 2009.

Ann Kingman, Michael Kindness, and the Books on the Nightstand listeners list some of their favorites from the past year.

I hoped to include a list of my favorite books of 2009, but it occurs to me that I read only a handful of books this year that were published in 2009, and while I enjoyed most of them, they were not my favorite books of the year.  My paltry list includes:

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, which I enjoyed very much.  Clever, hilarious, and ingeniously woven.

Scroogenomics, which I thought was insightful and thought-provoking but ponderous at times.

The Evolution of God, which I also found insightful but extremely ponderous at times.

Everything else I read or listened to this year was published prior to 2009.  About forty books in all.  And this doesn’t include the many YA titles I read with my students, none published in 2009 as far as I can remember.

I haven’t even read the latest installment of Diary of a Wimpy Kid.

Is this a bad thing?

As an author, should I be more abreast of books published within the calendar year?  Should I have my finger better situated on the pulse of the publishing world?  Should reading more current books make my list of New Year’s resolutions for 2010?

I’m not sure.  Thoughts?