Best Books of 2006

I tend to fall in love with humanity every time I read an excellent book. Unfortunately, I didn't find love in 2006, yet certain books impressed me. William J. Cobb's Goodnight, Texas (Unbridled) is a refreshing piece of contemporary fiction, wherein Cobb does not try to reinvent the wheel but instead tells an engaging story. Moving and informative, raúlrsalinas and the Jail Machine: My Weapon Is My Pen (University of Texas) is a collection of Raúl Salinas' writing as well as an homage to the Austin literary and political icon. My favorite graphic novels were Lucky (Drawn & Quarterly), the latest of Gabrielle Bell's fine artistic style and carefully constructed dialogue; Project: Romantic (AdHouse), an anthology of love comics, the most touching being "The Fart of Love"; and Mendel's Daughter: A Memoir (Free Press), Martin Lemelman's non-Maus-like retelling of a Holocaust survivor's tale.