Most anticipated books in 2010

I have all the symptoms. Social withdrawal. Loss of hygiene. Being out of touch with reality. Frequent hallucinations. Impulse buying. Hoarding.

I am addicted to books.

There’s something about the written word that gets me all hot and bothered. I can’t be tempted with chocolate, clothes or chardonnay, but put me in a used bookstore and I am guaranteed to gorge myself on everything from Plath to Pynchon. Books are my comfort and my passion; I don’t get out much because of this obsession. So it’s no wonder that what I am anticipating the most in 2010 is not the big blockbuster of the summer or the next Steve Jobs iWhatever, but rather the new novels to appear on the shelves from some of the greatest authors of our time. Here is a quick list of the most anticipated books in 2010 (starting in March and ending in August … stay tuned for more anticipated books in future issues of The V):

1.  “Solar” by Ian McEwan
March 30
Although the title sounds like it could be the newest “Twilight” book, it fortunately is not. A Nobel Prize-winning physicist is the book’s protagonist who gets embroiled in the climate change debate. I don’t expect there will be any hot vampires, just hot weather.

2. “The Notebook” by Jose Saramago, not Nicholas Sparks
April 6
The Nobel Laureate collected entries from his blog and created a book which criticizes George W. Bush, the Pope and Wall Street.

3. “The Invisible Bridge” by Julie Orringer
May 4
“To bring an entire lost world … to vivid life between the covers of a novel is an accomplishment; to invest that world, and everyone who inhabits it, with a soul, as Julie Orringer does in ‘The Invisible Bridge,’ takes something more like genius.” —Michael Chabon

4. “Imperial Bedrooms” by Bret Easton Ellis
June 15
Ellis writes a sequel to his first novel “Less Than Zero.” Millions of hipsters rejoice.

5.  “Super Sad True Love Story: A Novel” by Gary Shteyngart
July 27
Can falling in love save an illiterate country from falling apart? Guess you’ll have to wait until July to find out.

6. “Sympathy for the Devil”
August
Why not top off your summer with a pleasant beach read about the devil? Michael Chabon, Stephen King, and other authors contribute to this sure-to-be hellishly good anthology.

With these six books (plus many more) coming out in 2010, I won’t have to suffer through any withdrawals or go to any Bookoholics Anonymous meetings. My addiction may cause my wallet to suffer, but my personal library thrives. So why are you still reading this? Get up and get a book and get addicted.