Back in July I spent a brief moment thinking about the photobooks the year had produced up until that moment. I remember I was dreading the prospect of putting together a “best of” list. Somehow, it seemed the year had been off to a rather sluggish start. Regardless, the year has eleven months, with December being the “best of” month. I’m glad that I usually wait until at least the middle of December to compile my list: Many of my favourite books this year I found/discovered/bought/got over the course of the past three weeks. (more)

The following books I reviewed on this site, so you can simply read the reviews to get an idea why they are included here: Gomorrah Girl by Valerio Spada, Redwood Saw by Richard Rothman, Conductors of the Moving World by Brad Zellar, Carnal Knowledge by Malerie Marder, Photographic Memory by Verna Posever Curtis, Berlin by Mitch Epstein, Candlestick Point (re-issue) by Lewis Baltz, and Beyond by Loredana Nemes.

I still have to review these following books: Dies Lunae XI Julius MMXI by Jonathan Saunders (at the time of this writing I am probably the only person, apart from its maker, who owns a copy of this book - you can get one here); Dirk Braeckman; Redheaded Peckerwood by Christian Patterson; Is This Place Great or What by Brian Ulrich; Pontiac by Gerry Johansson; Sochi Singers by The Sochi Project; Swiss Photobooks from 1927 to the Present (quite possibly the heaviest and thickest book in any of my lists so far).

Update (19 Dec 2011): For reasons that escape me I forgot to include Dessau by Bill Sullivan. Also to be added, the following books I received after publishing the list (!), I’ll review them over the next few weeks: 7 Rooms by Rafal Milach, Eight Days by Venetia Dearden, and The Raw and the Cooked by Peter Bialobrzeski.