Has anybody noticed that Lynda Barry is a national treasure? She writes about being a child, but her books are decidedly for adults. One Hundred Demons is a collection of Barry's recollections of life growing up in Seattle: taking dance classes, playing kickball, fighting with her Filipino mother, getting her first job, having crushes, having sex. Nothing extraordinary about it, except the fact that Barry writes like an angel and draws like one of her titular demons. It's a graphic novel, but don't confuse it with a comic book — if David Sedaris and Paul Gauguin collaborated on an autobiography, they might come up with something half as good. You'll wonder how anything can be so sad and so funny at the same time.
(Non-Fiction)
The Piano Man conquers Broadway, Eminem goes Hollywood, plus the rest of TIME's picks for the best of the year