What do planners and designers read? Just in time to provide us all with some desperately needed last-minute holiday gift ideas, we asked our Life at HOK bloggers to tell us the books they most enjoyed in 2009. In return we got nothing resembling a trend, unless you can spot one amid the detective novels, cult classics, modern fables, philosophy, math, sustainability, science, business and Ayn Rand.

Though a couple respondents reported that they read on Kindles — one frequent traveler lavished “best thing in the world” praise on her new e-reader — and another loads audiobooks onto his iPod, most are still reading good, old-fashioned books. “The older, the better,” wrote Michelle. “I like the smell.”

A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole
“When a true genius appears in the world, you may know him by this sign, that the dunces are all in confederacy against him.” – Jonathan Swift

Recommended by Paula Huerta:
“The author wrote this book when he was less than 30 and committed suicide after. No one wanted to publish his books, but 11 years later his mother brought the draft of this novel to an editor and won the Pulitzer Prize with it.”

A Dirty Job by Christopher Moore

Recommended by Stephanie Spann:
“Charlie Asher inherits a dirty job and people are always seeming to die everywhere he goes! The most humorous death and dying book I’ve ever read.”

Anthem by Ayn Rand

Recommended by Michelle Pinkston:
“Yes, I know, It’s a cliché… designer likes Ayn Rand…I get it. THIS, however, is by far her least preachy novel. And it’s a quick read! I loved it – read it in an afternoon on a porch swing!”

Being and Time by Martin Heidegger

Recommended by Blake Gallagher:
“This is on my wish list as supposedly an important work that helped frame 20^th century philosophy and thought. The idea will be to understand whether these ideas can be translated into the technological age of the 21^st century.”

Blessed Unrest by Paul Hawken

Recommended by John Cantrell:
“Paul Hawken on social sustainability and our connections to cultures and people. ‘Nuff said.”

Blessed Unrest book review by HOK Chairman Bill Valentine

Broken by Daniel Clay

Recommended by Stephanie Spann:
“Ever have one of those odd neighbors that rarely comes out of the house and you wonder if he locks children in his closet? At least this is fiction!”

Clean Energy Common Sense: An American Call to Action on Global Climate Change by Frances Beinecke with Bob Deans

Recommended by Jodi Williams:
“Like the title, this book is all about the common sense aspect of reducing our carbon outputs.”

Dog On It by Spencer Quinn

Recommended by Stephanie Spann:
“The life of a detective told through the detective dog’s point of view. There’s even a blog over at http://www.chetthedog.com/.”

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer

Recommended by Han Hsi Ho:
“As someone who lived in New York during 9/11, I have read a few books related to the incident; this one is so far the best and transcends beyond the specific event and spoke to deeper issues such as searching, protecting and compassion.”

Recommended by Megan Holder:
“The Fountainhead has been my favorite book for years. For me this book, at a minimum, ties the way I feel about Fountainhead. ELIC is a story about dealing with grief, the power of love, and the bonds of one family. 9/11 is a character in this story, but it does not control the plot line. The main character, Oscar Schell, is mischievous, brilliant, and quirky. During this book, I laughed out loud and cried (the snotty kind of crying) in public. It reminds you how important it is to say, ‘I love you!’”

“Disclaimer: In fairness, some reviewers / critics of this book didn’t enjoy Foer’s writing style… they feel it is arrogant and at times a bit cocky. I did not feel this way when reading ELIC. Also, there is a second sub plot that at times can be hard to follow, but all weaves together in the end.”

Fashioning Felt by Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum

Recommended by Natalie Banaszak:
“A fascinating look at the ancient art of felting and its uses in traditional and contemporary design.”

Fool by Christopher Moore

Recommended by Stephanie Spann:
“To quote the book, it takes place in the time of ‘a more or less mythical thirteenth century Britain.’ It starts out with a map like this (see France).”

Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters by Matt Ridley

Recommended by Blake Gallagher:
“Ridley is a British scientist turned journalist. This book is a few years old, which is very old in science time (much has been learned after mapping the human genome!), but still great insight into our genetic makeup.”

Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations by Clay Shirky

Recommended by Blake Gallagher:
“A must read for anybody who wants to understand the future of business and management (across all fields) and the ways they will be completely transformed through the evolution of social networks and open source design.”

Hot Flat and Crowded by Thomas Friedman

Recommended by Blake Gallagher:
“A well-researched and well-written work on the importance of energy (and I would posit as an extension, information) in a future where, through globalization, a population measured in billions will enter into the American economic equivalent of ‘the middle class.’”

On Intelligence by Jeff Hawkins with Sandra Blakeslee

Recommended by John Cantrell:
“Jeff Hawkins (creator of the original Palm Pilot and Neurologist) sets forth a new theory of how the brain works and processes information beyond the old neural network theories.”

Our Choice: A Plan to Solve the Climate Crisis by Al Gore

Recommended by Nico Stearley:
“This book clearly explains what is going on with profound words, creative diagrams, and amazing pictures. As a designer, that combination really communicates to me. This is a book to be passed along to encourage action and discussion on the topic.”

Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

Recommended by John Cantrell:
“Great book on the complexities of personal success as contributed to our time, surroundings, genes, and cultures.”

Road to Reality: A Complete Guide to the Laws of the Universe by Roger Penrose

Recommended by Blake Gallagher:
“A bit heavy on the math (Penrose is a highly acclaimed mathematician who’s study reaches into the realm of theoretical physics), but worth the read if you can struggle through its 1100 pages of elegant mathematical theories on many of the deepest current understandings of the universe (I’m only half way through this one!).”

Shame by Salman Rushdie

Recommended by Valerie Greer:
“Wicked fable and an interesting perspective, particularly given the current political situation.”

SuperCorp: How Vanguard Companies Create Innovation, Profits, Growth, and Social Good by Rosabeth Moss Kanter

Recommended by Kimberly Dowdell:
“This is an awesome book and required reading for anyone serious about meaningful leadership in business.”

The Architecture of Happiness by Alain De Botton

Recommended by John Cantrell:
“This book contains a lot of theories and tests about how architecture and design can make us a generally happier society and people, and how the ideologies we follow most often don’t necessarily contribute to who we are as a people and the values we have. Alain De Botton is an exquisite and somewhat controversial writer whom I completely admire after reading this book. He also has a great TED lecture, check it out!!”

The Future of Life by Edward O. Wilson

Recommended by John Cantrell:
“Want to entangle your mind into the difficulties of our life as a species in relevance as it’s connected to everything? Then read this book.”

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson

Recommended by Jodi Williams:
“Can’t wait for his third book to come out!”

The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution by Richard Dawkins

Recommended by Blake Gallagher:
“This will be my next read, as Dawkins ranks high on my list of highly influential scientists. He is a renowned zoologist, much of whose work is intended to bring the science of evolution as it relates to not only the natural but also social sciences into our collective understanding of the world. I want to understand his strategies for doing so.”

The Green Workplace by Leigh Stringer

Recommended by Kimberly Dowdell:
“This is an awesome book and required reading for anyone serious about making good sustainable choices.”

Recommended by Jodi Williams:
“As a contributor, I might be a bit biased, but this is one of the best books of the year!”

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Recommended by Jodi Williams:
“Could not put this one down.”

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

Recommended by Stephanie Spann:
“Thirty-three pages in and I cried while thinking of the people I should call to tell them that I love them, just in case I should die soon. There’s a new movie out about it too!”

The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

Recommended by Jodi Williams:
“Great new (to me) author!”