5. The O'Reilly Factor For Kids: This was not so much of a disappointment as expectations were not too high in the first place. This fine review by the Duke says it better than I possibly could.

6. The Know-It-All: One man's journey to discover everything worth knowing tells us that there is little worth knowing after all. A J Jacobs read through all 32 volumes of the Encyclopedia Britannica and shares his findings, including the discovery that Lincoln was the second speaker at Gettysburg. Shallow insights and lame one-liners are all too common. Innaccuracies and typos abound.

7. Call to Treason: Tom Clancy's ghost-writers have some work to do if they truly wish to channel their master's writing spirit. Weak writing, a poor plot and a strained attempt at grounding the theme in current realities make this the worst of the Op Center series.

8. Transmission: Hari Kunzru's superlative "The Impressionist" is followed up by this weak pseudo-cyberpunk book featuring Indian hackers who plant worms unnoticed in smart people's software, and then escape to Mexico. The subplot featuring an Indian film being shot in Scotland is pointless and distracting. A number of loose ends are left dangling, leaving one to hope for a better novel next time by an excellent author

9. Trump: How To Get Rich: The king of braggadocio delivers a slim volume that touches on topics of interest only to the author himself. There is little insight here, and even less good writing.

Some of these books, particularly 1, 3 and 4 were good and necessary reads, despite their inclusion in the list above.

Note: My list of the 10 best books of 2004