Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Book Covers I'd Frame As Pieces of Art

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week's topic:

Top Ten Book Covers I'd Frame As Pieces of Art

You know how some people have their own personal movie theater rooms with a giant TV, comfy chairs, a popcorn maker, and movie posters covering the walls? Well, someday I'm going to have my own personal reading room filled with bookshelves, comfy chairs, a Keurig (because for the full cozy reading experience you need tea and coffee), and giant, framed book posters on the walls. These are some of the covers I'd frame:

1. The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender: I know you're all probably sick of hearing me talk about this book, but LOOK AT THAT COVER! Just look at it! It's gorgeous!

2. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell: I love that Gingerhaze did the artwork for Fangirl--it's so unique!

3. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling: Having grown up with the American editions of the Harry Potter books, I absolutely love Mary GrandPré's art. All the covers are fantastic but I love OotP the most for its blue tones and the wispy letters.

4.  Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë: Behold, the most beautiful cover of Jane Eyre ever created!

5. Black Spring by Alison Croggon: In keeping with the Jane Eyre theme is this spooky cover of Black Spring, a retelling of Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë.

6. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer: Oh, look. It's that other book I talk about all the time (sorry, not sorry). I'm a bit obsessive when it comes to hunting down different editions of my favorite books, and I've been drooling over the beautiful manga-esque Korean editions of Twilight for years but MAN, are they expensive! (Also, there's the tiny little detail of me not being able to read Korean, but whatever...)

7. The Diviners by Libba Bray: It's purple, it's got creepy-cool designs and awesome typography. Need I say more?

8. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern: This cover art is perfection! It's the main reason I wanted to read the book in the first place (although the book would be amazing even without the beautiful cover art. Seriously, go read it if you haven't already).

So tell me, do we share any of the same favorite covers? Which ones would you have framed?

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books If You Like...SAILOR MOON

 Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's topic:

Top Ten Books If You Like "X"

If you're a child of the '90s, you're probably familiar with a famous Japanese cartoon by the name of Sailor Moon.

Via

To those of you who didn't grow up with early '90s television, or have just never heard of Sailor Moon before, I implore you to educate yourselves right now by binge-watching the first season (in the original Japanese, though. With subtitles. For the sake of your sanity, do not watch the DIC English dub--it's fine for those of us who first experienced Sailor Moon this way, but now it's just plain cringe worthy).

To five-year-old me, Sailor Moon was the epitome of cool. To begin with, she had the most beautiful name I'd ever heard (Serena), and had the most awesome hairstyle I had ever seen (which I still to this day regret never being able to pull off). She had a talking cat, fought against evil monsters with her best friends, and to top it all off was a princess, which sent her cool factor through the roof because there was nothing I loved more as a kindergartener than stories about princesses. Sailor Moon wasn't without her flaws, however--she wasn't great at schoolwork, was often lazy, and she could be a cowardly crybaby. But in the end, with the support of her friends, she always came through and saved the day. Sailor Moon and the Sailor Scouts oozed "girl power", and I'm pretty sure that this early obsession with kick-ass superheroines was the beginning of my love for stories featuring awesome girls. So for today's Top Ten list, I'm picking books that also have awesome girls at the center of their stories (along with some magical elements, of course).

Karou of Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor, Clary of The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare, Celaena Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas, Fire of Fire by Kristin Cashore, Katniss of The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Who are some of your favorite "superheroines"?

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Bookish Things (That Aren't Books) That I'd Like To Own

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week's topic:

Bookish Things (That Aren't Books) That I'd Like To Own

1. A reading nook/window seat: Ever since I was a little girl, one thing I've always wanted was a cozy little hiding place where I could tuck myself away to read in peace and quiet. I've never had a room with a window seat, but someday I'd love to have one.

2. A home library: I think just about all of us are familiar with the scene in Disney's Beauty and the Beast in which the Beast surprises Belle with that fantastic library. And I think that most of us bookish types would give anything to have a library like that. My dream is to one day have a home with a giant library room to fill with all my books (and if that library is equipped with a spiral staircase or ladders, all the better!).

3. Katie Daisy book plates: If you haven't heard of Katie Daisy and seen her gorgeous, whimsical artwork, allow me to direct you to her Etsy shop. I'm not sure she sells these book plates anymore, but I'll be the first to buy some if they become available again!

4. This Harry Potter mug: Because who doesn't need a Harry Potter mug?!

5. A replica of Sirius Black's wand: Yes, I am one of those geeks who frequently drools over those Noble Collection catalogs...and even own a few things from it. So far I've acquired Hermione's wand, the Elder wand (which my wonderful dad got me at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter), and Hermione's Time Turner. Now I want Sirius's wand because the engravings on it are so cool!

6. The Clockwork Angel necklace: How gorgeous is this necklace?! Unfortunately, the really nice ones are far too expensive for me to justify buying (at least for the moment).

7. The Folio Society editions of Andrew Lang's Fairy books: Technically, this list is supposed to be things that aren't books...but the chances of me getting these particular editions are so slim that I've decided to throw them on the list anyway. I have always been, and still am, a huge fairy tale lover, so when I saw these books on tumblr, I immediately had to track them down. I found them...and nearly cried when I saw the price. The books are absolutely gorgeous, but at $80 a pop I don't see myself owning them any time soon, if ever.

8. Penguin Books tote bag: I love the look of these editions of the Penguin classics, so of course I freaked out when I saw they had matching tote bags!

9. Old-fashioned Harry Potter postcard posters:  I absolutely love how the artist of these posters gave an old-timey postcard feel to their depiction of Hogwarts and the Quidditch World Cup and the Hogwarts Express! So fun! I'd love to hang these on my walls.

10. ALL OF THE Sacchi bookmarks! You know those shiny metal bookmarks with the ribbons and beading that you always see hanging on the bookmark carousel at Barnes and Noble? I love them! They are my favorite bookmarks ever and I'd love to have a collection of them.

Check out my "Bookish Things" Pinterest board to see what else is on my bookish wishlist.

Top Ten Tuesday: Most Unique Books I've Read

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week's topic:

The Most Unique Books I've Read

1. Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling: Does this one even need explaining? J.K. Rowling created an entirely new world when she wrote Harry Potter, a world that millions of children (and even adults) would have given anything to live in.


2. Chaos Walking by Patrick Ness: While it took a while to grow on me, I ended up absolutely loving the Chaos Walking trilogy. I love how Ness used grammar and spelling to portray Todd's voice; it was so real and unique to him. The inclusion of the different fonts for the thoughts of the men in Prentisstown and New Prentisstown also made these books stand out from others in the YA category.

3. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak: The very fact that this book is narrated by an anthropomorphized figure of Death would be enough to make this book unique, but the way in which Death speaks makes The Book Thief really stand out. Death's way of seeing and experiencing the world is so sensory and heartbreaking and beautiful.

4. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell: Possibly my favorite book of 2013, Fangirl was the best book I'd read about fandom since reading Melissa Anelli's Harry: A History. The whole time reading I was so in awe of Rainbow Rowell. I just thought, "wow, she really gets what it's like to be in fandom." And while I absolutely love Fangirl for the parallels it draws to the HP fandom, the story is about so much more than that. Cath is a character I could truly relate to and Rowell perfectly captured the anxieties that go along with being a freshman in college. I never expected that this book would make me feel so much, but it did!

5. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins: Some may argue with me about the originality of THG, especially with all the comparisons that have been drawn between it and the Japanese novel, Battle Royale, but for me these books were unique because they were the first dystopian novels I'd read, and they blew my mind. Each book was riveting and action-packed, and Katniss is such an awesome heroine.

6. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern: The Night Circus might be slow plot-wise, but gosh, it has such gorgeous imagery. I loved the combination of the whimsical nature of the circus with all those magical elements. I would love to see this book adapted to film.

7. Soulless by Gail Carriger: This book is so great! It's Jane Austen meets steampunk urban fantasy and I absolutely love it. It's so funny and entertaining!

Top Ten Tuesday: YA "Gateway" Books In My Reading Journey

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week's topic:

YA Gateway Books In My Reading Journey

Oh, my gosh, this post was so hard to make! I've been wracking my brain for nearly half an hour trying to remember some of the first YA books I ever read. The fact that it's been ten years (ten years!) since I turned thirteen combined with the fact that I didn't have Goodreads back then to track my reading progress, I've forgotten a lot of what I read back then. Luckily, after a little digging around through the YA book lists on Goodreads, I was able to find some of the books I read as a young teen. So, here you have it: Teen Alex's list of gateway YA books. This list spans some of the most influential books I read from around ages twelve to fifteen.

1. Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech: This is one of the few childhood books that has survived two cross-state moves and multiple book shelf sweeps. I remember reading this book as a kid and just being absorbed by Creech's storytelling.

2. The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot: If I had to name my favorite series in middle school, Meg Cabot's The Princess Diaries would be it. They are hands down the funniest books I've ever read, even now. As an awkward, shy preteen and teenager, I related so much to Mia's struggles but loved the way Cabot conveyed them with such humor.

3. Romiette and Julio by Sharon Draper: One of my absolute favorites in sixth grade. I think this was one of the first books that I stayed up until the wee hours of the morning to finish. It's the classic Romeo and Juliet story modernized; set in an inner city where two teens in love are challenged by the racism perpetuated by school gangs, peers, and their own parents. It was such a suspenseful and exciting read at the time, and was the first truly "romantic" book I'd ever read.

4. A Rose for Melinda by Lurlene McDaniel: At the time, reading this book (about a young ballet dancer with terminal cancer) was the equivalent to reading The Fault in Our Stars now. I bawled at the end. My heart was totally broken. Afterward, I went into Lurlene McDaniel craze that lasted pretty much all throughout middle school. Not much has changed since then--I still love books that make me cry.

5. Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli: If you were in middle school in the early 2000s, there's a good chance that you read this book. I wouldn't be surprised if this book ends up as required reading someday, if it hasn't already. It was so popular at my school that even with multiple copies, it still took forever to get your hands on one.

6. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares: Again, is there any 00s girl who didn't read The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants? I remember being at Target with a friend who was begging her mom to buy this book for her, but her mom was really wary of letting her read it (I think it might have been the "You must never let a boy take off the Pants (although you may take them off yourself in his presence" line on the back of the book that was giving her reservations...we were only twelve at the time, after all). In the end, she caved and let my friend buy it.

The "Alice" books by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor: To be perfectly honest, I don't remember a thing about this series other than the fact that I read a lot of them in seventh grade.

Daughters of the Moon series by Lynn Ewing: Whoever designed the covers for these books knew what they were doing--how could I pass up a book that featured fierce-looking girls wearing glitter and awesome dresses on each cover? Plus, I think the whole superhero/goddess aspect of the books appealed to the part of me that loved Sailor Moon as a little girl.

Sabriel by Garth Nix: This is a book I've been wanting to revisit for a while now. I read it in eighth grade, but a lot of the fantasy elements went over my head.

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer: My list of gateway books would not be complete without the ultimate book that defined my high school years and started my obsession with YA paranormal romance. I read Twilight over fall break of my freshman year, wanting something spooky to get me in the Halloween spirit, and that, my friends, was the beginning of the end. I've been obsessed ever since.

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Things On My Bookish Bucket List

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week's topic:

My Bookish Bucket List

1. Meet J.K. Rowling. Not only do I love her for writing my favorite book series of all time, but I think she's just a lovely, wonderful person in general. She's my idol, the author who made me to want to write magical stories.

2.  Write and publish a book of my own. I've wanted to be a writer ever since I was old enough to create and write down stories of my own. I became pretty discouraged with the whole idea while I was in college, but there's a part of me that still hopes that maybe one day I'll write a story people will love.

3. Visit the Wizarding World of Harry Potter and/or Leavesden Studios. Do I even need to give an explanation?

4. Read a gigantic classic. Like Les Miserablés. Or Anna Karenina. Or War and Peace.

5. Have a library room in my future home. It's my dream to have an entire room filled with nothing but books (and a cozy place to sit and read them, of course). It would also be fantastic if I could get sliding ladders on my bookshelves, too.

6. Attend BEA. Everyone has been talking about their plans for BEA for the last couple of months and I am so jealous of all of you who get to go!! Unfortunately, it's not a trip I can afford to make this year. It would have been such a cool way to celebrate my first half-year of blogging. Sigh. Oh well. I will start saving my money and hopefully I will be able to attend next year! :)

7. Go to Leaky Con. Are you beginning to notice a trend here? All I can say is Harry Potter has had a huge influence on my life, so I guess it makes sense that the majority of my bookish wishes would have something to do with it. Leaky Con sounds like so much fun and I really hope I get to go someday!

8. Visit Shakespeare & Co., The Strand, and The Last Bookstore. I. Love. Bookstores. These are just a few of the cool ones I've heard bloggers and booktubers talk about and I want to see them all. If you have any other suggestions of bookstores (or libraries) I need to see, let me know in the comments!

9. Buy all the pretty, different editions of my favorite books (including reprints, foreign covers, etc). I know it's entirely ridiculous to buy multiple copies of the same book (as many people--mostly family members--have pointed out to me), but I can't help it! Some people collect classic cars, some collect antiques...I collect books.

Annnnd, I'm totally blanking. So I guess I'll stick with my top nine bookish wishes for now. :)

Top Ten Tuesday: Top 10 Books On My 2014 Spring TBR List

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by the lovely ladies at The Broke and the Bookish. This week's topic:

Top Ten Books On My 2014 Spring TBR List

1. A Mad, Wicked Folly by Sharon Biggs Waller. This is at the top of my list because it is currently sitting on my dresser, waiting to be read. As it's a library book, I'm determined to read it soon. Laini Taylor also gave it a nod on twitter recently, and if she likes it I'm sure I will, too!

2. The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton. If you've been following my blog for a while then you know just how excited I am for this book! I think I've included it on at least two other 2014 most-anticipated lists. And the release date is almost hereeeee!

3. Liv, Forever by Amy Talkington. This is a case where the cover immediately drew me to the book (and the summary sealed the deal).

4. Gilded Ashes by Rosamund Hodge. As you may have noticed, I absolutely loved Cruel Beauty. Even though Gilded Ashes is not about my beloved Ignifex and Nyx, I'm still super excited to read Hodge's novella.

5. Prisoner of Night and Fog by Anne Blankman. World War II stories have been frequenting my TBR list since finishing The Book Thief. So excited for this one!

6. The Archived by Victoria Schwab. I've been seeing this book crop up a lot on my tumblr dashboard lately and it sounds really interesting!

 

7. The Museum of Intangible Things by Wendy Wunder. This book sounds like a great get-ready-for-summer read: best friends on a road trip across the US.

8. Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi. After seeing all the hype surrounding this series, I've finally decided to give it a go. I really want to see what's up with this Juliette/Warner ship everyone loves. And I may also have been swayed by Tahereh Mafi's YouTube channel--she's hilarious!

9. Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers. I'm obsessed with The CW's Reign, which has made me want to get back into historical fiction. I've heard lots of good things about this series.

 10. Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor. With Dreams of Gods and Monsters coming out in April, I really need to get on the ball and reread DoSaB so I can catch up in time to read the last book.

What books are you all looking forward to reading this spring?

Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite YA Paranormal Romance Books

Top Ten Favorite YA Paranormal Romance Books

1. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer: Twilight was my first foray into what is now my very favorite genre: YA paranormal romance. I read it for the first time as a freshman in high school and was completely enchanted by the story. Despite all the backlash and ridicule the books and movies have received over the years, they will always hold a special place in my heart. Every time I see them in the bookstore or the library, I'm instantly filled with feels. Like these kinds of feels:





2. The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare: It took me a while to get into City of Bones but once I did I devoured it and City of Ashes. If you read my last post on finishing YA series, you'll know that I am pathetically far behind in this series.


3. Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor: I love Karou and Akiva! And Laini Taylor's writing is gorgeous, which makes this series even more fun to read.


4. Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey: Horrible cheesy title but a cute read about a girl who finds that out she's betrothed to a vampire prince.


5. Die for Me by Amy Plum: Zombies that aren't totally gross and addicted to consuming human flesh? Now that's a zombie story I can handle.


6. Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick: Oh hey, speaking of series I haven't finished, here's another one. I had every intention of reading Crescendo as soon as I finished Hush, Hush, but then college got in the way.


7. Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater: Who wouldn't want a werewolf boyfriend who writes adorable songs about them?

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly book meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Tuesday: Popular Authors I've Never Read

Top Ten Popular Authors I've Never Read

I feel like I had to cheat a bit making this list--I've read so many "popular" YA books that it made it really difficult for me to figure out who I haven't read. So, after browsing through various "Best YA" lists on Goodreads, I came up with these:

1. Judy Blume: Honestly, I really don't know how I grew up without ever once reading a Judy Blume book. It seems like every girl on the planet read her books growing up. I guess I was more of a Beverly Cleary girl.

2. Neil Gaiman: Okay, so I know you should never judge a book by its movie but…I watched Stardust when I was in high school and was so disappointed by it that it turned me off from wanting to read the book.

3. Diana Wynne Jones: I've heard good things about Diana Wynne Jones but somehow I've never read her books. BUT, Howl's Moving Castle is on my TBR list! I will get to it someday!

4. S.E. Hinton: I know, right? Who hasn't read The Outsiders? I think it's required reading in middle school, but I had moved back to Indiana with my family right after the English class at my new school had read it. So I missed out on studying it in school and haven't had much interest in reading it on my own.

5. Brian Jacques: If every girl I knew in elementary and middle school had read Judy Blume, then every boy had read Brian Jacques's "Redwall" series. I don't know much about the series other than it involves talking animals, which is the main reason I've avoided it. I'm just not a fan of books/movies with all animal characters.

6. Eoin Colfer: I remember seeing the Artemis Fowl books in the bookstores around the same time as Harry Potter and I think I might have tried reading the first one in middle or elementary school but couldn't get into it.

7. Holly Black: This is really sad because I have checked out Tithe so many times from the library but always end up returning it unread. I do own The Coldest Girl in Coldtown though, so I will get around to reading Holly Black at some point.

8. Ellen Hopkins: My little sister loves these books but I've always tended to avoid them because I'm not really a fan of verse novels, or poetry in general.

9. Tahereh Mafi: Ms. Mafi has been creeping higher and higher up on my TBR list because I've heard so many people raving about Shatter Me and now Ignite Me. I've also started watching her YouTube videos and just adore her as a person--she's so funny!

10. Beth Revis: Poor Beth Revis. Her book Across the Universe has been sitting on my shelf, ignored, for about two years now. It's not that I don't want to read it--I do!--it's just that I've been distracted by other books.

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly book meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Reasons I Love Being A Blogger/Reader

Welcome back to another Top Ten Tuesday (with a brand new look)! This week's theme:

Reasons Why I Love Being a Blogger/Reader

Being a Blogger:

1. The People. The book blogging community, as I discovered during Love-A-Thon, is so lovely and friendly! I love getting to talk to people who are just as enthusiastic about books as I am!

2. ARCs. I'd be lying if I didn't say that getting ARCs is a huge perk of being a book blogger. I haven't gotten too many so far, but it's always exciting when I get an e-mail from a publisher saying they've accepted my request.

3. Memes/Surveys. You know those books you used to get as a kid where you could fill out everything about yourself, like your favorite color, your pet's name, a list of all your friends, what you wanted to be when you grew up--stuff like that? I loved those things. They were like journals only better, because instead of being faced with an intimidating blank page, you had all sorts of prompts to get your mental gears churning. As a blogger, I love memes and surveys for the same reason I loved those questionnaire books as a kid. It's great to come up with your own original posts, but sometimes it's nice to have a prompt.

4. Designing. I admit that I have a ways to go with this and my blog is not nearly as polished as some others, but one of the really fun parts of starting a blog has been designing it. I love tweaking the colors and fonts and making banners and such. It's time consuming but so fun!

Being a Reader:

1. Falling in love with characters. Sometimes when you're reading a book you find that you like the characters for the most part, but once the book is over they're fairly forgettable. But then there are the books with the characters that you love fiercely. These are the characters that feel real to you, and you can feel your hackles rising if someone so much as utters a bad word about them. You're like the mama bear and these characters are your babies and you will defend them to the death. God help the poor soul who dares to disparage them in your presence.

2. Getting lost in a fictional world. Some books you read and it's so easy to get distracted from them because the story or characters just never quite pull you in enough to give them your full, undivided attention. But then there are the books that reach out from the pages, take hold of your imagination, and pull you down into their world, and it's painful to pull away. When you finish the book or, heaven forbid, are forced to lay it aside for the sake of far less satisfying endeavors (like work, or school, or, ugh, having to, like, talk with real people) you feel disoriented and all you want is to crawl back into that make believe world. I'm talking about the kinds of books that may make you feel the need to become a hermit for a few days, or walk around with one of those "Hello! My Name Is…" stickers on your shirt, tweaked to say, "Don't bother me, I'm reading."

3. Bookstores. I love browsing through bookstores, especially indie ones. As much as I love my go-to Barnes and Noble, I really love discovering independent or small town bookstores.  No, I'm not going to get that new best-seller at a 30% discount at an independent store, but that's okay; the experience of browsing in a unique store makes up for it. I love how each indie store has a different look, a different personality (and you earn major brownie points with me if your store has CATS!).

4. Fandom. Long before I started book blogging, I was constantly fangirling over my favorite books. I would join forums, bookmark countless websites, read and attempt to write fan fiction, and make playlists and horribly edited graphics--basically all the things you do when you are involved in the wonderful world of fandom. I love the sense of community that goes along with it, the shared enthusiasm, the outpouring of creativity.

I'm sure that I'm leaving out something, but it's late and I'm drawing a total blank. I'll have to come back to this topic in the future and add to it.

So tell me: what are your favorite parts of being a reader and/or book blogger?

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books That Made Me Swoon

Happy Valentine's Week, everyone! This week's TTT topic is...

This time around, I'm going to let the quotes do the talking.

So, what are your most swoon-worthy books? 

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the lovely ladies at The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Tuesday: Books That Make Me Cry

This week's theme is Top Ten Books That Make Me Cry. I've tried to keep my commentary as spoiler-free as possible, so I'm sorry if it seems a little vague.

1. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. Even though we know early on in the book that certain key characters will ultimately meet their demise, the end of The Book Thief still crushed me. I don't think I've ever cried so much over a book.

2. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. Hazel! Augustus! Why???!!!!

3. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. The ending was so bittersweet that I couldn't help but shed a few tears.

4. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins. I don't wanna talk about it. Mockingjay Part 2 is going to be so hard to watch.

5. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling. Deathly Hallows wasn't sad only because of the character deaths, but because it marked the end of a book series I'd grown up loving. I was about to turn seventeen when the book came out, so I literally grew up with Harry.

6. The Road by Cormac McCarthy. The Road was one of the first novels I read in college and it had such a huge impact on me, and has stayed with me ever since. It was the first book I had ever read that genuinely frightened me, but at the same time I was so moved by the relationship between the father and son in the story. You experience this horrible journey through a post-apocalyptic world with them and by the end you feel as battered and broken as they do. It's an emotionally exhausting book, and yes, it will make you cry, but it's a book I'm glad to have read.

7. My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult. The ending of this book was such a shocking twist and I am so irritated by how they changed it in the film--it was so drastically different that it sort of ruined the whole movie for me. I still cried though. I mean, given the subject matter, how could you not?

8. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. This is the only book on this list that made me cry from happiness. After all of Jane's trials, I was so happy with the way things wrapped up in the epilogue.

What books make you cry? Do we share any of the same picks?


Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly book meme hosted by the lovely ladies at The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Things On My Reading Wishlist

The Top Ten Things On My Reading Wishlist

1. The Marauder's Era - Ever since reading Order of the Phoenix, I've been fascinated with what's been deemed the "Marauder's Era" of Harry Potter. I think it would be so cool to read about James and Sirius and all the others as Hogwarts students during Voldemort's first rise to power. It would awesome to see how the Order was formed and how James and Lily "thrice defied" Voldemort!

2. Midnight Sun/The Twilight series from Edward's POV - Judge me if you will, but I have not made any secret of my unabashed love for the Twilight saga. I cannot begin to tell you how heartbroken I was when Stephenie Meyer announced that Midnight Sun was being put on indefinite hold, all thanks to someone leaking the first twelve unedited chapters online. Edward Cullen is one of my favorite fictional characters and I really, really hope that someday Stephenie will have a change of heart and be able to continue his story.

3. Historical YA - When I was younger, I was absolutely obsessed with the Royal Diaries book series. So obsessed that during one library outing, I checked out every single volume they had available (which probably amounted to about ten books). I think it was reading these books that first made me realize that being a princess was, in reality, absolutely nothing like the Disney movies would have you believe. These young girls struggled and dealt with hardships and responsibilities that were unfathomable to me at the ages of twelve and thirteen, and I admired them so much for it. Once I got to high school, I became less enthused with the selection of historical fiction available for young adults; it all seemed too unrealistic. But now that I'm really getting into shows like Downton Abbey and Reign, I would really like to see some good historical YA books again.

4. YA Thrillers - Think Gone Girl for the young adult set. The book I'm currently reading, No One Else Can Have You by Kathleen Hale, sort of falls into this category.

5. Time Travel/Doctor Who-style Fantasy - After being on tumblr for almost two years, I suppose it was only a matter of time before I finally got sucked into the Doctor Who fandom. After seeing endless gifs/fan art/fan videos/you name it popping up on my dashboard, I felt like I was part of the fandom even though I'd never even seen the show! So when I was browsing through my cable's on demand menu and saw that they had the new series of Doctor Who, I thought, what the heck, I'll give it a shot. I started with episode one of series five and since then I've come to adore Matt Smith and Karen Gillan as the Doctor and Amy, and have being dying to read stories similar to theirs.

6. LESS LOVE TRIANGLES - Good lord, if there's one thing that annoys me when reading a book it's when I start hardcore shipping two characters together only to have a new guy/girl come along and try to break up the relationship. STOP IT! JUST STOP! I know it adds drama to the story, but for once, just once, can we please see a relationship where two people stick together and don't stupidly fall for another person?

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly book meme hosted by the lovely ladies at The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books I Wouldn't Mind Santa Bringing

First off, let me wish you all a very merry Christmas! The topic for this special Christmas Eve edition of TTT is "Top Ten Books I Wouldn't Mind Santa Bringing." I'm hoping to see at least a few of these under the tree tomorrow! :) And I hope Santa brings all you bookish peeps something awesome to read, too!

1

A Long, Long Time Ago and Essentially True by Brigid Pasulka

2

The Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay

3

The Somnambulist by Essie Fox

4 

Elijah's Mermaid by Essie Fox

5 

The Circle by Dave Eggers

6

Tinder by Sally Gardner

7

 The Chaos Walking trilogy by Patrick Ness

8

 Fearsome Dreamer by Laure Eve

9

The Lost Boys

9

 Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened by Allie Brosh

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly book meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.