Happy Birthday to the best mommy in the universe!
See her blog: Sue's Kitchen
7.07.2010
7.04.2010
Strawberry Fields Forever: Ben Harper
Happy Fourth of July, everyone! And Happy Birthday to Kyle, as well!
Whether you only read books for school or if you read for pleasure, everyone's finished a book or two in their time. These are some of the best books I've ever read and why. But keep in mind that this is totally opinion only. Everyone has one, usually different.
Year of Wonders: A Novel of the Plague by Geraldine Brooks- I thought this was a fantastic book. I actually read it for summer reading in high school. When you think of the plague, you don't think of anything beautiful or romantic. Yet, somehow, Geraldine Brooks found a way to address the highest and lowest points of a woman who lost everything she had left in life from the plague and survived through it. She wrote the book in such a way that no matter how dark everything was there was still going to be a bright side no matter what. In all of the negativity of the era, there was such optimism in the story. Plus, I definitely learned a lot about the plague and the era in reading it!
Sounds Like Crazy by Shana Mahaffey- Such an incredible book! I'll be honest, I felt a little crazy after reading it. Such a great read, though! In this book, a girl with multiple personality disorder struggles to create peace between the five people living in her head. The character development in the story between "the committee" (what the five people in her head are called), her family, therapist, coworkers, and so many others is fantastic and totally spices up the story. This book was probably one of the best books I've read all year, and I bought it totally out of the blue while browsing the "employee recommendations" shelf at Barnes & Noble.
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak- ENOUGH SAID. Favorite kid's book of all time... this book will never ever get old for me! The movie was so, so different from the book, though.
The Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey- This was another one of those summer reading books that turned out to be way better than I could have ever expected it to be. I didn't need to read this one... I only had to read three summer reading books and I ended up reading six because there was a good list that year. In addition, this book was technically to take AP English, but I was really, really glad that I read it anyway. It gave a really interesting perspective on an inspector who worked at the Scotland Yard, confined to his hospital bed. Bored, he became mesmerized by a painting of Richard III and ended up trying to disprove the case of the Princes in the Tower, where Richard III murdered his two nephews. From then on out, the book just became more and more interesting. It really makes you wish you could go back in time and find out for yourself what the truth is.
Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling- I think this is another one that hardly needs explanation. It's absolutely fantastic and I've only met two people in my life who didn't enjoy the books.
The Zombie Survival Guide: Complete Protection from the Living Dead by Max Brooks- Long story short, I officially feel prepared for the zombie apocalypse. Definitely a good read, definitely comedic, definitely highly recommended on my part.
The Narnia Series by C. S. Lewis- I feel like the movies being released for these books don't even do them justice. They're all completely magical books. To explain why I love these books so much, I'm actually going to use part of The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe that isn't even in the story line. The dedication in the beginning of the book reads "My Dear Lucy, I wrote this story for you, but when I began it I had not realized that girls grow quicker than books. As a result you are already too old for fairy tales, and by the time it is printed and bound you will be older still. But some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again. You can then take it down from some upper shelf, dust it, and tell me what you think of it. I shall probably be too deaf to hear, and too old to understand, a word you say, but I shall still be your affectionate Godfather, C.S. Lewis". Not only is the dedication beautiful, but it makes a really great point. At any age you can appreciate it as a fairy tale and an enchanting story. And as someone who has read the book many times as a little kid and as an adult, I think this is one story that you find more reasons to love it at every age you read it.
Coffeehouse Angel by Suzanne Selfors- Reading this was kind of like candy for the brain. Hehe. That's what I consider a lot of novels like that, though. Definitely an easy read, very romantic, very quirky, and very fun. Some parts of it are kind of sappy, but I definitely enjoyed reading it in the springtime nonetheless and would certainly read it again. Well written and fun! Which is the point of brain-candy. :)
Cut by Patricia McCormick- This was a very, very heavy read. Especially because I read it in middle school. Despite the morose nature of the story, though, I really enjoyed it. It was a really dark story about a girl who was sexually assaulted in high school at a party, called the police for help, and ended up with an entire high school worth of teenagers angry with her. By the title, I'm sure that you can tell what the girl's coping mechanism was to losing all of her friends, and even friendly acquaintances.
The Giver by Lois Lowry- Short read, fairly easy read, yet one of the best books I've ever read. I read it in middle school, high school, and college for pleasure, not classes. The way it is written is not only artistic and vivid, but it opens your eyes to a world we could be living in. Despite its political undertones (I like to avoid reading into those when reading for pleasure), I could read this book over and over and over again and never be disappointed. Ever.
Obviously this list doesn't include every single book I've ever loved... this is just a top ten. There are many other classics that I loved to read time and time again. But I was thinking about books that I've really enjoyed and lingered on my mind for a while later... and this is just some of them. What are some of your all-time favorites?
Whether you only read books for school or if you read for pleasure, everyone's finished a book or two in their time. These are some of the best books I've ever read and why. But keep in mind that this is totally opinion only. Everyone has one, usually different.
Year of Wonders: A Novel of the Plague by Geraldine Brooks- I thought this was a fantastic book. I actually read it for summer reading in high school. When you think of the plague, you don't think of anything beautiful or romantic. Yet, somehow, Geraldine Brooks found a way to address the highest and lowest points of a woman who lost everything she had left in life from the plague and survived through it. She wrote the book in such a way that no matter how dark everything was there was still going to be a bright side no matter what. In all of the negativity of the era, there was such optimism in the story. Plus, I definitely learned a lot about the plague and the era in reading it!
Sounds Like Crazy by Shana Mahaffey- Such an incredible book! I'll be honest, I felt a little crazy after reading it. Such a great read, though! In this book, a girl with multiple personality disorder struggles to create peace between the five people living in her head. The character development in the story between "the committee" (what the five people in her head are called), her family, therapist, coworkers, and so many others is fantastic and totally spices up the story. This book was probably one of the best books I've read all year, and I bought it totally out of the blue while browsing the "employee recommendations" shelf at Barnes & Noble.
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak- ENOUGH SAID. Favorite kid's book of all time... this book will never ever get old for me! The movie was so, so different from the book, though.
The Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey- This was another one of those summer reading books that turned out to be way better than I could have ever expected it to be. I didn't need to read this one... I only had to read three summer reading books and I ended up reading six because there was a good list that year. In addition, this book was technically to take AP English, but I was really, really glad that I read it anyway. It gave a really interesting perspective on an inspector who worked at the Scotland Yard, confined to his hospital bed. Bored, he became mesmerized by a painting of Richard III and ended up trying to disprove the case of the Princes in the Tower, where Richard III murdered his two nephews. From then on out, the book just became more and more interesting. It really makes you wish you could go back in time and find out for yourself what the truth is.
Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling- I think this is another one that hardly needs explanation. It's absolutely fantastic and I've only met two people in my life who didn't enjoy the books.
The Zombie Survival Guide: Complete Protection from the Living Dead by Max Brooks- Long story short, I officially feel prepared for the zombie apocalypse. Definitely a good read, definitely comedic, definitely highly recommended on my part.
The Narnia Series by C. S. Lewis- I feel like the movies being released for these books don't even do them justice. They're all completely magical books. To explain why I love these books so much, I'm actually going to use part of The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe that isn't even in the story line. The dedication in the beginning of the book reads "My Dear Lucy, I wrote this story for you, but when I began it I had not realized that girls grow quicker than books. As a result you are already too old for fairy tales, and by the time it is printed and bound you will be older still. But some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again. You can then take it down from some upper shelf, dust it, and tell me what you think of it. I shall probably be too deaf to hear, and too old to understand, a word you say, but I shall still be your affectionate Godfather, C.S. Lewis". Not only is the dedication beautiful, but it makes a really great point. At any age you can appreciate it as a fairy tale and an enchanting story. And as someone who has read the book many times as a little kid and as an adult, I think this is one story that you find more reasons to love it at every age you read it.
Coffeehouse Angel by Suzanne Selfors- Reading this was kind of like candy for the brain. Hehe. That's what I consider a lot of novels like that, though. Definitely an easy read, very romantic, very quirky, and very fun. Some parts of it are kind of sappy, but I definitely enjoyed reading it in the springtime nonetheless and would certainly read it again. Well written and fun! Which is the point of brain-candy. :)
Cut by Patricia McCormick- This was a very, very heavy read. Especially because I read it in middle school. Despite the morose nature of the story, though, I really enjoyed it. It was a really dark story about a girl who was sexually assaulted in high school at a party, called the police for help, and ended up with an entire high school worth of teenagers angry with her. By the title, I'm sure that you can tell what the girl's coping mechanism was to losing all of her friends, and even friendly acquaintances.
The Giver by Lois Lowry- Short read, fairly easy read, yet one of the best books I've ever read. I read it in middle school, high school, and college for pleasure, not classes. The way it is written is not only artistic and vivid, but it opens your eyes to a world we could be living in. Despite its political undertones (I like to avoid reading into those when reading for pleasure), I could read this book over and over and over again and never be disappointed. Ever.
Obviously this list doesn't include every single book I've ever loved... this is just a top ten. There are many other classics that I loved to read time and time again. But I was thinking about books that I've really enjoyed and lingered on my mind for a while later... and this is just some of them. What are some of your all-time favorites?
7.02.2010
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