There is no way that I could limit my favorite books to just five. In fact, its hard to even limit it to a top 10. There are so many books spanning so many genre's and years and authors, all of those factors made picking just 10 that made a lasting impression that much harder.
Here's the list:
The Mercy of Thin Air
By Ronlyn Domingue
This was one of those finds that happens by luck. I picked this book up from the bargain section in my mothers store and it happened to be one of those books that reaches out to you and makes you feel. Taking place split between the 1920s and present days, we learn two different stories about two different women from two different times; one of them has a tragic love affair, the other is trying to figure out who she really is. I read this in high school
Life of Pi
By Yann Martel
I wish that I had not waited several months to read this book and that I had read it instead of listening to it. I picked up this book because it was touted as an amazing book, and I decided I would read it. It sat on my shelf for a very long time until I found the audiobook at the library. I think that listening to it may have made me like it a little more because the narrators accent made it more authentic, but regardless, I would have been grabbed at the beginning when Pi started to talk about zoology and sloths.
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society
By Mary Ann Shafer and Annie Barrows
As a lover of historical fiction, this book was recommended to me by a friend at Barnes and Noble. Although it has been years since I read it, the story of how World War Two affected a small island off of England. The book is written in part as letters going back and forth until our humble narrator Juliet travels there herself and falls in love with this island and its inhabitants. It is yet another gushy historical fiction.
Sarah's Key
By Tatiana De Rosnay
This is one of those books that could make you cry the whole way through. Focused around a little known event that happened in France during the Holocaust, the story of a little Jewish girl named Sarah is uncovered by a reporter named Julia. Knowing that this has to do with Holocaust and deals with a child is enough to bring tears to someone's eyes. I had it sitting on my shelf for a year, but dreaded reading it because of the content. It turns out that I keep pushing off the best books.
Still Missing
By Chevy Stevens
This was the debut book by Chevy Stevens, and I keep waiting for her to release more. So far there have only been two, but Stevens has a clever hand when it comes to writing a good thriller. Rather than telling her books in a traditional narrative, they're told through therapy sessions as the women in these stories attempt to deal with whatever trauma it was that got them into therapy. In this particular book, Annie is a Real Estate Agent who is kidnapped by a psycho. While horrifying, this proves to be a book you won't put down.
Where the Heart Is
By Billie Letts
I saw the movie when I was younger and absolutely had to read the book when my mother told me that it was based on a book. This too is a book that its been a few years since I've read, but I think of it fondly.
Where the Heart Is seems to be a polarizing book, but Oprah liked it for a reason, and so did I.
Still Alice
By Lisa Genova
This book was a more recent read. My mom gave me the ARC during summer 2011, and I read it in about three days. This book was another one of those books that opens your eyes to what other people are going through. This book is about a woman who was once a prominent professor at Harvard who finds out that she has Alzheimer's Disease. Heartbreaking and brutal, Genova was able to paint a clear picture of what happened as this disease worked through her.
One Pink Line
By Dina Silver
I won this book as part of Goodreads Giveaways and I'm so glad that I did. The premise of the book is that an unplanned pregnancy has the potential to derail the love of a lifetime. This was Silver's debut book, and it was a great one at that. The characters were real and it is a situation that has happened before in life. When I read the synopses I knew that this was the type of book I would love, and it was a fairly quick read.
PS. I Love You
By Cecelia Ahern
I have talked about this book several times mostly because when I think of a book bringing me to tears, this is one where I couldn't stop crying. Ahern is able to provoke those emotions by putting you in a situation you pray you will never be in. The entire book is an emotional rollercoaster, and I think there is a reason that it was turned into a (not as great as the book) movie. I am a huge fan of all of her works but I think this one is by far her best.
Far From Here
By Nicole Baart
Since I just reviewed this book I don't think that I need to go into a lot of detail, but this book is just like
PS I Love You because it puts you in that position where you imagine "What would I do if that happened to my significant other?" and lets be honest, that is a painful place to let your mind wander. This is a great book to figure out when is the right time to let go and when you're carrying a torch that has long since been extinguished. You can read my more in depth review
Here.
