Top Ten Tuesday: My TTT lists

Hello fellow bookworms!

I am doing this as my weekly link-up with the lovely ladies over at The Broke and the Bookish who host this little get together.

This week the topic is which TTT topics have been your favorite? Since I have not been blogging long enough to really be able to answer this question I thought that I would just simply look through the list of topics and pick one that I want to answer. I ended up choosing my top ten children's books. I have divided the list into picture books and chapter books due to the fact that I can then accurately tell you what my true favorites are!

Picture Books:

1) Goodnight Moon Margaret Wise Brown

2) Anything by Dr. Seuss

3) Old Turtle by Douglas Wood

4) Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst

5) The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister  

6) Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak

7) The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein

8) The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams

9) Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig

10) Strega Nona by Tomie dePaola

Chapter Books:

1) The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster

2) Hoot by Carl Hiaasen

3) The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame

4) Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Peterson

5) Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer

6) The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes

7) Holes by Lois Sachar

8) Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

9) A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L'Engle

10) Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

11) The View From Saturday by E.L. Konisburg

Which children's books are your favorite? What are you favorite list ideas thus far? Let me know in the comments.

Happy Reading!

Top Ten Tuesday: My Summer TBR

I am doing this as my weekly link-up with the lovely ladies over at The Broke and the Bookish who host this little get together.

This week the topic is what books do I have on my summer TBR list? I have so many books that I want to get to sooner rather than later that I decided to categorize them by unfinished series, series I have yet to start and some standalones that have been begging for my attention. Here it goes!

Series that I would like to finish:

1) Uglies series by Scott Westerfield

I have read Uglies and Pretties and I need to read Specials and Extras

2) Ruby Red trilogy by Kristen Gier

I have read Ruby Red and I need to read Sapphire Blue and Emerald Green

3) The Grisha trilogy by Leigh Bardugo

I have read Shadow and Bone and Siege and Storm and I need to read Ruin and Rising

4) The Girl of Fire and Thorns trilogy by Rae Carson

I have read Girl of Fire and Thorns and I need to read Crown of Embers and Bitter Kingdom

5) Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas

I have read Throne of Glass and I need to read Crown of Midnight and Heir of Fire

6) The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare

I have read City of Bones, City of Ashes, City of Glass, City of Fallen Angels, and City of Lost Souls and I need to read City of Heavenly Fire

7) The Darkest Minds trilogy by Alexandra Bracken

I have read The Darkest Minds and I need to read Never Fade and In the Afterlight

8) The Selection series by Kierra Cass

I have read The Selection and The Elite and I need to read The One and The Heir

9) The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

I have read The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer and I need to read The Evolution of Mara Dyer and the Retribution of Mara Dyer

10) Stephanie Perkins companion novels (not technically a series but I just lacked one more having ten)

I have Anna and the French Kiss and I need to read Lola and the Boy Next Door and Isla and the Happily Ever After

Series that I would like to start:

1) Infernal Devices trilogy by Cassandra Clare

I own all the books.

2) Legend trilogy by Marie Lu

I own Legend and Prodigy and I need to get Champion

3) Iron Fey series by Julie Kagawa

I own The Iron King, The Iron Daughter, The Iron Queen and I need to get The Iron Knight

4) The Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfuss

I own The Name of the Wind and The Wise Man's Fear

5) A Song of Fire and Ice by George R.R. Martin

I own A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords, A Feast for Crows and I need to get A Dance with Dragons

6) Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

I only own Shatter Me

7) Gemma Doyle by Libba Bray

I own all the books

8) Maus I and II by Art Spiegleman

I don't own either of these graphic novels

9) Modern Faerie Tales by Holly Black

I own all the books

10) Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

I own Outlander and Voyager and I need to get Dragonfly in Amber, Drums of Autumn, The Fiery Cross, A Breath of Snow and Ashes, An Echo in the Bone, and Written in my Own Heart's Blood

Standalones that I would like to read:

1) The Handmaids Tale by Margaret Atwood

2) The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

3) The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak

4) Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

5) The Help by Katherine Stockett

6) Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee

7) Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

8) To The Lighthouse by Virginia Wolf

9) Anything by Amy Tan or Anne Tyler

10) Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy 


I would mainly like to focus on the series that I need to finish so that I don't have a bunch of unfinished storylines taunting me. These are by no means all of my unread books and I more than likely will not get to all of them by the end of summer. Though it never hurts to have goals!

What books are you itching to get your hands on?

Happy Reading!

Tep Ten New Releases for 2015

I am doing this as my weekly link-up with the lovely ladies over at The Broke and the Bookish who host this little get together.

This week the topic is the top ten new releases that I am most looking forward to in 2015.
Oh good grief there are so many. My bookcases are already groaning in protest of being stuffed even more.

1) Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee: July 14
Originally written in the mid-1950s, Go Set a Watchman was the novel Harper Lee first submitted to her publishers before To Kill a Mockingbird. Assumed to have been lost, the manuscript was discovered in late 2014.

Go Set a Watchman features many of the characters from To Kill a Mockingbird some twenty years later. Returning home to Maycomb to visit her father, Jean Louise Finch—Scout—struggles with issues both personal and political, involving Atticus, society, and the small Alabama town that shaped her.

Exploring how the characters from To Kill a Mockingbird are adjusting to the turbulent events transforming mid-1950s America, Go Set a Watchman casts a fascinating new light on Harper Lee’s enduring classic. Moving, funny and compelling, it stands as a magnificent novel in its own right.

2) Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas: September 1
Sarah J. Maas's New York Times bestselling Throne of Glass series reaches new heights in this sweeping fourth volume.

Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. But she's at last returned to the empire—for vengeance, to rescue her once-glorious kingdom, and to confront the shadows of her past . . .

She will fight for her cousin, a warrior prepared to die just to see her again. She will fight for her friend, a young man trapped in an unspeakable prison. And she will fight for her people, enslaved to a brutal king and awaiting their lost queen's triumphant return.

Celaena’s epic journey has captured the hearts and imaginations of millions across the globe. This fourth volume will hold readers rapt as Celaena’s story builds to a passionate, agonizing crescendo that might just shatter her world.  

3) Sweet Madness by Trisha Leaver: September 18
Seventeen-year-old Bridget Sullivan is alone in Fall River, a city that sees Irish immigrants as nothing more than a drunken drain on society. To make matters worse, she's taken employment with the city’s most peculiar and gossip-laden family—the Bordens. But Bridget can’t afford to be picky—the pay surpasses any other job Bridget could ever secure and she desperately needs the money to buy her little sister, Cara, passage to the states. It doesn’t hurt that the job location is also close to her beau, Liam. As she enters the disturbing inner workings of the Borden household, Bridget clings to these advantages.

However, what seemed like a straightforward situation soon turns into one that is untenable. Of course Bridget has heard the gossip around town about the Bordens, but what she encounters is far more unsettling. The erratic, paranoid behavior of Mr. Borden, the fearful silence of his wife, and worse still…the nightly whisperings Bridget hears that seem to come from the walls themselves.

The unexpected bright spot of the position is that Lizzie Borden is so friendly. At first, Bridget is surprised at how Lizzie seems to look out for her, how she takes a strong interest in Bridget’s life. Over time, a friendship grows between them. But when Mr. Borden’s behavior goes from paranoid to cruel, and the eerie occurrences in the house seem to be building momentum, Bridget makes the tough decision that she must leave the house—even if it means leaving behind Lizzie, her closest friend, alone with the madness. Something she swore she would not do.

But when Bridget makes a horrifying discovery in the home, all that she thought she knew about the Bordens is called into question…including if Lizzie is dangerous. And the choice she must make about Lizzie’s character could mean Bridget’s life or death.

SWEET MADNESS is a retelling of the infamous Borden murders from the point of view of Lizzie’s Irish maid, Bridget Sullivan.  

4) Walk on Earth a Stanger by Rae Carson: September 22
The first book in a new trilogy from acclaimed New York Times bestselling author Rae Carson. A young woman with the magical ability to sense the presence of gold must flee her home, taking her on a sweeping and dangerous journey across Gold Rush–era America.

Lee Westfall has a secret. She can sense the presence of gold in the world around her. Veins deep beneath the earth, pebbles in the river, nuggets dug up from the forest floor. The buzz of gold means warmth and life and home—until everything is ripped away by a man who wants to control her. Left with nothing, Lee disguises herself as a boy and takes to the trail across the country. Gold was discovered in California, and where else could such a magical girl find herself, find safety? Rae Carson, author of the acclaimed Girl of Fire and Thorns trilogy, dazzles with this new fantasy that subverts both our own history and familiar fantasy tropes.

Walk on Earth a Stranger, the first book in this new trilogy, introduces—as only Rae Carson can—a strong heroine, a perilous road, a fantastical twist, and a slow-burning romance. Includes a map and author’s note on historical research.

5) Zeroes by Scott Westerfeld: September 29
Ethan, aka "Scam," has a way with words. When he opens his mouth, whatever he wants you to hear comes out. But Ethan isn't just a smooth talker. He has a unique ability to say things he doesn't consciously even know. Sometimes the voice helps, but sometimes it hurts - like now, when the voice has lied and has landed Ethan in a massive mess. So now Ethan needs help. And he needs to go to the last people who would ever want to help him - his former group of friends, the self-named "zeros" who also all possess similarly double-edged abilities, and who are all angry at Ethan for their own respective reasons. Brought back together by Scam's latest mischief, they find themselves entangled in an epic, whirlwind adventure packed with as much interpersonal drama as mind-bending action.

6) Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo: September 29
Game of Thrones meets Ocean's Eleven in this brand-new book in the world of the Grisha by New York Times-bestselling author Leigh Bardugo.

Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price—and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can't pull it off alone...

A convict with a thirst for revenge.

A sharpshooter who can't walk away from a wager.

A runaway with a privileged past.

A spy known as the Wraith.

A Heartrender using her magic to survive the slums.

A thief with a gift for unlikely escapes.

Six dangerous outcasts. One impossible heist. Kaz's crew is the only thing that might stand between the world and destruction—if they don't kill each other first.

7) Carry on by Rainbow Rowell: October 6
Rainbow Rowell continues to break boundaries with Carry On, an epic fantasy following the triumphs and heartaches of Simon and Baz from her beloved bestseller Fangirl.

Simon Snow just wants to relax and savor his last year at the Watford School of Magicks, but no one will let him. His girlfriend broke up with him, his best friend is a pest, and his mentor keeps trying to hide him away in the mountains where maybe he’ll be safe. Simon can’t even enjoy the fact that his roommate and longtime nemesis is missing, because he can’t stop worrying about the evil git. Plus there are ghosts. And vampires. And actual evil things trying to shut Simon down. When you’re the most powerful magician the world has ever known, you never get to relax and savor anything.

Carry On is a ghost story, a love story, a mystery and a melodrama. It has just as much kissing and talking as you’d expect from a Rainbow Rowell story — but far, far more monsters.

8) Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Illustrated Edition: October 6
They are planning on releasing one of these each year so you know that on October 6 I will be getting one of these babies. Pre-order on Amazon here I come! Time to relive some childhood memories but this time complete with pictures!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!









9) These Shallow Graves by Jennifer Donnelly: October 27
Set in gilded age New York, These Shallow Graves follows the story of Josephine Montfort, an American aristocrat. Jo lives a life of old-money ease. Not much is expected of her other than to look good and marry well. But when her father dies due to an accidental gunshot, the gilding on Jo’s world starts to tarnish. With the help of a handsome and brash reporter, and a young medical student who moonlights in the city morgue, Jo uncovers the truth behind her father’s death and learns that if you’re going to bury the past, you’d better bury it deep.





10) Winter by Marissa Meyer: November 10
Princess Winter is admired by the Lunar people for her grace and kindness, and despite the scars that mar her face, her beauty is said to be even more breathtaking than that of her stepmother, Queen Levana.

Winter despises her stepmother, and knows Levana won’t approve of her feelings for her childhood friend–the handsome palace guard, Jacin. But Winter isn’t as weak as Levana believes her to be and she’s been undermining her stepmother’s wishes for years. Together with the cyborg mechanic, Cinder, and her allies, Winter might even have the power to launch a revolution and win a war that’s been raging for far too long.

Can Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, and Winter defeat Levana and find their happily ever afters?

What books can you not wait for in 2015?

Happy Reading!

Sarah J. Maas's New York Times bestselling Throne of Glass series reaches new heights in this sweeping fourth volume.

Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. But she's at last returned to the empire—for vengeance, to rescue her once-glorious kingdom, and to confront the shadows of her past . . .

She will fight for her cousin, a w 

Top Ten Books That I Want to be Seen Made Into Movies/TV Shows

I am doing this as my weekly link-up with the lovely ladies over at The Broke and the Bookish who host this little get together.

This week the topic is what books do we want to be seen made into TV shows or movies. Personally I do not think that books really make great movies/TV shows and here is why. I feel that a movie does not always have the ability to capture all of the awesomeness that is in the book and a TV show will often embellish just a little bit too much. So my list is going to be books that I believe should be movies because I would rather lose a few things than have so much added that it completely changes the storyline (I am looking at you Vampire Diaries!).

1) Catherine by April Lindner
Catherine is tired of struggling musicians befriending her just so they can get a gig at her Dad’s famous Manhattan club, The Underground. Then she meets mysterious Hence, an unbelievably passionate and talented musician on the brink of success. As their relationship grows, both are swept away in a fiery romance. But when their love is tested by a cruel whim of fate, will pride keep them apart?

Chelsea has always believed that her mom died of a sudden illness, until she finds a letter her dad has kept from her for years—a letter from her mom, Catherine, who didn’t die: She disappeared. Driven by unanswered questions, Chelsea sets out to look for her—starting with the return address on the letter: The Underground.

Told in two voices, twenty years apart, Catherine interweaves a timeless forbidden romance with a compelling modern mystery.

2) The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called "Le Cirque des Reves," and it is only open at night.

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.

True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus performers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead.

3) Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.

Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.

Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha . . . and the secrets of her heart.

Shadow and Bone is the first installment in Leigh Bardugo's Grisha Trilogy.

4) The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken
When Ruby woke up on her tenth birthday, something about her had changed. Something alarming enough to make her parents lock her in the garage and call the police. Something that gets her sent to Thurmond, a brutal government “rehabilitation camp.” She might have survived the mysterious disease that’s killed most of America’s children, but she and the others have emerged with something far worse: frightening abilities they cannot control.

Now sixteen, Ruby is one of the dangerous ones.

When the truth comes out, Ruby barely escapes Thurmond with her life. Now she’s on the run, desperate to find the one safe haven left for kids like her—East River. She joins a group of kids who escaped their own camp. Liam, their brave leader, is falling hard for Ruby. But no matter how much she aches for him, Ruby can’t risk getting close. Not after what happened to her parents.

When they arrive at East River, nothing is as it seems, least of all its mysterious leader. But there are other forces at work, people who will stop at nothing to use Ruby in their fight against the government. Ruby will be faced with a terrible choice, one that may mean giving up her only chance at a life worth living.

5) Saint Maybe by Anne Tyler
In 1965, the happy Bedloe family is living an ideal, apple-pie existence in Baltimore.  Then, in the blink of an eye, a single tragic event occurs that will transform their lives forever--particularly that of seventeen-year-old Ian Bedloe, the youngest son, who blames himself for the sudden "accidental" death of his older brother.

Depressed and depleted, Ian is almost crushed under the weight of an unbearable, secret guilt.  Then one crisp January evening, he catches sight of a window with glowing yellow neon, the CHURCH OF THE SECOND CHANCE.  He enters and soon discovers that forgiveness must be earned, through a bit of sacrifice and a lot of love...


6) Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant by Anne Tyler
Pearl Tull is nearing the end of her life but not of her memory. It was a Sunday night in 1944 when her husband left the little row house on Baltimore’s Calvert Street, abandoning Pearl to raise their three children alone: Jenny, high-spirited and determined, nurturing to strangers but distant to those she loves; the older son, Cody, a wild and incorrigible youth possessed by the lure of power and money; and sweet, clumsy Ezra, Pearl’s favorite, who never stops yearning for the perfect family that could never be his own.

Now Pearl and her three grown children have gathered together again–with anger, hope, and a beautiful, harsh, and dazzling story to tell.


7) The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
Four mothers, four daughters, four families whose histories shift with the four winds depending on who's "saying" the stories. In 1949 four Chinese women, recent immigrants to San Francisco, begin meeting to eat dim sum, play mahjong, and talk. United in shared unspeakable loss and hope, they call themselves the Joy Luck Club. Rather than sink into tragedy, they choose to gather to raise their spirits and money. "To despair was to wish back for something already lost. Or to prolong what was already unbearable." Forty years later the stories and history continue.With wit and sensitivity, Amy Tan examines the sometimes painful, often tender, and always deep connection between mothers and daughters. As each woman reveals her secrets, trying to unravel the truth about her life, the strings become more tangled, more entwined. Mothers boast or despair over daughters, and daughters roll their eyes even as they feel the inextricable tightening of their matriarchal ties. Tan is an astute storyteller, enticing readers to immerse themselves into these lives of complexity and mystery.

8) 1984 by George Orwell
While 1984 has come and gone, Orwell's narrative is more timely than ever. 1984 presents a "negative utopia", that is at once a startling and haunting vision of the world — so powerful that it's completely convincing from start to finish. No one can deny the power of this novel, its hold on the imaginations of entire generations of readers, or the resiliency of its admonitions — a legacy that seems to grow, not lessen, with the passage of time.






9) Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
Cath is a Simon Snow fan.

Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan...

But for Cath, being a fan is her life—and she’s really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their mother leaving.

Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere.

Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can’t let go. She doesn’t want to.

Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words... And she can’t stop worrying about her dad, who’s loving and fragile and has never really been alone.

For Cath, the question is: Can she do this?

10) Cinder by Marissa Meyer
Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl.

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.


Do you guys agree about not really being down with movie/TV adaptations of books or am I alone on this train? Let me know down in the comments.

Happy Reading!

Top Ten Books That Will Be In My Beach Bag

I am doing this as my weekly link-up with the lovely ladies over at The Broke and the Bookish who host this little get together.

This week the topic is the top ten books that will be in my beach bag and I am excited for this topic. As a person who resembles a vampire when they meet sunlight (the real kind not the ones that sparkle) most of my beach trip is spent cowering under any type of shade that I can find. Which means that reading becomes just about the only thing that I can do. So here it goes the top ten books that I feel would find their way into my beach bag. (And by beach I mean that I will be sitting on my back porch in my lawn chair while my dog splashes in a kiddie pool. Broke as a joke people). I have kept my list to books that I actually own in an attempt to dwindle down my TBR pile.

1) Anything by Stephanie Perkins

I read Anna and the French Kiss this past month and I actually really enjoyed it. Light, funny, a little bit of romance what more could you possibly need? When I am on vacation I do not want to be reading books that will ruin my mood.

2) Amy and Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson

A book about a road trip while I am on a road trip just seems like something I would be into to. Even if the road trip just consists of me walking back and forth between the kitchen and the back porch I will read this book while I walk. A dangerous game to play for sure!

3) Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen

I have been wanting to read this book for ages but I have been waiting for warmer weather. There is just something about sitting outside in the warm sun and reading a contemporary book that sounds like heaven on earth.

4) Legend by Marie Lu

This is probably more for the car ride there or at night when I am reading before bed. It seems like it will be a really great series and I have been wanting to read it.

5) The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the Happiest Place on Earth by Eric Weiner

This just seems like a really funny book and I want to laugh and just be happy when I am on vacation at my own personal back porch beach. I plan to find bliss there with a glass of ice cold Mountain Dew and maybe a peach margarita or you know like five of those.

6) This is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith

A book that has happy in it's name can only function to lift my mood. There will be no sad books on my vacation.

7) Any book by Rainbow Rowell

I read Fangirl last year and I thoroughly enjoyed it. That book documented my life and now I want to see what other wonders her novels hold.

8) The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Making by Catherynne M. Valente

This is a fantasy novel but after all of the fluffy light-hearted contemporaries on my list I will be needing some fantasy in my life. No matter how I try I just can't stay away.

9) Mr. Penumbra's 24- Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan

I actually just bought this book earlier in the book but it has been on my radar for a while now. There is just something about reading a book that is centered around reading, people who love reading, and bookstores that just intrigues me to no end.

10) The Secret Confessions of Anne Shakespeare by Arliss Ryan

Shakespeare is my life! So it is only a natural progression that my obsession should extend to other members of the family. I cannot wait to read this book. Hopefully this will happen in the next month. :) I just need some Shakespeare in my life.

That is it! The top ten books that would be in my beach bag. Let me know if any of these are on your radar in the comments.

Happy Reading!

Top Ten Favorite Authors

I am doing this as my first link-up with the lovely ladies over at The Broke and the Bookish who host this little get together ever week.

This week the topic is our top ten favorite authors and I have no problem whatsoever coming up with ten of them. Just to clarify when I say my favorite authors I mean that these are auto buy people for me. To make it more interesting I am going to include a short little description of why I love them, which might help clarify why I will spend my money on them.

1) J.K. Rowling

I really don't think I need to elaborate on this one that much, do you? I grew up in the middle of pottermania, though to be clear I knew about the books before the midnight releases and movie premiers. Like so many others out there these books helped me get through some tough adolescent years and I will buy and read anything that this author puts out. Whether under her name or a pen name.

If you like someone who is a master as storytelling and world building then I recommend this person.

2) Anne Tyler

I love her writing style and her characters. It just all feels so real to me and she has ingenious insight into the inner workings of a family and what it means to be human. Her characters are so real that I often forget that they are not sitting with me as a living breathing human being. They are flawed and the author makes no illusion to the fact that anyone in her book is perfect. It is such a sigh of relief to have openly flawed characters who are genuinely good people at heart but are just slightly struggling in some aspect of their life. The families in her books are also flawed but there is an underlying theme of love and commitment to each other that brings them together as a whole in the end. I will buy and read anything that she writes forever and always to the end.

If you like someone who can weave together the inner workings of a typical family full of drama, heartache, and ultimately love then I recommend this person.

3) Amy Tan

This is another author that offers amazing insight into what it means to be human and function in a family unit, however she focuses mainly on the immigration side of this. As a descendent of immigrants who came to this country to make a better life for themselves and who struggled with the need to fit into the new environment and the desperation to hold onto their customs and traditions I can relate to the characters. My great-grandparents never learned to speak English and I saw my grandfather struggle to keep the balance between his two lives. This is a common theme in all of her books and you come to love all of her characters as they struggle to keep the balance when they are torn between two worlds.

If you like someone who focuses on trying to choose between the world of your parents and the world that you will ultimately have to function in then I recommend this author.

4) Ian McEwan

I read Atonement and then promptly went and picked up a number of other books by this author. I will admit that the story is a tad bit dry at times and not a whole lot happens in terms of excitement factor. It is mainly about the main character allowing her imagination to take hold of her and the guilt she feels when she realizes that she blamed the wrong man for a crime that happened during her childhood. The ending is a twist that I did not see coming and I cannot wait to read more from him. His characters are relatable and intriguing and his writing style is poetic.

If you like stories that do not have a lot of action but plenty of inner turmoil and a plot twist that will knock your socks off then I recommend this author.

5) Rainbow Rowell

How do I tell my love for thee Rainbow Rowell. You speak to my heart and I feel like your characters were handpicked from my life and plopped into the world that you created in your books. The story that you tell could easily be my story or that of someone that I know which is why I love your books.

If you like a really good contemporary novel with loveable characters and a funny plotline then I recommend this author.

6) Neil Shusterman

His novels are a bit darker than these previous ones and I am a little bit worried about how he ever came up with the plotlines because they are disturbing. However, as a lover of all things sci-fi I always just eat them up. I do not necessarily read his books because of characters or writing style, even though I don't have a problem with either. It is mainly for the world building, plot line, and under lying themes on society.

If you like books that have a darker side to them and are at times a little bit much to handle then I recommend this author.

7) Cassandra Clare

All I have to say on this on is haters gonna hate. I know that a lot of people either love or hate her books. I am more on the love side of this one. I think that her Mortal Instruments series was phenomenal and I cannot wait for the Infernal Devises series. I will be the first to admit that there are times when the characters get on my nerves and she is no Shakespeare as far as writing goes but hey they are enjoyable and I own all of her series.

If you like slightly sassy characters and a little bit of romance that is marred by the paranormal aspect of the book then I recommend this author.
 
8) Scott Westerfield

I think that his Uglies series is pure genius. Not only were the characters likeable and slightly badass but the book actually made me stop and think for a moment. Which is an automatic five star for me. I really enjoyed looking at what the world would be like if they made everybody "equal" because it strips away your very essence. Yes, there are times when looking like a supermodel would be awesome and very useful but if that means losing myself in the process I have to say that I would like to stay ugly. And by ugly I mean I want to stay looking like myself and not giving into society's standard of beauty.

If you like authors who make you stop and think for a moment while keeping you entertained and on the edge of your seat for the entire book then I recommend this author.

9) Lois Lowry

I cannot say enough about this author because I love the Giver series. It takes a truly gifted writer to be able to write four books that do not necessarily follow the same story line but in the end weave all of it together in a ending that not only clears up any loose ends but will warm your heart. The writing style is phenomenal and the characters will stay with you long after the book is finished. Again this author looks at what would happen if individuality were stripped away in the prospect of sameness. It really does take away the essence of who you are and in these novels the price is the ability to love. I am now so excited about the series I may have to give it a proper re-read.

If you like stories that do not follow a chronological order but are cleverly interwoven and make you think about underlying social commentary then I recommend this author.

10) Harper Lee

While she has currently only one book out there is going to be another one in July. And you know that I have pre-ordered it and am waiting with bated breath. I love To Kill a Mockingbird and have re-read it numerous times. There is a childlike innocence in the book that just makes it a magical experience. Again the book really makes you think but this time it is towards the treatment of others. No matter who you are there will be biases because that is a part of life, but you cannot let these biases interfere with your treatment of others. Everyone deserves to be treated as a worthwhile human being and this author explores what it means to be just and fair towards everyone.

Again if you like a book that makes you think and a writing style that is both childlike and eloquent then I recommend this author.

An the honorable mention goes to Phillip Pullman. Because I really enjoyed his Dark Materials series but he is not on the auto buy list so I couldn't include him in the top ten but I wanted to give a shout out to him.

That is it, that is my top ten favorite authors.

Happy Reading!