On the seventh day of Christmas, Stacey gave to me, seven must-read books, six make-up tips, five favourite blogs, four amazing people, three recipes, two cute doggies and a new blog post every day.
I've read quite a handful of books this year, which is a surprise for my with my busy schedule, so today's post is telling you about my seven favourite books this year.
1. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
I began 2013 reading this book, and I didn't put it down until I had finished it, which only took me a day. It's such a beautifully written book, and a one I find really relateable. It surprises you, it makes you happy, it makes you sad. It has all the perfect ingredients for a good read. It is about teenager Charlie who is coping with the suicide of his friend. The book sees him writing letters to a stranger, and we read about how he copes through high school and the mental trauma of a past event revealed later in the book. In my personal opinion, better than the film.
2. The Fault in our Stars by John Green
This was the first John Green novel I read and it did not disappoint. Sometimes, books that are constantly talked about put us off, but please do not be put off by how much it has been raved about be cause believe me, it deserves all the recognition it gets. John Green is the kind of author who makes you fall in love with a character, or characters and then does something dramatic, pulling at your heart strings. The pages of my copy are tear stained and when I finished reading I had to go have a lie down and contemplate my life. The book follows cancer sufferer Hazel through a story of love, heartbreak, and more heartbreak. Truly, truly beautiful, even if you want to scream at Green for making you feel all of the emotions. The movie adaptation will be hitting cinemas in 2014.
3. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Sometimes studying a book at school puts you off it forever because of the intense analysis of every single word, however I found myself going back to it last summer. The main theme of prejudice and discrimination is what draws me to this novel, and the way the author portrays these seemingly 'bad' characters. Discrimination is a topic that I'm very interested in, so I really enjoyed reading this book again, even if Boo Radley's house creeped me out a little.
4. The Woman in Black by Susan Hill
Every now and again you see a film which prompts you to read the book. The Woman in Black was one of them. The film left me sat on the edge of my seat, not daring to move, and so did the book for that matter. In fact, I found the book so much scarier than the film. I suppose your imagination can lead you to imagining worse things. I didn't sleep for a week! The film left out things from the book which I think would have been important and more chilling, but many films these days don't follow the book exactly. Again, I preferred the book to the film. Sorry Daniel Radcliffe.
5. Looking for Alaska by John Green
Oh, look at that, another John Green book. I was so impressed with The Fault in our Stars I went and bought the entire Green collection. I found this book a bit harder to get into that TFioS, yet about a quarter of the way through I was hooked and couldn't put it down. I don't know if it's the heartbreak and the hope that things will work out well for the protagonist and his love interest, or the beautiful way it is written. I see quotes from this book, and many of his others all over Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr so there must be something special about them. I'd personally love to see a film adaptation of this be made. I was also very surprised with the ending of this one.
6. Billy and Me by Giovanna Fletcher
Don't lie we've all done it. Imagined we've bumped into our favourite celebrity in the street, hit it off and lived happily every after. Well this is (almost!) what Billy and Me is about. The protagonist of the story, Sophie May, is so normal you start to empathise with her straight away. I found myself actually laughing out loud and a few points. If you enjoy reading but sometimes struggle getting into things, this book is easy to read but you become hooked instantly. And I finished it in three days.
7. The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
I was a apprehensive about starting this book, I wasn't sure if I would like it because of the subject, however I couldn't put it down because I was anticipating every word. It got to the point where my eyes were burning I was that tired, I wouldn't put it down! The book is about a young girl who was murdered, watching her family from heaven cope with the aftermath of her death. Bit of a tough subject isn't it? But that should not put you off. Although it is such a tragic event, Sebold manages to show light of it, giving much promise for such a dark matter. The only thing I would suggest is not reading it just before going to sleep- it kept me awake for hours trying to decode and work things out. A truly beautiful book.
See you all tomorrow!
Cheerio x
