This week's TTT is a Thankful freebie, and I thought I would write about the books that I am grateful for. There are a variety of books and a variety of reasons why I have chosen them. Check it out!
1. Twilight - Stephenie Meyer
There are many of us Twihards out there who credit this 4 book saga for reigniting the reading within. I picked up Twilight, New Moon, and Eclipse while I was in London for an internship abroad and the books kept me company on my long and lonely commute, spoke to me in a way I really needed at the time, and reminded me that reading is fun.
2. Don't Sweat the Small Stuff - Richard Carlson
When my now-husband first gave this to me as a gift, I was a little upset...I mean, it sucks to be known as someone who stresses about everything. That said, it ended up being so beneficial to my life. It's been a long time since I picked it up, but I always keep it in my nightstand and I still remember so many of the lessons I was taught when reading it the first time. Don't get me wrong, I still sweat the small stuff, but I feel like I approach it differently which really helps.
3. Ugly Love - Colleen Hoover
I am very open about the fact that I own/read the Fifty Shades books (and I even read Grey, which was awful so I didn't pick up Darker) and...okay, I also own the movies, too. And yes, I am aware that the writing is not great. So what happens when you want to read something sexy but that's actually good? You read Colleen Hoover. Ugly Love is the sexiest of CoHo's books, but reading this introduced me to a new favorite author and also taught me that there is well-written, funny, emotional, engaging romance out there. Do not be quick to toss all erotica or romance out because of one franchise, y'all.
4. A Court of Mist and Fury - Sarah J. Maas
If you told me I was going to fall in absolute and desperate love with a FANTASY NOVEL about FAERIES and WAR and MAGIC, I would have laughed in yo' face. Well, the joke is on me. The world of ACOTAR, but specifically ACOMAF, is so dear to me. The characters, every single one of them, are fleshed out and realistic. I never felt bogged down by world-building, which is why I often stop reading fantasy, and hello sexy-ass OTP.
5. Sloppy Firsts - Megan McCafferty
Growing up, I read a lot of books about the people I wished I could be (one of a group of tight-knit friends in BSC, a gorgeous teen socialite in Gossip Girl) but I didn't really read about who I actually was. Until I read about Jessica Darling. Jessica is sarcastic, brutally honest (the book is technically her journal), and goes through so many highs and, more importantly, lows. She breaks out. She feels lonely. She worries boys don't like her. I v much related and it was really nice during the awkward stages of my teen life.
6. Bad Romance - Heather Demetrios
This is such an important and wonderful book about a girl in an emotionally abusive relationship. While violence often accompanies an abusive relationship, it is so much harder to pinpoint emotional abuse...and even more difficult to acknowledge and separate yourself from it. This book is written in a very subtle second-person narrative (Grace occasionally addresses Gavin as "you", like the whole thing is a letter of sorts) that brings every moment of pain and strength to life.
7. The Hate U Give - Angie Thomas
I am a white cis hetero female who openly admits that there is so much out there I don't know about and there is so much for me to learn. It's why I love to pick up Own Voices novels, why I love to seek out books with LGBTQ+ and POC characters and that deal with all kinds of issues and circumstances that I've never been in or maybe don't fully understand. In THUG, the importance of the Black Lives Matter movement is enveloped in a story about friends, family, and finding yourself. There's a reason this book has been on the top of the NYT Best Sellers list for so long!
8. Mud Vein - Tarryn Fisher
To read a Tarryn Fisher book is to know Tarryn Fisher. You can just tell she is bleeding onto the page, even if the story isn't that true to her life. She is a woman who wears her heart on her sleeve, who speaks up and out, and who fights fiercely for and with women. Mud Vein is the first book of hers that I read and, though I've finished 4 others, is still my favorite. It is dark and emotional and tough and still hopeful and beautiful. It is engraved on my heart forever (why else would I have picked a piece from the book to be said at our wedding?).
9. Big Little Lies - Liane Moriarty
It's books like this that remind me why I love reading. Moriarty's story is f l a w l e s s. It's mysterious, emotional, and cheeky with its humor. It takes an incredible look at the friendships and rivalries of women. And OMG the HBO show was so good.
10. The Fault in Our Stars - John Green
I had never heard of John Green before 2012 but TFiOS was a huge hit, with great reviews all over the place and plenty of attention in my beloved EW (along with Fifty Shades of Grey and Gone Girl...2012 was a big year for big books), so I picked it up. Looking back on it, it's not even my favorite of his but it was my first and, more importantly, it introduced me to the world I love so much now: contemporary YA. I live for this stuff. I've always enjoyed a slice-of-life story, but I wasn't aware of how many fun, funny, emotional books were out there for teens and it has only gotten bigger because of the popularity of books like this. I enjoyed my Twilight and Hunger Games, but I loved finding a whole new, realistic world of fiction to fall in love with.
1. Twilight - Stephenie Meyer
There are many of us Twihards out there who credit this 4 book saga for reigniting the reading within. I picked up Twilight, New Moon, and Eclipse while I was in London for an internship abroad and the books kept me company on my long and lonely commute, spoke to me in a way I really needed at the time, and reminded me that reading is fun.
2. Don't Sweat the Small Stuff - Richard Carlson
When my now-husband first gave this to me as a gift, I was a little upset...I mean, it sucks to be known as someone who stresses about everything. That said, it ended up being so beneficial to my life. It's been a long time since I picked it up, but I always keep it in my nightstand and I still remember so many of the lessons I was taught when reading it the first time. Don't get me wrong, I still sweat the small stuff, but I feel like I approach it differently which really helps.
3. Ugly Love - Colleen Hoover
I am very open about the fact that I own/read the Fifty Shades books (and I even read Grey, which was awful so I didn't pick up Darker) and...okay, I also own the movies, too. And yes, I am aware that the writing is not great. So what happens when you want to read something sexy but that's actually good? You read Colleen Hoover. Ugly Love is the sexiest of CoHo's books, but reading this introduced me to a new favorite author and also taught me that there is well-written, funny, emotional, engaging romance out there. Do not be quick to toss all erotica or romance out because of one franchise, y'all.
4. A Court of Mist and Fury - Sarah J. Maas
If you told me I was going to fall in absolute and desperate love with a FANTASY NOVEL about FAERIES and WAR and MAGIC, I would have laughed in yo' face. Well, the joke is on me. The world of ACOTAR, but specifically ACOMAF, is so dear to me. The characters, every single one of them, are fleshed out and realistic. I never felt bogged down by world-building, which is why I often stop reading fantasy, and hello sexy-ass OTP.
5. Sloppy Firsts - Megan McCafferty
Growing up, I read a lot of books about the people I wished I could be (one of a group of tight-knit friends in BSC, a gorgeous teen socialite in Gossip Girl) but I didn't really read about who I actually was. Until I read about Jessica Darling. Jessica is sarcastic, brutally honest (the book is technically her journal), and goes through so many highs and, more importantly, lows. She breaks out. She feels lonely. She worries boys don't like her. I v much related and it was really nice during the awkward stages of my teen life.
6. Bad Romance - Heather Demetrios
This is such an important and wonderful book about a girl in an emotionally abusive relationship. While violence often accompanies an abusive relationship, it is so much harder to pinpoint emotional abuse...and even more difficult to acknowledge and separate yourself from it. This book is written in a very subtle second-person narrative (Grace occasionally addresses Gavin as "you", like the whole thing is a letter of sorts) that brings every moment of pain and strength to life.
7. The Hate U Give - Angie Thomas
I am a white cis hetero female who openly admits that there is so much out there I don't know about and there is so much for me to learn. It's why I love to pick up Own Voices novels, why I love to seek out books with LGBTQ+ and POC characters and that deal with all kinds of issues and circumstances that I've never been in or maybe don't fully understand. In THUG, the importance of the Black Lives Matter movement is enveloped in a story about friends, family, and finding yourself. There's a reason this book has been on the top of the NYT Best Sellers list for so long!
8. Mud Vein - Tarryn Fisher
To read a Tarryn Fisher book is to know Tarryn Fisher. You can just tell she is bleeding onto the page, even if the story isn't that true to her life. She is a woman who wears her heart on her sleeve, who speaks up and out, and who fights fiercely for and with women. Mud Vein is the first book of hers that I read and, though I've finished 4 others, is still my favorite. It is dark and emotional and tough and still hopeful and beautiful. It is engraved on my heart forever (why else would I have picked a piece from the book to be said at our wedding?).
9. Big Little Lies - Liane Moriarty
It's books like this that remind me why I love reading. Moriarty's story is f l a w l e s s. It's mysterious, emotional, and cheeky with its humor. It takes an incredible look at the friendships and rivalries of women. And OMG the HBO show was so good.
10. The Fault in Our Stars - John Green
I had never heard of John Green before 2012 but TFiOS was a huge hit, with great reviews all over the place and plenty of attention in my beloved EW (along with Fifty Shades of Grey and Gone Girl...2012 was a big year for big books), so I picked it up. Looking back on it, it's not even my favorite of his but it was my first and, more importantly, it introduced me to the world I love so much now: contemporary YA. I live for this stuff. I've always enjoyed a slice-of-life story, but I wasn't aware of how many fun, funny, emotional books were out there for teens and it has only gotten bigger because of the popularity of books like this. I enjoyed my Twilight and Hunger Games, but I loved finding a whole new, realistic world of fiction to fall in love with.
What are some of the books you're most thankful for?
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