2018

The Reads

1. Tolstoy and the Purple Chair — Nina Sankovitch

2. The School of Good and Evil —  Soman Chainani

3. 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth —  The Oatmeal

4. Atonement —  Ian McEwan

5. Confectionately Yours: Save the Cupcake! —  Lisa Papademetriou

6. The Clone Codes — Patricia C. McKissack

7. The Tempest Manga — William Shakespeare

8. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time — Mark Haddon

9. Saint Anything — Sarah Dessen

10. The Unicorn Secret : the Silver Thread —  Kathleen Duey

11. The Unicorns Secret : Moonsilver —  Kathleen Duey

12. Debutantes and Daggers (Rebel Belle and Miss Mayhem) — Rachel Hawkins

13. Keeping The Moon —  Sarah Dessen

14. True Stories — American Girl

15. Sophie the Awesome — Lara Bergen

16. Sing Down the Moon — Scott O'Dell

17. The Princess Plot — Kirsten Boie

18. Flight — Sherman Alexie

19. The Fault in Our Stars — John Green

20. The Perks of Being a Wallflower — Stephen Chbosky

21. Amsterdam —  Ian McEwan

22. Carry On —  Rainbow Rowell

The Reviews

1. Tolstoy and the Purple Chair — Nina Sankovitch

I chose this book to kickstart my new 'read more' goal. It worked though perhaps not as well as I had liked. I was reminded of how well books could heal and how important they really were. Before this book, I'd lost my interest in reading. The year before this one, I had only read 3 or 4 books, most for school, maybe one outside of school (I think it was Harry Potter and the Cursed Child) I'd recommend this book to anyone in a more persistent reading slump. It does the trick and more. It's well-written and has some great book suggestions in it as well.

2. The School of Good and Evil —  Soman Chainani

This book was one I received for my 12th birthday and never once read. Looking back now, I see how much of a fool I had been not to have read it. This book was so fun to read and I just loved the joy of it. I powered through it even though it was rather large. I don't care that I'm 16 and this book is aimed at 8-11 year olds. It was so entertaining and imaginative. I was pulled into the story. I don't read that much fantasy so I was surprised how much I liked this one. I enjoyed it and it made me reconsider my moral philosophies. Its purpose is fulfilled.

3. 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth —  The Oatmeal

This is a comic book but I still count it. I didn't like this one but I still finished it because it was a nice, quick break from studying at a rather stressful time. I didn't like the art style and the jokes didn't resonate with me. However, others may like the style and jokes. I'd look into it before you consider reading it. It's not for everyone. I didn't like it.

4. Atonement —  Ian McEwan

This is a really great book. My favorite section was the first one. I had mixed feelings and a fair amount of anger about the ending but that, to me, is the sign of a book worth my time. It made me feel things. It left such an effect on me, I later asked my mom to buy 2 more of his books for me, one of which I finished. I am growing very fond of Ian McEwan. No other author captures the human mind, or at least my experience with the human mind, the way he does.

5. Confectionately Yours: Save the Cupcake! —  Lisa Papademetriou

I read this book for a second time before donating it. It was fine, I suppose. Nothing really stood out to me but I just read it for nostalgia's sake and that was alright with me. It wasn't good but it was ok.

6. The Clone Codes — Patricia C. McKissack

This one was short. It was a re-read from my childhood before it was donated. It didn't leave an impression on me. It was just a book for kids.

7. The Tempest Manga — William Shakespeare

This, in my opinion, counts as reading the actual play. The text is the same; it just has pictures. This manga made me love The Tempest. It was such a delight to read, just as Shakespeare should be. I reccomend anyone who is in a Shakespeare slump to try a manga version. I think people should avoid Shakespeare that isn't the original language ('modernised' or 'no fear' or whatever) because that's not Shakespeare. The pleasure in the reading comes from the original text. Any translation sours it.

The Tempest is just so delightful. It has love, fear, magic, comedy, all that makes a Shakespeare play good.

8. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time — Mark Haddon

Another re-read. I read this mostly on the beach during the breaks at my summer job, which made it very enjoyable to read. I liked this book and I think everyone should give it a read. It has shocking twists and helped me begin to understand people with autism better.

9. Saint Anything — Sarah Dessen

I read this with my two siblings, Annmarie and CJ. This was a really great book. This is the first Sarah Dessen novel I ever read. Before reading Saint Anything, I didn't like the romance genre. Overall a good teen romance. I liked the characters and a relatively realistic portrayal of teen life.

10. The Unicorn Secret : the Silver Thread —  Kathleen Duey

This was a very short book for children. It was about a 20 minute read. I don't remember anything about it.

11. The Unicorns Secret : Moonsilver —  Kathleen Duey

Same as number 10.

12. Debutantes and Daggers (Rebel Belle and Miss Mayhem) — Rachel Hawkins

I loved this book (books, it had two in it) I picked it up and never expected to get far into it. But boy this book sucked me in. I finished it surprisingly quickly even though it was pretty big. I loved the story so much and it was so entertaining. Harper's progression as a character was really well-written. There was love, adventure, magic, betrayal, everything. This book was just so great.

13. Keeping The Moon —  Sarah Dessen

I liked how the romance in this book wasn't the main aspect of the story. It was really about a girl discovering herself and her confidence. I liked the character of Norman a lot. Good read.

14. True Stories — American Girl

This was an ok read.

15. Sophie the Awesome — Lara Bergen

Another book I read just because it was going to be donated.

16. Sing Down the Moon — Scott O'Dell

It was good but would have been better if I had read it when I was younger.

17. The Princess Plot — Kirsten Boie

This book was enjoyable but pretty stupid.

18. Flight — Sherman Alexie

This was a good book. My only wish is that the character of Justice would get a sequel in which he was given similar redemption. I closed the book wondering why Michael was deserving of a redemption arch and Justice wasn't offered one. I overall liked the book. It tackles race and growing up without guidance in a creative way.

19. The Fault in Our Stars — John Green

I expected to love this book. Like really love it. I liked it. But it seemed to be missing something important for me. A certain something was missing, one aspect that would have pushed this book into the amazing category for me. I'm not sure what that something was though. I loved the scenes of Amsterdam because I travelled there with my two close friends last spring break and I was able to come back to the magic of the city. I liked the characters (especially Isaac) and I was moved by the story but it still wasn't everything I had imagined.

20. The Perks of Being a Wallflower — Stephen Chbosky

This is a truly phenomenal and amazing book. I've never read a book that described so well what it's like to be a teenager. Most books heavily shy away from sex and drugs but news flash, stuff like that is a part of every teenager's life, even if they aren't involved in it. This book especially resonated with me this year. If I read it last year, I wouldn't have connected with it as much. I related heavily to the character of Charlie. He is far more introverted than me and lots of the situations he is in are nowhere near the ones I experience. But much like him, this year, coming to Italy, was like a new school, new friends, new experiences. 2018 was my first year dipping my toes into the more adult world (both the responsibilities and the freedoms) in more ways than one. This book was so so so good. It dealt with things that every teenager can relate to, mental health, sexuality, drug use, and feeling so many things. Finally someone that understands. This book made me feel infinite.

21. Amsterdam —  Ian McEwan

This book started off slow but picked up the pace later on. I picked it up post The Fault in Our Stars when I thought back to my trip in Amsterdam and how fun it was. This book was shockingly accurate in the way it portrayed the human mind and different character's thoughts. I've never read a book that got minds so accurate. McEwan is so skilful at switching between different narratives while still writing one cohesive story. This book shocked me and left me thinking for a long time. It also made me wonder a lot about what it will be like to be an adult. It was very good. Ian McEwan doesn't write characters. He writes minds.

22. Carry On —  Rainbow Rowell

This book made me feel so so many emotions. I have never shipped anything like Snowbaz. And my god, the imagery. I could imagine the characters and it was amazing. I discovered a whole new world. A world of mages! It was... incredible. I loved every second of it. I couldn't put it down. Carry On taught me an important lesson I already knew but needed reminding of. It can and will end up okay. We can and will carry on. Sadness is temporary and the things that are meant to be, will be.

That's a wrap on my year of reading and an amazing year in my life. Life isn't perfect for me. I've had my struggles. But overall, I am so lucky to have an amazing life filled with a lot of joy. I'm doing so much better than I ever thought I could. I'm thankful, peaceful, and so ready to live next year. Most importantly, I'm happy to be myself again, which is the only thing I need for a good life.

To keep myself accountable, my goal for next year is to read 35 books.