Top Ten Books of 2017!

Happy New Year, everyone! 2017 has been a rollercoaster of a year. We both graduated high school, started college, founded BookChats, and read more than we could have ever dreamed. Annalise read a total of 66 and Ellie a total of 61. Here, despite the immense pain it is causing us, is our top ten books of 2017. Get ready for emotional rollercoaster part two.

Annalise:

These are the top ten books I read in 2017, in no particular order though because that would be just way too hard! Also, there were quite a few series that I read in 2017, so those will only count as one book (give me a break, this is so hard).

1. Let's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson: I love Jenny Lawson. Not just her writing, her stories, her lovely books, but her. I think she is absolutely hilarious, and both of the books I have read by her have been an absolute joy. She has such a fabulous way of writing that makes it absolutely laugh-out-loud. I have never cried out of laughter from reading a book before I was introduced to Lawson.

2. Six of Crows/Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo: These books. I will never not love them. They were perfect, immersive, the characters were just amazing, and I was so effing invested the entire time. Leigh Bardugo has forever stolen a piece of my heart with these books and I couldn't be happier. They were spectacular.

3. The Boston Girl by Anita Diamant: This was easily the most inspiring novel I read in 2017. I couldn't put it down (I was literally reading it during classes, no joke). It was a book that made you want to get up a do something for the greater good. The main protagonist was absolutely lovely, and all of her ups and downs felt as though they were your own. Plus the setting of Boston was just an added bonus! This book changed so many things for me, and opened up so many new perspectives. It was an absolutely pleasure to read.

4. The Besty-Tacy series by Maud Hart Lovelace: We read these books as a part of our original BookChat's senior project and irrevocably fell in love. Betsy is the protagonist that we want in every story. The characters were just so well done, the plots were perfectly poignant, but still so light and fluffy. This series was like stepping into a childhood I never knew I had. And I love Joe. Enough said.

5. Flame in the Mist by Renée Ahdieh: A Japanese Mulan? Yes, please! This book was intense, it was fun, it made me want to scream out of every feeling ever. I loved it. Renée Ahdieh is a new favorite of mine. I recieved an ARC copy of this, and flew through it. I was so surprised as to how much I loved it, and all the characters were just so perfect, and made you feel exactly how you were supposed to feel. It was sublime.

6. A Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J. Maas: I already wrote a whole review about this series which you can find here, and understand why it made my top ten. This was my first introduction to Maas, and since then, I have been wanting to devour each and every one of her stories. If you've never read Maas, then this is the perfect introduction to her work. Plus, Rhysand. That's all I'm going to say.

7. Tell Me Three Things by Julie Buxbaum: This book had been on my radar for a really long time, and when I finally picked it up, it was like a dream. It was so pure, and cute, and just the perfect combination of everything that I love in contemporary. While the secret as to who S/N was wasn't that hard to figure out, Jessie and her journey is so incredibly heart warming. It was cutsy, it was fun, and it was well created. I loved it.

8. The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi: I actually read this book for one of my classes, but I loved it so much, I knew it had to go on this list. This graphic novel is absolutely life changing. Set in Iran during the Islamic Revolution, this follows the journey of Satrapi throughout her life. I was shocked, I was invested, I felt every emotion, all while learning about something that I was never really taught in school. It was amazing, such a fascinating read, and story that I feel everyone should seek out.

9. Finding Audrey by Sophie Kinsella: I don't even know what to say about this book. It is now one of my absolute favorite contemporary reads of all time. It was so real. I was surprised that it felt so close to some the realities that I face, or have faced in the past. I don't know if I've ever related to a book as I much as I related to this one. It was stunning.

10. This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab: This was a last second read for me, and I instantly fell in love. So much so that there will be a full review of the duology up very soon. But this book, my god, was a perfect conclusion to my year. It was fast paced, it was dark, but still adventurous and fun, it was impeccable. The way the characters grew, and the political climate increased as the book went on (not to mention, into the second book), it was like stepping into Verity. Also, like, August Flynn, the monster of my dreams. This book was just utterly perfect. I wrote a full book review here, if you want all my thoughts!

Ellie:

top 10 books i read in 2017, in no particular order: (i like good quotes, powerful prose, and a beautiful romance--enjoy!).

1. The Betsy-Tacy series! by Maud Hart Lovelace

2. I could not pick just one of these books to be on my top 10 list! The whole series is here because the novels, while seeming like they could stand alone, are intertwined in a way that only a person's history could be. Betsy is a lovable character, her family's traditions envelop you in warmth, and the 1910 drama is something so timeless and quaint that it makes you want more.

3. Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

4. I had never read any African literature before this, and I am so glad I picked this up. It is a novel about family, (which already puts it in the lead), and explores the differences between rural and urban Nigeria. I think that the common African stereotype is that everyone is poor and no one has clean water or an education-and that is just not true. This book is a perfect one, and would be a good book for everyone to read to learn more about African cultures.

5. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien

6. If you had told me that a collection of war stories would be on my top 10 list, I would've laughed at you. But this collection of stories made my heart warm and made me long for more. I read this in my AP Literature & Composition class, and it was the best book I read that year. I found the most beautiful quotes and narratives in this book, which is why it has landed on my list.

7. The Boston Girl by Anita Diamant

8. This novelllllll you guys! It follows our protagonist through her life living in Boston, and is written so beautifully that it had to be on this list. I read this in February, I believe, so I don't remember the whole plot, but I remember being in awe over the quality of the writing, over the quotes and beautiful prose. I loved this, everyone should read it.

9. Furiously Happy by Jenny Lawson

10. I have a newfound love for personal memoirs after reading this novel (and its companion, Let's Pretend This Never Happened). Jenny Lawson is hysterically funny and I found myself relating to even her weirdest stories. I'd love 4 more books filled with stories from her life, and I'd love to sit and talk to her about how it was to stick her hand in a cow's uterus (read the books, you'll understand!).

11. The Light We Lost by Jill Santopolo

12. This novel was.....so wonderfully written and filled with one of the most beautiful relationships I've ever read. I got this book from a blind-date book situation, and I promise you, I could not have gotten a better book for a $4 donation to the pajama project. Read my full review of this book HERE!

13. To All The Boys I've Loved Before series by Jenny Han

14. I don't read a lot of contemporary romance series anymore, as I love a good rom-com standalone, but this series won so many awards in my heart! Lara Jean is a real character-and what I mean by that is she could be a real person. She has flaws and friends and weird quirks that make her her. I loved these three novels, and could easily read three more.

15. The Lover's Dictionary by David Levithan

16. I love everything and anything by David Levithan, but this book took the cake. Written, as you'd expect, in dictionary format, this story beautifully explores the before, during, and after of a relationship. With perfectly quotable sections and a beautiful relationship between two people, this book has secured its place on my "favorites" shelf.

17. Wonder by R.J. Palacio

18. WOW. This novel is on my top 10 list because of how heartwarming it was. I loved the multi-perspective nature, even though I typically dislike that, and I loved how everyone saw Auggie in a different way. It was an incredibly eye-opening book, and I found it so beautiful and wonderful.

19. The Princess Saves Herself in this One by Amanda Lovelace

20. I picked this poetry collection as one of my top 10 books of 2017 because of how unique it was. This year was the year of poetry collections, with Milk and Honey's popularity skyrocketing. But this one was my favorite-the sections, the voice behind it, the beauty in each and every poem.

#TopTenoftheYear