Tuesday, October 11, 2016

10 Good Reads I Discovered Through Recommendations

This week's Top Ten Tuesday topic, hosted by The Broke and the Bookish, is about books we've tried because of recommendations. This is an awesome list full of great reads, and I'm so glad I discovered these books, both through friends and fellow bloggers.

1. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling
5 stars
I'm so grateful to my younger neighbor who gave me the first three books to borrow back in 2000. I'm sure I would've discovered Harry Potter on my own eventually, but this allowed me the unique anticipation and joy of buying and devouring books 4-7 the day they came out.

2. Red Rising by Pierce Brown
5 stars
I had never even heard of "Red Rising" until I saw it on several bloggers' best-of-2014 lists. I read it at the beginning of 2015, then immediately blew through the second book in the series, "Golden Son." Pierce Brown is now one of my favorite authors and I highly recommend the Red Rising series, even if you don't think science fiction is your thing. There's something in the series to appeal to everyone.


3. Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
4 stars -- but still one of my faves
I just love this book, which, like "Red Rising," is a novel with sci-fi elements that everyone can enjoy. It wasn't really on my radar at all, but I kept seeing it on blogs and other places and finally decided to give it a try. I'm so glad I did! I remember I spent an entire flight from Ohio to Dallas with my nose buried in this book.

4. I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson
5 stars
I'm not a big fan of YA, especially contemporary YA, but, while this book has teenage main characters, it is so much more than your typical young adult novel. It just blew me away.


5. Uprooted by Naomi Novik
5 stars
I'm a bit of a newbie to the fantasy genre (though I'm reading more and more of it, and it is addicting!), so I didn't know a thing about "Uprooted" until I saw it, like "Red Rising," on many bloggers' best-of-the-year lists, this time in 2015. I read "Uprooted" this spring and it will definitely be on my best-of-the-year list come December!

6. Saga by Brian K. Vaughn and Fiona Staples
5 stars
"Saga" was my first real graphic novel and I was instantly hooked. The series is this amazing blend of great characters, science fiction, space odyssey, warfare, profanity, humor, violence and wackiness. I had no idea that such an utterly engrossing story could be told mostly through illustrations.


7. The Dud Avocado by Elaine Dundy
4 stars
A library co-worker recommended this pseudo-autobiographical novel about an American coming of age in Paris in the 1950s. It was a riot to read, but it had heart too.

8. A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
4? stars
As you can see, I'm still not sure how I felt about this one, but I do know it's a book I will never forget. I initially had absolutely no interest in it -- I was totally turned off by the cover and the over 700-page length. But I saw it read and loved by so many bloggers with reading tastes similar to mine that I finally decided to give it a try this summer. While I'll probably never decide if I loved or hated it, I'm glad I read it.


9. The Daily Coyote by Shreve Stockton
5 stars
My best friend, Katie, sent me this one to read several years ago. It's a memoir about a young woman who settles in middle-of-nowhere Wyoming in hopes of finding herself -- and in the process finds herself the parent of an orphaned coyote pup. The pictures of Charlie the Coyote are stunning and adorable!

10. The Maze Runner by James Dashner
4 stars
After I finished (and loved, obviously) the Hunger Games trilogy, a friend recommended I try the Maze Runner series. Not as good, but it definitely kept my interest!

25 comments:

  1. I was delighted to see The Dud Avocado on your list.

    I have this on my TBR pile - if this TTT pops up again, I'll be able to credit you with the recommendation :-)

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    1. I hope you enjoy it! I never in a million years would've found it on my own, as it seems to be somewhat of a lesser-known cult classic, and I'm so glad my friend suggested I read it!

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  2. Red Rising is one I have been meaning to get to, I almost unhauled it but all the hype built around it made me change my mind so I hope it's worth it. I love Ready Player One, that is a book I am constantly recommending to people for sure. Great list :)

    My TTT: http://www.teaandtitles.com/top-ten-tuesday-books-weve-recommended-eachother/

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    1. Oh, I do hope you read "Red Rising"! It was the best book I read last year. Even though they're totally different, I think if you liked "Ready Player One" you'll enjoy "Red Rising."

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  3. Great list! It's amazing how many people discovered Harry Potter through word of mouth; it really was one of those books that people just couldn't help enthusing about to all their friends. :)

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    1. I feel lucky that I got to go into the series knowing absolutely nothing about it. I had never even heard the words "Harry Potter" before my neighbor thrust the first book into my hands!

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  4. Ready Player One made my list this week too. Definitely one of the best recs I've received so far. A Little Life is in my TBR pile and I hope to get to it soon. I keep hearing that it's a powerful read. Great list! My TTT.

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    1. I don't think I would've picked up "Ready Player One" on my own, but now it's one of the books I recommend most to other people. I really think there's something in it for everyone! I'm so excited for the movie version.

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  5. I still need to read Maze Runner. And I agree about ready Player One- I may not have read it at all if not for blogger recommendations!

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    1. The Maze Runner series is definitely interesting, but it didn't quite blow me away. Worth a read, though! And the books are way better than the movies.

      I'm so glad I finally gave in and read "Ready Player One" -- now it's one of the books I recommend most to other people.

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  6. I finally read the Harry Potter series after my college roommate recommended it, a couple years after we left school. I'm so glad I listened to her!

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    1. I think I got so lucky to read the first couple HP books before they were a huge thing, and without having any notion whatsoever what I was getting myself into. I hadn't ever heard of the series before my neighbor gave me the first book! Have you listened to the audiobooks? I'm not a big audiobook fan, but the HP ones read by Jim Dale are absolutely amazing. Check them out if you ever want a different HP reading experience!

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  7. I'm convinced that I need to read The Daily Coyote. It sounds really cool. I have Ready Player One but haven't read it yet and someone recommended Harry Potter to me at my last job years and years ago and even though I don't remember who it was, I want to thank them too!

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    1. Barb, you should totally read "The Daily Coyote"! As a dog lover, I know you'll appreciate it. I actually would like to read it again; I mention it often on the blog, but I read it so long ago that the finer details are fuzzy. I do know you can see tons and tons of gorgeous pictures of Charlie at the author's blog.

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  8. I own I'll Give You The Sun, and I love YA. I want to read it, but I'm also nervous I'll be disappointed. The more I see it on peoples 'love' lists, the better I feel. (So thank you!)

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    1. I hope you read it and love it! I often go into hugely-hyped YA books with a skeptical attitude, almost as if I'm looking to pick out problems. But "I'll Give You the Sun" was just amazing. I was totally surprised by how much I loved it.

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  9. Ready Player One and I'll Give You the Sun were ones I read after hearing them on so many blogs and I loved them. A Little Life is on I heard about on one of my radio shows I listen to but they were mixed on it and so are a lot of people so I haven't taken the plunge on that one yet!

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    1. "A Little Life" was such a unique reading experience -- it was utterly immersive and utterly gut-wrenching. I'm not sure if I'd recommend it, but it's definitely a book I'll never, ever forget.

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  10. Harry Potter made my list too- but several others on your list are ones I read simply because our book blogging community talked about them.

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    1. Same here -- a lot of times a book won't be on my radar at all, but after I see it on enough blogs I'll be like, "Well, I guess I better look this one up on Goodreads." And about half the time, onto the mile-long TBR list it goes! Book bloggers are wonderful -- but dangerous! ;)

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  11. I'll Give You the Sun is also on my list! It's one of my favorites. Great list! :)

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    1. Thanks, Anna! "I'll Give You the Sun" is one of my all-time faves too. I went into it with zero expectations and never expected to love it so much!

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  12. My mother's neighbour in her 55+ community recently recommended Harry Potter to her, and now she's hooked! :)

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    1. How fun! I think that's some of the magic of Harry Potter -- it's ageless and timeless!

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  13. I so want to read "A Little Life", but omg that book is huge! Maybe I'll have to double up and listen to the audiobook and read it so that it goes by quicker. Glad to hear you maybe? enjoyed it though lol

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