Top Ten Picks: Books You Have to Read at Least Once

Top 10 Picks is hosted each week by Jillian @ Random Ramblings. This week’s topic is books you “have” to read at least once in your life. Make sure to stop by Jillian’s blog to see her list!

1. The Giver by Lois Lowry

This was one of the first dystopia books I ever read. I was a wee kidlet at the time, but it left a haunting impression that I have never been quite able to shake. I have since re-read this book several times. I consider it a classic that everyone should read (at least once).


2. The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand

I have found that people either love or hate Rand. I personally had no aspirations to read any of her works until a close friend recommend and then proceeded to buy a copy of Fountainhead for me. True, it takes a while to get into Rand's writting, but trust me, this book is worth it.


3. Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

Okay, okay, bear with me here. :P Once you have read The Fountainhead, you should really read Atlas Shrugged. Rand's writting is much less raw and the characters are more relatable. Plus, this is Rand's mouthpiece, so to speak. Her meaning is made quite clear, and it actually changed the way I precieve certain life situations. It was a very memorable book for me.


4. The Shining by Stephen King
Ah, the master storyteller himself, Stephen King. The Shining is my favorite horror novel by Mr. King. I was completely scared out of my skin while reading this. Also, I have never been able to look at hedged topiaries the same.


5. American Gods by Neil Gaiman

Another great storyteller, Niel Gaiman. :) I have read many of Gaiman's works, but American Gods is by far my favorite. I loved how Gaiman wove Norse mythology throughout the story, while maintaining a modern theme. If I had to recommend only one book of Gaiman's, it would definitely be American Gods.

6. The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

A feminist classic. I absolutely love Atwood's voice. The Handmaid's Tale captures Atwood at her best. If you haven't read any of Atwood's works, start here. An other great book by Atwood is Oryx and Crake, which I would definitely recommend as a close second.

7. Night by Elie Wiesel

I read this for a religion class I took in college. I was so moved, then I eventually went out and bought my own copy to read and think over without the pressure of the classroom. Night is a book that everyone should read. Try to ignore the Oprah sticker. I do.

8. A Wrinkle in Time by Madelieine L'Engle

This is a wonderful introduction to science fiction. I first read this in 6th grade and absolutely fell in love with it! I have since purchased the box set of the series and have re-read A Wrinkle in Time and read the second book, A Wind at the Door. I plan on finishing the other 2 books in the near future.

9. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Okay, so by now I am sure that you getting the feel that I rather enjoy dystopian novels. To that effect, you would be correct. :P Collins' has created a wonderful piece of fiction that is horrifically not that too-far-off! If you haven't read this book yet, you must do so immediately!

10. The Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling

I must credit the Harry Potter series. J. K Rowling has created a wonderfully magical world in which anything is possible. I had set aside reading for quite a few years until I decided to pick up The Scorer's Stone. From there, it was true love. I fell in love with the series, as well as reading, again. I would love to see Rowling write another series in the future.

Changeless by Gail Carriger

*Warning: There be minor spoilers ahead!*

Book Summery:
Alexia Tarabotti, now Lady Maccon, awakens in the wee hours of the mid-afternoon to find her husband, who should be decently asleep like any normal werewolf, yelling at the top of his lungs. Then he disappears -- leaving her to deal with a regiment of supernatural soldiers encamped on her doorstep, a plethora of exorcised ghosts, and an angry Queen Victoria.

But Alexia is armed with her trusty parasol, the latest fashions, and an arsenal of biting civility. Even when her investigations take her into the backwaters of ugly waistcoats, Scotland, she is prepared: upending werewolf pack dynamics as only a soulless can. She might even find time to track down her wayward husband, if she feels like it. -goodreads.com

My Review:
Again, this took me a while to get into before I fully enjoyed it. Although, I believe the delay was caused not due to getting accustomed to Carriger's writing style, but rather distractions in my day-to-day life, which did not allow me the proper amount of time to get settled into my "reading mode." However, once I was granted such time and lack of distraction, I found myself fully enveloped in the world of Lady Maccon and her companions.

Again, my favorite aspect of Carriger's writing are her characters. Alexia is a strong female lead, who is both an interesting and humerus narrator. I did sorely miss ProfessorLyall's predominant presence in Changeless, as he is one of my favorite characters. We do see quite a bit more of Ivy Hisselpenny and her many hats. We are also introduced to the french inventor Madame Lefoux, who is a wonderfully colorful addition. A bit more is revealed about Lord Maccon's past, which proves to be quite interesting as well.

Overall, once I was able to sink my teeth in, I found Changeless quite enjoyable. There is a bit of a mystery woven throughout the plot that makes for a truly interesting read. I enjoyed the dialog and interactions between the characters. Furthermore, Ms. Carriger has enabled me to enjoy steampunk more than I had ever anticipated I would. I can barely contain my anticipation for the third book in the series Blameless (rightly named, I think), which is due to be out this coming September. For those interested, other scintillating reviews for Changeless can be found at Jawas Read, Too! and Smexy Books. :)

My Favorite Quote:

"Really, Alexia, language. You sound like a fishmonger's wife!" said Miss Hisselpenny. "What's going on? Did your parasol just emit something? How untoward of it..." (p. 325)

Cover Art Commentary:
I really love the cover art of these books. They are both beautiful and original like the stories they contain.

Overall Rating:

Reading Reflections: March 2010

Books Read:
Original Sin by Allison Brennan (review)
All Unquiet Things by Anna Jarzab (review)
The Iron King by Julie Kagawa (review)
Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane (review)
The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson (review)
Shadowglass by Erica Hayes (review)
Soulless by Gail Carriger (review)

Total Number of Books Read: 7

Most Anticipated: The Iron King by Julie Kagawa
Biggest Let Down: Shadowglass by Erica Hayes

Favorite Read: I would have to say that it is a tie between The Iron King by Julie Kagawa and Soulless by Gail Carriger.

Highest rank: 5 butterflies

Lowest rank: 3 butterflies

Overall Reflection:
Well it certainly has been an interesting month of reading. The book that I most thoroughly enjoyed are: Original Sin, All Unquiet Things, The Iron King, and Soulless by Gail Carriger. I was most surprised by Soulless. I had not anticipated that I would enjoy it as much as I actually did. The Sky is Everywhere is a close second...I enjoyed it much more than I had originally thought I would. I think I ruined the book version of Shutter Island by watching the movie beforehand, though the movie was incredible. I was most disappointed by Shadowglass. I had previously enjoyed Shadowfae by the same author. However, Shadowglass just didn't live up to my expectations. Many of the books that I read and enjoyed were books I discovered by reading blog reviews. So many thanks to my fellow book bloggers for recommendations and discoveries! :) I look forward to another month of reading and blogging in April!

Soulless by Gail Carriger

 


Book Summery:
Alexia Tarabotti is laboring under a great many social tribulations. First, she has no soul. Second, she's a spinster whose father is both Italian and dead. Third, she was rudely attacked by a vampire, breaking all standards of social etiquette. Where to go from there? From bad to worse apparently, for Alexia accidentally kills the vampire -- and then the appalling Lord Maccon (loud, messy, gorgeous, and werewolf) is sent by Queen Victoria to investigate. With unexpected vampires appearing and expected vampires disappearing, everyone seems to believe Alexia responsible. Can she figure out what is actually happening to London's high society? Will her soulless ability to negate supernatural powers prove useful or just plain embarrassing? Finally, who is the real enemy, and do they have treacle tart?-goodreads.com

My Review:
I honestly didn't think I would like this one at first. It took me about 70 pages before I finally got in the groove of reading through (a) Carriger's voice and (b) the Victorian setting. However, once I got into the right mode, it was near impossible to set this book down. I honestly don't think I would have picked up Soulless had I not read the reviews written over at Book Love Affair and Jawas Read, Too! Though they did not enjoy Soulless quite as enthusiastically as I did, I can honestly say that I would not have even bothered to pick up the series had it not been for their reviews!

Onwards to the review. What makes this book are two exceptional components: The first being the characters. First off, is our narrator Alexia Tarabotti. Alexia is a strong, intelligent, and witty female lead. The supporting characters are superb as well, and counteract Alexia nicely. A few of my favorites are Lord Maccon and ProfessorLyall, the alpha and beta males of the local werewolf pack. The second component is the setting of the story. Now I am certainly no history buff, but it seems that Ms. Carriger has done some rather intensive research in regards to this book. Again, I can't honestly say if the historical components of the story are historically correct, but they sure do add some wonderful color to the story.

All in all, I absolutely adored this story. It has a touch of various elements: the paranormal, science, romance, steam punk with some Victorian flair thrown in. When combined these elements produce an enthralling and original story. I absolutely can not wait to get started on Carriger's next book in the series, Changeless. For more information, check out the author's website.

Cover Art Commentary:
Like the story, this cover is most original. I love how the gray background make the fore-colors pop off the page.

Overall Rating:

Book Bundle

Bought:

Alexia Tarabotti is laboring under a great many social tribulations. First, she has no soul. Second, she's a spinster whose father is both Italian and dead. Third, she was rudely attacked by a vampire, breaking all standards of social etiquette. Where to go from there? From bad to worse apparently, for Alexia accidentally kills the vampire -- and then the appalling Lord Maccon (loud, messy, gorgeous, and werewolf) is sent by Queen Victoria to investigate. With unexpected vampires appearing and expected vampires disappearing, everyone seems to believe Alexia responsible. Can she figure out what is actually happening to London's high society? Will her soulless ability to negate supernatural powers prove useful or just plain embarrassing? Finally, who is the real enemy, and do they have treacle tart?-goodreads.com
An invisible, uncrossable physical barrier encloses the Unified States. The Line is the part of the border that lopped off part of the country, dooming the inhabitants to an unknown fate when the enemy used a banned weapon. It’s said that bizarre creatures and superhumans live on the other side, in Away. Nobody except tough old Ms. Moore would ever live next to the Line. Nobody but Rachel and her mother, who went to live there after Rachel’s dad died in the last war. It’s a safe, quiet life. Until Rachel finds a mysterious recorded message that can only have come from Away. The voice is asking for help. Who sent the message? Why is her mother so protective? And to what lengths is Rachel willing to go in order to do what she thinks is right? -goodreads.com
A serial killer on the loose. A girl with a morbid ability. And the boy who would never let anything happen to her. Violet Ambrose can find the dead. Or at least, those who have been murdered. She can sense the echoes they leave behind... and the imprints they leave on their killers. As if that weren't enough to deal with during junior year, she also has a sudden, inexplicable, and consuming crush on her best friend since childhood, Jay Heaton. Now a serial killer has begun terrorizing Violet's small town... and she realizes she might be the only person who can stop him. -goodreads.com

Won:

Alexia Tarabotti, now Lady Maccon, awakens in the wee hours of the mid-afternoon to find her husband, who should be decently asleep like any normal werewolf, yelling at the top of his lungs. Then he disappears -- leaving her to deal with a regiment of supernatural soldiers encamped on her doorstep, a plethora of exorcised ghosts, and an angry Queen Victoria. But Alexia is armed with her trusty parasol, the latest fashions, and an arsenal of biting civility. Even when her investigations take her into the backwaters of ugly waistcoats, Scotland, she is prepared: upending werewolf pack dynamics as only a soulless can. She might even find time to track down her wayward husband, if she feels like it.-goodreads.com

Source:
I bought Soulless, The Line, and The Body Finder at Barnes and Noble. I won Changeless from Erika from Jawas Read, Too! Many thanks to Erika and the Jawas for my copy! :P

Most Anticipated:
Ek! I don't know if I can choose! I am already reading Soulless, so Changeless is most likely next on my list. However, I am really looking forward to reading all of these! :)