Growing up, I loved reading. It took me to new lands and on thrilling adventures without making me leave the comfort of my own bedroom. Books have given me adventures and characters who became role models that served as inspirations for who I want to be. So here's a list of my top 5 life changing books!
1. "The Christmas Doll" by Elvira Woodruff
This was actually my first favorite book. I read this book when I was 9-years-old and it completely changed my world. I fell in love with this book. I had picked it up at random, intrigued by a book about dolls and I was not disappointed. This is a book about a pair of orphan sisters that are forced to escape their orphanage or else risk being separated. In their journey, they eventually come across a doll that changes their lives. As a kid, this was the most dramatic book I had ever gotten my tiny hands on. Honestly, this is the book that made me love reading and encouraged me to find other new and exciting books to read.
2. "A Series of Unfortunate Events" by Lemony Snicket
So, I’m cheating a little on this one. It’s not one book, it’s a series, but this series was the highlight of my sixth grade year. I could not put them down, and I was finishing each book within a couple of nights, excitedly waiting for my next chance to go to the library and check out the next one. There was something a bit dark about the series that made me want to follow the mystery of the orphaned Baudelaire children and the eerie Count Olaf that haunted them. It reached a point that I was reading them so fast, my friends thought that I was lying about it.
3. "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky
A lot of people tell you that you have to read the book before you see the movie, but I have to be honest, I watched the movie first with this one. I adored the movie, and then, for my birthday, the friend who loaned me the movie got me the book. As much as I loved the movie, I loved that book more than anything else. It was dark, and different than some of the other books I had read. It changed me, and made me think. It’s a highly recommended read.
4. "What Happened to Lani Garver" by Carol Plum-Ucci
This book was similar to Perks for me. It made me think about a lot of things in my life, like beliefs, and how I let people treat me. As unknown as this author is, she writes amazing books, that I would highly recommend because they’re all just a bit different and make you think a lot about your life.
5. "The Harry Potter" Series by J.K. Rowling
This series has changed so many lives, mine included. Growing up, my mother would read these books aloud to the family, and brought this amazing fantasy world to life for me. I fell in love with this series and everything associated with it, wanting to know what house I’m in, and being okay with whatever it was because each is special. (If you’re curious, Pottermore says I’m a Gryffindor.)
