1. “It’s Kind of a Funny Story” - Ned Vizzini
This is the coming-of-age story of a depressed teenage boy and his time in a psychiatric unit. While for some, this seems like a heavy topic that is seemingly unable to be related to, I found the case to be quite the opposite. Whether you are depressed or just know someone struggling with a mental illness of some sort, this novel opens new doors and new perspectives on the topic as well as on the human mind as a whole. I think everyone can find a little piece of themselves in this book, which can be both comforting and shocking. This novel holds the ability to open eyes. I also like to believe that the insight into mental illnesses and how individuals struggle with them can aid readers in helping themselves and others.
2. “Paper Towns” - John Green
This novel follows a boy named Quentin who is madly in love with the mystery of a human that is Margo Roth Spiegelman. Margo is known for her crazy adventures and charming personality. Eventually she runs away and doesn’t come back, leaving mere clues for Quentin. At my high school, most of the junior American literature courses were required to read this book for an assignment, so no one saw this particular novel as “special” anymore. No one was all that impressed with what I considered to be a magical story. This always caused me to feel rather basic for falling in love with the book, but I think it will always remain my all time favorite despite that. I read this novel the summer before my sophomore year of high school, and I all but fell in love with Margo Roth Spiegelman but like…not in a creepy way. I had always craved adventure and wanted to give off an air of mystery, but it’s really hard to act as if you’re a beloved character in a movie when, in fact, you are not. So I suppose Margo was exactly what I’d always wanted to be, but didn’t quite have the courage to be. To put it simply, I saw myself in Quentin, but I saw who I wanted to be in Margo. Immediately upon finishing this book, I cut off all of my hair, went on to break up with my long-term boyfriend, began speaking my mind and then began sneaking out with my friends for spontaneous late-night adventures. I don’t think I really made the conscious decision to become more like my favorite character, but I still did. Sometimes, I still find myself wandering through abandoned buildings or taking trips to the city without telling anyone.
3. “Eleanor and Park” - Rainbow Rowell
This book is a love story between two people so incredibly different, that it actually makes one believe that love truly is found in the most unexpected of places and within the strangest of beginnings. This book made me laugh, cry, and stay up until 4am, only to finish it all in one night. I began to believe in love, and then this book proceeded to crush my heart in the same chapter. As it concluded, I found myself believing in a new image of love entirely. As a hopeless romantic and an English major, maybe I just put too much of my heart into what I read. Either way, this novel still touched me and just made me feel a little more hopeful, to say the least.
4. “The Great Gatsby” - F. Scott Fitzgerald
This is a classic novel that many of us were forced to read in high school or, at the very least, have seen the movie adaptation of. It’s a classy and timeless story of love, wealth, hatred, and mystery in the “Roaring 20’s” and allows anyone to escape into the world that most of us can only imagine. While this novel didn’t directly influence me like most of the others did, it is a large part of what got me interested in literature and, eventually, influenced me to decide on pursuing a career in English. So, I guess this novel might not inspire everyone quite like that, but it’s still an amazing read that can allow readers to escape from reality for a bit.
5. “Tuesday’s with Morrie” - Mitch Albom
Like many of the others on this list, I was assigned to read this book in my high school years. Unlike many others, I blew through it in 2 days, despite numerous protests from my teacher. It is written very simply, so it is easy to read. But that is not to say it isn’t interesting and extremely inspiring. The book is a true story filled with knowledge and life advice from Morrie Schwartz, a former professor suffering with ALS. This novel gives a deep insight into the questions that we all seem to have about life and death. While one won’t necessarily find all of the answers within its pages, it does make you believe that maybe they’re out there and maybe, just maybe, you can find them one day.
6. “Did I Ever Wake Up” - Mod Sun
While this is considered a self-help type of novel, it still tells a personal story. It is short, humorous, interesting, and quite easy to read. Many critics don’t take it all that seriously, as it is written by a very stereotypical hippie who writes music for a living, but the message is still heavily inspiring. The focus behind this book is that each and every one of us are in complete control of our emotions and our fate. The author also touches on the law of attraction, which was the main topic within the novel that changed my life. At the very least, it forced me to change my mindset in the face of hard times and tragedies, which is something I think we could all use.
