I read 89 books this year, which is small compared to the 108 books I read last year. For me, it’s kind of a let down. Fortunately, I still have plenty of books that inspired me this year I can write about.

1. "The Shadow of the Wind" by Carlos Ruiz Zafon.

$1.99 on Barnes & Noble website.

The Shadow of the Wind spoke to both the reader and the writer in me. The love the main character has for books is the same as mine, and I felt the need for literature while the powers that be try to control civilians’ thinking process. Books also bring people together and, even if you think you don’t, chances are you will find a little something of yourself in every novel you read.

As for the writer half of me, I understand what it is like to make something so close to your heart and the reluctance that comes with sharing it with the world. Aside from the obvious possibility of people not liking what you write, there is also the possibility people are not going to want to hear what you have to say.

2. "Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger’s" by John Elder Robison.

$6.50 on Amazon.

I read this book for one of my classes senior year. Naturally, because I was being forced to read it, I should have hated it. While I didn’t absolutely love it, as a girl with an autistic younger brother, this book gave me whole new insight on Asperger’s Syndrome.

Although the author is much more high-functioning than my brother, their experiences are similar. They have trouble communicating with people, their brains process information differently, and it’s hard for them to fit in. Like John Elder, people underestimate my brother. Both are actually very bright in certain topics and they shine once they are allowed to be challenged.

It was also great to read about Asperger’s Syndrome written by someone who actually has it, not from some dude with a PhD in a textbook. John Elder described the kind of struggles I’m sure my brother deals with every day and that gave me a whole new appreciation for it.

3. "We Believe You" by Annie E. Clark.

$11.55 on Amazon.

This book made me uncomfortable, sad, and very, very angry. It’s a collection of stories written by survivors of college campus sexual assault.

Women, and some men, describe in detail (some significantly more graphic than others) the horrors they went through during and after their assaults. While women who were raped by men tell most of the stories, there are other accounts of men being raped by men, and women who were raped by women. You would think it would be only men who are the perpetrators and the women the victims, wouldn’t you?

No—if someone forces himself or herself on another person, regardless of gender, they are a rapist.

What’s more, the stories in We Believe You describe ultimate triumph in the survivors, even if the college or legal system denied them the justice they deserved. They moved on and took back their lives, even using their experiences to help others. Every college student should read this book.

4. "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky.

$8.63 on Amazon.

This was another book I didn’t necessarily love, but I appreciated the message it sent out. Most of you likely know the story, either having read the book or watched the movie.

While I didn’t have a lot of the same experiences as the main character Charlie, there are still parts of him I recognized in myself when I was a freshman in high school. Like him, I was shy, awkward, struggled to make friends, and I spent most of my time with books rather than people. Like him, the person I felt closest to in high school was an adult, who also happened to be the head librarian at my high school’s library. I identified with his loneliness, as I’m sure many of those that read this book did.

Regardless of whatever “clique” you were a part of in high school, those four years are still a bitch to everyone.

5. "Thirteen Reasons Why" by Jay Asher.

$7.61 on Amazon.

Another book that reminded me of how much I hated high school…

I had known about Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher for years and I got so excited when I checked it out of my college library. I finished it in less than a week, then went to Target to buy my own copy. I loved it that much.

Like in The Perks of Being a Wallflower, I saw a lot of my teenaged self in Hannah and Clay, the main characters of Thirteen Reasons Why. Hannah was the new girl who only wanted to make friends, except everyone she opened her heart to turned on her, as well as some people who targeted her for a perceived slight. As for Clay, he was a good kid caught up in drama. He wanted to do the right thing and, in the end, he does.

This is the book that helped me realize that, while high school was not the best experience for me by any means, it led me to college, my friends, and to who I am now.

I am grateful for all these books. They got me thinking and feeling. I couldn’t have asked for anything more.