1."All The Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr
This novel is set in occupied Paris during World War II and follows the lives of a French girl and a German boy, whose paths eventually cross. Six-year-old Marie-Laure LeBlanc, motherless and blind from severe cataracts, relies heavily on her father, who is a master locksmith at the Museum of Natural History in Paris. Marie-Laure's father constructs a wooden model replica of their neighborhood in order to help Marie-Laure learn her surroundings by touch. He also gifts Marie-Laure several novels written in Braille and constructs intricate puzzle boxes for her to solve each year on her birthday.
The museum where Marie-Laure's father works is rumored to house a mysterious diamond, known as the "Sea of Flames." Highly coveted and highly powerful, the keeper of the stone, according to the legend, will never die, yet their loved ones will endure countless misfortunes.
Meanwhile, in Zollverein, Germany, 8-year-old Werner Pfenning and his sister Jutta become increasingly interested in radios and how information is transmitted. Werner grows increasingly talented at constructing and repairing radios and is recruited to attend a Nazi elitist academy, which eventually segways into him helping the Nazis locate the senders of illegal radio transmissions.
Anthony Doerr's Pulitzer Prize-winning story and dialogue will have you turning pages, following along with the novel's multiple story facets and points of interest.
2. "All the Bright Places" by Jennifer Niven
Violent Markey and Theodore Finch, classmates and Indiana natives, meet under extenuating circumstances. Violent is a part of the popular crowd and suffers severe remorse for the death of her sister, which was caused by an automobile accident. Finch is obsessed with the topic of death and is labeled a freak by his peers. The two teenagers are paired for a class assignment that takes them all across the state of Indiana, falling in love with their state and with each other. But is that enough?
Jennifer Niven paints an all-too-real picture of teenage love and mental health. Niven's description of Violet and Theodore's love and struggles will have all your emotions stirring up.
3. "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini
In this novel, readers are exposed to a fictional story with the historical context pertaining to the middle-eastern country of Afghanistan. Mariam, an illegitimate child, experiences heartache, death, and abuse firsthand. Laila, a generation younger, has a seemingly privileged childhood until her path crosses with Mariam's under untimely circumstances.
4. "Turtles all the Way Down" by John Green
John Green portrays his own childhood struggles of anxiety through 16-year-old Aza Holmes, a witty high school student searching for a billionaire who has mysteriously gone missing. The novel contains insight into mental illness, lots of "Star Wars" fan-fiction, a surprising reunion, friendship and the values/allegories of life.
This is probably the only John Green novel that will not leave you in a puddle of tears. Although not entirely light-hearted, the novel is mostly centered on positivity, friendship, and love.
5. "The Idiot" by Elif Batuman
Selin is the daughter of Turkish immigrants and is attending her freshman year at Harvard, where she takes classes in all new subjects, makes new friends, and learns how to communicate with the newly-invented concept of e-mail (the book is set in 1995, by the way). Soon, Selin begins emailing back and forth with an older mathematics student, Ivan. At the conclusion of the academic year, Selin goes to spend summer in the Hungarian countryside, while Ivan goes to Budapest. Although her summer does not replicate that of a "typical college student summer break," Selin instead begins a journey into her own thoughts, coming to terms with first love and the uncertainty of the future.
Bautman's witty novel explores the uncertainty of life at a stage when we're all supposed to have it figured out. Selin's coming-of-age story is one that all readers can resonate with and relate.
6. "Room" by Emma Donoghue
This story is told from the perspective of five-year-old Jack. Jack and his mother are held captive in a small room, and Jack believes that only what he sees inside the room is real. Unable to disappoint Jack with a life she cannot give him, Jack's mother allows him to believe that the rest of the world only exists on television. What Jack doesn't know, however, is that the man he knows by the name of Old Nick, kidnapped his mother when she was 19, and has held her prisoner in the room ever since. Old Nick repeatedly rapes Jack's mother, Jack being the product of one of those instances.
Jack's mother devises a plan to help them escape the room and Old Nick. Do they make it out alive?
I promise you will not be able to put this one down! Do yourself a favor and watch the film adaptation after reading the novel.
7. "A Gentleman in Moscow" by Amor Towles
This novel is interesting because it tells a decades-long story with only a few main characters and one central location, the Metropol Hotel in Moscow, Russia. Count Alexander Ilyich Rostov is seen as a threat to the Communist party and is sent to permanent house arrest within the hotel. The Count is forced to move from his exuberant, penthouse suite to the 6th floor, which is isolated and plain. Instead of fretting during this time, the Count decides to embark on an existential and spiritual journey, paying close attention to the aesthetics that give him happiness.
The Count, while living at the hotel, befriends a young girl named Nina who is also a hotel resident. Together, they explore the hotel, and the Count comes to realize that the hotel is a world within itself.
8. "The People We Hate at the Wedding" by Grant Ginder
In a nutshell, this novel is exactly what it sounds like. Paul and Alice's half-sister, Eloise, is getting married in London, and of course, the drama is endless. Would it be a wedding without a whacky family dynamic? Ginder's witty and hilarious novel details how we hate the ones we love the most, and how different personalities are mended together.
9. "Big Little Lies" by Liane Moriarty
This exciting plot line follows three women: Madeline, Celeste, and single-mom Jane. Madeline has a strong personality and is usually up in everyone's business. Celeste, a stunning and kind woman, is a mother of twin boys and a wife to an abusive husband. Jane struggles with her past, especially when it comes to explaining to her son, Ziggy, who his father is.
Drama and lies (big and little) surround this story and will have you gripping at the pages. Do yourself another favor and watch the series on HBO after you read the novel!
10. "Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore" by Robin Sloanery
Clay Jannon has been uprooted from his life as a San Franciso web-design drone and placed in the aisles of Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore. After working a few days, Clay notices that the bookstore is quite peculiar. The store sees very few customers, and instead of purchasing books, they check out volumes from all over the store.
Clay becomes increasingly curious and decides to do a little clientele experiment with the help of some of his friends. When they report their findings to Mr. Penumbra, they uncover secrets of the bookstore that go far beyond the stories it holds.