As a professed nerd for just about everything, reading was my first real taste of fandom. I jumped at every chance to read aloud in class and loved our trips to the library to get books. The day I received my library card is a day I will never forget. In fact, I still have that library card I signed years ago. Being someone who loves to read means I've read so many books that I can't even begin to name them all. I'm starting a collection and almost have enough to stretch across two of my walls in my room. This also means I have an impossibly hard time picking just one book or series as my favorite. This list is my attempt at naming some of my favorite, emphasis on some (I simply can't name them all).

1. The Immortal Descendants

This series was only available on ebook for the longest time, but is now in hard copies. If you love time travel, vampires, and kick-butt women then you've come to the right place. This series puts a new spin on everything and you can never guess where they will go next. Saira is the strong, independent character you can't help but relate to. If you want to spiral into a new series, I wholeheartedly recommend this one. It's not well known, but should be up there with the greats.

2. Percy Jackson and the Olympians/Heroes of Olympus series

I fell in love with this series when I read the first line; it's hard not to. I grew up with Percy and the other demigods at Camp Half-Blood, and I'm lucky that the series is still continuing to grow and be written. This series tells the stories of the Greek (and later Roman, Norse, Egyptian, etc.) gods in modern times and makes the stories easy to understand with sarcasm and humor. If you're looking for a light read and something extremely entertaining, this is the series for you.

3. Kane Chronicles/Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard/The Trials of Apollo

All of these series are by Rick Riordan who wrote Percy Jackson (which is the series that started it all). They all focus on creative, hilarious ways to tell old myths and make them interesting. If you like the Percy Jackson series, you'll love these too. Just pick your mythology and dive right in.

4. Harry Potter

This is a given. My mom was reading these books to my siblings and me before I could read chapter books, and before long, I was reading them all on my own. I remember going with my mom at midnight to get the final book; that in itself is magical. What I wouldn't give to be able to reread these books for the first time again. So if you are way behind the times and haven't read Harry Potter yet, it's time to jump on your broom for your first year at Hogwarts.

5. The Maze Runner

I'll be honest and say that this was a series I didn't start as soon as I should have. I don't know why I always found something else to do than read this series. I read the first book and quickly borrowed (stole) the books from my sister and finished the series within a week. The story keeps you guessing and rooting for the kids to survive everything that gets thrown at them. The books aren't that big and are easy to follow. I would definitely recommend for anyone who loves dystopian novels.

6. The Chronicles of Narnia

I started this series when I was a kid and loved it. It gave me one of my first doses of fantasy literature, and it still to this day is one of my favorite series. The books concluded in a way I didn't expect, and I distinctly remember not knowing what to think. If you're interested to see how the story begins and how they all intermingle, I suggest this excellent series.

7. Beautiful Creatures

This series was recommended to me by a friend and I never regretted it. It was beautifully (I did not do that on purpose) written and was different than anything I had ever read before. There are strange creatures (also didn't do that on purpose) and magic, and it gives the reader epic fight scenes while balancing a romance that isn't forced or takes over the story. If you want something that's different and edgy, this is the series for you.

8. Inkheart

I read the first book in this series when I was in 5th grade and had to pick a book for a book report. It was one of the biggest books that I could pick from, and I was ready for the challenge. Inkheart sucked me into it's strange world where words were more powerful than anything else. It was masterfully written, and I continued to read the books even after I finished my book report. It's been a while since I've read these books, but they will always be a favorite of mine. Maybe someday I'll have some time to go back and reread them, but until then, you'll just have to read it for me.

9. Book of Ember series

5th grade was a great year for me and reading. It's when I read Inkheart, People of Sparks (the second book in this series), and a lot of the Nancy Drew books (which I'll mention next). I am eternally grateful to my teacher for exposing us to many different genres and books I would have never picked up on my own. These books were easy reads, but I highly recommend them. They are thought provoking--asking questions about why people act the way they do, why we desire specific things in life, and show a different way to look at the way the people react in different situations.

10. Nancy Drew

These books are something I'm sure not a lot of people my age have read. I'm lucky that my mom has the first 52 books in hardcover that she received when she was a little girl. I flew through these books and loved that Nancy Drew was a woman who solved mysteries and was intelligent. She jumped headfirst into danger, got herself out of tricky situations, and always caught the bad guy. I loved guessing along the way and trying to figure out who was the crook or murderer. I honestly think it helped me become better at putting things (clues) together to get to a solution. Even if you only pick up one story, I highly recommend it. Just make sure it's one of the originals; they don't get much better than that.

11. Lord of the Rings/The Hobbit

I feel like this one is a given, and I'm embarrassed it took me so long to finally get around to reading the original series. I read the Hobbit first and loved it; I was just always busy and couldn't read much of anything after I became hooked. I am pleased to say I did finally get around to it and am very glad I did. While the language is very different than anything else I've ever read, I still followed along. If you can hang in there, it is worth it to read such a classic. This is one of the many books I hope to one day read to my children, carrying on the tradition my mom started (thank you mom!)

While book series are a bit of a commitment compared to starting a stand-alone book, they weave together stories about characters you learn to love and want to succeed. I grew up alongside Percy Jackson and Harry Potter. I solved mysteries with Nancy Drew and fell in love with fantasy because of Inkheart and the Chronicles of Narnia. I discovered more about the Immortal Descendants and went on an unexpected journey with Bilbo. I ran through the maze and found a piece of myself in every single book. I am sarcastic like Percy, passionate like Harry, inquisitive like Nancy, adventurous like Saira, brave like the Penvensies, and so much more. Books taught me so much, and they will continue to show me qualities about myself that I didn't know I possessed. I recommend all of these books for many different reasons. They are very special to me, which is why I wanted to share them with you. Most of these have movies connected to them, and while some of them are good, some are not (cough, Percy Jackson, cough). So I'll tell you what I tell everyone.

The book was better.