I was a big reader as a kid. I get it from my mother, who stayed up till four in the morning reading Harry Potter after my incessant urging. I was quick to obsess over something new, and the book was always better than the movie.
I’ll admit that college is not very conducive to reading for pleasure. Nearly a year ago, I set a goal for myself on Goodreads—one book per month for the year. I read more than 12 books, not each in a month. In summer, I read maybe 8 books. During the school year, I hardly read at all. But it certainty worked out—I have renewed my love of reading and got myself away from screens. At any rate, here are my Top Five Books of 2016 (in no particular order, as asking for that would be like asking a parent which is their favorite child).
- Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
This beautifully written novel focuses on Jacob Jankowski, as an nintey-something year old man, reminiscing about the events that occurred after the death of his parents in the era of the Great Depression. Dropping out of veterinary school at Cornell, and jumping a train, only to find out it houses the Flying Squadron of the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. Jacob encounters love, lust, and a clumsy elephant that changes his life completely.
- Yes, Please by Amy Poehler
Written by former SNL cast member and leading role in Parks and Recreation, this memoir is equally funny and heartfelt. She discusses growing up in a close-knit family and the culture shock she received moving to Chicago to pursue comedy. She writes about motherhood, about her times trying various drugs, about how she can never get a proper nights sleep. She describes meeting Tina Fey in a creative acrostic poem. This memoir had me laughing out loud, cringing outwardly, and pulling out my best Leslie Knope quotes.
- Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight
Fifteen-year old Amelia had just been found dead on the grounds of her elite private school in Brooklyn. This novel is told in alternating perspectives between Amelia and her mother, Kate, who refuses to believe the conclusion that the police have come to—suicide. Kate tries to untangle her daughter’s connections with a mysterious boy named Ben she’s only ever texted, a malicious sorority, and a best friend who isn’t everything she seems.
- I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson
This novel follows twins Jude and Noah as they struggle with the death of their mother. Noah has his eyes set on a prestigious art school and Jude begins the novel receiving signals from their dead grandmother. Told from a thirteen-year old Noah and a sixteen-year old Jude, they are confronted with their separate identities’, their passions, and their love lives.
- Humans of New York: Stories by Brandon Stanton
For those of you familiar with Humans of New York, this book is a collection of the best and most memorable stories that Brandon Stanton has come across in his journey to document the stories of “normal” people he sees in the streets of New York. This book is full of the laughs, tears, and everything in between.
Other fantastic books I picked up included The Accident Season by Moïra Fowley-Doyle, A Court of Thrones and Roses by Sarah J. Maas and The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins.
