- The Entire Percy Jackson & The Olympians Series (Sorry - I couldn't choose just one)
- Heir to Sevenwaters
- Divergent
- The Mark of Athena
- Flame of Sevenwaters
- Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows
- The Hunger Games
- Valley of Fear
- Ender's Game
- Peter and the Starcatchers
This list was so hard to create. I had to leave so many amazing books off the list to keep it a decent size. As you can see, I am a fantasy person. I love adventure stories and all of that stuff. Other genres interest me as well, but fantasy is my all-time favorite. I am very intrigued by anything considered creative writing - poetry, short stories, fantasy novels - I love to read them. Now to explain a bit about why I chose these specific books over the others. For one thing, I loved all of their plots. All of them had a good base plot line - one that fit and made sense with the context. Some of them had surprises along the way as well that I wasn't expecting at all. Whether those surprises were good or utterly tragic (the Hunger Games trilogy comes to mind...), they aided the plot lines along the way and added a whole new element to the story in question.
Along with the amazing plots, these books have amazing character development within them. The characters created by the authors all have distinct personalities and habits, and they truly keep the audience reading. From a girl leaving her home faction just trying to find her place in society to an extremely intelligent little boy who carries the weight of the world on his shoulders, the characters all have true bravery and a good knack for distinguishing the difference between right and wrong. In all of these books, the main characters are pushed into the worst situations imaginable, yet they always fight for what they believe in, even if it means giving up something important along the way.
I also appreciate the way all of them are written. All of their authors' writing styles appealed to me, which I find hard in some other types of books. The writing flowed smoothly and guided the stories to their full potentials. I hate it when I am reading an amazing book but the writing style is terrible. That can make the story seem too slow or just plain confusing.
While AP Lang taught me the value in works of nonfiction (which I had not opened up to until last year), I still can't help but return to the fiction that I have come to love so much. I guess you could call it my "comfort genre". It allows me to take a break from actual worldly problems and analyzing the text (not that that's a bad thing) and just sit down, relax, and enjoy what I am reading, getting lost in the pages of a priceless piece of fiction.
Well, I guess that's it for my rant about fantasy books. AP Language was very interesting and I am glad that it taught me to think in a different way. I now look forward to AP Literature and the books we will read within this coming school year. I can't wait to see what we will learn next! :)
I also appreciate the way all of them are written. All of their authors' writing styles appealed to me, which I find hard in some other types of books. The writing flowed smoothly and guided the stories to their full potentials. I hate it when I am reading an amazing book but the writing style is terrible. That can make the story seem too slow or just plain confusing.
While AP Lang taught me the value in works of nonfiction (which I had not opened up to until last year), I still can't help but return to the fiction that I have come to love so much. I guess you could call it my "comfort genre". It allows me to take a break from actual worldly problems and analyzing the text (not that that's a bad thing) and just sit down, relax, and enjoy what I am reading, getting lost in the pages of a priceless piece of fiction.
Well, I guess that's it for my rant about fantasy books. AP Language was very interesting and I am glad that it taught me to think in a different way. I now look forward to AP Literature and the books we will read within this coming school year. I can't wait to see what we will learn next! :)
Yeah, I like fantasy books as well-I will go to the library and check out about fifteen books, then go back home and read them all within a week. I would have to agree with you that fantasy books are my comfort genre, because I can forget about problems during school like exams and homework. I don't really analyze the text, however; I am not defining literary devices or analyzing the metaphors or examining the story structure. I hope that AP Lang will make me better at writing and analyzing stories, as well as allowing me to appreciate nonfiction more (I could read through my father's bookshelf of hunting and fishing books). Have fun in AP Lit.
ReplyDeleteHahaha! Thanks! Yeah, when I signed up for AP Lang last year, I was honestly questioning if I would actually enjoy the class. Nonfiction... Well, surprisingly, I found it pretty interesting and I liked a lot of the books we read. I still without a doubt prefer fiction, but I have to say, that class allowed me to open up to nonfiction books a lot more. Have fun in AP Lang! It's a great class (It will take A LOT of work, but you will learn a lot of really interesting techniques for analyzing what you read as well)! :)
DeleteI agree with you Theresa, it was very difficult to make my list. It's not like I can just say that this book is better than that book. A lot of books that I have read all have unique qualities that make them a very interesting read. I also share your fascination with fantasy. I enjoyed the Harry Potter series tremendously and I am a huge fan of A Song of Ice and Fire series as my favorite TV show, Game of Thrones, is based off of it. Personally, I look for an engaging plot in books; a story that will keep me interested throughout the entire novel. That's a main reason I listed many of the books we read last year in AP Lang as their plots were amazing. While I do appreciate character development and writing styles, I always talk about a book with a compelling plot. I can also understand why you are more for fiction rather than nonfiction as I'm also like that. Not there's anything wrong with nonfiction (in fact a nonfiction book is number 2 on my list) but with fiction anything can happen which gives us a sense of wonder while nonfiction is grounded in reality. Hopefully AP Lit will be less work than AP Lang.
DeleteDefinitely! The plot really is the foundation of a story. Fiction truly is a wonderful genre! Thanks for the comment, Austin! (:
DeleteGreat post Theresa! I found it hard to narrow down some of my favorite books as well. There are just so many great books to choose some. Hopefully we will read some more great books this year in AP Literature. I feel the same way about fiction - though non-fiction is usually interesting, and can be downright fascinating, fiction can be really great as it engages the imagination. Fictional works can take the reader to places that could never exist in real life, and that is what makes them so great. I too am hoping to read some good fiction this year.
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