I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas! Today I’m sharing my favorite books of 2016 in a special link up with Steph and Jana. Since this link up focuses on everyone’s favorite books of the year, I am really looking forward to adding to my never-ending to read list! Although I read over 100 books this year, (as of today, goodreads has me at 117 books read!) only 10 of them earned a 5 star rating. Several of them were rereads too! Here’s hoping that 2017 brings some better quality reading!
Five Star Reads of 2016 (listed in order read):
November 9 by Colleen Hoover – Colleen Hoover has come to be a favorite author. Her books are New Adult romance books and aren’t for everyone. However, I’m a big fan. It doesn’t happen often but this book made me cry.
The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin – My “one word” for 2016 was “happy” and this book just seemed fitting to read. I first read this book in 2012 but decided to do a re-read this year. It’s still a five star book after the second reading.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling – These were rereads for me. This time I listened to the audiobooks with my son. We started our reading of the series with book one in April of this year.
Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly – I love reading books about WWII and always end up learning something new. I had no idea that there were all female concentration camps and knew little of the experiments that they conducted on prisoners As sad as this book was, it was also enlightening.
Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys – This is a YA historical fiction book. It focuses on the Soviet takeover of Lithuania during WWII, which I hadn’t known about. Hopefully I will read more of Sepetys’ books this upcoming year.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K Rowling and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling – After reading books three and four of the Harry Potter series this year, our reading has sadly come to a halt. With the start of school and my son being busy with a bunch of different activities we haven’t had much time to sit and read the books together or listen to them in the car. We are half-way through book five though and I hope to start up again in 2017 so we can finish the series (I never read the last two books) and go to Harry Potter World!
It Ends with Us by Colleen Hoover – Another Colleen Hoover book. Heartbreaking and emotional = my kind of book.
The Choices we Make by Karma Brown – This book dealt with issues of friendship and infertility and tough choices. This was another emotional book that had me crying!
What were your favorite books of 2016?
The cover alone of The Happiness Project just makes me happy! I read it a few years ago, but I could probably get more out of it if I were to reread it! I’ve loved everything else I’ve read by Sepetys, so Between Shades of Gray is definitely on my list for next year!
The cover alone of The Happiness Project just makes me happy! I read it a few years ago, but I could probably get more out of it if I were to reread it! I’ve loved everything else I’ve read by Sepetys, so Between Shades of Gray is definitely on my list for next year.
I have a copy of The Choices We Make, and it sounds like I really need to get started on reading it soon! Lilac Girls really was such a great book, and one that stayed with me for a very long time. It’s also one of my favorites this year! I read a Ruta Sepetys book this year, and I can’t wait to read Between Shades of Grey! It sounds like another book that I’ll end up loving too!
The Ruta book is on my list to read.
Lilac Girls made my list too.
Between Shades of Gray has been on my list for awhile now…I’ll get to it in 2017!
I didn’t finish Lilac Girls, but Kindle format can be hard sometimes…I think I need to do more actual books.
I loved The Happiness Project and have read it 3 or 4 times.
Love that you are reading HP with your son! Those are the only books my hubby read as a kid, almost, so I’m hoping when our LO is big enough we can all read them together!
I love that you are reading/listening to the Harry Potter books with your son. One of my friends did the same thing and it was such a good Mom/son bonding time. They also celebrated the end of the series with a visit to Harry Potter world too! The Colleen Hoover books are on my TBR. I have seen some mixed reviews for her but I want to give her a try and see how she works for me. I’m reading Salt to Sea by Ruth Septys for Erin’s 6.0 Challenge and have put all of her books on my TBR in anticipation of loving her. 😀 Lilac Girls is also on my TBR but I still feel a little broken after The Nightingale so I haven’t yet read it. But I will!
I think I have The Choices We Make on my NetGalley, so I really need to read that! I have had Between Shades of Gray on my Kindle forever. I need to read it soon! I love that we both have Lilac Girls and It Ends With Us on our list. 🙂
I read The Happiness Project years ago and I plan to reread it next month.
All the rave reviews about Lilac Girls makes me wish I enjoyed WWII fiction.
i agree with what you said about lilac girls – i always learn something new, which sounds horrible, but i like to keep learning about it, i guess. November 9 is on my list! so is between shades of gray.
I plan to read Septys’ books next year!! I love Harry Potter books and I also loved The Happiness Project this year – it made my list too! 🙂
I love The Happiness Project – and Happier at Home. I’ll have to reread those at some point in the near future. 🙂 That’s great you are re-reading the HP series. I just read the first illustrated book and it was wonderful – I need to get the second one. I hope you love the final two, since you’ve never read them. The 6th is a favorite of mine!
-Lauren
I read the first Harry Potter and need to continue. We are visiting Harry Potter World next week! I want to read Better than Before this year…loved The Happiness Project.
I’m planning on reading Lilac Girls soon. Glad to hear it’s worth it.
I will always and forever love Harry Potter books! I reread them at least twice a year. I need to read the Happiness Project it looks like something I would enjoy.!