I’ve read so many good books this year and can’t wait to share them with you! Here are my top five favorite books that I read in 2018.
5. Hour of the Bees by Lindsay Eagar
Using elements from several different genres, Hour of the Bees is a moving and atmospheric book about family, adventure, magic, and belief.
When Carol first comes to her grandfather’s sheep ranch she anticipates a summer filled with chores, boredom, and avoiding angering her grandfather. Soon, though, she begins to understand her grandfather and learns to see the truth in the tales he spins.
“Things are only impossible if you stop to think about them.” – Lindsay Eagar, Hour of the Bees”
“What’s scarier than death? Not living.” – Lindsay Eagar, Hour of the Bees
4. Fantastic Beast and Where To Find Them: The Original Screenplay by J.K. Rowling
Before there was Harry Potter there was Newt Scamander, a magizoologist who is in traveling to America to return a creature to its home in Arizona.
Things take an unexpected turn when his magical creatures are released from his briefcase. Together with Tina, an ex-auror and Jacob, a no-maj, he must track them down before they cause any more trouble.
Fantastic Beasts was such a fun read for me and I loved the writing. It was interesting because there are so many books in poetry and prose but few in playscript.
“Newt Scamander: My philosophy is that worrying means you suffer twice” – J.K. Rowling, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: The Original Screenplay
3. Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson
Brown Girl Dreaming is a memoir written in a free verse that is both beautiful and engaging. The word choice was perfect; the writing elegant and I loved every page.
Jaqueline is an African – American girl growing up in the ’60s and ’70s. She is a writer discovering her voice and a child living through struggle. This is her story of hardship, hope, and joy.
“Even the silence has a story to tell you. Just listen. Listen.” – Jacqueline Woodson, Brown Girl Dreaming
2. Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
Where the Red Fern Grows is a sweet story about a boy and his dogs. It is a rollercoaster of excitement and grief.
Billy has only one wish: to have two dogs of his own – and not just any kind of dogs. He wants the best coon-hunting bloodhounds around. After working through the summer and saving his money, he sets out to find them.
Adventure awaits for Billy, Little Ann, and Old Dan. Old Dan had the fight, Little Ann the brains, and Billy the will to make them the best coon-hunters in all of the Ozark Mountains.
“There is a little good in all evil.” – Wilson Rawls, Where the Red Fern Grows
1. Echo by Pam Munoz Ryan
Imaginative and purely magical, Echo is a story I will never forget. Set in different times and places, it blurs the lines that divide reality and fantasy.
In a forbidden forest, Otto meets the sisters, Eins, Zwei, and Drei and becomes wrapped up in a magical quest.
In Nazi Germany, Freidrich must find a way to rescue his father, in a foster home in Pennsylvania, Mike will protect his brother at all costs, and in a divided town in California, Ivy struggles to hold her family together.
“Everybody has a heart. Sometimes you have to work harder to find it.” – Pam Munoz Ryan, Echo
“Music does not have a race or a disposition! Every instrument has a voice that contributes. Music is a universal language. A universal religion of sorts. Certainly, it’s my religion. Music surpasses all distinctions between people.” – Pam Munoz Ryan, Echo
“Your fate is not yet sealed. Even in the darkest night, a star will shine, a bell will chime, a path will be revealed.” – Pam Munoz Ryan, Echo
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