Top Ten Tuesday: Favourite Books Released in the Last Ten Years

Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

I wasn’t sure how to organize these, so I’m going to start in 2010 and end this year.

2010  – Room by Emma Donoghue

What made this stand out from the typical thriller for me was that it was narrated by a five-year-old boy who really didn’t know how unusual his childhood was because he’d been born into captivity. I loved the film that was made about this story. It really captured his innocence and the mother’s horror well.

2011 – Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

The trick pictures that sparked the creation of this book were wonderful. I highly recommend checking them out before reading it.

2012  – Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed

I’m a city person through and through, but this memoir made me want to go tramping through the woods for a long hike.

2013  – I Am Malala: The Story of the Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai

If you haven’t read this yet, you really should. The things Malala went through just to get an education are unbelievable. I’m so glad she survived and is currently in university.

2014 – The Martian by Andy Weir

I’ve gushed about this book so many times here that I’m not quite sure what else to say about it other than the fact that it made me want to go to Mars…but not until there are other people living there full-time first.

2015 – Orphan Number Eight by Kim van Alkemade

This was a hard read because the fictional events in this plot were inspired by what really happened to orphans who were medically experimented upon without consent a century ago. I believe it’s important to acknowledge these ugly parts of our collective past and work to ensure they never happen again, though.

2016 – Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult

While the writing honestly wasn’t as strong as some of the other books I read that came out in 2016, the premise of this one refused to be ignored.

A racist white couple forbade a black nurse from touching their newborn son. When the baby went into cardiac arrest, the nurse hesitated before giving him CPR because she wasn’t sure whether the parents would be more angry that their irrational request was ignored or that their son didn’t receive medical attention ASAP.

The baby had a poor outcome, so the parents sued the nurse and hospital.

I had a pretty strong opinion about what the right thing to do in this case was, but I’ll leave it up to all of you to come to your own conclusions about that.

2017 – The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Something tells me that many of us will be picking T.H.U.G. for their 2017 book of the year! How many of you have seen the film? I really need to check it out sometime.

2018 – Becoming by Michelle Obama

I’m actually still reading this one, but I’m counting it as the 2018 Book of the Year since that’s when it was released. It’s so interesting to see the world through Mrs. Obama’s eyes.

2019 – Slayer by Kiersten White

I just started reading this one, too. It’s fantastic so far, and it’s making me wish that they’d hurry up and film that Buffy the Vampire Slayer remake that’s supposed to come out sometime.

The thought of a teenage girl protecting the world is just as relevant now as it was in the 90s.

 

 

148 Responses to Top Ten Tuesday: Favourite Books Released in the Last Ten Years

  1. I’ve read Becoming & I am Malala, both great reads. I’m a biography nut so I gravitate to real-life stories of people.

    • Thank you. Yes, I love biographies, too. It’s so interesting to see how real people dealt with the setbacks and challenges in their lives. You definitely can’t tell by looking at someone what they might have gone through (or currently be going through).

  2. You’ve got some great choices here! I just got a copy of the series Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children, and I’m looking forward to picking it up! I really want to read The Hate You Give and Slayer! I didn’t know they were doing a Buffy remake, either. 😮 Now I can’t wait for that. xD

    • Thank you!

      I don’t have any more information about the Buffy remake, unfortunately. They announced it last winter (ish?) and have not said anything else so far.

  3. Great list! I also loved Room, Wild, and The Martian. Did you see the movies too? I thought they were all well done. I want to read the Michelle Obama book, but just haven’t had a chance yet.

    • I saw the film versions of Room and The Martian and truly loved them.

      I had no idea there was a film based on Wild. That’s so neat!

  4. It looks like you like good books, because there are several titles which have been adapted for film. Several of your choices look very interesting.

  5. I own Ransom’s book (because of the film), but still haven’t read the book OR seen the film. Oh, well! It’s just another of those on my mental TBR list. 🙂

    • Thank you. Honestly, I think it’s fun to find posts talking about lots of books I’ve never read. There’s no way to keep up with everything on one’s own!

  6. Slayer sounds super intriguing! And I think my mom recently read Wild: Lost and Found… she won’t stop talking about hiking now. Lol

    Thanks for stopping by earlier!

  7. My book club just picked The Hate U Give for our July read. I can’t wait. I also just obtained a copy of The Martian, which I hear is a great read. I loved Wild and felt the same way after reading it. I am so not an outside person and wanted to go hiking after reading it. Great list!

  8. I thought the Hate U Give movie was really great so I’d definitely recommend it! I also need to get around to reading Small Great Things! Great list 😊

  9. You’ve got really great books on this list! I loved Room, and also Wild, The Martian, Becoming, and The Hate U Give. I’ve never read anything by Jodi Picoult, I’m curious what’s the book by her you would recommend?

    • Thank you.

      That’s such a great question. Her most famous book is My Sister’s Keeper. It was about a girl who was repeatedly forced to donate parts of her body to a sibling who had cancer and who sued her parents to put a stop to it. I liked everything about it other than the ending.

      As far as my favourite Jodi Picoult book goes, I’m going to have to go with Plain Truth. This tale was about an Amish girl who was accused of murdering her newborn infant. If you’re okay reading (non-graphic) references to the death of a baby, the mystery elements of this plot were excellent.

    • It’s definitely something that needs to be read when you’re in the right mood. I hope that happens for you when you’re ready for it.

  10. I love so many of the titles on your list! “Room” was on my list for TTT, as well, it is such a unique story because of the narrator and even though he is so young the emotions all came across so well it was just ugh, such a gut punch, but also so so good!

  11. Lots of great choices here. 2017 was such a hard year for me to pick from because there were so many amazing books published that I absolutely loved! Looking forward to also reading all these NF’s that you mentioned, especially Becoming. Also Orphan 8 because it sounds so good! Great list 🙂

  12. Found loads of favourites on your list – Becoming, Miss Peregrine’s Home, Room – were all on mine too. I enjoyed Malala while Martian and The Hate You Give are on my list. Shall certainly look up the rest.

  13. Great list! The Martian and Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children almost made my list this week, and I think the others are all on my TBR.

  14. I’ve seen Room in quite a few lists this year. I’ve stayed away from both the movie and the book because the theme of it kind of disturbs me? But I gotta say that seeing all the love for this book has got me curious.

    • You should know there are some dark themes in it. I loved it, but I don’t want to encourage you to read something that will frighten you.

  15. So many good books on your list! I loved Peregrines Home For Peculiar Children and The Martian as well, both such creative books. I really do need to read Room as well, it’s sitting on my shelf but I think i’m wary because of how much hype it got!

  16. I haven’t read any of these, whoops! I have seen the movie for Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, and I really want to read THUG plus that Jodi Picoult book (it’s one of the only ones I haven’t read yet).

  17. Lots of good choices! I have a lot of these on my TBR pile. I’ll have to check out the new Kiersten White book. It sounds good!

  18. I love so many of your choices! Becoming is an amazing book, I’d love to read much more from Michelle Obama, she has a fantastic voice. I also really enjoyed Wild & Room. And I should read I Am Malala definitely.

  19. Great list Lydia. I have read six of these. Orphan 8 looks like a great book, I like learning about the past to better understand it.

  20. Room was a hard book and movie to digest on so many levels. But both were pretty well done. I really liked Miss Peregrine’s and the movie was okay. Loved THUG and still desperately need to see the movie.

  21. I missed this topic, but I can’t resist popping in whenever I see it on other blogs. Miss Peregrine is the only one I’ve read (which I ADORED), and most of these look a little too heavy for me, but I love your reasoning for each one (especially 2012 – I definitely have read other nature or hiking-themed books and gotten the same inspiration). Great bite-size recs.

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