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Book Nostalgia: an early 2000's bookshelf
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items These are the stories that made me fall in love with reading in the first place - the ones I devoured under blankets with a flashlight, reread until the pages fell out, and quoted to anyone who would listen. Sure, my taste has “evolved” since then, b...
Ok, I’m going to be one of those people, but I read this book before it was cool. It was totally my favorite book as a kid! I wanted (want) to be like Belly so bad! Living at a beach house during the summer with cutest boys and nothing but sand in my...
The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
This book has actually been one of my favorites since childhood. As a middle child, I feel the slight pain that Ender does being the youngest. Reading this story made me want to continue to just be me and I could change the world.
Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
Tangerine is an oldie but a goodie. Another book from my childhood. I can smell the tangerine trees whenever I think about this book. It’s a quick read! I recommend for a YA
Tangerine by Edward Bloor
Another nostalgia book! I tried to consider myself a chameleon but I could never be a spy. This book is girlhood at its finest and I truly recommend anyone read this series. It’s an easy read, but may take a while for how many books are in the series...
I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You by Ally Carter
The book that started it all for so many of us! Yes, I was Team Edward, yes I wanted to move to Forks, and yes I thought Bella was living the dream. Edward's "dangerous" brooding had me convinced that was what romance looked like (spoiler: it's not),...
Twilight Saga Series
I was OBSESSED with the faction system and definitely took those personality quizzes way too seriously. Tris was everything I wanted to be - brave, selfless, but also kind of reckless. The first book was perfection, the second was good, and we don’t ...
Divergent by Veronica Roth
This series blew my mind with its take on beauty standards and conformity. Tally’s journey from wanting to be Pretty to fighting the system was chef’s kiss. The hoverboards were everything and I desperately wanted to live in that world (before learni...
Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
Basically The Bachelor meets royalty meets dystopia, and teenage me was HERE for it. America Singer and her indecisiveness drove me crazy, but I couldn’t stop reading. The class system was brutal and Prince Maxon was the perfect book boyfriend. Pure ...
The Selection by Kiera Cass
A world where love is considered a disease? The concept was haunting and beautiful. Lena’s transformation from compliant citizen to rebel was everything, and Alex had me believing in forbidden love. Oliver’s writing was gorgeous and poetic. The endin...
Delirium by Lauren Oliver
The love triangle between Cassia, Ky, and Xander had me stressed for three whole books. A dystopia where the government decides who you marry? Terrifying but compelling. Cassia’s awakening to the flaws in her perfect society felt so real, and the poe...
Matched by Ally Condie
Fairy tale retellings in space? Genius. Cinder being a cyborg Cinderella completely redefined what fairy tales could be for me. Each book getting a new protagonist kept things fresh, and watching them all come together in the final battle was chef’s ...
Cinder (Lunar Chronicles #1) by Marissa Meyer
Teenage art thieves with sophisticated heists? Ally Carter really knew her audience. Kat's world of cons and capers was glamorous and exciting, and Hale was the perfect partner-in-crime love interest. These books made stealing art seem like the coole...
Heist Society by Ally Carter
Kids with wings fighting evil scientists? It was absolutely chaotic and I loved every second. Max was the sarcastic leader I didn't know I needed, and the found family dynamic was perfect. Yes, it got weird in later books, but those first few were pu...
Maximum Ride Series
Zombies in a post-apocalyptic village surrounded by fences? This book was haunting and beautiful in a way that stuck with me for years. Mary's longing for the ocean she'd never seen while being trapped by the Unconsecrated was so atmospheric and trag...
The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
Psychic powers, immortal love interests, and tragic accidents? This series had all the supernatural romance elements that made my teenage heart flutter. Ever's ability to read minds and see auras felt so cool, and Damen's centuries-old devotion was t...
Evermore (Immortals Series #1) by Alyson Noël
Victorian boarding school with magic, séances, and secret societies? This trilogy was everything my teenage gothic heart needed. Gemma's visions and the mysterious realms had me completely hooked, and the friendship dynamics between the girls felt so...
A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
My gateway drug to urban fantasy and the reason I spent way too much time thinking about Shadowhunters. Clary and Jace had me convinced that toxic dynamics were romantic (yikes, younger me). But honestly? The world-building was incredible and it made...
City of Bones (The Mortal Instruments # 1) by Cassandra Claire