Favorite Books Read In 2016.

As the year is coming to an end, like everyone else in the world, I find myself reflecting on everything that I have experienced in 2016. Of course, at the beginning of the year, I made resolutions, some of them I succeeded in, others I didn’t do so well in and a lot of them I completely forgot about. Despite all of that, I realized that I have learned a lot this year about myself and about life in general. I feel like I have grown more this year than I have in other years and as corny as it sounds, I owe a lot of that to some of the books I read. Even though I did not read as much as I wanted, most of the books I did read had a big impact on me and taught me some great lessons. I would like to share some of them with you.

Vampire Academy: I think most of you who have been following my blog, know just how much I loved this series. It was not something that I expected to like because, honestly,
the whole fantasy, mythical vampire schtick isn’t really my thing… But this was something special. Rose Hathaway was a total badass, she was loyal, hilarious and didn’t take shit from anyone. Rose taught me never to settle and to always fight for what you want and what you believe in, no matter what the cost. She helped me realize that you are only a victim if you think of yourself that way and that if you work hard, you may just end up with everything you want despite any obstacles you may face. All of these are things that I will continue to work on every day, but whenever I am am facing something particularly difficult, I always catch myself thinking, What would Rose Hathaway do?

Run: Everyone loves a good love story, but what I love even more than that, is an epic love
story of the platonic type. I love when two people love each other totally, completely, and fully and it doesn’t have anything to do with sexuality. Run is one of my favorite examples of that. The bond between Bo and Agnes was the purest form of love I have ever seen. They taught me that your first love, isn’t always the romantic kind and that it can mean just as much, if not more.They taught me that no matter how different from you someone seems, that they can still teach you so much about yourself and love you just as much as someone who has known you your entire life. They taught me that even when you are at your lowest, when you least expect it, someone can walk into your life and be everything you need and more.

The Girl on the Train: Now, we all know that pretty much everyone in this story is a straight up mess. Most of the characters have zero redeeming qualities, as I have said many times before. After all is said and done, though, there is at least one positive message that I can take away from this book and it comes from my girl Rachel. Rachel taught me that no matter how far you fall, you can always get back up, that it is never too late to redeem yourself and begin to build the life that you want and deserve. Just because you have it rock bottom, or feel like you have, it does not mean that you have to stay there.

Along for The Ride: In general Sarah Dessen’s books always have an effect on me. I have said this before, but I feel like all of them are just so… real. No matter where you come from, there is always something that you can find in her stories and connect with and if you allow it, you can take these lessons and grow. Auden West spent her entire life, being what other people, her parents in particular: The mature-for-her-age-intellectual-overachiever. She didn’t have time to waste with the childish activities that other girls her age did. Auden’s story reminded me that you do not have to be reduced to being one thing. You can be mature and intellectual and be feminine as well as a tomboy. You don’t have to be stuck in a box that makes other people happier than it makes you. Auden’s experiences also reminded me that it is never too late to do what you want in your life, whether that is riding a bike or going to school, you can set and meet new goals at any phase in your life.