Top 5 Books on my Reading List

Reading has always been a huge part of my life. I joke that it is my one true love.

I could always spend hours reading, finish entire books in one sitting. But growing up and having more responsibility means less time for reading (at least in my case).

Reading can open your mind and your heart to see new worlds and better understand tha one you are a part of. Just like Harry Potter puts you into the world of Hogwarts and your battling "he who must not be named" along side the gang, or The Mortal Instruments has you grieving along side clary. Its just the magic of books. You can use it as an escape like the ones above or an opportunity to learn more about a topic or to improve yourself. Like America Ferrera's "American Like Me" allows you to see the lives of those from all different backgrounds and what their lives were like growing up in the United States or "Memoirs of a Geisha" which shows you the lifestyle of a geisha in a fictional way.

Books open doors.....and I miss them.

This lead me to make a pact with myself that in 2019 I would Read 30 books. I used to be able to do this in a couple of months (Or shorter depending on the books) but with my current school and work load sadly I don't have the time.

So today I'm sharing my Top 5 picks for books I'm reading this year. This is not including the current book I'm reading which is "Becoming" by Michelle Obama. These are books that are newer and older ones that I have been meaning to read!

1. Captive in Iran By Rostampour and Amirizadeh

This is the story of two women imprisoned for their Christian faith--Maryam Rostampour and Marziyeh Amirizadeh. The Book goes over their incredible journey through Evin, the notorious Tehran prison. They were not willing to stand against their faith and endured over 200 day of intense punishment for it.

History has always been a huge interest of mine and this shows a darker side of history that I'm looking forward to learning about.

2. Girl in Translation By Jean Kwok

This book Is about the character Kimberly Chang and her mother who emigrate from Hong Kong to Brooklyn squalor. Kimberly then quickly begins a secret double life: exceptional schoolgirl during the day, Chinatown sweatshop worker in the evenings.

“Sometimes our fate is different from the one we imagined for ourselves.” ― Jean Kwok

3. Northanger Abbey

A classic Jane Austin novel. I have read numerous of her works but I have not made it to this one yet.

This is Jane Austin's first novel and it is about Catherine Morland and her misadventures and scrapes while vacationing at Bath and during her subsequent visit to Northanger Abbey.

“There is nothing I would not do for those who are really my friends. I have no notion of loving people by halves, it is not my nature.” ― Jane Austen

4. Night by Elie Wiesel

This book is the terrifying record of Elie Wiesel's memories of the death of his family and his own personal time in Auschwitz concentration camp, and then Buchenwald.

Once again I'm a huge history person so being able to read a persons direct account of a terrifying time in history, is something I enjoy to because it gives you a look into that time and a new perspective.

“To forget the dead would be akin to killing them a second time.” ― Elie Wiesel

5. How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez

This is about the four Garcia sisters - Carla, Sandra, Yolanda, and Sofia who were uprooted from their family home in the Dominican Republic. They arrived in New York City in 1960 to find a life far different.

Its all told through interconnected stories. I am excited for this one because of its honest telling of life not only during the 1960s but also for that of immigrants.

Supposedly, the parents were heavy-duty Old World, but the four daughters sounded pretty wild for all that. - Julia Alvarez

So these are just some of the books that I am looking forward to reading this year, but the next 5 plan to read as they are the ones I am most excited for!