Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Book Quotes from the Past Year

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by the Broke and the Bookish. Today’s theme was:

Top Ten Quotes I Loved From Books I Read In The Past Year Or So

“When you were born, you cried while the world rejoiced. Live your life so that when you die, the world cries while you rejoice.” Mosquitoland by David Arnold

“I will be STRONGER than my sadness” My Heart & Other Black Holes by Jasmine Warga

“Life is waiting for you. You might be stuck here for a while, but the world isn’t going anywhere. Hang on in there if you can. Life is always worth it.” Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig

“No, Lila had been running toward something. Something better. And even if she hadn’t reached it yet. She would.”

AND

“I’m not going to die,” she said. “Not till I’ve seen it.”
“Seen what?”
Her smile widened. “Everything.” A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

“Because there’s no denying it now. I’m in the world
And, too, the world is in me.” Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

“Don’t feel bad for one moment about doing something that brings you joy.” A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

“I fall a little bit in love with everyone.” Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

“Quick, make a wish.
Take a (second or third or fourth) chance.
Remake the world.”  I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson

“So now live for real, Craig. Live. Live. Live. Live.
Live.” It’s Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini

What are some of your favorite book quotes?

Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Books I’ve Read So Far in 2015

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by the Broke and the Bookish. Today’s theme was:

Top Ten Books I’ve Read So Far In 2015

According to my Goodreads challenge, I’ve read almost 80 books already in 2015. How can I possibly trim that down to TEN favorites? I got it down to fourteen, which is about as good as it’ll get. It was hard enough to do that. Haha.

                    

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas [realized I never reviewed this one while compiling this list! Oops. Rest assured: I loved it | GR]
My Heart & Other Black Holes by Jasmine Warga [My review | GR]
A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab [My review | GR]
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli [My review | GR]
Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig [My review | GR]

                    

Magonia by Maria Dahvana Headley [My review | GR]
None of the Above by I.W. Gregorio [My review | GR]
Made You Up by Francesca Zappia [My review | GR]
A Court of Thorns at Roses by Sarah J. Maas [My review | GR]
I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson [review soon | GR]

               

The Gracekeepers by Kirsty Logan [My review | GR]
Devoted by Jennifer Mathieu [My review | GR]
The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh [review soon | GR]
The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins [My review | GR]

Tell me your favorite books you’ve read so far this year!

ARC Review: My Heart & Other Black Holes by Jasmine Warga

You guys said you wanted me to get a little more real and tell you more about myself. This review is as real as I’ve gotten. I hope you still love me.

Author:  Jasmine Warga

Genre: YA, Contemporary, Mental Health

Publisher: Balzer + Bray / HarperTeen

Publication Date: February 10, 2015

320 pages, Hardcover

Check out the synopsis on Goodreads.

I’m sitting here trying to start a review on a book that made me cry, made me smile, made me hurt, and that I loved with all of my black hole of a heart. I’m not sure if I can do it.  Alright, take a few breaths, Stefani. Here we go.

This book is beautiful, you guys. It deserves to be read, whether you are suffering from depression or not. I wholeheartedly believe that everyone can find something to relate to in My Heart & Other Black Holes. I really cared about these characters because they were me. I’m so glad that this book is out there, because it tells you that you aren’t alone. It tells you there’s hope and this doesn’t have to be the end. It’s something that is important and needs to be talked about.

The characters were real because of their feelings. You can feel Roman’s grief. Aysel’s depression was tangible and real. I loved this book, but I also hated how much I could understand both of them so well. Warga’s description of depression was spot on and I relished in it. This book felt so real, you guys. “Depression is like a heaviness (ARC 14)” and sometimes “It’s like your sadness is so deep and overwhelming that you’re worried it will drown everyone else in your life if you let them get too close to it (ARC 183).” Aysel thinks “He gets it” after Roman says that last part – I thought “Jasmine gets it” when I read that.

But I didn’t just love this book for the sad parts. I’m not giving anything away, but the ending was so realistic, and I really appreciated that. I’m just happy I got to spend time with these two characters, because I loved their journey together. I’ll end this review with my favorite quote:

“I will be stronger than my sadness” (ARC 266).

The bottom line: My Heart & Other Black Holes is a beautiful, honest, heartbreaking, real, and sad book. It deserves to be read – not only by anyone that has suffered any kind of mental illness, but by everyone.

Rating: 10 – Perfection. One of the best books I’ve ever read (I think this is only the second 10 I’ve given) Thank you SO MUCH to Stacee aka Adventures of a Book Junkie for the giveaway that let me get my hands on this beautiful book.

Top Ten Tuesday: Most Anticipated 2015 Debut Novels

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by the Broke and the Bookish. Today’s theme was:

Top Ten Most Anticipated Debut Novels For 2015

This is a hard post. Not because I don’t think I can come up with ten but because 2015 is going to be an amazing year for books and I already have so many books I’m looking forward to reading. I’ve somehow narrowed it down to 10, but you can see more books on my 2015 releases shelf on Goodreads that I’m looking forward to. That shelf grows pretty much every day.

In no particular order, the ten debut novels (titles linked to Goodreads as always) releasing in 2015 that I’m most anticipating are:

— My Heart & Other Black Holes by Jasmine Warga – I just won an ARC of this from Stacee from Too Fond of Books and I AM SO EXCITED.
— Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli – I actually have an ARC of this one that I’m looking forward to digging into soon
— Everything That Makes You by Moriah McStay
— No Parking at the End Times by Bryan Bliss
— The Sin Eater’s Daughter by Melinda Salisbury

— We All Looked Up by Tommy Wallach
–– More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera
— Shutter by Courtney Alameda
— Mosquitoland by David Arnold
— The Way We Bared Our Soul by Willa Strayhorn

What about you? What debut novels are you looking forward to in 2015? Let me know in the comments so I can load up my Goodreads shelf! 🙂

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I’m Looking Forward to in 2015

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by the Broke and the Bookish. Today’s theme was:

Top Ten Books I’m Looking Forward To In 2015

Holy crap, this is hard. You can check out my 2015 releases shelf on Goodreads (which currently has a whopping 64 books on it!) to see that I am excited for A LOT of books coming out in 2015. Thankfully, in January we’ve got a TTT post about debuts coming out in 2015, so that helps a little. This list is obviously not going to include all the books I’m excited about but here’s the ten that I am dying to read.

My Heart and Other Black Holes by Jasmine Warga…because it sounds deep and sad and lovely and perfect winter weather.

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli…because I got an ARC of this at the Decatur Book Festival and I think it sounds really great.

The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West…because it sounds suitably sweet and adorable.

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab…because parallel universes.

Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig…because I need it.

Little Pretty Things by Lori Rader-Day…because I LOVED The Black Hour. 

Saint Anything by Sarah Dessen…because NEW SARAH DESSEN!

The Prom Goer’s Interstellar Excursion by Chris McCoy…because oh my goodness it sounds perfect and unique and like The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

Pip Bartlett’s Guide to Magical Creatures by Maggie Stiefvater…because – do I really need to explain this one?

Never Always Sometimes by Adi Alsaid…because he’s a really genuine person and I liked Let’s Get Lost and I’m excited to read what’s next from him.

Bonus:

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard…because it sounds epic

Wherever You Go by Pat Zietlow Miller…because I adored Sophie’s Squash 

What books are you looking forward to in 2015? Are you excited about any of the books on my list?