best books of 2013

photo credit: Georg Mayer via Flickr

This year I read 53 books. These were my favorites:

Fiction

• Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
• The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
• The Raven Boys & The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater
• The Forest of Hands and Teeth (only the first book) by Carrie Ryan
• Looking for Alaska by John Green
• The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
• The Highest Tide by Jim Lynch
• The Movement of Stars by Amy Brill

Children's

• A Symphony for the Sheep by Cynthia Millen
• Zen Shorts by Jon J. Muth

Non-Fiction

• The Urban Bestiary by Lyanda Lynn Haupt
• Pilgrim on the Great Bird Continent by Lyanda Lynn Haupt

And my overall favorites from this year:

• Tell the Wolves I'm Home by Carol Rifka Brunt
• Mink River by Brian Doyle

Trends I noticed in my book choices this year:

I read quite a bit of YA, but with my job as a middle school science teacher I think that's to be expected. I also read a lot on the bus once September hit, so YA books were a good choice. Of those YA books, though, I read quite a few tearjerkers: Speak, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Looking for Alaska, Tell the Wolves I'm Home and of course the whammy The Fault in Our Stars.

So what am I reading right now? I'm re-reading Game of Thrones. Something familiar and complex that won't end with me crying my eyes out. I think it's a good plan.