Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Love That Were Written Over Ten Years Ago

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

This week’s topic is Books I Love That Were Written Over Ten Years Ago!

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Saga by Brian K. Vaughn -This series is one amazing fantasy/space opera. The writing is great, the characters are well written, and the plot is entertaining! If you haven’t read this series yet, I highly recommend it. 

A Mercy by Toni Morrison – This is an African-American historical novel that is set on a farm somewhere in northern America. (It’s set in the 1680s, colonial times) The locations shift from time to time in the novel but some are not specified or made clear many times. The story is about Jacob and Rebekka Vaark, owners of the farm, and the slaves that work on their land. 

Wake by Lisa McMann – This novel is centered on seventeen-year-old Janie Hannagan’s involuntary power which thrusts her into others’ dreams. Then she falls into a gruesome nightmare, one that chills her to the bone. 

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Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles -I loved this series in high school. I liked that it featured an interracial couple and the whole plot of two people coming together from different backgrounds (almost like West Side Story). The initial attraction between the two is there in the beginning, but Elkeles takes her time in building up their relationship.

Penance by Kanae Minato – Penance is a strong psychological thriller and the characters are faced with a flight or fight situation that takes them back to the day they’ve tried so hard to forget. They are given the chance to choose between penance and finding the true murderer, and we see how their final decision affects their daily life.

This Book Betrays My Brother by Kagiso Lesego Molope – This Book Betrays My Brother follows the narrative of a teenage girl name Naledi. The story is told from Naledi’s perspective and focuses on her older brother Basi. They live a relatively good life in a nice house, but Naledi reminiscences about the older days when things were different. Basi hangs out with Kgosi, a boy who their mother thinks is not from a good crowd. On top of that, her brother’s brash actions cause trouble for the family.

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan – The story follows Mary who lives in a small village in the woods that is protected by the fence that separates them from the forest. When the fence is breached and her world is thrown into chaos, she must choose between her village and her future. I loved this book so much! It’s very suspenseful, it’s full of tension and the characters are interesting. 

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Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me (and Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling – The book starts off with a witty introduction of what to expect from the book and launches into her childhood years. It then talks about her teenage years and her adult years; how she got started in TV, the experience of working on “The Office”, etc. In between these chronicled events of her life, she discusses everyday topics such as: what her personality is like, how men should treat a lady, what defines a best friend, and many other things. It’s these additions to the book that makes reading it so great and gives it the comedic factor.

A Spy in The House by Y.S. Lee – The story’s main protagonist is Mary Quinn, who is taken into Miss Scrimshaw’s Academy for Girls and works as a teacher. Longing for a change in her life, she inquires about a new role at the academy and learns that the school is a cover for an all-female investigative unit called The Agency. Soon she sets off on a mission to go undercover as a maid and tries to figure out the dirty laundry of a merchant’s family who seems to be covering up underground activities.

Assumption by Percival Everett – Our main protagonist, Ogden Walker, is a sort of everyday kind of guy, despite being a cop. Ogden does his best to try to solve the cases along with the rest of his fellow officers. He constantly expresses feeling alone and out of place (which you’ll understand more when you read the novel). My best guess is while reading the novel Everett does or doesn’t want you to make “assumptions”, which is a habit that is hard to break for readers. 

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What books did you pick? Share your thoughts in the comment section below!