Hey, guys! I am super excited about my favorite books of 2017. I read so many books this year, so it was really hard to narrow this list down to ten of my favorite books that I read this year. This was such a fantastic reading year for me, as I did read more than I ever have before. I have read eighty-six books this year, which is Absolutely insane for me. But I am super excited to talk about these books, so let’s go ahead and get into it!

10: The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery

This is a short little children’s classic that I thought was just going to be a super cute Story, but this one actually packed quite a punch for me. This book actually really hit me with the feels because it actually is a story that contains all of these really deep life lessons that I ended up really enjoying, and they really made me emotional. I think you can learn something from this no matter what age you are. It did make me cry, and I just really grew attached to this story. I loved the illustrations throughout it and the absolutely gorgeous writing, and I just absolutely loved this. It was just super incredible.

9: The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee

This is a historical fiction novel with a ton of comedy, and I absolutely adored this book. It is the first book in a companion series, and I audiobooked it, which I highly recommend because it was narrated by Christian Coulson who portrayed Tom Riddle in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, and he does a fabulous job. The humor was so on point in this novel, and it honestly went places I wasn’t expecting. There was so much more adventure and action than I was expecting, and I just absolutely loved it. There is also bisexual representation as our main character is a bisexual male who is in love with his best friend, Percy, and I just really loved seeing that as I am also bisexual. I really enjoyed this novel, and I cannot wait to read its sequel when it comes out next year!

8: This Monstrous Thing by Mackenzi Lee

This is a book that I originally picked up just because it was by Mackenzi Lee, and I knew I wanted to read more from her, and then I was completely sold when I realized it was a Frankenstein retelling. I read Frankenstein right before I read this, which I totally recommend doing because it just made the reading experience even more enjoyable, and I ended up falling in love with this story. It really had a unique take on the classic story of Frankenstein as it incorporates fantasy and steampunk elements into it, which I really loved. It also included the physical book of Frankenstein and the actual person of Mary Shelley into it, and I ended up really loving that aspect. It also had some lesbian representation, which I loved seeing, so I am just so glad I got the chance to read it because it was absolutely fabulous.

7: Wayfarer by Alexandra Bracken

This is the final book in the Passenger duology, and I absolutely freaking loved this book. This book was actually my favorite of the duology, which is actually an unpopular opinion, and that is because most people prefer Passenger due to the amount of romance that is in it. The romance took a backseat for this one, which I actually really liked because I wanted to see what Nicholas and Etta could do when the other was not around, how they behaved, and how they reacted to things. I thought it was important to see them interacting with other characters without the other one there, and this book really delivered on that point. I just really love this series as well because it is super diverse due to some lesbian representation with a couple of the characters along with a biracial relationship, all of which I thought was represented really well. I just think this is such a well-rounded series with lots of action, and this finale did not disappoint.

6: More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera

This is a standalone contemporary novel that I actually ended up really loving, which is kind of another unpopular opinion just because I know so many other people don’t think this is his best work, but it’s actually my favorite book that I have read by him so far. I think the reason I really loved this book so much is how it really examines how you are born just the way you are, and there is no reason why you should try to change yourself to meet other people’s needs and wants because there is nothing wrong with you. Specifically, this is attacking the topic of being born gay. You are born this way. It’s not a choice. It is just who you are, and this was super influential for my personal growth to accept myself being bisexual, so because of that impact on me, this had to be one of my favorite books of this year.

5: Definitions of Indefinable Things by Whitney Taylor

This is a contemporary romance novel with a central focus on depression, which is what originally piqued my interest because I struggle with depression, and I just don’t read enough books with depression as a central theme throughout the story. I especially was really interested in this one as it definitely is super relatable to me since it involves depression without a trigger. Some people have a trigger for depression while I never did. Its just something that I have kind of had for most of my life, and I thought it was really important that it was represented in this novel. The representation was amazing in this novel, but the other element that really sold me on this book being one of my all-time favorites was the humor. It was just so on point. Every two seconds I was bursting out laughing, meaning I was laughing out loud. It was just absolutely hilarious, and the combination of the kind of darker topic with the humor really made me absolutely love this novel.

4: What We Saw by Aaron Hartzler

This is another standalone contemporary, but this one has a significantly darker theme than some of the other ones on this list. This is a novel that is based on a real rape case (the Steubenville High School rape case) and if you read this novel and then read the Wikipedia page on it, you can definitely see the similarities. This does have a trigger warning for rape and sexual assault, but it actually does not follow the victim in this one. It follows a girl who did not witness anything but is trying to piece together what happened. I think it is really important that we got to see that perspective because we actually get to see what the other people in the town are actually saying, how they side with the rapists, and how they treat the girl who was raped. They all think she is totally lying and wants our main character to shut up about it. This novel really challenges rape culture and brings up the conversation, which I really think is important. I just think it is such an important story that everyone needs to read.

3: Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu

This is another contemporary novel that involves feminism and challenges sexism with empowering women and uniting them, and it is just such a kickass and inspirational story. This book just was everything I wanted it to be and more. Our main character Vivian just gets so fed up with all of the sexism in her high school that she creates this feminist zine inspired by the Riot Grrrls Movement of the 90’s. This story was just so inspiring and so empowering. It also really stressed that feminism isn’t just for women. You can be a man and be a feminist, and I think that was such a powerful message that really needed to be expressed, and I just absolutely fell in love with this novel!

2: The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

This is a standalone contemporary novel that deals with a lot of important topics, such as racism and police brutality. This is inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, and I think this is such a relevant and important topic in our day and age. I think it just is a story that everyone needs to read because it doesn’t shy away from the topic. Angie Thomas really approaches the topic in a very realistic and authentic way, which I think is super important. I just am so glad I read this because, at its core, this story isn’t about justice for our main character’s best friend. It is about gaining the courage to speak out against oppression in general and police brutality as well. It really is preaching the message of how can we expect change if we do nothing to provoke it? I just thought this was a super important story that everyone should read, and I highly recommend it!

1: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

This is literally my all-time favorite book now. I don’t think I have ever loved a book as much as I have loved this book. This is a historical fiction novel set in Nazi Germany told from the perspective of Death, and it is just absolutely amazing. I almost have no words to describe how this book makes me feel. I have never cried harder in my entire life than when I was reading the last one hundred and fifty pages of this novel. This is just such an important novel about the importance and value of family and the power of words. I just fell in love with this story. It touched me so much, and I just have no words to describe this book other than it is just absolutely amazing. I think everyone needs to read this because it is just so fantastic, and I just love it so much.

And there you have it! Those were my favorite books of 2017. What is your favorite read of 2017? Comment down below! I would love to know. And that is going to be it for this post today. Thank you all so much for reading this, I hope you enjoyed it, I hope you all have a wonderful rest of the year, and I will see you next time!