By: Eleanor Jones
When I look back at my Goodreads account, I’m surprised by how many titles I’ve forgotten I’ve read. Avid readers pour through so many books in a year It’s hard to remember them all. So, I know that it was no easy task for book blogger, Eleanor Jones, to come up with the list of her top 10 books of the past decade. Below are her picks along with a short synopsis and personal opinion of the story. Also, be sure to check out her blog, Not So Modern Girl, and follow her on Twitter.
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A 10 year evolution of reading choices
In the last decade my reading habits really came into their own. Some amazing and incredibly popular books have come out in the past 10 years.
This is a short list of my Top 10 reads from this past decade. I can certainly see how my reading choices have changed in the past 10 years. It’s been great to reflect on how many brilliant titles I managed to get through.
1. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
When this book came out in 2012 it seemed that everyone wanted a copy. I was just the same. I was in secondary school when the hype started to buzz. When the film came out in 2014, I pre-booked my cinema tickets along with many other teenagers across the world. Perhaps John Green’s most famous book, The Fault in Our Stars follows the love story of two ill teenagers learning to love who they are despite coping with major illnesses. I wouldn’t pick up something like this now, but it’s a great, heart-warming piece of fiction.
2. Boy, Snow, Bird by Helen Oyeymi
This 2014 novel is a really memorable read for me as it is an intriguing and compelling tale of one woman’s struggle to escape her oppressive father and find happiness, whatever shape that may take. I really liked this book for its subliminal messages and dark aspects and because it was a retelling of the classic fairy tale Snow White. This was definitely a great read. I would really recommend it for others who enjoy retellings.
3. Only the Good Spy Young by Ally Carter
This was the fourth book in the Gallagher Girls series. It came out in 2010 with other books following throughout the decade. I loved this entire series as I was a huge fan of spy fiction, reading Nancy Drew when I was younger. Focusing on a group of girls who go to a school for spies and get involved in various missions, this series is a brilliant teenage read.
4. The Bees by Laline Paull
This novel came out in 2015, and I read it as soon as it came out. The Bees is a book with an unusual concept behind it. It really surprised me how much I loved it. This story focuses on a hive of bees, with each bee separated into a specific occupation in a way that reminded me of The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. With a dystopian feel, Laline Paull’s debut novel is a fantastic read, and I’ve re-read it several times over the past decade.
5. Everyday by David Levithan
Everyday came out in 2012. It’s a fantastic book about someone who wakes up in a different body every day, living a different life and meeting different people. I found this a really interesting concept. When this book came out, I thought it was a brilliant read. In 2018, the film version of Everyday came out. So this is definitely one to read, and to watch, in 2020.
6. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
The Bell Jar was definitely not released this decade, but it made my decade. After I read this book, I became a big fan of Sylvia Plath’s work, as her poetry and prose are great. There were rumours of a film version of The Bell Jar coming out last decade. But it looks like Plath fans will have to wait until the 2020’s to get their fix of her most famous work.
7. The Jewel by Amy Ewing
In 2014 I picked up The Jewel by Amy Ewing, and I absolutely loved it. The Jewel is about a world where poor, fertile women are placed in rich families and are forced to give birth to their children. Childbirth is deadly in this future world, and so the poorer classes are given to rich families to avoid the upper classes from dying. This is a brilliant tale of class and gender relations, and I loved it so much that I also read the next two books in the trilogy, one of the only trilogies I finished this past decade.
8. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
This book actually came out in 1999, but I read it early into the last decade. I was a bit young for it at the time, but when I re-read it later in the decade, I loved it. The Perks of Being a Wallflower concentrates on a group of teenagers trying to get through high school. Stephen Chbosky cleverly depicts the issues facing young people, encouraging the reader to get inside the heads of various teenagers, all told from the point of view of ‘wallflower’ Charlie.
9. The Idiot by Elif Batuman
This novel came out in 2017, and I read it not long after I started University. This was an intriguing tale of a friendship which borders on romance, and the intellectual relationship between two college students. A semi-autobiographical novel, I found this book just odd enough to work. The main character, Selin, has an intense interest in linguistics, and while her philosophical and linguistic conversations were often lost on me, I really enjoyed the vibe of this book.
10. The Testaments by Margaret Atwood
This was the last book that I read this past decade and one of my favourites. I loved reading The Handmaid’s Tale a few years ago. So when this novel came out in 2019, I was so excited to read it. Concentrating on the May Day rebellion against the oppressive society of Gilead, this book was more uplifting than the first novel. Margaret Atwood’s style is so easy to read and yet so powerful. For a more in-depth review of this amazing book, check out my review.
I definitely read a lot of brilliant books in the past 10 years, and I would recommend all these titles and authors to anyone looking for something good to read in the decade to come. I want to thank Laura so much for letting me contribute to her fantastic book blog!
Thank you so much for featuring my post, I hope everyone enjoys my choices 🙂
Thanks for sharing your list. I hope everyone finds some good books to read.
I have not read any of these. 😬 I am not a huge fiction reader, though; I mostly prefer nonfiction titles. My tween/teen daughters have read and enjoyed #1 and #8, however. ❤️
I love nonfiction too. Nice to hear that there are avid teen readers out there.
I have not read any of these but have dedicated 2020 to read more books so you’ve given me a great starting point. Some of these books look right up my alley!
Oh good. I would love to hear your opinion on any books you read from the list.
Everyday was one of my favorites from this past decade too! There’s a sequel called another day, and I loved that one as well. I can’t wait to read some of the other books on your list!
Thanks for the additional recommendation! It’s always nice to know there are sequels to good books, especially in genres where sequels are not as common.
I’m so glad you enjoyed Everyday as well 🙂
I enjoyed this article. I love reading and enjoy good recommendations. I haven’t read any of these books but found that several of them sound very interesting. Thanks for this list!
Thanks for reading!
I adored The Fault in Our Stars. I have just gotten into The Handmaid’s Tale on Hulu and didn’t realize it was based on a book. Now I have to go read the first book and second, The Testaments, that you’ve recommended. Really. I probably need to read your entire list.
I loved The Fault in our Stars too. I just finished reading The Handmaid’s Tale, and I didn’t like it as much as the show. But now I’m reading The Testaments, and so far, I like it a lot better.
Thank you so much for your kind words- I really hope you enjoy any that you pick up 🙂
This is such a fun post and I haven’t read many of the books on the list. Now I have new ones to add to my list! I have read the Bell Jar and it was great. The way she died was tragic.
Yes, The Bell Jar really stays with you. I reread it a few years ago, and I hadn’t really remembered the plot as much as the tone of the whole story. Eerie.
Great list! It’s fun to look back!
Great list of books! I love to read, but have not done so in a long time. Thanks for sharing!
Nice list! I use Goodreads, but not well. Lol.
How is it that I have not read a single book from your list? Just a testament to the near infinite number of books in the world and vast variety of personal taste! Thanks for sharing your favorites!
Such a great list! I really need to get reading more. The list I want to read far exceeds the list I have read…
Thank you for sharing this list!