Books, Glorious Books.

Phew, it looks like it's been a busy few weeks for everybody! I caught The Hunger Games movie yesterday cause I couldn't wait any longer to watch it and it turned out to be more than I expected it to be! It really wasn't that bad for a book-to-movie adaptation. There were some things I would have changed about it, but it didn't turn out to be as bad as some of the Harry Potter movies *coughmoviesixcough*. I'm not as attached to the books as I am to HP, so I guess I was less critical, but still! Did any of you watch it? How'd you like it?

Now, to the books! I'm going to skip on the usuals like Harry Potter, LOTR or the Hunger Games cause they're pretty much staple on almost everyone's lists. I'm even going to skip over John Green books because that's a given, but not really high on the list. So here are some of my favourite go-to books !

Tuesday's With Morrie - Mitch Albom.

It's a non-fiction account of how the author came to have a new relationship with his favourite lecturer from university as the former was dying from an illness. Morrie, the teacher, basically imparted a lot of his life knowledge to Mitch through these Tuesday visits that they had over the span of a few months. The reason I really love the book is because the topics that they talk about are things that are important in everyone's life and it teaches people how to not sweat the small stuff when there are bigger fish to fry. It's a simple read, but very thought provoking. I tend to go back to it every now and then and it says different things to me as my own perspective of life changes with age.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time - Mark Haddon

The book is about a 15 year old guy with some form of Autism who is a mathematical savant of sorts. He finds his neighbour's dog dead, and then attempts to investigate what happens which ends up revealing much more than her bargained for about his own life and his relationship with his parents. It's both a very humourous and emotional storyline, but written in a light-heearted

first person narrative style. It reminds me a fair bit of An Abundance of Katherines what with the math in the novel. It was one of the first books where I encountered Autism, and it really intrigued me even though it was a work of fiction and isn't an accurate representation of the syndrome. But it would lead me towards reading more about the subject, something I still do have an interest in. Besides, how can you not love any book with an upside down poodle on the cover?

Matilda - Roald Dahl.

This should be every nerd's favourite kid's book. It's all about embracing the power of intelligence! For those that don't know what the book is about, it's basically this extremely gi

fted little girl called Matilda whose family pretty much ignores her and doesn't see how special she is. When she starts school, she meets Miss Honey who notices Matilda's potential and tries to get everyone around her to help Matilda embrace what she can do in life. And then there's

something in there about telekinetic powers. It's just a really beautifully written book that carries Roald Dahl's signature humourous style all the way through. It's still a book I enjoy reading even now because it's so empowering and gives me hope that there's always a way out of the rut that you're stuck in.

Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist by David Levithan (same guy as Will Grayson, Will Grayson!) and Rachel Cohn.

This would be my favourite YA novel pick. I love it because it's got to do so much with music and how central it can be to someone's life, an all night adventure and just a lot of typical young adult musings. I actually fell in love with the movie before I even got to the book, which may have biased my opinion a fair bit. But I believe the book and the movie are two distinctly different gems that are hard to compare. The story line is just really engaging and it gives you a lot of ponder about and personally, for me to relate to. I think it captures the feeling of invincibility of youth really well, all while knowing that there's more to life ahead and it's only just the beginning.

To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee

This is a novel with so many different themes that are so important for us to dwell on in life. From racial injustice to stereotyping, gender roles, principles and compassion, the themes are still so prevalent and applicable in society even with such a different setting from what the book is. The characters are neither perfect nor idealist, but flawed and realistic, yet such great role models. I think the world would be a much better place if everyone read this book and really internalized what it stands for. This book has thought me so much about standing for your own principles, even when everything points in the other direction. It's just a great book with a great storyline.

So there you go! Five of my favourite books that I would recommend everyone to read!

Till next time, read on!