My Year in Books: 2017 // MERRY CHRISTMAS!

2017 came and went before I could blink.

How did it pass so fast?! The world will never know. 😉 However, I did manage to read a boatload of books, and today I’m going to be sharing some of the highlights of this year!

I think this is a great way to sum up my year in books. I got out my reading lists to write this post, so I’d be properly remembering each book I read in 2017. 😉

I made up most of the categories, though I’m sure I’m not the first to do a post with these topics, and I did get some inspiration from this post. Also, I won’t be including rereads in this, though they did makeup a major part of what I read this year. (No Harry Potter?! What am I going to do?! XD)

Without further ado, let’s take a look at my year!

Best YA Contemporary

This has to be Always and Forever, Lara Jean. I read this recently so I have talked about it way too much lately, but it deserves the recognition!

Always and Forever, Lara Jean is sweet and adorable and filled with all the baked goods and the cutest romance and just all around wonderful. The rest of the series (it is the third in a series) are equally wonderful. The reason I love it so much is because while it does have its light and fluffy moments, it’s not quite as happy-go-lucky as some contemporaries are. I also loved how realistic it is.

Best Historical Fiction

Hands down The Help.

If you haven’t read this book, please drop everything and run to the nearest library or bookstore. I DON’T CARE IF IT’S MIDNIGHT, GET YOUR HANDS ON THIS BOOK. 

I’m only slightly kidding. The Help is one of the most eye-opening books I have ever read. It painted an entirely different portrait of 1960s America for me. I truly hope that someday everyone in the world will have read this book, because it is so important that everyone receives its message.

Biggest Disappointment

IMPORTANT: please do not hurt me when you see this.

But my biggest disappointment, bookwise, of 2017 was I’ll Give You the Sun. 

I really did want to love this book, and I’d heard so much about it. And it seemed so good?? And I actually got it checked out from the library and all ready to read?? I tried so hard to get into it, but I just really couldn’t. Should I try it again?

Most Hyped Up Book

This would have to be Starfish. I saw it everrrrywherreee, and I don’t regret reading it, that’s for sure.

i apologize for how many times i’ve used this picture…

It’s so good! Starfish really did live up to its hype. I think it was the only book I read this year because of hype, but now that I read more book blogs, I’m sure it will be much harder to pick one for this category next year. 😉

Book I Failed to Read, and Should Have

I’ve been telling myself to read Divergent for literal years. Yet I still haven’t.

I know its hype has mostly died down, but I still want to read it. I was in my “NOTHING can even come close to Harry Potter so why read it” phase when it first came out (who am I kidding I’m still in that phase), so I never tried it.

AND NOW I WANT TO READ IT. BUT I HAVEN’T. Someone please tell me why.

Best Addition to a Series I Love

Definitely Yours Truly.

This book is comfy, cozy, and everything in between. Reading it is like drinking a cup of cocoa, and it didn’t disappoint when compared to the first book in the series, Absolutely Truly. GO, go read it!

Book With the Best Characters

The Count of Monte Cristo, hands down.

I had to read the abridged version for school. Maybe that makes me a cheater since I read the shorter version, but it was still pretty long. (The original is over a thousand pages long, what?!?)

If you haven’t read this, please don’t let the old-fashioned language scare you off. The characters are wonderful. The entire book consisted of me screaming things like, “what?” and “that’s not who I thought you were!” and “hOw iS tHiS pOsSiBlE?”

No one is who you think they are. Then you think you know who they are and that’s not who they are. Or aren’t they?

Book That I Can’t Even Remember Reading

Wow. I have no recollection of anything having to do with The Poison Apples.

Hopefully, I’ll be able to reread sometime this year, because I don’t remember specifically disliking it or anything? And, it’s set in a boarding school, which is honestly probably why I read it. I have a weakness for books set in boarding schools.

Best Series I Started, and Never Finished

While looking through my lists of books I read, I saw that in January I read The Testing and Independent Study. I remember really enjoying them, but I have no idea why I never finished the rest of the series?

All I can remember is that it’s a dystopian…and that I liked it….help me.

And now, drumroll please….

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THE BEST BOOK OF 2017!

I didn’t mention this one too much on my blog, so it may come as a surprise. (Or not. Probably not.) It is… Jane Eyre!

I can’t believe that I only read Jane Eyre this past September, but I am so glad I finally did. I loved, loved, loved it! I’d recommend it to anyone. (I would go on, but then this would turn into a giant ramble, so I will just trust that you go read it now.)

I hope you all enjoyed this post! Taking a look back at what you’ve read over the past year is something I usually don’t do, but I’m really glad I did. It was interesting to see everything I read this year. More about how 2017 went for me will be coming in my yearly recap next week. 😉

Also, MERRY CHRISTMAS! If you’re reading this on the day it was published, it is in fact Christmas Day. (I scheduled this post ahead of time.) Wishing you a lovely day spent with family and friends, and may you remember the reason for the season.❤️

Enough rambling! What are your picks for these categories? Do you agree with mine? How was your Christmas? Let’s chat in the comments!

P.S. I used images from Google for the books I didn’t own/couldn’t get a picture of, but if you click on them you’ll be taken to their source. Also- I forgot to get the credits for my featured image image, but it was from Unsplash, as always!

P.P.S. MERRY CHRISTMAS! 🙂 ❤️