Top Ten Books I Read In 2016

I'm pretty sure I read a lot more books this year than I did last year, and some of them were real winners! It was hard for me to decide on my ten favorites, but these really take the cake! Though, the year is not over yet, so hopefully I still have a few winners left to read. These are in no particular order.

Saga by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples - I read the first two volumes of this graphic novel series, and it is so interesting, and so fun!

Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson - This was my first Matson book and she quickly became one of my favorite authors! The story was fun and the friendship aspect was incredible. Also, I related to the protagonist, like, A SHIT TON. My review.

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard - This book got me really interested in fantasy! I loved the premise and I found this book to be incredibly addicting! My review.

My Lady Jane by Brodi Ashton, Cynthia Hand, and Jodi Meadows - This is my most recent read, and it is utterly delightful!!!! Cute and magical and SO MUCH FUN.

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness - I read this in anticipation for the movie, and it was AMAZING. It was poignant and beautiful and memorable. I think everyone should read this! My review.

The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson - This is another winner by Matson! Dogs and a hot writer boy and a nice lil father-daughter relationship. This is officially my second favorite Matson novel. My review.

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes - This is no doubt in my top three of the year. I loved the movie and I loved the book and I cried the ugliest cry anyone ever done did cry. This story and these characters hold a very special place in my heart. My review.

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell - This is the first audiobook I ever listened to, as I lounged by the pool in summer. So I was bound to love it no matter what. That notwithstanding, though, this book was absolutely lovely. I don't know that I've ever related more to a character than I related with Cath. Now where's my Levi????

Beyond the Red by Ava Jae - This book was such a pleasant surprise! I did not expect to love it as much as I did. It was action-packed and steamy and I NEED MORE PEOPLE TO READ THIS BOOK. My review.

And I Darken by Kiersten White - I AM OBSESSED WITH THIS BOOK omg omg omg omg omg omg!!!! My review

What are your favorite books of 2016?

Christmasing Book Titles

Christmas is tomorrow!!!!! Holy crap!!!!!! In an effort to get you as utterly excited as I am (and if you're already excited, at least fuel the fire a little bit), I've taken the liberty of Christmasifying some book titles (and adjusting the covers accordingly)!

Some of these are better than others, I know.

ME BEFORE YULETIDE BY JOJO MOYES

in which a twenty-something woman transforms from unemployed and overly cautious to unemployed and a little adventurous thanks to Christmas magic. 

AMY AND ROGER'S EGGNOG DETOUR BY MORGAN MATSON

in which two teens on their way to Grandma's house go out of their way to find a grocery store and get some eggnog. 

BEYOND THE RED NOSE REINDEER BY AVA JAE

in which Rudolph struggles to be more than what the media portrays

NORTHANGEL ABBEY BY JANE AUSTEN

in which an English girl is convinced there is an angel lurking the halls of her friend's mansion

A COURT OF TINSEL AND RIBBONS BY SARAH J. MAAS

in which a malicious Christmas elf is very protective of his pretty decorations

LITTLE BLACK DRESSES, LITTLE WHITE LIGHTS BY LAURA STAMPLER

in which a trendy teenager struggles for hours to untangle a strand of Christmas lights

MISS PEREGRINE'S HOME FOR PRETTY CAROLS BY RANSOM RIGGS

in which only the best singers are privy to this strange home as they use their angelic voices to defeat grinches everywhere

A MISTLETOE CALLS BY PATRICK NESS

in which a young boy fights the urge to kiss meet his first crush under the mistletoe for his first kiss

ALL THE BRIGHT POINSETTIAS BY JENNIFER NIVEN

in which readers will learn everything there is to know about poinsettias. 

THE FRUITCAKE IN OUR STOCKING BY JOHN GREEN

in which two teenagers receive fruitcake so horrible they both fall ill

WE OWN THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS BY ASHLEY POSTON

in which all through the house, not a creature was stirring...except a group of mischievous teens desperate to find out what presents await for them under the tree. 

Just a note: this post was not meant to be making fun of these books in any way whatsoever. These are all books I really enjoyed reading and I had a lot of fun thinking about what their Christmased version would be. 

I want to hear your Christmased book titles. 
Bonus points if you tell me what the book would be about! 

Would You Rather #3: Dark Edition

Hiya! Would You Rather is a pretty self-explanatory new feature here at The Left-Handed Book Lover, and I think it will be a lot of fun. Each WYR post will have a different theme.

This time I chose books with dark covers. I picked 20 dark-covered novels, paired them up at random, and then picked one. This was extremely difficult! I love most these books so much (there are a few I'm not so fond of), and there were some pairings where I spent way too long deliberating which one to choose.

ARE THERE ANY CHOICES YOU'D MAKE DIFFERENTLY? 

August Recap

Well, summer has come and gone, and now I'm back at school. kicking off my junior year of college. I'm about a week in and I'm already dead. College is so non-stop. I feel like I have very few moments to myself, and very few moments to myself in which I am not working on homework. Now, my best friend and I live in an on-campus apartment so everyone wants to come over all the time and our other roommate (who we didn't know) hate us because we're so loud.

ALSO ALSO ALSO I ALMOST FORGOT!! I went to a Twenty One Pilots concert and my oh my was that glorious. Twenty One Pilots is my favorite band in the whole wide world and now that I've seen them live, I will never be the same.

My blog got a makeover!!! I did it a few weeks ago, but I'm still obsessed with it. I loved my old design when I first created it, several years ago. But I've changed and my blog has developed, and it was time for something new. I was scared to change it at first, but I'm extremely pleased now that I have. 

As far as reading goes, August was not the best month. Not the worst month, either. But not the best. Blogging is a different story. In August, I blogged more than I have any other month since I started my blog. I did my best to have a post go up every day, but there were a few days in which that just didn't happen. 

Reviews:

Top Ten Tuesdays:  Top Ten Books I'd Buy Right This Second If Someone Handed Me A Fully Loaded Gift Card Top Ten Books I Want To Re-Read Top Ten Books With A Memorable Setting Top Ten Books On My TBR From Before I Started Blogging Top Ten Books I'd Keep In My Classroom
Summer Blog Promo Tour:  Valerie from He Said Books Or Me: Memoirs Krystianna from Downright Dystopian: Doctor Who Soundtrack Wrap Up!
Misc. Posts:  The Eclectic Corner #4: Scary Movies Book Blogger Creativity Project: Bookish Yearbook Discussion: Taking Notes While Reading Playlist Book Tag The Authors I Own The Most Books From Book Aesthetics #1: Summer Books Help me save my blog!!!

I love thinking of new features for this blog, and it has been a while since I implemented any of the new ideas I've had, but in August I started doing...

I've seen people around twitter doing aesthetics for basically everything, including books, and I wanted to give it a try! If you don't know, a book aesthetic is basically putting together pictures that remind you of the book (the colors on the cover, the vibe it gives off, events from the book). I'm not great at it now, but I think I'll get better! 
HERE IS MY FIRST BOOK AESTHETICS POST
I decided to compile an aesthetic for 3 books that take place in summer, as I'm back at school and lamenting the loss of my laziness. 

Followers: 

Bloglovin - 74 (gained 7)

GFC - 16 (gained 0) 

Twitter - 203 (gained 22)

Instagram - 55 (gained 6)

Facebook - 4 likes (gained 0)

YouTube - 81 (gained 8)

Total pageviews - 11,835 (gained 1,925)

Books read: 3

1 paperback, 2 eARCs

Book with the most pages: Beyond the Red by Ava Jae (360 pages)

Books with the least pages: A Monster Calls (216 pages)

Total Pages read: 904

Books reviewed: 6

1 star reviews: 0

2 star reviews: 0

3 star reviews: 2

3.5 star reviews: 1

4 star reviews: 2

4.5 star reviews: 1

5 star reviews: 0

Average rating: 3.67 stars

Most popular review:

by pageviews and comments- 

BookTube: 

Here is my most popular video this month! I'll be (ideally) posting twice a week. Make sure to subscribe to me if you want to stay updated on when and what I post! If you have a YouTube channel, send me your link because I wanna see whatchya got!

Music: 

As I mentioned earlier, I went to a Twenty One Pilots concert this month, and so I kind of don't want to listen to anything else at the moment. 

TV: 

I finished Glee and I've been so emotionally torn apart by it that I'm left to re-binge watch Gossip Girl. Also, I'v started re-watching American Horror Story in preparation for season 6. I'M SO EXCITED HOLY CRAP ON A CRAP CONE. 

Movies: 

So, I watched Sausage Party this month. Uh, well. I'm not sure what to say about it. I thought it was clever and hilarious and utterly disturbing (but what else do you expect from a Seth Rogen movie???). If you're into really abrasive & inappropriate humor, this is the movie for you!!! Just be warned, there is a reason this movie is rated R. 

Top Ten Books I'd Keep In My Classroom

It's always so hard for me to choose a topic during these freebie weeks. This week was "School Freebie" since, ya know, school is once again in session. I chose a topic that The Broke and the Bookish actually gave for a suggestion and that's Top Ten Books I'd Keep In My Classroom If I Were A Teacher. I tried to choose a bit of a variety, and I tried to choose books I think would inspire high school kids to read more. For the sake of wider variety, I didn't pick more than one book from the same author.

Delirium by Lauren Oliver - This is such a gorgeous novel, and it reads rather quickly. I adored this book in high school as much as I do now.

The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton - I actually read this one my freshman year of college, and, of course, enjoyed it a lot! I'd never even heard of it before that. This is a classic YA novel and I'd want my students to at least have the option to read it and know what it is.

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell - This is the best college-set book I've ever read. I think it does a good job of capturing the uncertainty and discovering-yourself part of college. It would be good for the high school students who are planning to attend college. Also, it's just a really fantastic book.

Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead - Of course I'd keep my favorite book of all-time in my library! Hopefully students would be able to escape into this world & these characters the same way I did when I was in high school.

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare - While I actually prefer The Infernal Devices over this series, I think City of Bones would have wider appeal to people who haven't read any Cassandra Clare before. City of Bones is the type of book that gets teens excited about books. And I think of all the books I've selected, this one would attract the biggest male audience.

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen - I'm fairly certain that this is the first classic novel I truly enjoyed, and so I think it's a good place for teens to start reading classics.

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness - This is a quick and impactful read, and I believe everyone on the planet would gain something from reading this novel.

Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry - I don't have a logical explanation for this selection. I just love it and I think other teens will too.

Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson - This is an incredible novel that many teens will most likely be able to relate to, about friendship and romance and social anxiety. Also, it's a lot of fun!!

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi - The writing style in this book is so different than pretty much every other YA book on the shelves. Also, it's fun and exciting and addicting, and I think high school students would really love discovering this book.

Sunday Post #23

• This is the last week I'm posting my Sunday Post on not-Sunday, so yay! I just don't feel right posting this on Saturday XD 
• And as you might be able to tell, I GAVE MY BLOG A MAKEOVER. I'm so excited. I was nervous about changing things at first, but I absolutely love it! I think it looks much cleaner and better fits what I want for my blog now. I created the first design in November of 2013, so nearly three years ago. Since then, both my blog and myself have changed a lot, so this new design feels kind of like embracing all that change. I really hope you all like it as much as I do! 
• Anyway, this was my last week of summer vacation. I'll be moving back to school tomorrow and I'm excited and also not excited at the same time. This week I went with my dad to see my aunt who, despite us only living about 45 minutes away from each other, I haven't seen since Christmas-time. It was really nice to see her again before heading back to school! 
• Then, Thursday, my friend and I got mani-pedis in preparation for the new semester. Hooray pampering! I wanted to get my hair done too before going back to school, but that just didn't happen. *sighs dramatically*

Reviews: 
- The Probability of Miracles by Wendy Wunder (⋆⋆⋆)
- A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness (⋆⋆⋆⋆)

Memes: 
- Top Ten Books With Memorable Settings

Misc: 
- The Playlist Book Tag
- The Authors I Own The Most Books From
- Summer Blog Promo Tour Wrap Up

 Reviews:
- Game On by Michelle Smith
- Beyond the Red by Ava Jae

Memes:
- Top Ten Books On My TBR From Before Blogging
- Sunday Post #24

Misc.: 
- Book Aesthetics: Summer Books
- Discussion: My Favorite Part Of The Book Community

Sarah from The YA Book Traveler posted about self-doubt and why it's a good thing. I think every blogger could stand to hear what she says, since we probably all suffer from self-doubt in some form or another.

Rachel from Parajunkee provided a really handy book blogging post ideas list. Feeling a bit slumpy? Maybe this list can give you some ideas.

I didn't intend on getting any more books this month (aside from school books), but Hastings is going out of business, so of course I had to snag a few bargain books while I was in the area.

- Dangerous Creatures by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
- The Rising by Kelley Armstrong
- The Treatment by Suzanne Young


And because I apparently don't already have enough e-galleys unread, I snagged this one from Netgalley:


- The Summer Before Forever by Melissa Chambers
Published: August 22, 21016 by Entangled TEEN

Here are some highlights from my instagram account this week. Give me a follow if you want to see everything I have posted/will post!

I have been utterly obsessed with this book since the second I finished it. I can't believe I haven't posted any pictures of this book yet! Between my twitter and my blog, I'm pretty much constantly talking about Kiersten White's latest madterpiece. What books are you constantly trying to get people to read?

A photo posted by The Left-Handed Book Lover (@leftyreads) on Aug 14, 2016 at 2:13pm PDT

One of my favorite things in the world is when I take the dust jacket off a book and find a lil treat. The Loose Ends List by Carrie Firestone has one of the best under-the-dust-jacket covers I've ever seen! What are some books you've seen that look fantastic naked? 😂

A photo posted by The Left-Handed Book Lover (@leftyreads) on Aug 15, 2016 at 11:33am PDT

WHAT HAS YOUR WEEK IN BOOKS AND BLOGGING LOOKED LIKE?