Books That Made Me Who I Am

I've been feeling a it nostalgic recently and decided to make a list of books that have had a major impact on me and my life. I have been a reader for as long as I can remember. Books have shaped me into who I am today, and I thought it would be interesting to share the list I made. Please note that these are not all YA, but they are all excellent. I also added in how old I was when I first read them next to each title.

Books 1 & 2: The Rainbow Magic books by Daisy Meadows & the Geronimo Stilton series by Geronimo Stilton (Age 3)

I grouped these two together because they are so intertwined in my memories. For as far back as I can remember, my parents would read these series to me as bedtime stories. I imagine they must've read picture books to me at some point, but I recall none of them. I know they read many of Dr. Suess' books to my older brother when he was young, but the only time I remember my mother ever reading picture books to me was during my early years of school (she was the librarian and read them to the whole class). So these were the first stories that made me fall in love with reading, and I simply can't separate them out. Geronimo taught me to always be ready for an adventure, and the rainbow fairies made sure I looked for magic everywhere I went. Together, they forged me into the child I was: wild, dreaming, always playing games of make believe, and constantly climbing anything taller than me.

Book 3: The Goddess Girls series by Joan Holub & Suzanne Williams (Age 7)

Many young mythology lovers name Rick Riordan's books as the start of their interest, but mine began with the Goddess Girls. Indeed, it would be several more years before I got around to picking up the Percy Jackson series. I had always been fascinated by magic and fairies, but the Goddess Girls was my first leap into the realm of myths and legends. It sparked my love for gods and monsters and heroes, and led me to study many ancient cultures and religions. For a long time (age 8-13ish), I wanted to be an archaeologist so I could keep studying them but also get paid, and that interest all began with The Goddess Girls.

Book 4: The Septimus Heap series by Angie Sage (Age 7)

If you know me, you know I love high fantasy. It is my favorite genre. I will always choose it over anything else. Of the books on my All Time Top 10 List, precisely ONE isn't high fantasy. And that all goes back to one series, to one book. Magyk by Angie Sage. It was the first high fantasy book I ever read (plenty others had had magic, sure, but they always took place on earth or were about talking mice). I was amazed by the way a writer could create an entire world and have it still seem real & believable to the reader. I fell in love with the seventh son of a seventh son, Septimus Heap, and, I realize now, had a MASSIVE crush on the violet eyed lost princess, Jenna. It was the perfect book for me at that point in my life, and I still hold it very dear to my heart. Also, this series is the main reason 7 is one of my favorite numbers (right alongside 4, the first even even, and 13, a number I thought was lonely when I was 5, so I decided to love it)!

Book 5: The Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini (Age 11)

For so long, this series was my favorite. It had everything I loved: dragons, magic, largescale conflict, made up languages, and great worldbuilding. But that wasn't why it stayed my favorite for as long as it did. No, the reason it stayed at the top of my list for so many years is quite simple. Eragon was the book that got me into fandoms and the online book community, especially on Instagram. I finished reading them right when my parents decided I was old enough to have social media, and so that was the first book community I sought out. I made me first internet friends because of those books, and to this day I am still friends with a few of them.

Book 5: Throne of Glass series by Sarah J Maas (Age 12)

This series held a lot of firsts for me. It was the first time I actively waited for the next book to be released. It was the first time I made a Release Day trip to a bookstore. It was the first time I literally stayed up all night to finish a book. It was the first time I read a YA novel in less than a day. It was the first time I wrote in a book. The first time I painted a book. The first time I went to a book festival to meet an author. The first time I shed tears of joy. The first (and second) time I ran a fan account. I will forever be grateful for this series and all the memories it holds for me. There are so many people I've met and things I've done because of this series, and I would not be who I am today without them.

Book 6: The Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfuss (Age 12)

This was my first leap into adult fantasy, and I fell in love instantly. To this day, I have yet to find another series with as much planning, forethought, and attention to detail as Rothfuss put into this series. I’ve listened to the audiobooks of the full series at least once a year for the last 5 years, and I still find new details and theories I missed in previous listen throughs. Sure, we’ve been waiting for the next book to this series just as long as Game of Thrones fans have been waiting for theirs, but the books we do have are so amazing and detail rich that I don’t even mind! Most of the time, anyway…

Book 7: Cruel Prince by Holly Black (Age 15)

I actually don’t have very much to say about this one. This book was good, but I didn’t love it nearly as much as any of the other books on this list. However, this book did something that may make it more worthy of a spot in this post than any of the others: this is the book that made me finally realize I am bisexual. Like… It just hit me halfway through the book that I was way more into Jude than Cardan, and that’s that.

Book 8: Sawkill Girls by Claire Legrand (Age 16)

Remember how I said my All Time Top 10 list contains only 1 book that isn’t high fantasy? Well, this is that book. Not only is it on the list, most days it is at the very top of the list. I do confess that when I am feeling particularly nostalgic Heir of Fire by Sarah J Maas wins out & bumps Sawkill to #2, but that isn’t really important. What is important is that Sawkill was the first time I saw a character who was not the sort of person I aspire to be, but one who is the sort of person I am. It was a surreal moment, to see myself reflected back at me in the pages of this amazing book. Throughout the entire process of me reading Sawkill Girls, it felt like there was lightning in my veins, and I found it nearly impossible to sit still. I have never read another book that affected me in such a way, and I honestly doubt I ever will. If you haven’t already, please read Claire Legrand’s books. They are beautiful and bittersweet and diverse and there is not enough praise I could possibly give Legrand or her books, so we’re just going to move on now.

And there you go! That’s it! Those are the books that most shaped me into the person I am today! Please note that these are not necessarily my favorite books of all time, indeed only half of them make the top 10 list, but they are all quite good.

What are some books that made you into the person you are? Feel free to share with us here on the blog, on instagram (@bookmarksTAC), or on twiiter (@bookmarksya)!