My Top 5 Books

On the first of March, it was world book day, I remember at school we always dressed up as our favourite book characters there were prizes for who had the best costume (we'd always win a book, surprise surprise). I wanted to write a blog post about some of my favourite books of all time, I'm sure many of you have read these great books too but I want to talk about why I love them and how I came about them in the first place. I could write about so many more books but I picked the 5 books/series that I enjoy reading the most. Comment below your opinion on these books if you've read them too.

India X 

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky 

This is probably my most favourite book ever. I watched the movie a while after it came out and fell in love, which is what prompted me to order the book the minute I finished watching it. It's an absolutely brilliant story, as I'm sure many of you are aware if you've seen/read it. I just love all of it, the narration, the characters, the emotions I feel when I read it. I still love this book as much as I did the first time I read it and I don't think I'll ever tire of it. It's also a great movie, which I love just as much as the book because it portrays the characters and events just the same as in the book. 

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald 

I first read this in my first year of sixth form in English Lit, and is by far the best book we ever studied throughout the 7 years I was at that school. It's an epic story set in the 1920s about love, betrayal, wealth and isolation. The story might start all glitzy, with partying and alcohol, but slowly becomes dark and tragic, it's a total heartache of a book. Again I watched the movie after reading the book for sixth form, and Oh My God what a fantastic movie, although some argue that they made it too Hollywood, I think the new adaptation really shows the chaos and emotions from Fitzgeralds book. 

Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling 

Yes, I had to include the Harry Potter series, one of the greatest series in literature history; they are life changing books. I read these books a little later than most people, I fell in love with the movies before deciding to read the books, but I love them just the same as the fans who read the books first. Everyone wants to imagine they're a part of a fantasy world filled with magic and excitement, and this is exactly what these books do, they help you escape to this magical world. No one can hate these books, adults and children both get the same warm feeling from reading these books. 

The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter 

This is another book that I studied in sixth form, we read it in the second year for out Gothic Literature exam. It's basically a collection of short stories that are retellings of classic fairytale stories like Beauty and the Beast, Bluebeard and Snow White, but very dark, very Gothic and with a strong feminist twist. In all tales it's the woman or the femme fatal who saves the day, while the men are portrayed as the villains rather than just a love interest. The tales portray sexuality, desire, murder, violence and power. I'd recommend this book of short stories to anyone who likes Gothic literature or enjoys a twist on classic fairytales; expect a lot of sex, death and strong female characters. 

The Beautiful Dead Series by Eden Maguire 

This is a series I started reading when I was about 12 or 13, a beautiful series of 4 books about a group of people who all died mysteriously who all have to figure out why they died with the help of their living friend, Darina. I became obsessed when I first read these books, and it's bee a while since I have read them, but I still remember feeling so attached to these stories and these characters that I don't think I'll ever forget how I felt when I read them as a teenager. These books aren't as popular as the others on this list, but I feel they deserve a lot of recognition, I'd still read this teen  series now as a 20 year old.