More Diversity in Your Book Diet

Aw yessss, my graphics are top quality. I have been dying to make this review since Perpetual Page-Turner posted it at the beginning of December. Obviously this is my first year doing a blog, so even though it's the 4th Annual Review, it's my personal 1st, but will eventually be an annual event!

Perpetual Page-Turner mentions that she does it at the beginning of the year because she doesn't get a lot of reading done in December. I had to wait until December was officially over because I squeaked in several last minute reads.

So without further ado...

1. Best book you read in 2013?

Hands down, Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell. I recommend this to everyone.

2. Book you were excited about & thought you were going to love more but didn't?

I was really excited about The Maze Runner by James Dashner, and it ultimately just disappointed me. 

3. Most surprising (in a good way!) book of 2013? 

This is hard because I didn't really read any books that I was expecting to not be good. But probably Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard. I thought they'd be alright, but I totally fell in love with the series. 

4. Book you read in 2013 which you recommended to the most people in 2013?

Again, probably Eleanor & Park. I just loved it so much. 

5. Best series you discovered in 2013?

Definitely Pretty Little Liars. It was really one of the only series which I started this year. The other being the Flappers series by Jillian Larkin which was also good, and I'll finish, but it wasn't quite as good as PLL.

6. Favorite new author you discovered in 2013?

RAINBOW ROWELL. I can't rave enough about her. I'm excited to read Attachments, but I'm sad that it's the last book out of hers which I can read. 

7. Best book which was out of your comfort zone or a new genre for you?

I read Ghana Must Go by Taiye Selasi which is a general fiction novel which I don't read much of. It was pretty good. Definitely not like anything else I'd read. I enjoyed it.

8. Most thrilling, unputdownable book of 2013?

No one will be surprised by this, but Eleanor & Park. I finished it in about three hours during a summer where I didn't read nearly as much as I should have.

9. Book you read in 2013 which you are most likely to reread next year?

Haha once again, Eleanor & Park. Maybe also The Night Circus or Jane Eyre, but definitely E&P.

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2013? 

I really liked the cover of Paper Valentine. I think it's so intricate, and it relates to the plot quite well. My runner up would be the Night Circus which is similar in a lot of ways.

11. Most memorable character in 2013?

Both Eleanor and Park from E&P for sure. Also Jin Wang from American Born Chinese. And Hannah from Thirteen Reasons Why. 

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2013?

Ughhhhhhhh. Eleanor & Park and Fangirl are pretty high on this list. So are Thirteen Reasons Why and the Night Circus. And The Captain's Verses by Pablo Neruda, which like it's poetry so of course it'd make this list.

13. Book that had the greatest impact on you in 2013?

As far as impact goes, probably Thirteen Reasons Why. It's just so meaningful and it definitely made me pay more attention to my actions. I'm still a sarcastic little shit, but I try to make sure people know when I'm teasing, and I try not to say things I can't take back.

14. Book you can't believe you waited UNTIL 2013 to finally read?

Oh man, this one's hard. Because I read a couple of classics this year. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (which I think I would have liked more if I had read it earlier in life), The Hobbit (which I also might have liked more at a younger age?), Jane Eyre (which I feel pretty sure I would have loved in high school and I'm not sure how I didn't read it then), and Peter Pan (which I might have liked more when I was younger, but I can't tell because it was super weird. And probably something I'll read to my own kids.)

15. Favorite passage/ quote from a book you read in 2013?

From "The Cut-Glass Bowl" from Flappers & Philosophers by F. Scott Fitzgerald:

"You see, I am fate," it shouted, "and stronger than your puny plans; and I am how-things-turn-out and I am different from your little dreams, and I am the flight of time and the end of beauty and unfulfilled desire; all the accidents and imperceptions and the little minutes that shape the crucial hours are mine. I am the exception that proves no rules, the limits of your control, the condiment in the dish of life."

16. Shortest & Longest Books you read in 2013? 

Longest: A Dance with Dragons by George R. R. Martin (surprise, surprise. Those books are monsters.)

Shortest: Since I'm not going to include the picture book, it becomes the middle grade book Frankie Pickle and the Mathematical Menace by Eric Wight (which was fantastic!!!)

17. Book that had a scene in it that had you reeling and dying to talk to someone about it (a WTF moment, an epic revelation, a steamy kiss, etc. etc)? Be careful of spoilers!

Eleanor & Park had one of those. So did Allegiant for sure. 

18. Favorite relationship from a book you read in 2013 (be it romantic, friendship, etc)

This is gonna surprise y'all, but Eleanor and Park from E&P was amazing. Celia and Marco from the Night Circus. Jane and Rochester from Jane Eyre. Minho, Newt and Thomas from the Maze Runner series. 

19. Favorite book you read in 2013 from an author you'd read previously?

Probably A Dance with Dragons.

20. Best book you read in 2013 which you read SOLELY based on the recommendation of someone else?

Probably Ghana Must Go which Rosianna recommended in this video.

21. Genre you read the most from in 2013? 

Looks like young adult fantasy. 

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2013?

Park. All the way. Oh my god, Park. Like Levi was great, but Park is possibly perfect for me. 

23. Best 2013 debut you read?

Once again, I have to mention The Night Circus, and Thirteen Reasons Why, and Hyperbole and a Half. I want more from all of these authors. (And I have The Future of Us in my tbr for 2014!! Yay!!)

24. Most vivid world/ imagery in a book you read in 2013?

Either A Dance with Dragons or the Night Circus. I think Night Circus wins on the basis that it manages to tie with a book that had four other books' worth of build up. That's pretty damn impressive.

25. Book that was the most fun to read in 2013?

It may have been the shortest I read at 96 pages, but Frankie Pickle and the Mathematical Menace was a lot of fun. 

26. Book that made you cry or nearly cry in 2013?

This is a shitty question for me because I am a cryer in general. 

So, here's a list: The Madness Underneath by Maureen Johnson, The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein (even though I saw the reason coming from a mile away, I still couldn't hold back my tears.), Ghana Must Go by Taiye Selasi, Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell, Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh, and Allegiant by Veronica Roth.

27. Book you read in 2013 which you think got overlooked this year or the year it came out?

I think American Born Chinese has not gotten enough love that I've seen. It's just so good. 

1. New favorite book blog you discovered in 2013?

Ugh this is so hard because I just discovered ALL THE BLOGS this year. I guess you can guess my favorites are AnnaReads and PerpetualPageTurner. But I also love, love, love The Broke & the Bookish, Adventures of Cecelia Bedelia, So Obsessed With, Hopeless Romantics, The Book Addict's Guide, Book Rock Betty, Paper Riot, The Grown-Up YA, Sash and Em, and The Paper Sea...just to name a few, haha.

2. Favorite review that you wrote in 2013?

Hahahaha, I haven't written many review on this blog yet. But the one that's closest to my heart is definitely my review of Eleanor & Park which is over on goodreads.

3. Best discussion you've had on your blog? 

I haven't really had much discussion on my blog, yet. Thanks Stephanie from Hopeless Romantics for my one and only comment!! I look forward to more discussion on my blog in 2014!

4. Most thought-provoking review or discussion you read on someone else's blog? 

I feel like I've read quite a few blogs lately, but nothing that's been super intense. I mean, for me personally, I really liked two of Jamie's post of Perpetual Page Turner. Check them out here and here. 

5. Best event that you participated in?

Definitely this survey!

6. Best moment of book blogging / your book life in 2013?

Starting this blog!

7. Most popular post this year on your blog?

Well by number of views (since I haven't gotten many comments yet) this post on the 10 books I'm most thankful for is the winner!!

8. Post you wished got a little more love?

Uhm. Probably all of them. I haven't written something that I feel really passionate about yet. 

9. Best bookish discovery?

Book blogging in general!! I hadn't realized how large and awesome it is! I'm excited to join in with my own thoughts.

10. Did you complete any reading goals or challenges that you had set for yourself at the beginning of this year?

Uh. No.

1. One book you didn't get to in 2013 but will be your number one priority in 2014?

This is a hard one because I do have a huge stack of books to get to. I guess I'll say Splintered by A. G. Howard because I have an ARC of Unhinged to read as well.

2. Book you are most anticipating for 2014 (non-debut)?

Isla and the Happily Ever After!! PLEASE COME OUT IN 2014!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

3. 2014 Debut you are most anticipating?

Probably No One Else Can Have You by Kathleen Hale. It looks awesome.

4. Series ending you are most anticipating in 2014?

Uhhhhhh. I don't know that I'm really anticipating any at the moment. I haven't quite gotten to most of the series which I know have books coming out in 2014.

5. One thing you hope to accomplish or do in your reading/blogging in 2014?

Read 100 books!! This will be the year I do this!!

I've been keeping an eye on other surveys, but for those of you who don't officially blog, answer your favorite questions! I'm a particular fan of books which make me cry, so if you have any suggestions, let me know!