Bookworm 101- Books to help become a Reader

” What was the book that started it for you?” my friend, Soomin asked over coffee last week. We were casually talking about my transitioning out of my industry into a new one, and I mentioned that I wrote a book blog for fun. Which then lead to his question and got me thinking, when it comes to reading and actually starting a blog about it, what books were the ones that got me on this path? What were the books and who were the authors that turned me into a reader? Every reader is different, and every situation is different. Maybe it was a childhood book or when your parents read to you at night,  but for me, my love of reading came much later in life.

It started my senior year in high school, and up to that point, reading was something you did over summer and was required by your teachers. It was not something one did for fun, but out of obligation. Then, that all changed when I opened Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. I was reluctant at first, but my English teacher told me to ” Don’t knock it until you try it” so I read it. I was hooked. It was the first time in my young life that I understood when people spoke about their favorite books, and how they loved to read. It was the first time that it dawned on me that books could be intriguing and fascinating, and attention-grabbing.  I needed more, and I haven’t stopped since. However, it wasn’t just Brave New World that kept me going, it just started the fire. There have been so many other books that have sparked my interest and kept me interested. So I am providing you a list of the books that have kept the bookworm fire burning after all these years. I present to you Bookworm 101- Books to help become a Reader:

• The OG: Brave New World – 
• The First binge-read: Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire(then the rest of the series)
• The Game Changer: Interview with the Vampire
• The book & the movie are equally good in their own way: The GodFather
• The book that scared me: The Last Exit to Brooklyn & The Handmaid’s Tale
• The book I recommend to everyone: Text Me When You Get Home
• The All-Time favorite: Pride & Prejudice
• The book that started an obsession: Crime & Punishment (Russian Literature Obsession, still going strong)
• The book that made me think WTF: Even Cowgirls Get the Blues
• The Romance novel that got me to like Romance: The Duke & I by Julia Quinn
• The Guilty Pleasure: Sarah MacLean – she writes romance and I am obsessed with her
• Author I will read forever: Tasha Alexander The Lady Emily Mysteries  but I will read anything she writes
• Binge-worthy YA: The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer
• Non-Fiction I didn’t fall asleep reading: Dead Presidents: An American Adventure into the Strange Deaths and Surprising Afterlives of Our Nations Leaders, Feminist Don’t Wear Pink, & anything by Roxanne Gay.
• Life-Changing Memoir: Stir: My Broken Brain and the Meals that Brought me Home 
• For the Foodies: A History of the World in 6 Glasses & Salt: A World History
• The Classic Everyone Should Read: Anna Karenina
• The ” Well, it’s weird but you need to read it”:  A Long Journey to a Small and Angry Planet
• Best Historical Adaptation: The Killer Angels
• Series worth Reading: The Bear & Knightingale Series

I could go on & on, but this is just to help you get your toes wet, from there you can venture into other genres. The world is your book oyster! Feel Free to write on your own blogs what your book choices would be and tag me! I would love to see what others would put down for their Bookworm 101- Books to help become a Reader list.  I hope you are all staying cool out there in the summer heat and finding great books to tuck into within an airconditioned home!

Stay cool & Happy Reading!