Top Ten Tuesday --- Top Ten Books I'd Give To Readers Who Have Never Read These Books!!

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish.

Each week a new Top Ten list that one of the bloggers at The Broke and the Bookish will answer. Everyone is welcome to join. All they ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget, so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow book bloggers!!

This is the first Top Ten Tuesday (that I can recall) where I've easily been able to come up with more than ten books to share!! The difficult part was to narrow down my list to JUST ten books!! Not an easy task for me to accomplish. The titles below are not in any particular order of preference. I just made the list of books as they came to mind. 

1. The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein

This was hands down my favorite novel that I read in 2013!! It's told through the eyes of Enzo, the family dog, and is marvelously told. I found myself crying in parts of this novel. If you love dogs, then this is a MUST read novel!!

2. The Sacred Well by Antoinette May

I loved reading this novel in 2011!! Here's a quick blurb about it.

Amazon Editorial Review:

A young reporter in 1923, Alma Reed accompanies archaeologists to the ruins of Chichen Itza, where a fortune in Mayan artifacts has been stolen from a sacrificial well. It's believed a curse was unleashed by the theft—yet the career-making story it offers the ambitious journalist seems a godsend. It also leads her to a passionate love affair with revolutionary governor Felipe Carrillo Puerto. But when fate darkens their lives and damns them as doomed political pawns, Alma can't help but wonder if the curse is not, in fact, very real. 

In another century, another writer is fascinated by Alma's tragic story. Drawn restlessly to Yucatán—and away from the stifling needs of her desperately ill partner—Sage Sanborn is tempted by her growing feelings for David, a scientist who encourages her to delve deeper into Alma's history. And in this ancient place of mystery and spirits, Sage must make an impossible decision that will forever change the course of her life.

3. Mind Over Medicine: Scientific Proof That You Can Heal Yourself by Lissa Rankin M. D.

This was my favorite nonfiction read for 2013!! I'd been having some health issues (which are still ongoing) and this book really gave me the scientific proof that one can heal themselves. It's an awesome book to read whether you're dealing with an illness/health condition or not.

4. The Soloist by Steve Lopez

I listened to the unabridged audio version of this nonfiction book earlier this year. 'The Soloist' really struck a chord with me. I enjoyed reading about the friendship that developed between Steve Lopez and Nathaniel Ayers. Plus, 'The Soloist' gave me a new understanding/perspective mental illness.

The true story of journalist Steve Lopez's discovery of Nathanial Ayers, a former classical bass student at Julliard, playing his heart out on a two-string violin on Los Angeles' Skid Row. Deeply affected by the beauty of Ayers music, Lopez took it upon himself to change the prodigy's life-only to find that their relationship would have a profound change on his own life.

5. People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks

This novel was a magically, beautifully written book to me!! I loved it. Geraldine Brooks is a gifted writer and I love her storytelling. 'People of the Book' is my favorite novel by Geraldine Brooks to date.

Amazon Review:

One of the earliest Jewish religious volumes to be illuminated with images, the Sarajevo Haggadah survived centuries of purges and wars thanks to people of all faiths who risked their lives to safeguard it. Geraldine Brooks, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of March, has turned the intriguing but sparely detailed history of this precious volume into an emotionally rich, thrilling fictionalization that retraces its turbulent journey. In the hands of Hanna Heath, an impassioned rare-book expert restoring the manuscript in 1996 Sarajevo, it yields clues to its guardians and whereabouts: an insect wing, a wine stain, salt crystals, and a white hair. While readers experience crucial moments in the book's history through a series of fascinating, fleshed-out short stories, Hanna pursues its secrets scientifically, and finds that some interests will still risk everything in the name of protecting this treasure. A complex love story, thrilling mystery, vivid history lesson, and celebration of the enduring power of ideas, People of the Book will surely be hailed as one of the best of 2008. 

6. A Hero of Our Time by Mikhail Lermontov

I graduated from college with a Russian language degree. I loved learning the Russian language and I have also enjoyed reading Russian classics. 'A Hero of Our Time' is one of my favorite Russian classics. I've read it several times. It's a fast, fun classic novel to read.

7. Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

I loved this novel!! I read it for a book club group that I was part of and it was a fabulous. There were a lot of plot twists and turns that kept this novel from being predictable. It was definitely a captivating read. I also liked many of the characters in this novel as well.


8. Grayson by Lynne Cox

I loved this short nonfiction book. Lynne Cox is a long distance swimmer. During her teenage years, she had an amazing encounter with a baby whale during a long distance swim off the coast of California in Seal Beach. Ms. Cox's experience with the baby whale and helping find its mother is nothing short of miraculous!

9. Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace With Marriage by Elizabeth Gilbert

I'll admit that I am not a fan of 'Eat, Pray, Love' by Elizabeth Gilbert, but I absolutely loved listening to the unabridged audio version of 'Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace With Marriage', which was written and read by Elizabeth Gilbert. I loved reading about how Elizabeth Gilbert's relationship with her new hubby, how they felt about marriage and how they ended up deciding to marry each other.


10. East of Eden by John Steinbeck

I read 'East of Eden' in 2008. Steinbeck's writing is amazing!! His writing is very descriptive, yet it flows effortlessly when you read it. I feel that Steinbeck is a natural born storyteller. When I read 'East of Eden' it was very easy to follow the story and visualize the events as they happened. The characters in 'East of Eden' are richly developed and numerous. They are ones I will likely not forget anytime soon. 'East of Eden' is definitely a novel I could read over and over again. 

So, share with me your Top Ten List of books to give readers who've never read x by leaving me a comment below.