Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly book meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. 
This Week’s Topic : Your Top Ten Recent 5 Star Reads
Book reviewing is interesting. You read a lot, and you enjoy a lot of what you read, but you can’t just give everything five stars. Not everything is perfect, not everything can be among the pantheon of best things you’ve ever read.
I’ve been trying to think harder about my ratings when I go to review books. A year ago if you looked at my Goodreads I think my average review score was a 4.6. Not especially helpful, right? Everything is the best ever!
But you know what, some things are. Some things are phenomenal enough to move you and make you feel like you’ve said goodbye to a friend once the reading is over. And here are the last 10 books that I gave that designation to :
- Blankets by Craig Thompson – a graphic novel about growing up and first love in rural Wisconsin amidst a religious family and choices about life.
- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling – the book that kicked off the entire saga of the Boy Who Lived.
- The Color Purple by Alice Walker – two sisters navigate their lives and families in the midst of abuse, missionary work, and the 1930s South.
- Between the World and Me – Ta-Nehisi Coates – a letter from a father to his son about race, history, and the black experience.
- Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow – the most complete biography of a founding father with a fascinating life of success, scandal, and tragedy.
- Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi – graphic novel about life in early 1980s Iran, when everything began to change
- Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke – a tale of England’s two practicing magicians, and how they influenced war, culture, and the entire country.
- The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson – a serial killer, a murder hotel, and a festival that defined a city.
- Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer – the tale of tragedy on Everest, and what drives people to climb.
- The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood – a dystopian future where women’s bodies are in no way their own.
The Laurenest 
I love your list! I’m always especially happy to see Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, and I’m so impatient for her to write another book. And you’re right, there’s no way everything can be five stars, but like you I’m an enthusiastic rater. Maybe were just better at picking books that are right for us?
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She needs to write a sequel right now! It’s been, what, 10 years now?
I hear you on book picking though. I read the occasional book that ends up being a 2 Star (which to me, translates as a shoulder shrug “meh” kind of book) but rarely even bother with things that don’t interest me because there are already too many books to read- of course I’m going to read what I know I’ll enjoy!
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I recently finished Jonathan Strange and girrll, I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would. I also want to read Alexander Hamilton, especially because I’m obsessed with the cast recording of Hamilton. haha.
Really love how diverse your 5-star reads are.
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If you love the Hamilton Musical the book will have an extra layer of fun- you can really pick out where Miranda got his ideas and themes for the songs. It’s super interesting!
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I haven’t read these, but I’ve heard great things about Devil in the White City.
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Your list is the best one I’ve seen thus far. It’s also filled with the most books I’d actually like to read. Hamilton has been on my list for a couple weeks now, but I have to wait until my book buying ban is over to get it! Persepolis is SO GREAT– see the movie if you haven’t already. You’re also the second person I’ve seen with Blankets on their list. Maybe it’s something I should check out too? We’ll see. Going through people’s lists this week has made me want to add several books to my TBR list… and there’s no more room.
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Thanks! Blankets is very personal, like Persepolis was, though with less of a global scale? I have yet to see the Persepolis movie unfortunately. Gotta hunt that down…
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Great list! I read The Devil in the White City recently as well, and it was fantastic. I loved Persepolis, too. And I saw the movie version, which was quite good.
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Great, diverse picks! I especially love Blankets and Persepolis–they are seriously two of the best graphic novels, period. If you enjoyed those (and haven’t read it yet), I think you might enjoy Fun Home by Alison Bechdel, another very personal and touching graphic memoir.
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Love Fun Home! I read it a few years back. Excellent book.
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