T5W: Best Books I've Read in 2018 So Far

Top 5 Wednesday is a Goodreads group which provides weekly topics and you can find it here.

This week’s prompt is your Top 5 Best Books You’ve Read So Far in 2018. This prompt is pretty self-explanatory, so let's dive right in, shall we?

1. The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden A fantasy set in medieval Russia, a spunky heroine, a loving family, bundles of folklore and luscious prose, this book captivated me from the first chapter and never let me go.

2. Home by Nnedi Okorafor A sci-fi novella of Afro-futurism, Okorafor packs so much worldbuilding and character into such few words and it's a wonder to behold. The whole trilogy is excellent, but the second installment is my favorite. Also, Okwu is the angry alien of my heart.

3. Young Jane Young by Gabrielle Zevin Much is made about "unlikeable" female characters and "strong female characters". This book is full of both, full of nuanced, three-dimensional, and oh, so flawed women, and each and every one of them didn't break my heart. An insightful and unflinching look at the current state of misogyny in the world, specifically in the microcosm of American politics, this book was never a mere polemic, but an intimate character study and story of persistence.

4. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows A work of historical fiction, Guernsey is an epistolary novel set immediately after World War II. It's the literary equivalent of a warm cup of tea and a hug from an old friend. I cannot WAIT for Netflix to drop the film adaptation here in the states.

5. American Wolf by Nate Blakeslee Easily one of the best works of non-fiction I've ever read, the book is brilliantly informative, nuanced in its discussion of the many factors that contribute to the lives of the Yellowstone wolves, but also a hair-raising, edge-of-your-seat read of the ever-shifting dynamics between packs and individual wolves.

Images: Pixabay

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