FAVOURITE BOOKS OF 2019

Although 2019 ended almost a month ago, I still keep thinking back to some of my absolute-favourite reads of last year. I am going to keep this blog post short as it is not of much significance but rather a journal entry of my thoughts as I think back to my favourite books of 2019.

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10. Six of Crows (The Six of Crows Duology #1) by Leigh Bardugo 

R A T I N G :

Every year I try to binge all of an author or two’s books. I think it is just a great way for me to tick off all of their books on my TBR and to get to know these authors through their writing style.

Leigh Bardugo’s books were (are) completely raved about. Everywhere I hear bookstagrammers talk about her work and the amazing world of Grisha, as well as the characters that she creates.

Being absolutely intrigued, I decided to join in by binging The Language of Thorns, the Shadow and Bone trilogy as well as this duology, and then later King of Scars. Out of all her books, I found myself enjoying (and remembering) this duology the most.

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9. Crooked Kingdom (The Six of Crows Duology #2) by Leigh Bardugo

R A T I N G :

Both these books were energetic, mischief and above all, they kept me on my toes. The characters, to me, felt so real and I just could not help but like them all.

Thinking back, I remember enjoying this one a bit more than the first book but nonetheless, all Leigh Bardugo’s books were captivating, extremely enjoyable and rememberable.

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8. Crooked House by Agatha Christie 

R A T I N G :

Although Crooked House is not one of my five-star-rated books of 2019, I find myself not being able to forget about it. This book was my first read by Agatha Christie. I grew up knowing her name because my grandfather was a fan of her books. Honestly, I do not know why I waited so long to pick up a book of hers because I really enjoyed it.

I did not end up giving it a full five stars because to me, it was not all that scary. Do not get me wrong, it is an amazing mystery/thriller but I was able to guess who the murderer was as I reached the middle of the novel.

However, it is a book I really loved and definitely a story I will never forget, which, in my opinion, counts a bit as a favourite despite the rating.

I am excited to get to the movie, hopefully, soon!

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7. The Dark Between Stars by Atticus Poetry

A while back, I came across Atticus Poetry’s Instagram page and I immediately fell in love with his words and poems. His first book, Love Her Wild, had just recently released when I came across his work and I have been a big fan ever since. Out of his three books, I found myself loving this one the most.   

Atticus’ words have the ability to transport you to nostalgic summer nights where it feels as if the stars are dancing and swirling around you, and where you spend time laughing while sharing stories with family, friends and loved ones.

I think the reason I resonate most with his words is because he has the rare ability to evoke feelings and memories from deep inside your heart and mind.

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6. My Family and Other Animals (Corfu Trilogy #1) by Gerald Durrell 

Having always dreaded the required books for Literature classes in school, I put off this one until the last minute because I assumed it would be boring and unenjoyable.

I was pleasantly surprised as I read more and more of it. This was my first autobiography and it will always be one of my most memorable reads.

I reread it twice for school and loved it both times. The storyline was just so unique and the author described everything with such detail—not to forget about the characters (his family) and their pets. Each member of the Durrell family had this humorous yet dramatic personality that I found highly amusing.

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5. Droomdelwers by Esta Steyn 

Again, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I ended up liking this book. I had to read this for my Afrikaans Literature class last year and the plot was not what I had expected.

This story takes place in two small towns and is set in the year 2005—with flashbacks to earlier years and events. It is mostly about the line that is drawn between white people and people of colour, and the rich and poor. With insights of what is going on in all the characters’ lives in each chapter, it really kept me interested until the end.

I would say that the genre is a mixture of drama, mystery and about the impact apartheid had on the people of all cultures and backgrounds in South Africa.

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4. Only Dull People Are Brilliant at Breakfast by Oscar Wilde

I guess you can say that this was the first classic I have ever read. A few years ago, the idea to start reading classics never crossed my mind but as I got older, I have only been more intrigued.

Last year, I bought this book and immediately started reading it because it was so thin and quick to get through. Only Dull People Are Brilliant at Breakfast is a book filled with what I can only describe as quotes or short sentences.

In these few pages, you can clearly see why Oscar Wilde is known for his witty and humours work. He had a way of stating the obvious and wrote what others were “too scared” to admit.

Thinking back, I cannot remember why I did not give it five stars because it still is one of the most memorable books I have read in 2019.

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3. Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid 

This book exploded all over the bookish community when it was released. Everybody was talking—no, raving—about it.

The audiobook was most talked about and so, I made this the first one I ever listened to. It was, for sure, one of the best ‘bookish’ decisions I have ever made.

It had a full cast which kept my interest and helped me differentiate between who was who. These characters were alive in a way that I have not experienced with any other characters. Listening to this audiobook while closing your eyes is like watching a movie.

This is an audiobook I would recommend to anyone!

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2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Harry Potter #7) by J.K. Rowling

After all this time (see what I did there?), I finally read the Harry Potter books. I admit, I was afraid that I would not like the Wizarding World as much as everyone else does.

This world and the characters made me feel part of the story. The entire series had me completely captivated. I cannot put how much I loved it to words. Never have I enjoyed a series so much. 

I feel like I am not talking about this/these books as much as I did with the others but I guess it is just hard. Thinking back to all the emotions I felt when I dived from one book to the other as I binged them all from June until August last year, I cannot help but feel overwhelmed.

These books had me mesmerised, captivated, heartbroken, laughing and smiling. The amount of tears I cried—especially with this book—is riddikulus (pun intended).

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1. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Harry Potter #6) by J.K. Rowling 

Always (again, see what I did there? I just had to), these books will be my favourite series. I do not have much to say for this one that I had not already mentioned above, except that I think it changed everything. The entire story of Harry Potter lead up to this book. It was the book where the Battle of Hogwarts officially began.

It kept me on my toes and had me hanging on every word just a bit more than the other books did.

I also made the decision to try and reread the series every year around autumn/winter. I think the weather just adds to the magical atmosphere of the books and it is a great way to catch up on things I did not notice when I first read them.

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I think this blog post turned out a bit longer than I thought it would but it felt good talking about these books and refreshing my memory. Please let me know if you also read any of these books in 2019 and if you did, if they happened to be your favourites too.

Keep on reading and never stop telling stories.

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