2017 YEAR IN BOOK REVIEW
Back in December, I was tagged by A BookTube Book, who is also my wonderful and incredibly talented sister, to participate and complete this book tag. Initially, I had wanted to wait until the year is over before doing so, except life got in the way and now we’re in mid-January and I just had to sit myself down and get to it!
Before we begin, a little context. Every year, I set a reading target that I aim to complete by December. In 2017, my target was to read 85 books and I ended up reading 86 books, which I’m really proud of, given the year I’ve had. This year, my target is to read 90 books. Fingers crossed. So far, I’ve had a bit of a slow start, so I’m hoping it picks up…soon.
Now, back to the book tag. This is actually quite an interesting tag, and I do encourage all book lovers and avid readers to take part in the #2017yearinbookreview. It’s not too late! The idea is that Farah, from A BookTube Book, chose major world news headlines from 2017 and linked them to book prompts, simultaneously summing up the year in news as well as your year in books.
Therefore, she presented us with 11 prompts or topics that we need to respond to, and they are:
1. First ever female Doctor Who - favorite female protagonist
2. GCC Cuts Ties with Qatar - an author you cut ties with
3. La La Land Oscar mix-up - a book that surprised you
4. Hurricanes and Earthquakes - a book that rocked your world
5. Louvre Abu Dhabi opening - favorite book cover art
6. Da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi sells for $450m - a TAKE-MY-MONEY book
7. Total Eclipse - sequel that overshadowed the first book
8. Muslim Ban - favorite diverse read
9. Italy doesn’t qualify for World Cup - most disappointing read
10. Prince Harry in love - favorite ‘ship’
11. Star Wars “The Last Jedi” - most anticipated read/buy
Here are my answers (all books pictured above):
1. Samar from Under the Almond Tree, if you haven’t read this book yet, pick it up now!
2. R.L. Stine, I read some of his new stuff and oh my Lord. I cut ties with him so permanently that I didn’t even include his book in the picture.
3. Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson, the way it started and the way it ended blew my mind.
4. Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds for sure. You can read my full review here.
5. I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika Sánchez. Full disclosure, I actually have not read this book yet, but the cover art is gorgeous!
6. The Deal of a Lifetime by Fredrik Backman. Sure, for a tiny book it’s quite pricey, but I would buy and read anything for Backman, and this one did not disappoint. Full review here.
7. I have nothing for this one. I racked my brain, but came up empty.
8. Born A Crime by Trevor Noah. This is a non-fiction read about Trevor Noah by Trevor Noah, and it is incredible. I would highly recommend you listen to the audiobook as well. It’s narrated by Trevor Noah himself, and he reads it so well! You can find my review here.
9. Turtles All the Way Down by John Green. So disappointing. Enough said. You can find my review here.
10. Charlotte and Jamie from A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro.
11. Beartown by Fredrik Backman. I was eagerly waiting for this book’s release and devoured it once I got my hands on it. Word of warning: it is not for the weak. Full review here.
That’s it! Those are my picks for the 2017 Book Tag by A BookTube Book. If you are a book-lover or an aspiring writer, then I highly recommend you visit her YouTube channel and her Instagram page for endless inspiration and lots of laughs!
Also, I’d love to hear what your 2017 picks are in the comments!