25 Books for 25 Years

Hello reader! Welcome back to my blog. Today (31/03) is my birthday! I came up with the idea for this post in the middle of the night a couple months back and I’m really excited to finally share it. For each year from 1998 to 2022 I am sharing a book, series or author that I have loved or has shaped me in some way and made me the little bookworm I am today. As you may have worked out from the title of this post, I am twenty-five today, so I am sharing 25 books for 25 years!

1998 – Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets / Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling

The Harry Potter Series had to make it here on my list. I adore this world so much, it’s such a great source of comfort for me and I’ve constantly returned to the safety of these pages year after year. I will forever love these books, they mean more to me than I could ever begin to express.

1999 – Stardust by Neil Gaiman

Neil Gaiman wields great magic in his writing to create such stories as Stardust. The fairy tale like quality appeals to a wide audience. I love adult fairy tales. We so often lack the magic imagination can offer, books like this can offer that in boatloads. I need to make it my mission going forward to read more of his work.

2000 – The Princess Diaries / Series by Meg Cabot

From the ages of around eight to twelve I devoured these books. I wouldn’t even begin to imagine how many times I re-read this series. The series has such a fun and adorable mix of characters, when paired with a cheesy storyline, you can’t really go wrong! Little Jade loved these books so it wouldn’t feel right if they weren’t here on my list.

2001 – Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn

This book is so unbelievably creative, it’s just so clever I can’t ever stop thinking about it! I love books with an original and imaginative twist in the writing, and Ella Minnow Pea surpasses all those expectations and delivers even more. This was also the first book I reviewed on this blog. If you have not read it I highly recommend!

2002 – Shopaholic Ties the Knot / Shopaholic Series by Sophie Kinsella

This was the first adult series I read when I was about twelve or thirteen. I remember my mum and I scouring the charity shops to find the books missing from my collection. I haven’t re-read this series as an adult so perhaps I should think about doing that, and getting the remaining books in the series I have yet to read. I also have a lot more of Sophie Kinsella’s books on my shelves as I spent most of my teenage years devouring her writing.

2003 – The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

This was a book I studied during my A-levels and I at the time I couldn’t wrap my head around how astonishingly amazing it is. Hosseini delivers the story flawlessly, making certain it is one you will never forget. The Kite Runner sits on my favourite books of all time list and I will always recommend it to people.

2004 – PS, I Love You by Cecelia Ahern

Like Sophie Kinsella, Cecelia Ahern’s books were a big favourite of mine as a teenager and this was the book that started it all. Her books were my transition from children’s fiction to adult. I’ll always associate her with that period of discovery for me and I’m still drawn to her books in stores today. She is another author you’ll find all over my bookshelves!

2005 – The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

This is my favourite book of all time. I can’t even put into words what this book means to me! It love that it is narrated by Death, I think that is such a brilliant notion that lends to an entirely new perspective. There is so much power behind these words and each re-read offers up something new. Note to self: re-read this book again soon.

2006 – Mates, Dates, and Sizzling Summers / Mates, Dates Series by Cathy Hopkins

This was another favourite series of mine alongside The Princess Diaries. I read these twelve books over and over again! I was quite a lonely child and liked to imagine I was part of this friendship group. I think, looking back, these characters shaped me more than I realised.

2007 – Wild Magic by Cat Weatherill

When I was in primary school, author and storyteller Cat Weatherill visited and to this day I can still recall her workshop. I think her passion and imagination worked its way to my soul, and it has been burning brightly there ever since. She is the reason why I have wanted to be an author since the age of 10! As you can tell, my copy of this book is very worn, very loved!

2008 – Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah

I remember reading this book on the bus on my way home from Sixth Form, and crying my eyes out the moment I stepped off the bus! That moment has stayed with me, as there are vey few books that have made me cry like that.

2009 – Percy Jackson and the Last Olympian / Percy Jackson Series by Rick Riordan

I love the Percy Jackson books! I re-read them last year and they are, simply put, phenomenal. These books were my gateway into mythological fiction, which is now one of my favourite genres to read. I have finally convinced my partner to read them but he is getting through them way to slowly for my liking!

2010 – The Hunger Games: Mockingjay / The Hunger Games Series by Suzanne Collins

I remember when I was first reading The Hunger Games I read both Catching Fire and Mockingjay in one day because I was in complete awe! Then as soon as I had finished I started them all over again. This franchise had such a massive impact on me and opened up eyes to Dystopian Fiction which I still love to this day.

2011 – The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

I fell head over heels in love with The Night Circus, because the writing is just so phenomenal, it truly captured my imagination. The descriptions of place and setting in The Night Circus are nothing short of pure beauty. Each word is completely enchanting pulling you right into the heart of the pages.

2012 – The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

This was obviously a very popular book when it was released, but I as usual was a little late to the party. I can recall this book crushing my sixteen-year old heart and I ran to my mum in tears! I doubt I would find it having this effect on me now and I don’t think I would enjoy it anywhere near as much but at the time I loved it, so it has made the list.

2013 – Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

I was absolutely obsessed with this book and stayed up until three in the morning on a school night to read it! Still worth it in my opinion. It’s one of those books that I shall probably never read again but it made such a massive impact on me, I’ll forever love it.

2014 – We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

I only read this one last year but I was utterly floored by it! I closed the book and just sat and stared at it for a while, unable to gather my thoughts or pick up my jaw. My only wish is that I had read it sooner, but I am a great believer of knowing that a book will come to you in it’s right time, so I shall never know what impact it would have had on me earlier on.

2015 – All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

I loved this book so much. I was struggling so badly with my own mental health at the time as a teenager and kept it all to myself. It was such a welcome relief at the time to read those themes and not feel so alone. There is so much raw emotion in these pages that I admire wholeheartedly. Big round of applause for this one.

2016 – Always With Love by Giovanna Fletcher

Giovanna Fletcher has been an auto-buy author of mine since her debut Billy and Me and her books have encouraged me further to become an author. As you can see, I have most of her collection! I always look forward to seeing what she will create next.

2017 – The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

I was so amazed by this book. The storytelling in this is a work of art. I think it will be a while until I find another book like this one that gripped me so tightly. The addition of newspaper articles paired with the writing seamlessly, resulting in a film-like production from the way characters were portrayed to how the entire story was told.

2018 – Circe by Madeline Miller

I love Madeline Miller’s writing. I have just finished reading Circe, a wonderous marvel. I am in awe of her retellings of popular Greek mythology. She has fuelled my love for mythology further and I can’t wait to see where this passion will take me next.

2019 – The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

This book was a delight to read. I was initially anxious of its size, seriously this book could be a weapon. But the way the author split up the story and introduced several narratives to deliver it all, made it feel like many epic tales all wrapped up in one. The sense of achievement I felt when finishing this book too is one I will never forget.

2020 – The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

I think this book came to me exactly when I needed it. The message delivered is inspiring and encouraging, as none of us can ever really know where life is going to take is next. I would like to explore more of Matt Haig’s work to see what other perspectives he has to offer a reader like myself.

2021 – Medusa by Jessie Burton

Since reading The Miniaturist I have become a huge fan of Jessie Burton’s writing. I am really drawn to her writing style, it’s perfect for how my brain operates! So far I have loved the stories she has chosen to write and share, and I am excited to see what else she delivers. One of my auto-buy authors for sure!

2022 – The Leviathan by Rosie Andrews

This is one of my favourite types of fiction; a healthy dose of historical fiction mixed with a dash of fantasy, I am in heaven. This is certainly an intriguing tale, one with a lot of possibility and potential. I’m always looking for new suggestions that fit this description!

So as it turns out I haven’t read that many books from 2021 and 2022 so my options were slim to choose from, I guess this is my sign to read some more! Oh no, what a shame… This was such a fun post to put together. Traversing through my shelves to pick out the books that have meant to much to me invoked such joy, and trying to match up books to years and fit in all the favourites was a welcome challenge! There are so many more books that could have made this list, and a lot of my favourites are older than I am so unfortunately couldn’t be part of this post, but perhaps I’ll compile all of my favourites in a post soon.

Thank you for reading!

Jade Anna x