My favorite thing about books are the emotions that come with them. Complete surprise, giddy excitement, aching sadness—whatever it is, a book has to be pretty phenomenal to have you feeling the emotions as completely as the characters do. My most favorite books are my favorites because they had this emotional element that created a connection with me as a reader. Book lovers, do you know what I mean?
Has a book ever left you in tears? The closest I’ve come to this is after the devastation of a particular moment had me lying in shock on my bed, the voice in my head wailing for a good ten minutes before I could continue reading my book (The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness). The conclusion of this series also left my mind screaming, my reaction amplified as there were no more pages to turn to quell my shock. (I happened to read this series over quarantine while school was online, so I may have been reading instead of working on my project for art class or writing my essay for english…)
What about a book that leaves you stifling the urge to throw it across the room? After a cliffhanger in the middle of a series (Dread Nation by Justina Ireland), it was a battle not to do this. I was so astonished, however I was grudgingly applauding the author and her work. (Unpopular opinion: I’m all for a well placed cliffhanger or a shocker such as the tragic death of a beloved character, because then it makes the book more memorable!!!)
What about a sudden plot twist that you never could have expected? One book (Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo) had me silently sitting in my chair, my brain whirling but me slightly smiling because of the pure genius and unexpectedness of the protagonist’s scheme (and, in turn, the author’s genius to create this plot). This book astonished me because of the author’s ability to cause readers to not realize that the hero was tricking us along with the villains.
It’s incredibly amazing how authors can continue to surprise us readers. I often wish that I could reread my favorite books like it was my first time, with no idea what the pages hold and no memory of their plots. But since I can’t magically give myself amnesia for this sole reason, I will continue to get more books in hopes of having another great adventure.
