Books of 2014

Books read: 56

The Killing Woods by Lucy Christopher* ✦ Eat Brains Love by Jeff Hart* ✦ Boxers by Gene Luen Yang ✦ Saints by Gene Luen Yang ✦ Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl ✦ Tin Star by Cecil Castelucci* ✦ The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things by Carolyn Mackler ✦ The Floating Islands by Rachel Neumeier ✦ Paper Valentine by Brenna Yovanoff ✦ Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion ✦ Don’t Even Think About It by Sarah Mlynowski* ✦ I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore ✦ The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner ✦ The Isobel Journal by Isobel Harrop* ✦ Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick ✦ The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen ✦ Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard ✦ The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski* ✦ Shadowfell by Juliet Marillier ✦ To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han* ✦ Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen ✦ The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan ✦ The Truth About Alice by Jennifer Mathieu* ✦ Salt and Storm by Kendall Kulper* ✦ The Emperor’s Soul by Brandon Sanderson ✦ In Real Life by Cory Doctorow* ✦ The Fourteenth Goldfish by Jennifer Holm* ✦ Catherine, Called Birdy by Karen Cushman ✦ Sisters by Raina Telgemeier* ✦ This One Summer by Mariko and Jillian Tamaki* ✦ Matched by Ally Condie ✦ The Tyrant’s Daughter by J. C. Carleson* ✦ The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han ✦ The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo ✦ Seconds by Bryan Lee O’Malley* ✦ Remaking the John by Francesca DiPiazza* ✦ Chernobyl’s Wild Kingdom by Rebecca L. Johnson* ✦ Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn ✦ The Crossover by Kwame Alexander* ✦ Better Nate Than Ever by Tim Federle ✦ Zac & Mia by A. J. Betts* ✦ Port Chicago 50 by Steve Sheinkin* ✦ Say What You Will by Cammie McGovern* ✦ The Family Romanov by Candace Fleming* ✦ The List by Siobhan Vivian ✦ Witches by Rosalyn Schanzer ✦ Wave by Sonia Deraniyagala ✦ The Night Gardener by Jonathan Auxier* ✦ Through the Woods by Emily Carroll* ✦ El Deafo by Cece Bell* ✦ The Last Dragonslayer by Jasper Fforde ✦ Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo ✦ The Thickety by J. A. White* ✦ Belzhar by Meg Wolitzer* ✦ Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews ✦ The Princess in Black by Shannon and Dean Hale*


Favorite Books Read in 2014

1. Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lived in North Korea by Barbara Demick
Jaw-dropping, fascinating, eye-opening.

1. El Deafo by Cece Bell*
A wonderful balance of funny, sad, heartwarming, and honest. Plus, her deaf experience is so well communicated.

3 & 4. Boxers and Saints by Gene Luen Yang
So thought-provoking I was thinking about these two long after I finished reading. The stories are honest. The artistry is remarkable.

5. The Family Romanov by Candace Fleming*
A fascinating story, excellently told. It's so interesting to see all these separate people, events, and facets of Russia come together to create one massive explosion.

6. The Thickety by J. A. White*
Inventive, complex, and such a page-turner.

7. Shadowfell by Juliet Marillier
Solid fantasy--excellent world building, writing, and a story and characters I loved. Free of most of the irritating tropes of YA fantasy/romance.

8. The Princess in Black by Shannon and Deal Hale, illustrated by LeUyen Pham*
Pitch perfect and so much fun.

9. Paper Valentine by Brenna Yovanoff
Both a suspenseful murder mystery and an intriguing examination of two best  friends' relationship.

10. The Killing Woods by Lucy Christopher*
This gets on the list simply for its power to completely engross me.










Honorable mention
The Fourteenth Goldfish by Jennifer Holm*
Port Chicago 50 by Steve Sheinkin*
The Tyrant's Daughter by J. C. Carleson*
Better Nate Than Ever by Tim Federle
The Crossover by Kwame Alexander*

* indicates published in 2014