Editor’s Picks: Top Books to Read in 2018

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Graphic created by Leah Fikes

Leah Fikes, Editor

Happy New Year from the Newspaper staff.  Reading can be an essential part of life. The hard part of reading though can be finding a good book. This is the editor’s choice of top books to read in your new year.

1. Dorothy Must Die  by: Danielle Paige
Welcome to Oz or an Oz like you’ve never seen before. While I firmly believe we should respect the classics, I like this spin-off of Frank L. Baum’s old book. Amy Gumm gets whisked off from her home in Kansas to an upside down Oz where Dorothy has taken over as a tyrant and set herself up as the ruler. Glinda is a psychopathic glittery fairy who serves as Dorothy’s right hand. The Scarecrow has become an evil mad scientist using his brain to do crazy experiments. The Tin Man is the commander of a crazy half tin army. The Lion has taken over all the beasts of Oz and commands them. Amy is recruited by the wicked witches to kill Dorothy. This book is a growing experience for Amy and she learns trust, loyalty, and friendship. It is the first book in the long yellow brick road to undoing Dorothy’s tyranny and saving Oz. There are three books that follow this one, and they are just as good as the first.

2. A Study in Charlotte  by: Brittany Cavallaro
Sherlock Holmes just went to a whole new level. This story follows the descendants of Holmes (Charlotte Holmes, a quirky female duplicate of her ancestor) and Watson (Jamie Watson a rugby player who has always dreamed of solving crimes), as they go to school together in New England. Charlotte does not want anything to do with Jamie until the school bully turns up murdered and Charlotte is framed for it. This story is fun, and the characters try and find the murderer before they end up behind bars themselves. This book does deal with some very real-world situations beyond the mysteries. Overall I found it a pleasant read, and then I had to reread it just to make sure I understood all the layers as they unfolded with Holmes’s dramatic flair. The book has a sequel, and the third and final book is set to release in March of 2018.

3. The Problem With Forever  by: Jennifer L. Armentrout
This book is a beautiful story about promises and reconciling with your past. Mallory was traumatized by her former foster home and after being adopted, has to endure several years of therapy before she is ready to reenter the world. On her first day of real school in years, she comes face to face with her past in the form of her former best friend and protector Rider. This book is emotional and sends a powerful message. For more on this book see my prior review.

4. Everything Everything  by: Nicola Yoon
I won’t lie and say I read this book. I listened to six straight hours of it on audiobook, and yes I finished it in one sitting. Madeline (Maddy) cannot leave her house because if she does she will get sick and die, literally. She is pretty happy in her bubble until a boy named Olly moves next door and they become online friends. Maddy’s world opens up, and she and Olly pursue a dangerous relationship where a single touch could kill Maddy. She even runs away with Olly to explore the world. I liked this book because it was sweet and had an ending that I was not expecting. And in case you’re worried, no one dies at the end which made me happy. The book also has lots of book reviews in it because Maddy spends most of the time reading, so why wouldn’t a book reviewer love this book? Maddy learns that there is more that can be added to her world than she ever thought possible.

5. A Child Called “It”  by: Dave Pelzer
I read this short book in October on Halloween. The librarian suggested to me. It is an autobiographical account of one of the worse abuse cases in California, and it is not for the faint of heart. Dave goes from a respectable human little boy to being treated little more than an animal by his mother for little reason at all. The hatred is never explained. Dave does not even know why his mother makes him eat garbage, makes him drink chemicals, or beats him. It is a story of a young boy struggling to survive and understand his world. It was not a very long book, but I found it to be an emotional roller coaster. It left me with the question how could anyone treat another human like Dave was treated? I kept remembering while I read it that it was a true story. I guess that is what makes it so impactful. The book has two sequels, but I have not read them.

6. Steelheart  by: Brandon Sanderson
What would happen if suddenly a fourth of the Earth’s population gained superpowers, and they all decided to be super-villains? Total collapse. David lives in a fallen Chicago where a villain named Steelheart has also killed David’s father and David has made it his life goal to kill Steelheart. He joins a team of people called the Reckoners to carry out his plan to destroy the man who can turn anything to steel and is impervious to weapons. This book had many laughing moments and good characters. I liked the story, and it plays out much like a superhero movie. Basically, if you like comic books, you’ll like this book. I have never read a book by this author that wasn’t unique and that I didn’t like. Steelheart is the first in a trilogy that is satisfying and likable.

7. 13 Reasons Why  by: Jay Asher
If you’ve heard of the book, it’s because it is a Netflix series. This is a review of the book, not the series. I liked this book because it was real. Books about high school can be full of fantasies but this one showed a large led part of reality. Clay receives a set of tapes that tells him the reasons why a girl he knew, Hannah, committed suicide. Clay painstakingly listens to the 13 reasons why the girl he liked killed herself. The book is a little dark, but it showed how little actions of people could pile up on a person affecting them negatively. I could see how this all made sense in the end. While this isn’t my absolute favorite book on this list, it does have a powerful message.

8. Wonder  by: R.J. Palacio
This is a feel-good book about struggling with differences and friendship. It follows a story about a boy named Auggie who has a facial disorder and attends middle school for the first time. It is easy to read and a heartwarming story. I know adults, kids, and teenagers who love this story. For further analysis on Wonder, please see the prior review.

These are my picks for 2018. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did. Happy New Year everyone and happy reading.