If you know me personally, you know that I am quite the bookworm. I am obsessed with books- buying them, reading them, browsing through them, and giving my friends titles to bring back for me from their trips!
In this post I am going to show all my favorite books from my vast book collection, but before that, I want to mention where I buy most of my books from in Kuwait. Contrary to popular belief, Al Jareer is NOT a book store. No, it is a stationary shop with 2 isles of books. Not good enough. I get most of my books from two second-hand places here in Kuwait.
These are the links to them (directions included on the websites): Q8 Books and Better Books and Cafe
On to my favorites!
- The Millennium series by Stieg Larsson. Ever heard of "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo"? That's the first book in the trilogy. Excellent thriller with a mesmerizing plot, even though some of the parts are a bit disturbing. Perfect for crime novel lovers.
- "Eleven Minutes" by Paulo Coelho. One of my favorite writers, and this was the first book that I read by him. The story centres around a young girl who leaves her home country and moves to Europe, where she ends up prostituting. Along the way, love and various lessons bump into her. Contains mature content.
- Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov. A timeless Russian literature classic about a middle aged man and his obsession and relationship with a 12 year old girl. I'll just leave it at that.
- Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. Needs no introduction. One of my all time pleasure reads.
- The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger. A hilariously written story about a boy who struggles with boarding school and tells us of his adventures upon deciding to leave the school. The character in this book and his wit is what always draws me to re-read this book.
- Heidi by Johanna Spyri. This might have been my first favorite book, when I was about 11 years old. Beautiful story of a little Swiss girl and her adventures in the mountains and the friends and obstacles she meets. A must read, no matter how old you are.
- The Perks of Being a Wallflower. This book is a little similar to The Catcher in the Rye. Also follows a slightly troubled high school kid and some events which change his life. Don't watch the movie, read the book. 100 times better.
- A Child Called 'It'. First of 3 autobiographies by Dave Pelzer that talk about his traumatizing childhood with an abusive mother, his struggles in the child care system, and later on, his adult life. The first book will make you sob.
- To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. If you haven't read this in high school, read it now. A timeless classic about racial discrimination in the 30's through the eyes of a white little girl, and her father's defending a black man in court.
- My Sister's Keeper and Handle With Care by Jodi Picoult. Both are focused on families dealing with medical struggles, and are an excellent read. If you've watched My Sister's Keeper the movie, read the book anyway. The ending is an unforeseeable twist that leaves you shattered.
- The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards. Similar to Picoult's books, but this book talks about the consequences of a man's decision to give up one of his twins, who has Down's Syndrome, to one of his nurses.
- A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini. Oh my God. This book is phenomenal. It talks about two Afghan girls, Mariam and Leila, and how their lives join into one. Absolutely beautiful story. Hosseini has another book that I loved, The Kite Runner. Give that a go as well, both are exceptional.
- Aleph. Paulo Coelho's journey of self-discovery and spiritual renewal. A good read for people who like books about faith.
My list of books is always increasing so I'm bound to write another one of these up someday!
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