Do you ever find yourself reading the same genre with the same premise/themes over and over and over again?  Do you ever wonder why you like what you like?  I do, too, which is why today's Top Ten Tuesday topic is so fascinating to me:  Top Ten Things That Make Me Immediately Want to Read a Book.  Besides wanting to read new books by favorite authors, there are certain fictional topics and themes that get me every time.  I've actually done this topic a couple times over the years so you can check out this April 2013 post and this one from April 2017 if you're interested in seeing how little my reading preferences have changed!

I'll spill those particular beans in a minute, but first, if you want to join in the Top Ten Tuesday fun (and you really do), click on over to That Artsy Reader Girl.  Read some simple instructions, make your own list, then have a grand ole time visiting other blogs.  It's a great way to find new blogs to love, add good reads to your TBR list, and spread the book blogging love.  Plus, it's FUN.

Okay, here we go with the Top Ten Things That Make Me Immediately Want to Read a Book:


1.  Family Secrets—I'm always intrigued by the tantalizing secrets lurking in the closets of families, especially in those that seem perfect from the outside.  Note:  I enjoy this topic in fiction.  In real life, you can keep your dirty laundry to yourself.  I really don't want to know.  In novels, though, bring it on!

Favorite book(s) in the genre:  Anything by Kate Morton or Joshilyn Jackson


2.  Creepy Old Houses—There's just something about a big, mysterious abode that sets my imagination of fire.  Especially if it's perched atop a rugged cliff near the sea.  The possibilities with this theme are literally endless.  Think hidden passageways, ghosts, secret rooms, forgotten bones, concealed treasures, etc.  Show me a creepy old house on a book's cover or anywhere in its plot summary, and I'll read it.

Favorite book(s) in the genre:  Anything by Kate Morton or Carol Goodman


3.  Homesteading/Pioneers—On the flip side, I also enjoy books about pioneers who leave their creepy old houses to go West in search of land, freedom, and new starts of all kinds.  Something about a character battling inclement weather, poverty, opposing forces, etc. in order to eke out a life in a wild land appeals to me.  Must be my Mormon pioneer heritage that draws me to these kinds of stories.

Favorite book(s) in the genre:  Little House on the Prairie series by Laura Ingalls Wilder, the Gold Seer trilogy by Rae Carson, and Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson


4.  World War II—I love historical fiction and this event/time period is one I just can't stop reading about.  No matter how many WWII novels I read, I always want to pick up more.  It's an endlessly fascinating topic and time period.

Favorite book(s) in the genre:  The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah, The Diary of Anne Frank, Those Who Save Us by Jenna Blum


5.  Adoption—Adopting my daughter has been an incredible, life-altering experience.  I'll never not want to read about adoption, whether it's non-fiction guides on various aspects of the process or novels about adoptees searching for their birth families, this topic always reels me in.

Favorite book(s) in the genre:  Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery, How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr


6.  Amnesia/Traumatic Brain Injury—For some reason, I also find this topic irresistible.  From psychological thrillers to murder mysteries to domestic dramas, I love me an amnesia/TBI novel.

Favorite book(s) in the genre:  What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty, Before I Go to Sleep by S.J. Watson


7.  Survival Novels, Especially in Severe Environments of In the Wake of Some Kind of Disaster—As big a wimp as I am, it's kind of surprising that I enjoy these types of books so much, but I do.  Whether they're memoirs or novels, I dig a riveting survival story.

Favorite book(s) in the genre:  Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer, The Watch That Ends the Night by Allan Wolf, Last Survivors series by Susan Beth Pfeffer


8.  Virus/Disease Outbreaks—Again, I'm not sure why this topic intrigues me so, but it does.  I find outbreak books (both fiction and non-) both horrifying and hard to put down.

Favorite book(s) in the genre:  A Death-Struck Year by Makiia Lucier and Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson


9.  Hoarding—Having books stashed and stacked in every corner of your house doesn't count as hoarding, right?  Asking for a friend ... I'm always engrossed by books about this condition.  It's fascinating to read about the psychology behind the disease and how people cope with it.

Favorite book(s) in the genre:  Dirty Little Secrets by C.J. Omolulu



10.  Small Towns—Cue Bruce Springsteen.  I was born and raised in a beautiful little town that's not nearly as exciting as most fictional villages.  Still, I love me a small town setting, especially if it's filled with quirky characters, loving (if nosy) neighbors, and some simmering secrets that are about to be uncovered ... Be it quaint, hardscrabble, mysterious, or somewhere in between, a small town setting is always going to get me.

Favorite book(s) in the genre:  the Armand Gamache series by Louise Penny, the Virgin River series by Robyn Carr, and the Big Stone Gap series by Adriana Trigiani

So there you have it, ten themes/genres that I just can't resist.  How about you?  What topics/settings/genres pull you right in?  If you've read any great books that fit into my favorite categories, let me know.  Leave me a comment on this post and I will gladly return the favor.

Happy TTT!       

It's the Fall of 1918 and 11-year-old Lydia Pierce has plenty to worry about.  War rages in Europe; a vicious strain of Spanish influenza is sweeping across the U.S., leaving death and devastation in its wake; and, because the Portland (Maine) Board of Health has outlawed public gatherings, she doesn't get to go to the moving picture show, even though her parents promised to take her for her birthday.  Lydia is desolate by this disappointing turn of events.

As the flu spreads closer to home, Lydia soon realizes that missing the movies is the least of her problems. When her parents and younger sister are overcome by the disease, she must find a new home.  Eventually, Lydia and her 14-year-old brother Daniel are adopted by the Shakers at Sabbathday Lake.  Although the children are well cared for, they're flummoxed by the Shakers' strange ways.  When Daniel runs away from the community, Lydia wonders if she should follow suit.  If she comes through the epidemic alive and well, what will become of her?  Will she ever be able to leave the Shakers?  Even if she doesn't believe as they do?  And what about her family?  Can she find Daniel, the only blood relative she has left?  Or, is everything she loves really and truly gone?

Like the Willow Tree by Lois Lowry is another fine middle grade historical in the Dear America series.  The diary entry format makes Lydia's plight personal and real.  Readers can easily relate to her fear, her confusion and her uncertainty about her own future.  With vivid historical detail, as well as an intimate look at the daily lives of the Shaker people, Like the Willow Tree is as interesting as it is compelling.  Like the other novels in this series, this one includes an Epilogue explaining what happens to Lydia after 1918, a historical note and photos depicting the real events on which the story is based, and a note from Lowry in which she talks about her connection to both the novel's setting and the Shaker community.  Overall, it's a fascinating read which I enjoyed very much.

(Readalikes:  Other installments in the Dear America series; also, A Death-Struck Year by Makiia Lucier and Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson)

Grade:

To the FTC, with love:  I received an ARC of Like the Willow Tree from the generous folks at Scholastic.  Thank you!