Discussion: New (and old) Favorites

You’ve been asked the question a hundred times before: What’s your favorite book? Whenever someone used to ask me this question I felt such a soul crushing panic because for awhile I didn’t know. I always found myself floundering for words and blurting out a book that I thought they would also like, or something that wasn’t “embarrassing” to like.

This was all until I found my all-time favorite book. Anyone who knows me knows how much I LOVE The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. I read it freshman year of college during winter break after many recommendations to read it for years. It wasn’t until my mom had started listening to the audiobook and would text me how great it was that I promised I’d read it over winter break when I was away from school and could focus my full attention on it.

I will never forget sitting by our Christmas tree, the lights twinkling, and  candles flickering (you can tell I really get into the holiday spirit) when I devoured that novel. It’s a good 400 pages and I finished in about two days I think. Probably would have gone even faster if I didn’t have to take breaks. It was the first book that made me really cry and feel for characters in a way I never had before.

And from then on, it’s been my favorite book. That same year my mom and I went to go see the movie on Christmas Eve and it’s become my winter movie re-watch ever since. Funnily enough, I have not re-read it since then, which brings me to my whole point of this long post; do your favorite books change? What makes them your favorites? Is it an emotional connection? The writing in general? How do you feel when other people have a mediocre reaction to your favorites?

And favorites change right? When I was in elementary school, my favorite books were Matilda and then Little Women. From there it changed to Pride and Prejudice and Gone with the Wind when I read those in middle school and then to To Kill a Mockingbird and Perks of Being a Wallflower in high school (the perfect high school angsty novel) and now it’s The Book Thief. Sure, I have other series’ and books that I love, but not adore and would buy four copies of (so far) like I have The Book Thief. Did it change my life? Yes. Did it change who I am? Yes, and I couldn’t be happier about it.