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Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.
Books Set in Places on My Bucket List
Most of the places listed below have been on my bucket list for a very long time. If I had the money and the opportunity I would definitely go to each one of them, especially the first three. Each place shows a picture and I also gave two examples of books set there.
1. Santorni, Greece- It has been my dream to go to Santorni for most of my life.
~ The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares- This series was one of my absolute favorites in middle school and early high school. They are all set in many different places and one of those places was Santorni, Greece. Lena's sections of the books were always my favorite and I connected to her the most out of all of the girls. They were the start of my love for Santorni, which has only grown with time.
~ The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee- The main character of this book Henry "Monty" takes a tower around Europe with his best friend Percy and his sister Felicity. They go to many different countries and one of the places they go to is Santorni, Greece. It has been a long time since I read this book but I remember loving it very much. Definitely one of the books I would like to reread eventually.
2. Neuschwanstein Castle in Schwangau, Germany- Also known as the "Fairy Tale Castle," Neuschwanstein is very high on my list of places I would love to one day witness in person. I absolutely love castles, especially this one.
~ A Warning About Swans by R. M Romero- A Warning About Swans is a novel in verse set in the Bavarian Alps. It is a historical fiction fantasy novel loosely based on Swan Lake with aspects of The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle. One of the characters in the story is King Ludwig II of Bavaria, who is famously called the "Fairy Tale King" because of the murals that he had painted in his castle, Neuschwanstein. He also had the castle designed to look like one out of a fairy tale.
~ A Grimm Warning (The Land of Stories #3) by Chris Colfer- The Land of Stories series focuses on the twins Alex and Conner who are children who are able to go into the fairy tale world through a book of fairy tales. It is one of my favorite series of all-time. In Book 3, Conner goes to Neuschwanstein castle to learn about a new Brothers Grimm fairy tale. This is definitely one of my favorite books in the series and I love the adventures Conner gets into while over in Germany. Such an entertaining journey!
3. Rome, Italy
~ Run Away with Me by Brian Selznick- Run Away With Me is about young love, history, and the city of Rome itself. I always adore the way Brian decides to tell his stories with both illustrations and words. He does an incredible job with Danny and Angelo’s story and showing the beauty of Rome. The boys explore the city and fall in love along the way. I also enjoyed reading Angelo’s stories he tells Danny about the history of Rome and also about other young loves.
~ Augustus by John Williams- One of the many books on my TBR. I've heard that John Williams is a great historical fiction book writer and this is one of his top books. It is told through letters, dispatches, and memoirs and is about Octavius Caesar as he inherits rule of the Roman Republic after the death of Julius Caesar.
4. London, England
~ Rivers of London (Rivers of London #1) by Ben Aaronovitch- I've been meaning to get back into this series for a while now because I highly enjoyed this first book. I’ll always be a sucker for stories dealing with magic, fantasy elements, British humor, and a clever use of references. Peter Grant’s story is quite entertaining and a whole lot of fun. Also, the mystery in this book made me think of the City Watch books from the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett, which is a high compliment. This book is also known as Midnight Riot.
~ 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff- A charming short book told through the letter correspondence between Helene and bookshop workers from London. It is one of the funniest and most heartwarming books I have ever read. Perfect for book lovers.
5. Scotland
~ Macbeth by William Shakespeare- One of the first books I thought of for this list of books set at a place on my bucket list. Macbeth is such a quintessential play set in Scotland. It is about a Scottish general named Macbeth who receives a prophecy from a trio of witches, who tell him that he will one day become the King of Scotland.
~ A River Enchanted by Rebecca Ross- Another book that I haven't read yet and that has been on my TBR for many years. Especially since I love Rebecca Ross's books. It is set on a magical island that is based on Scotland.
6. Australia- There is so much I'd love to be able to see in Australia, particularly Sydney.
~ Dearest Milton James by N. R. Walker- N. R. Walker was the first author I thought of for books set in Australia. Most of her books are set there. Dearest Milton James is my favorite of all of her books and has such a beautiful romance. It is about workers at dead letter office, which is one of my niche loves. (If anyone knows of any other recommendations for books about dead letter offices, please let me know.) I love how we get both romance of Malachi and Julian, along with the romance in the letters.
~ Outrun the Rain (Storm Boys #1) by N. R. Walker- Another favorite of mine from N. R. Walker. This one really focuses on the setting of Australia, because of the plot being about storm chasers. A very entertaining series which I adore.
7. Amsterdam, Netherlands- My mother and I both love flowers/gardens. Someday, I'd love to be able to go to the famous Tulip fields in Amsterdam with her. I can only imagine how stunning they would be in person.
~ The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova- This was comped to me last year as Dracula meets Indian Jones and I knew I had to put it on my TBR immediately. I will definitely be picking it up sometime soon.
~ The Fault in Our Stars by John Green- John Green is one of the authors I'm most nostalgic for, especially for this book and Looking For Alaska. I still vividly remember reading this book for the first time back in around 2012, during my first year of college. I'm looking forward to his new novel Hollywood, Ending which will be coming out in September.
8. Cairo, Egypt- It is my dream to go to Egypt some day and see the Sphinx and pyramids.
~ The Throne of Fire (The Kane Chronicles #2) by Rick Riordan- I love Rick Riordan's books very much, especially The Kane Chronicles. One of my special interests ever since we studied it in sixth grade was Ancient Egypt and the Egyptian gods (we even mummified a chicken). I remember really enjoying these books when I read them. Someday I hope to reread the entire trilogy.
~ The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho- Another book that I have had on my TBR for years but have yet to pick up. I have heard nothing but great things about it for years and hope to one day get to it.
9. Maine, USA- My favorite season is fall and I love the seeing the fall foliage each year. We live in Pennsylvania, so we get really nice looking trees. I've heard though that Maine and some of the other states further north look even better. Also, I've always wanted to go to Maine since I was a kid when my dad would say how beautiful it there.
~ How to Read a Book by Monica Wood- I have been seeing this cover a lot recently and I believe this sounds like a beautiful book.
~ 11/22/63 by Stephen King- I have never read a Stephen King book but have been meaning to do so for years. This is one of the books I own of his. It deals with history and also time travel which are two of my favorite topics in books. It is one of the books I would like to read this year.
10. Sweden- It is on my bucket list to be able to see the Northern Lights and I have heard one of the best places to see them is Abisko National Park. There is so much I'd love to see in Sweden.
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~ Let the Right One In by John Ajvide Lindqvist- I watched the original movie based on this novel back in college and absolutely loved this take on a vampire story. Ever since, I have been meaning to read the novel. I think I may pick it up this year for one of my October reads. I think it will be perfect for spooky season.
~ Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren- I grew up watching the Pippi Longstocking 1997 show and loved her character so much as a kid. Until recently, I didn't even know that it was based on a book. Maybe I'll read it someday for one of my children's classics, but I'm not sure.
