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 I'm Thankful for that I Read in 2025
I went through all the 177 books I read so far this year to make this list and have realized how hard it is going to be to make a top 10 list this year. These are all books I loved that may not make it on that list, but I am very thankful to have picked them up. Many of them are quite personal for me and I'm glad I found them when I did.
What is a book you're thankful you read this year? Have a great rest of your week!
1. A Grief Observed by C. S. Lewis
- I made a goal to read as many of C. S. Lewis's books that I can get my hands on. Each year for the last few years, I have read a few of them. This year I read A Grief Observed which I have wanted to pick up for years, but it never felt like the right time. My father passed away on November 19th last year. I picked this up about five months after and put it down about halfway through for about a month. It was difficult to get through it because of all the emotions, but it helped tremendously.
"For in grief nothing ‘stays put.’ One keeps on emerging from a phase, but it always recurs. Round and round. Everything repeats. Am I going in circles, or dare I hope I am on a spiral?
But if a spiral, am I going up or down it?
How often—will it be for always?—how often will the vast emptiness astonish me like a complete novelty and make me say, ‘I never realized my loss till this moment’? The same leg is cut off time after time. The first plunge of the knife into the flesh is felt again and again.
They say, ‘The coward dies many times’; so does the beloved. Didn’t the eagle find a fresh liver to tear in Prometheus every time it dined?"
Grief is hard to describe but Lewis perfectly encapsulates it here. This is his own reflections on how he felt after his beloved wife, Joy, (who he calls H. in this memoir) passed away from cancer. He fell in love later in life, after being friends with her for many years. His writing style always stands out to me and this is probably one of his best. At least from what I have read.
Some days are better than others. Can't say how many times I've wanted to just call Dad up and tell him something. To see him again. It helps reading Jack's inner thoughts and connecting with another writer, even just for a short time. His writing here is incredibly moving and heartbreaking. I highlighted many lines that stood out to me and I quoted my favorite section above.
2. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Oz series #1) by L. Frank Baum
- I reread The Wonderful Wizard of Oz on November 21st right after rewatching the movie, in lead up to seeing Wicked: For Good on the next day. It was a Oz filled week for me and it was such a joy to revisit a story I adore so much. Oz is a world I will never get enough of, especially in Baum's original novels. I'm very thankful for it. It was what introduced the world to such a wonderful story and characters, that we are still getting stories from today over 125 years later.
3. The Herbwitch's Apprentice (Witches of Olderea, #1) by Ireen Chau
- I love cozy fantasy books set in the Regency time period. This book made me happy the entire time I read it and I adored Ireen's illustrations so much. She has such a wonderful style. Next month, I plan on at least reading the second book and maybe even the third, which is going to be coming out soon.
4. Odyssey by Stephen Fry
- Stephen Fry's Great Mythology has been one of my favorite series for a few years now and I finally got to finish it this year. I like his humorous take on famous Greek Mythology stories. It would be great if he did other books like these for other Mythologies like Norse or Egyptian. This was a great finale to the series I enjoy how Stephen not only told Odysseus's journey home but gave even more information about the other Greeks and Aeneas's voyage from Troy.
5. The First Dragon (The Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica #7) by James A. Owen
- I finished The Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica series this year and this was a perfect ending to the series (though there was a collection of stories that came after). This made me want to reread the entire series so I could see the pieces I missed the first time around. I'm very thankful that I found this series and for such a powerful ending to it.
6. Holy Terrors (Little Thieves #3) by Margaret Owen
- I'm so happy to say that this was the perfect ending to this wonderful trilogy which I have adored for years now. If you have yet to pick it up, do yourself a favor and do so now. It is absolute perfection. This book just like the previous entries has humorous, heartwarming, silly, and emotional scenes. It had me laughing out loud and crying many times. And I will definitely be rereading it in years to come.
Vanya became a favorite character of mine from the instant we were introduced to her in Little Thieves. I love how she's a morally grey character, who is trying to make life better for everyone around her. She is such an interesting protagonist to follow and she is one of my favorites from literature. It has been a joy to watch her grow during the series. I'm going to miss her, but I believe this was perfect ending to her story. Though if Margaret chooses to return to this world, I would be immensely happy. I'd read anything with these characters.
7. The Chrestomanci series by Diana Wynne Jones
- I have been reading through the second through sixth books in the Chrestomanci series this year and have been having such a great time with them. Diana Wynne Jones is one of my favorite authors. Her writing always stands out. I don't even know what book in this series is my favorite so I'll just say I'm thankful for the entire series. Next month, I will be finishing the series with the short story collection: Mixed Magics.
8. Octupus Moon by Bobbie Pyron
- Octopus Moon is a book I didn't know I needed in my life, but I'm so glad I found it. It is about a young girl named Pearl who is dealing with many changes in her life as she starts fifth grade. She is having a difficult time finding the energy and the willpower to do what she needs and wants to do. The story is written from her perspective in verse as she navigates her life and deals with depression.
I cannot recommend this book enough. Never thought I'd see myself so much in this ten-year-old girl. So much of what she expresses in these beautiful lines of verse is what I feel on my darkest days. It had me tearing up as I read many parts of her story. It will be great for the middle grade readers in your life, but I also believe adults should read it too. Pearl's story is one I'm sure many people will relate to and one I think needs to be read. Definitely, one of the best middle grades I have read in my life, if not the best. It was phenomenal!
9. The Halcyon Fairy Book by T. Kingfisher
- T. Kingfisher is one of my favorite writers. I absolutely love how she has such a distinct writing style that shines through in all that she writes. This book is divided into two sections. The first is a collection of fairy tales from various countries with T. Kingfisher’s commentary. Her commentary is absolutely hilarious. I could not stop laughing every time I read a new story. I had a great time spreading this volume over the first two months of this year.
The second section is T. Kingfisher’s own collection of fairy tale short stories and poetry, which was previously published under the name Toad Words. These were a great set of stories and poetry. My favorites were “Bluebeard’s Wife,” “Boar and Apples,” and “The Wolf and the Woodsman.” I’m looking forward to picking up more of her fairy tales in the near future.
10. Lost Stars by Claudia Gray
- I have been a big fan of Star Wars ever since I was a child. Recently, I have been getting more into the books. There is this one YouTuber I used to watch who had a video where he was recommending Star Wars books that he loved. In the video, he talked about this book and how it surprised him by being so good. I had heard of this book when it had come out years ago and had no interest in it because it was described as Romeo and Juliet in Star Wars. But after his video and how he described it, I decided to pick it up. I'm very thankful that I did.
This is a wonderful story set in the Star Wars universe before the start of the Rebellion, continuing to a year after the Battle of Endor. We follow Ciena and Thane, two friends from the Outer Rim planet, Jelucan, who dream of joining the Empire as children. They join the Imperial Academy, working to become fighter pilots. Slowly, one grows disillusioned with the Empire as the other continues to believe they are in the right. The book follows them both as they fall in love with each other while being on opposite sides of the galactic war.
I loved following both preceptives in this book. We are so used to seeing Star Wars from the side of the Jedi or the Rebels. This book shows a very different side to a story I have known for most of my life. The best part was seeing how the propaganda was used to get people to want to join the Empire to begin with. Many people think of the Empire as evil because of the Emperor and Darth Vader, but in this book we see some of the reasons why so many people believed they were in the right.
What I love about this star-crossed love story is the time Claudia Gray took to build the relationship up between Ciena and Thane. I read this book back in February but it has stuck in my mind to this day.
It was great to see many iconic scenes from the original trilogy through Ciena and Thane's perspectives. They are each so well-developed which had me invested in both of their stories equally. Also, the side characters were all fleshed out just as much. I wanted to know what would happen to them all. There are some scenes with characters we know from the movies, but most of the book is focused on the new characters. I highly recommend picking this one up if you are a fan of Star Wars, especially the audiobook. The narrator does a brilliant job and I loved the sound effects which add to the atmosphere of the novel.
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