Hello there! Today I wanted to join in on the fun and participate in Top 5 Tuesday, which is being hosted by Meeghan Reads ! Check out her blog for all Top 5 Tuesday prompts.

Today’s prompt is:

top 5 recommendations from friends

My best friend is really the one who encouraged the resurgence of my love of books three years ago, which school had completely killed. Shout out to her for being my actual soulmate and recommending me such amazing books. All of the books in this list are recommendations from her!

Foolish Hearts by Emma Mills

My favorite recommendation ever has been Foolish Hearts. After I graduated from university and moved back home, my best friend and I started going to the library together.  How I miss those times!

She recommended me to check out this book first and it was perfect. It is such a fun, heartwarming book that I have reread since then and still love totally and completely. Emma Mills is my one auto-buy author and I am forever impatiently awaiting her next book. If you want an easy contemporary YA to pick up your mood, definitely check this masterpiece out.

Girl Made of Stars by Ashley Herring Blake

This is a book that I think is super underrated. It follows Mara, who is forced to confront the fact that her brother has been accused of rape by one of her friends. It is such a heavy topic and difficult situation that is dealt in such a caring and nuanced way by the author. I read this a few years ago, so it’s due for a reread.

 

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

Do I even need to explain this one? Like so many other readers, this is one of my all-time favorite books. I cried, I laughed, I cried some more. Another recommendation from my friend that I am so happy that I read and one I plan on rereading very soon when I’m prepared to experience a busload of emotions.

 

Beartown by Fredrik Backman

I am maybe, probably, definitely known to perhaps tease my friend about not being interested in books that she recommends to me, which is completely unfounded since I almost always love them. This is one of those books.

I wasn’t very interested in Beartown when I started since it’s so hockey-centric and I didn’t love the slower pace at the start, but of course I ended up completely consumed by the story and its characters. Fredrik Backman is a master at writing characters that feel so real and multi-faceted. It’s about time I get to the other book in this series already!

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

I checked this book out before my friend read it, but she said that she loved the way the particular copy from our local library smelled and that I had to check it out. I’m convinced that someone loved reading this book so much that they found their favorite cologne or perfume and sprayed it between the pages of the book. It smelled so warm and woodsy and enhanced the reading experience for me to be honest. An odd thing, I know, but it’s something I remember so vividly.

I also loved this book because it takes place in Los Angeles and I read a majority of the last half of the book while in traffic going home from Hollywood. Thinking of this book transports me to a time in my life when I was figuring my adult life out and it truly helped me out. *Fist bump to Evelyn Hugo*

I haven’t seen my friend in real life since the start of the pandemic, so this ended up being an appreciation post to her and the books that connect us, plus all the other books that connect us in this community!

What is one of your favorite recommendations from a friend? Share your posts if you wrote your own in the comments!