Weekly Lists #144: Gateway Books to My Favorite Genres

I feel like most bookworms probably have these. Those books where you can really pinpoint: yes. That was the point I started reading this genre. And while I’m mainly reading romance these days, I’ve been a lover of quite a few categories of books. And these were my gateway books to my favorite genres!

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1. Romance: She’s The One

I’m pretty sure I’ve told this story before, but oh well. Back in 2008 – I was 15 at the time – we went on a holiday to France, to the Loire-region. The cottage we rented, belonged to some English people who had left a little library there for anyone to read. And one of the books in that little library, as it so happens, was She’s The One. I finished the book at least twice, in that one week we were there.

Naturally, me being me, I completely forgot to do the logical thing – i.e. note down the name of the author. It took me and my favorite librarian (because, yes, I had a favorite librarian, of course I did) a couple of months to find her. Part of that might have been that I “remembered” her name as Kelly Kate. Don’t ask. Either way, we finally found her and I’ve basically not stopped reading her books since…

(Find it on Goodreads or Amazon*)

2. Fantasy: Stravaganza

Sure, I had read Harry Potter and Narnia before this series. Even Dalemark and Chrestomanci had been devoured. But here’s the thing: I loved those series as such. None of them made me go: “And now I want to read everything else in that genre”. The Stravaganza-series was the first one that made me actively look up other books in the same genre. Honestly? Not too many of those seemed to be “as good as” until the Hunger Games and the like came out…

(Find it on Goodreads or Amazon*)

3. Literature-with-a-capital-L: Never Let Me Go

Yeah, I know – I’ve mentioned this book a lot lately. But honestly, it changed me. You see, in high school I didn’t necessarily read as much as I do now. And what I read, was quite often the “same story” narrated by different authors with different main characters. In my first three years of college, I had to read serious literature. Which, of course, put me off reading any for leisure even more. The summer after that first year, though, I came across this book in the Gibert Jeune in Paris for next to no money. I got it, I read it, and a new world opened its doors for me. Sometimes, it really is as simple as that 🙂

(Find it on Goodreads or Amazon*)

4. Detectives: Miss Marple’s 13 Problems

This is a genre that I basically “inherited” from my parents. Even as a kid, there were some “semi-detective” books I would go to again and again. However, none of that really got me to the point of “let’s read more detectives” until one of my parents advised me to give The Thirteen Problems a try. Honestly, it was a bit of an eye-opening experience. To the point where, you know… I now own probably ever Agatha Christie written? I think?

(Find it on Goodreads or Amazon*)

5. History: A World By Itself: A History of the British Isles

I don’t know what it was about that third year of college but, just like for “Literature with a capital L”? That was the year I really started getting into historical books. Now, mind you – both of my parents are historians. I liked history before. I’d just never really made the click of: “hey, there’s books on this subject out there that you can just, like, read.” My mind makes weird loops, sometimes. In the last year of my first bachelor’s degree, though, I took a course on the history of the British Isles before 1750, and this book was the assigned reading for that course. It just struck a cord with me, I guess, because ever since, I’ve made it a point to read at least some history books every year.

(Find it on Goodreads or Amazon*)

Now, naturally, here’s my question to you: did you already know any of these books? Do you like any of these genres? And most importantly: any recommendations you could give me? Be sure to let me know below!

-Saar