Top Ten Tuesday: Books That Make Me Smile

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.

I feel like you’re going to see some repeats! So for that, I apologize. But not really. If I can get just one more person to love the Vorkosigan series, my work here will be complete.

Nostalgia Smile

Most of these I’ve only read once, while others (The Last Unicorn and A Civil Campaign) I’ve read over and over and over, but all of them make me so happy. From the first page, I fell in love with the world and heroines of Sorcery of Thorns and The Lord of Stariel, and returning to the world of a fake fandom in Starfield that had a sapphic romance was just *chef’s kiss*

Of course I have many more books that bring me joy, but these were the first five that I thought of, and make me feel like I’m being wrapped in a warm hug while reading them.

But not from people. No people hugs. Just book hugs (and dog hugs).

The Cover Makes Me Happy

Okay, okay—it’s not just Lirael‘s cover that makes me happy, but the scary and all-too-real world of the Old Kingdom and the library of the Clayr. I love this book, and I love the Disreputable Dog so much that I plan on naming my next dog Kibbeth in her honor.

You Should See Me in a Crown and Smash It! have covers that are just so fucking joyful that it makes me smile and jump a little (inside jumping—my body does not jump). And With the Fire on High and The Unhoneymooners have the most gorgeous covers. When I got Fire from the library I could not stop staring at it. The food is drawn so beautifully.