Yeahhh I knew I’d make that joke before the end of the year 😉 (don’t be surprised if I make it several more times before we’re done, cos something good had to come out of this year 😉). I don’t know about you, but I love to look back on my top ten posts every so often. It gives me such warm fuzzy feelings to revisit and remember every great book I read. And I get especially nostalgic as I start working on my new favourites lists! Which is why, after five years of doing Top Tens, I thought I’d share some thoughts about what happens when I look back on these posts!
Very occasionally, there are books I look at and think “why did I put that on here?”. A good example of this is Throne of Glass, back in 2015, because I only fell in love with it at book 3 (it’s possibly also tainted for me by later books). That said, this rarely happens, because competition is usually so fierce and (luckily) I read a lot of unbelievably amazing books!!
Sometimes, though, I would like to reshuffle the list a little. Such as in 2016 War and Peace should’ve ended up at #2 and Peculiar Children at #10. Also, in retrospect, I read so many *incredible* books in 2018, that I don’t know if I would keep the same order (Circe certainly seems like it should be higher… but then it had some really stiff competition!)
That said, so far my feelings about the number one pick haven’t changed! And on that note, I love that each year I’ve chosen a book from a different genre: non fic in 2015 (admittedly by accident cos I didn’t order that post on purpose), historical thriller in 2016 (or whatever genre Shadow of the Wind is being classed as today 😉), fantasy in 2017, classic in 2018, contemporary in 2019 (which was also an audiobook for a change!)… it’s a great mix!
(BTW my least favourites never change position- but the big difference is I don’t tend to go back to them, cos I like to forget those books existed!)
So there you go- that’s what I think when I go back and look at old top tens! Do you have this habit too? Do your opinions on the books you’ve included change or stay the same? Do you ever rethink the order? Let me know in the comments!
I say this all the time but I adore Shadow of the wind – it’s always stayed with me
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Ah me too!!
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I never really look back and after reading your post, I am sat here wondering why I don’t! But now I think I might!
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hehe! Great!! I’d love to see what you think!
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Shadow of the Wind is my all time favorite. I’ve read it 11 times already! Love to see it in your post.
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Ah it’s an all time favourite for me too!! 😀 Your comment reminds me that I need to reread it soon 😉
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I do go back and look at old lists, but looking through yours gave me the idea of “Top Ten Books Put On My Top Ten Lists” What do you think? Alright the name could use some work, but I still think the idea has merit.
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Ooh that’s a wonderful idea!! I’d love to see that!!!
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This was such an interesting post! I agree, looking back at past top tens is such a great snapshot of a year. Looking forward to making a list this year!
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Thank you!! Yes I’m looking forward to it to! One of my favourite things to do (along with reading other people’s of course and overloading my tbr with new recommendations!)
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Yes! Sometimes time changes my opinion of books. I think sometimes it may have to do with how recently I read something, OR if a particular book came after a “dry spell” of not-so-great reads.
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Oh yes that definitely happens!
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Lol! I love the title of this post.
Umm, I only look back on those lists when I’m trying to remember something, like the title of a book or an author’s name or the reason I gave for including a book…stuff like that.
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hehe thank you! Oh fair enough!
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I like to look at my old top 10s too. Usually I’m not too upset with the order, but there are a few books that didn’t make the list that I would put on now. Mostly because I’ve since lost interest in books that were above them.
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Ah yes!! Finally someone who does this too!! Ah that’s fair and a really interesting point! Sometimes I see books on my honorary mentions and wish I’d included it (somehow!!)
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Well, and sometimes a book stays with me better than another. Like, after a few years I can’t remember why I loved one book so much, but another I’ve re-read like 5 times and it’s become more beloved over time.
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Ah I do get that!
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“Hindsight is 2020” Booo! Clap! Forehead slap!
I don’t do top ten lists. I don’t have to, cause I’m not a real book blogger. 🙂
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hehehe! I feel no shame 😉
hahaha fair enough!
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It was too good of a joke not to use haha. 🙂
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heheh I know right! 😉
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Great post, I’ve never actually went back and looked at my top books of the year posts and have no idea why it would be really interesting to see what might have changed 💜
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Thank you! Yeah it was really interesting to do!! ❤
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Interesting thinking! I never reread as I always try to explore more worlds, but sometimes if I’m bored and finished a book, I’ll look at a random chapter of an older book on my shelf and be nostalgic. I’ve only just now started to make lists of my yearly favorites, so I can’t remember my older tops. But I love your thoughts. This was such an interesting article to read <3. Let 2021 be better. XD
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Thanks! Ah that’s a lovely idea! Thank you!
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Aha… I don’t have top ten yet. I have one all-time favourite as of now. And since I haven’t revisited it in the past one year, I don’t really know where my feelings stand. The above covers are in my TBR and I look forward to reading all of them.
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Oh that’s cool! Ah I get that! But that’s brilliant- hope you enjoy!
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If I look back at an old ‘Top Reads’ list from years ago, I often would like to reorder the list. After a year or two I sometimes find that I’ve almost forgotten one or more of the titles while others stand out in my memory. The ones I remember WELL are the ones that should be moved to the top of the list.
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