Top Ten Tuesday (76)

Top Ten Issue Books

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. It’s awesome. Every Tuesday, the lovely folks over at The Broke and the Bookish post a top ten list topic so that book lovers like you and me can pour over our shelves and make our own lists. You can check out all the other Top Ten Tuesday’s on their site!

Friends, I have realized something: When it comes to contemporary books, I tend to shy away sometimes from those books that might be considered “hard-core issue” books; I haven’t read many books at all that deal front-and-center with serious things. I always seem to not be in the mood for them. However, I do think that it’s a rare contemporary book indeed that has no issues whatsoever, they’re just mitigated by other things (usually some kind of kissy-facing), so I’ve plumbed my shelves and found that these books all have at their core something sad or dark or troubling or thought-provoking. I didn’t struggle with this Top Ten Tuesday as much as I initially feared. And the one exception to my accidental “I don’t read lots of issue books” thing? Grief. I will always pick up a book about grieving because it’s a universal issue, and that appeals to the realist in me, so expect lots of books about that here among a few other topics.

Lovely, Dark and Deep by Amy McNamara

I was just talking up this book on Twitter the other day because ALL THE PEOPLE need to read it. It’s gorgeous and stark and sad and it deals with two issues that always speak to me: one that, as someone who has grieved for lots of people in her life, speaks to me directly (Wren is dealing with the death of her boyfriend); and two, one that someone close to me lives with every day (multiple sclerosis). Seriously, if you guys haven’t read this book, do yourselves a big favor and pick it up.

Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson

I LOVE talking up Morgan Matson’s books because they’re so well-written and emotional. She’s just so good at writing!! But this book features two issues I read about often that have a tendency to appear together regularly: death of a family member and cancer. Something that ups the ante for me? The dying family member in question is Taylor’s father, and I am a sucker for dad stories. I had a really strong reaction to this one.

Sean Griswold’s Head by Lindsey Leavitt

Another book that deals with multiple sclerosis, albeit indirectly. Whereas LOVELY, DARK AND DEEP features a main character with MS, this book sees Payton’s father suffering from the disease, and we get a glimpse of what it’s like for the family members of the afflicted. Of course, this book has the added draw of one Sean Griswold, but the star of this book to me has always been this storyline with Payton and her family learning to live with MS.

The Sky Is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson

I know, I know. THIS BOOK AGAIN. And yes, one of the major storylines of this book is about Lenny and BOYS. But nothing in Lenny’s life during the course of THE SKY IS EVERYWHERE is untouched by her grief for her recently deceased and much beloved sister, Bailey. Her sadness and loss is everywhere, and Jandy Nelson makes it beautiful and touching.

The Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay

I need to get my review of this book going! I read it a few months ago and was completely taken with it and the way it deals with death and the aftermath of some really horrible things. Josh and Nastya really run the gamut of emotions and are both dealing with some unbelievable shit–the Goodreads synopsis actually calls Nastya a “hot mess.” SO many issues going on in this one with characters who are heartbreaking and endearing. You know, in a really effed up way.

Me, Him, Them, and It by Caela Carter

This is the first of two books on my list about teenage pregnancy, an issue that I’m always afraid will go all Teen Mom on me. The two books on this list, though, have very different characters with very different attitudes about becoming mothers. A hint about the way Evelyn feels about being a pregnant teenager? The “it” in the title is her fetus, which she almost forces herself to not care about. She struggles with being pregnant and it’s frustrating but always, I imagine, real.

Small Damages by Beth Kephart

The other teenage pregnancy book on my list. Gorgeously written and thoughtful about a girl who is being forced to give up her baby by her status-conscious mother. Except as her pregnancy moves along, she becomes more attached and less ok with NOT being a mother. I really enjoyed it.

The Butterfly Clues by Kate Ellison

This is a pretty dark book, friends. It’s got a smorgasbord of issues: death, drugs, runaways, murder, homeless kids, and mental illness. If that sounds like overkill to you…well, I have to admit, it’s pretty heavy. It was unsettling being in Penelope’s (aka, Lo’s) head. Her OCD is all-consuming and it is BAD. I was both fascinated and horrified by it.

The Probability of Miracles by Wendy Wunder

Another cancer book. I can’t help it; these books just call to me. I know some people weren’t fond of Cam Cooper, but I was blown away by her. She approaches her own death with, quite frankly, balls of steel, and I admire that endlessly. I cried like a FOOLISH BABY over this one.

Raw Blue by Kirsty Eagar

This is a book that’s like THE SKY IS EVERYWHERE in that what people–me included–often recall the most is the relationship between Carly and Ryan. But that relationship is unavoidably colored by Carly’s struggle to allow people close to her in the aftermath of being raped. She keeps herself at arm’s length from everyone, and this story of her slowly reopening herself to closeness is SPECIAL.

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

*SOBS* I cried SO HARD reading this book. It is yet another book on this list about death and cancer, but it’s gorgeous and absolutely heart-breaking and DEVASTATING and lovely. Conor is one of those characters who will just rip your heart right out of your chest. There aren’t many issues as abjectly sad as a young child losing a parent, and something about a young boy like Conor losing his mother when his father is out of the picture is even worse.