The "Endling" trilogy by K. A. Applegate
This here's the crown jewel of the page. This trilogy is so important to me, you have no idea. The basic premise is that the protagonist, Byx, goes on a journey in order to find out whether or not she truly is the last of her species, but that is not the whole of the story.
I don't want to give away too much in case you'd like to check it out for yourself, but I implore you, if you like fantasy books, please read Endling. It doesn't get as much online attention as it deserves, and I've resolved to do my part to change that.
"The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald
This here's an odd one. A big part of why I like this book is that I read it in English class one year, like everyone else, but that part of the year was special. Our teacher encouraged us to make memes about what we'd read from the book, e-mail them to her, and then at the start of class the next day, she'd put them up on the projector. It was a small thing, but it made what could have been a tedious slog into something memorable. I remember the class got really invested in the drama between the characters, it was awesome. It was like we were watching a drama instead of reading a nearly hundred-year-old book. Now whenever I think about the book, I think about that class and I get happy.
"The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane" by Kate DiCamillo
I read this whole book in practically one sitting one day, and it changed me a little bit. I don't really have anything smart to say about it, it's just a really good story and I liked it a lot.
"Dracula" by Bram Stoker
Another oldie, but I like this one too. My interest in Dracula mostly comes from my interest in Dracula Daily and Re: Dracula, but what fascinates me the most about the book is how adaptations have treated it. I've never watched them, but I've heard all about them, and it's really strange to me. A lot of what's been absorbed through cultural osmosis about the book is just incorrect, and it loses a lot of nuance that way. I could write a more detailed thing about it if I had a bit of time to research, but I don't feel like doing that at the moment. Anyway, I like the book. My favorite part is when Mina Harker
"It's Not Easy Being Green: And Other Things to Consider" by Jim Henson, the Muppets, and Friends, edited by Cheryl Henson
The Muppets and other works by Jim Henson have only made a home in my heart recently, but reading this book and reading about what went into those projects, I wish I did grow up watching Jim Henson stuff. All the talk about optimism and creativity and kindness and being a dreamer might sound trite to pessimistic ears, but that is what I live for, and it's something I'm trying to get a better hold on. The long and short of it is I have a lot of respect and admiration for the people that made the Muppets.
"I'll ask you three times, are you OK?" by Naomi Shihab Nye
I have a lot of respect for narrative nonfiction and the people who write it, because I do not have the mind to remember even half the details of my interactions with people, let alone write them down cohesively. And while fiction stories make up the majority of what I typically read, I adore nonfiction tales as well. I love hearing about interesting and mundane things that happen to people. To say it shortly, this book was an absolute treat to read.