Monday, August 12, 2013

[Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Books Set In A Historical War]


Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly linkup hosted by The Broke And The Bookish!

You wanna know what I love?  I love a book that is set during a historical war.  You probably know that if you read the title of this post, but I thought I'd bring it up again!  Give me a book set in either of the World Wars and chances are I will read it souly for that fact.  I guess that I just really like the heart wrenching stories that the setting produces.  I've never been one to cry reading a Nicholas Sparks type book, but give me a book set during war time and I will bawl my freaking eyes out the whole time!  So, I'm sure that you wanna know what my list is now, don't you?  Well, here it is!

Books Filled With War That I Heart With All Of My Heart! 
  •  "The Sweetest Dark" by Shana Abe (World War I)  This book manages to mix stories of war with elements of fantasy in a way that will make you fall in love with the story.  It has got it all!
  • "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein (World War II)  Gah, my heart still hurts when I think about this book.  It had me weeping like a lost child after I finished it, but it's so worth it.  Everyone should read this one!
  • "The Devil's Arithmetic" by Jane Yolan (World War II)  This right here is the book that started it all.  Once I read this one in grade or middle school (I can't remember) I was hooked on war books.  I remember crying at the end of it when I was that little and I think I've read it at least 15 times over the years since then.
  • "In the Shadow of the Blackbird" by Cat Winters (World War I)  This right here is my favorite read of 2013, so far.  It had so much history, not only including the war but the Spanish flu as well.  Plus on top off all of that it had a major paranormal element!  Read it! 
  • "The Deepest Night" by Shana Abe (World War I)  This is the sequel to The Sweetest Dark and it's got all the goodness of the first one.  If you don't count the pointless love triangle!
  • "Gone with the Wind' by Margaret Mitchell (The Civil War)  I had to add a classic to my list and this book seemed like the perfect fit.  It's got so much going on and the war definitely affects everyone in the pages!
  • "Number the Stars" by Lois Lowry (World War II)  Okay, so I don't remember much about this one, but I know that I loved it when I was little and so, of course, it makes the list.

  • "Dancer, Daughter, Traitor, Spy" by Elizabeth Kiem (Before the fall of the Iron Curtain)  I didn't know much about what was going on in Russia in the early 80s, but this book gives an interesting look into it.  Plus it has dancing and paranormal elements too.    

The Books I Haven't Read, But Have:

  • "Between Shades of Gray" by Ruta Sepetys (World War II)  I don't know why I haven't read this one yet.  It sounds like a book I would love and it even handles things from a different angle then I'm used to.  I need to get on this one!
  •  
  • "The Book Thief" by Markus Zusak (World War II)  Once again why haven't I read this one?  I hear nothing but wonderful things and the person telling you the story is death himself.  Yeah, I'll have to move this one up on my list.
Well there's my list!  What's on yours?  I wanna know.  Leave your link below or tell me in the comments! 

17 comments:

Rachel said...

Gosh, I haven't read any of these! Historical isn't my favorite, but I do want to read GONE WITH THE WIND, BETWEEN SHADES OF GRAY, CODE NAME VERITY, THE BOOK THIEF, and IN THE SHADOW OF BLACKBIRDS.

Rachel @ Beauty and the Bookshelf

Sandra said...

Oh my, I haven't read any of these at all! I just own a copy of The Book Thief but I didn't go around reading it yet

My TTT

Ashley said...

I just got The Sweetest Dark in audio! I can't wait to start. I need to read In the Shadows of Blackbird too, Nicole LOVED it!

Our TTT

Ashley @ The Quiet Concert

Unknown said...

Nice list! I loved The Book Thief and I have on my to-read list In the Shadow of Blackbirds. I may read The Sweetest Dark, I've heard many great things about it.

My Top Ten Tuesday.

Lori @ Writing My Own Fairy Tale said...

Out of all of your books I've only read Number the Stars and The Book Thief. I just don't read much historical fiction. I really do need to read Code Name Verity, especially since I do own that one and everyone raves about it!

Christina / Book Addict said...

Awesome list! I have the Sweetest Dark on my TBR shelf and am looking forward to reading it. I also LOVE Gone with the Wind, Number the Stars, and The Book Thief.

Lianne @ caffeinatedlife.net said...

Great list! I specifically chose WW2 as my topic for this week. Been meaning to check out Gone with the Wind. I loved The Book Thief.

My TTT

Lili said...

So....I really hate war. I guess that's not a surprise. I despised learning about them when I was in high school and I cringed whenever the Holocaust came up because my great aunt has some lovely tattoos on her body courtesy of Auschwitz. So, I tend to avoid books about war. It should come as no surprise that I've never read any of those aside from THE BOOK THIEF. Which, ironically, is my all time favorite because it paints the war in such a unique manner. It's not about the war, it's about this girl wanting to learn how to read and understand why the awesome Jew in her basement is considered a bad person.

Oh...and THE KITE RUNNER. That happens during all the civil unrest in Afghanistan and that is favorite book ever #2.

@MelissaJoLynn_ said...

I really want to read Gone With The Wind so bad. I loved the movie. And of course Code Name Verity and The Book Thief are perfect for this list. I haven't read any of the others, but I'll definitely be looking in to some of them. Great list!

@MelissaJoLynn_ said...

I really want to read Gone With The Wind so bad. I loved the movie. And of course Code Name Verity and The Book Thief are perfect for this list. I haven't read any of the others, but I'll definitely be looking in to some of them. Great list!

Jenni said...

I NEED to read In The Shadow of Blackbirds soon, that one sounds so good. I had been holding off because I am not a fan of historical fiction but I read an HF novel last week that I really liked so I feel more ready to jump into more of them now.

Unknown said...

Great choices!! Of course I loved CNV. I actually didn't realize The Sweetest Dark was WWI! I really want to read In the Shadow of Blackbirds too. I heard it's great.

La Coccinelle said...

Your list was the first I came across that wasn't "boarding school" or "dystopian". Nice choice! The only one of these I've read is Number the Stars... though I have The Book Thief, and I really need to get around to reading it!

Unknown said...

Historical fic isn't usually my thing, but I've read several of these and enjoyed them. Between Shades of Gray & The Book Thief = AWESOME! And I've had Shadows on my Kindle to read for awhile now. Glad to hear it is good!

Thanks for stopping by my TTT

Jillyn said...

Number the Stars is a great book, I haven't read it in ages. Good list!

My TTT.

Giselle said...

I've been meaning to read The Sweetest Dark for SUCH a long time!! I also love Shadow of Blackbirds but you know that already lol. The Book Thief is one I started on audio but when I saw all the images in the book I decided to wait and read a physical copy. I hear that book changes lives and stuff. :)

Charlotte said...

Stop what you're doing right now and read "The Book Thief". It is one of the best books I've ever read. READ IT READ IT READ IT!