Top Ten Books That Made me Cry

November 2, 2010 Top Ten Tuesday 1

Top Ten Books That Made Me Cry
Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

As I stated last week, I am the biggest baby in the world. While that made scary books hard for me I thought this week would be a cinch! Turns out I was wrong! I really wanted to narrow it down to books that really got to me. I mean, seriously, I’ve been known to cry at Hallmark commercials. Don’t even get me started on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition! I wanted to think of books that really got to me. They are listed in the order I read them.

**Note: As I tried to write about them I realized that I would be giving away a lot about the titles if I really went in to why they made me cry. I didn’t want to do that so explanations may be vague!**

1. Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery: From the first book to the last… pretty sure I cried at every one! The first and the last were the worst (best?)! This summer I made the trip to Prince Edward Island with a coworker and fellow Anne fan. It was so much fun and it made the books even more real. I’m sure I’ll cry when I reread them again!


2. The Magic Garden by Gene Stratton Porter: My aunt got me started on Gene Stratton Porter’s books when I was younger. I think this one is my favorite (but Girl of the Limberlost is a close second!) They’re simple and sweet and I love them! Oh, John Guido!

3. The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks: In general I don’t read Nicholas Sparks’ books. They hurt too much and, after a few, I felt like I was reading the same thing over and over. This book is the exception. It was released when I was in high school. I remember checking it out from our school library and bawling my eyes out! I’m talking hardcore sobbing! It’s the first book that I remember spending my own money on so that I could have it to read again and again. I even made my dad read it. I have no idea why I thought he’d like it (he didn’t) but it seemed like a good idea at the time.

4. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling: This isn’t the first Harry Potter that made me cry but it’s the one that really sticks out. I read it while babysitting for my cousins. My oldest little cousin (she’s 18 now… not so little!) was also reading it. She wasn’t as far in to the book as I was. When I got to the part that made me break down I was trying SO HARD not to cry because I didn’t want to give anything away. There I was sniffling, sobbing, and trying to pass it all off as allergies. When the girls went to bed I put a pillow over my head and let it all out!

5. Deadline by Chris Crutcher: I know, I know… the tag line of this book gives it away. Still, I wasn’t prepared. When I was done with it and had stopped sobbing enough to allow oxygen to flow to my brain once again I was reminded of what my dad said when a middle school me came out of Titanic with a tear streaked face, “Heidi, honey… you knew how it ended!!!”

6. Looking for Alaska by John Green: Why John? Why?

7. The Alison Rules by Catherine Clark: I don’t know who asked me to order this book for my LMC or why I picked it out to read it. I wish I did so I could kick them. That wouldn’t even begin to make them hurt as much as I hurt while reading this book! I had to stop because I was crying so hard I couldn’t see the page!The worst thing was that I wasn’t expecting it. I thought I knew what was happening. Boy, was I wrong! It was a great book but I’m never reading it again!

8. Fire by Kristen Cashore: This was another one that surprised me. I wasn’t expecting to events to take the turn they did. I really loved Graceling but I think Fire is my favorite of the two. I’m eagerly awaiting Bitterblue.

9. After Ever After by Jordan Sonnenblick: I don’t know if there are words to express how much I love Jordan Sonnenblicks’ books. Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie, Notes from the Midnight Driver and After Ever After are some of my all time favorites. This one in particular made me bawl. It also made me laugh so hard I cried. That is why Sonnenblick is so fabulous. He’s witty and funny but he gets to the heart of the reader as well.

10. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins: Really I could substitute any of the titles from this trilogy. I just loved the characters so much. Mockingjay haunted me for so long after reading it. It still hurts to think about!

Well, there you have it. There are so many more… Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater, 13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher, Num8ers by Rachel Ward, and so on and so forth.

But enough about me… what about you? What books made you cry? Do you like it when a book makes you cry? Let me know in comments!

One Response to “Top Ten Books That Made me Cry”

  1. GMR

    Interesting post! Hmm…which ones made me cry….definitely a hard question! A recent one from the true story category….CLEO by Helen Brown (sad part or two, but WONDERFUL story)…can’t think of a fiction one right now, sorry! From your list. though….I can totally see why THE NOTEBOOK would, his books always make people cry (sad but sweet and never a happy ending per se). HP…as much fun as the series is, it has its dark moments so yep, agree on this one too. Thanks for the share…and happy (not sad, unless you’re in the mood for that) reading! ^_^

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