My Top Reads For 2021!
Iβll be honest with you. As a kid, I never enjoyed reading. Rather, I saw it as a chore.
I always thought it was boring, a punishment from my teachers and purely a waste of time. (Sorry to have a go at all the bookworms out thereπ¬!)
While I am definitely no bookworm now, Iβve finally found an area of reading that appeals to me. This is since I never felt deeply connected to any fictional books because of my struggle to realistically visualise the people in them.
Now older, I have an appreciation for books. I can read books when I need to, but never really prioritise it (which builds on my goals for this year!).
Today, in this *relatively short* blog post, I am going to be taking you through some of my favourite books that I have read.
Let me warn you, this is a bit of a mess! No genre, no type of writing, no nothing; just a bunch of random books I enjoyed reading and you may enjoy too!
Hope you like it!
Daredevil Dreamer: The Art of Dreaming Big and Living Brave- By Tom OβConnor
βDaredevil Dreamerβ, by Tim OβConnor is the story of a young man with a big idea who took a fledgling community theatre group and grew it into the globally respected youth arts organisation that is now known as Harvest Rain. After performing in a multitude of Harvest Rain shows created by Tim, I bought a copy of this book in early 2020 and completely loved it! I couldnβt tell you how many times Iβve read it! In this book, he talks about his journey to becoming as successful as he is, and pinpoints the ideas of βDreaming Bigβ and βLiving Braveβ as he promotes his manifesto to young people of the generation. I completely loved this book and I bet you will too! Itβs motivating and inspirational words were so useful when it came to building confidence when it came to building my own website and business. I could not recommend this book more!
I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban- By Malala Yousafzai & Christina Lamb
βI Am Malalaβ, by Malala Yousafzai, co-written with Christina Lamb, is an autobiography about Malala, the girl who stood up for education and was shot by the Taliban. This book details the early life of Malala, her interests in activism, her father ownership of school, the rise and fall of the Taliban, and the assassination attempt made against Malala when she was only 15 years old. Ever since she was almost killed 8 years ago, Malala's story has become well-known globally because of her attitude and activism for female education in Pakistan. After publishing this book in 2013, it won many awards and Malala has since spoken to members of the United Nations regarding her beliefs. I first read this book at school during year 8 and found it so inspirational how one girl made such a difference. This book is undoubtedly one of the most memorable Iβve read and hands down one of my favourites! Anyone wanting to learn about activism or interested in women's rights, I would highly recommend this book to you.
Blue Ocean Strategy- By W. Chan Kim & RenΓ©e Mauborgne
The expanded edition of the international bestseller book βBlue Ocean Strategyβ is an incredible book known for its revolutionary marketing and business strategy that specifically teaches the reader βHow to CReate Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant.β Readapted by W. Chan Kim and RenΓ©e Mauborgne, this book has sold over 3.5 million copies worldwide as it helps the reader move from a red ocean filled with bloody, cut-throat competition, to an empty blue ocean with a horizon filled with endless possibilities. If Iβm being honest, when I first started reading this book, I really struggled. Itβs pretty obvious it was written for adults, and many of the words inside made me need to look them up. However, despite that, it was an incredible book that analysed and built on multiple company examples of creating blue oceans for industries filled with competition. If you see yourself with a future in business or marketing, this book is where you need to start!
Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones- By James Clear
βAtomic Habitsβ, by James Clear is an amazing book full of useful and actionable information about habits, including why we form them, and how to make and break them. By improving at a rate of 1% per day, the tiny changes you make will form remarkable results. From my experience, this information has been completely life-changing when it comes to creating positive habits. He uses easy and proven ways to build good habits and break bad ones which have been the inspiration behind many of my habit-related blog posts! The book has sold more than 1 million copies, and has been said to be groundbreaking when it comes to results. I couldn't personally recommend this book more! If you want to change your life and turn all of your negative habits into positive ones, this book is perfect!
The Barefoot Investor- By Scott Pape
βThe Barefoot Investorβ by Scott Pape is the only money guide youβll ever need. While thatβs a bold claim to be made, given there are already thousands of finance books on the shelves, this book is completely different. As the all-time #1 Australian best seller, with more than 2 million copies sold and one at every 20 households, βThe Barefoot Investorβ is a simple guide as to how to turn your financial life around. Now, obviously Iβm not an adult and donβt yet need this knowledge to be applied, but this book was so insightful as to what itβs really like to be an adult in the 21st century, with so many financial responsibilities. Out of all the finance books Iβve read, this one has undoubtedly made the biggest impact on my life in the best of ways. If youβre interested in finance or purely learning about money in the real world, then this book is for you!
The 4-Hour Work Week- By Timothy Ferriss
βThe 4-Hour Work Weekβ, by Timothy Ferriss, is the ultimate guide to escaping a 9-5 job, living anywhere and joining the new rich. This self-improvement book presents a new, revolutionary solution to a problem asked by many. Forget the old concept of retirement and working for the rest of your life. Using this book, there is no need to wait and every reason not to, especially in unpredictable economic times. For me, this book was completely life-changing. After growing up only hearing about jobs that work 9-5, this book gave me a new perspective and goal in life; to live a life boundless by working a job from 9 to 5. Any aspiring CEOβs or entrepreneurs, this is the book I recommend for you. I cannot express its amazing-ness enough!
The Hate U Give- By Angie Thomas
Only recently, I read βThe Hate U Giveβ by Angie Thomas as a part of my English course and topic. Since I barely ever read fiction, this book was so enlightening when it came to giving perspective regarding the recent Black Lives Matter movement and acknowledgement of police violence and brutality against black individuals around the world. This book was about a teenager named Starr, whose childhood friend Khalil was killed by a police officer one night as they were returning from a party. The book, through the perspective of Starr, explores the stages of grief as the neighbourhood mourns his death and rises up against the police. The story ends with the murderer being deemed innocent of the charges, and Starr promising to continue to strive for change. For me, this book was such an eye-opener, and is so relevant to 2021 contextually, with so much going on around the world currently. I recommend it to anyone!
One-Way Ticket: The Untold Story of the Bali 9- ByCindy Wockner and Madonna King
βOne-Way Ticket: The Untold Story of the Bali 9β by Cindy Wockner and Madonna King, is a recount of the true story of nine young Australians who were arrested in Bali on April 17th, 2005, on charges for trafficking heroin. Their arrests, closely following that of Schapelle Corby, shocked Australians, even more shocking was the revelation they could face the death penalty. The story talks about the lives and upbringings of each of the 9 individuals involved, and discusses the actions and investigations completed by police leading up to their arrest. Personally, Iβve always loved true crime, so this book was very interesting in my eyes. To anyone who is interested in true crime, I would recommend reading this book!
The Bottom Line:
Let me make this very clear. Growing up I hated reading. And now, it is probably my biggest regret!
Iβm not even 18 and I already wish I could change that part of my childhood. I never made a huge effort, and that's what always gets me. So this is my message to you. READ!!! Read whatever you can, whenever you can.
Not only does reading benefit your creativity and imagination in so many ways, but it also helps you so much in high school! Reading 1000% makes you a better writer! And I know from personal experience. The best writers are always the bookworms!
So thank you for reading this blog post! I hope you enjoyed it! Have an amazing day!
Mia Xx
I WANNA KNOW! WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE BOOK?
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