Best Books of 2018 and Welcome

Welcome!
I have a confession to make. I love to read books. Perhaps too much. Feedback from my husband and child implies that I perhaps spend too much time reading, and the good news is I've decided to spend more time on this hobby! They were super excited to learn this.
The only downside to reading I've found is that it's a solitary activity. So, in an attempt to share my favorite hobby with others, I've decided to start a book blog where I review, rate, and recommend books that I've read. I would also love book recommendations from you and your thoughts if you've read the any of the books.
I'm going to start with a list of the top 7 books I read in 2018, and then once each month I'll write a post about the books that I read that month and review, rate, and recommend them. 
One of the main points of this endeavor is to get your thoughts and insights into the books you've read as well as recommendations for other books you think I should read, so feel free to comment below or message me with your thoughts on the books or recommendations for further reading.
Let's begin!

Tonya's Top 7 Books that I read in 2018 (In no particular order)

A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
Rating: ★★★★★ / PG
Recommendation: Yes to everyone
Review: You will experience the full range of human emotion while reading A Man Called Ove. It will make you laugh and cry and give you greater insight into the human experience as you come to love Ove along with everyone else in his community. I loved this book in part because it reminded me of my Grandpa who could also have been described as a grumpy yet lovable and generous old man.
Summary: A grumpy yet loveable man finds his solitary world turned on its head when a boisterous young family moves in next door. 

Factfulness: Ten Reasons We're Wrong About the World and Why Things are Better Than You Think by Hans Rosling
Rating: ★★★★★ / G
Recommendation: Yes to everyone

Review: This book changed how I understand and interact with the world. It made me realize that contrary to what I've been taught, the world today is a much better place than it has ever been. While not sugar-coating or demeaning the severity of the problems that humanity now faces, Rosling soundly debunks this falsehood while also giving a helpful framework for how to interpret the constant negative messages we receive. This book simultaneously helped me find hope in a depressing and confusing world and inspired me to work harder to make the world a better place. 

Summary: When asked simple questions about global trends, we systematically get the answers wrong. In Factfulness, Hans Rosling, offers a radical new explanation of why this happens. Our problem is that we don’t know what we don’t know, and even our guesses are informed by unconscious and predictable biases.

Skyward by Brandon Sanderson
Rating: ★★★★★ / PG
Recommendation: Yes to everyone

Review: Brandon Sanderson is my favorite fantasy author hands down, so expect to see a lot of his stuff on this blog. I loved this book. It was a spectacular new twist on a familiar plot: an underprivileged hero fights to get accepted into school and be accepted by her peers. As with all of Sanderson's books, it's a plot-driven page-turner that also offered interesting insights into ageless questions like the meaning of courage and being a hero. I can't wait for the sequel.  

Summary: Defeated, crushed, and driven almost to extinction, the remnants of the human race are trapped on a planet that is constantly attacked by mysterious alien starfighters. Spensa, a teenage girl living among them, longs to be a pilot. When she discovers the wreckage of an ancient ship, she realizes this dream might be possible—assuming she can repair the ship, navigate flight school, and (perhaps most importantly) persuade the strange machine to help her. Because this ship, uniquely, appears to have a soul.

 Born to Run by Christopher McDougall
Rating: ★★★★★ / G
Recommendation: Yes to everyone, especially all fitness lovers
Review: I never considered myself much of a runner, but this book taught me why I’m wrong about that, and you probably are too. Turns out that humans are actually designed for long-distance, or ultra-running. We used to run our prehistoric prey to death at distances of more than 50 miles a day. McDougall skillfully weaves evolutionary science with the compelling stories of modern day ultra-runners in this inspiring and eye-opening book. 
Summary: With a sharp wit and wild exuberance, McDougall takes us from the high-tech science labs at Harvard to the sun-baked valleys and freezing peaks across North America, where ever-growing numbers of ultra-runners are pushing their bodies to the limit, and, finally, to the climactic race in the Copper Canyons. 

 The Evolution of Beauty by Richard O. Prum
Rating: ★★★★★ / PG
Recommendation: Yes
Review: This book changed the way I look at the world and increased my appreciation for the amazing beauty found in it. I have no training in biology, so I didn’t really understand why the main theory of this book – that organisms select mates based not only on their ability to survive and thrive but also on their beauty – was so controversial. This book answered one of the questions that I’ve always wondered about: why does nature try so hard to be beautiful? Highly recommend to those who like popular science and learning about the world around us. While this book is about sex it contains no explicit material. 
Summary:In the great halls of science, dogma holds that Darwin's theory of natural selection explains every branch on the tree of life: which species thrive, which wither away to extinction, and what features each evolves. But can adaptation by natural selection really account for everything we see in nature? To explain this, Prum dusts off Darwin's long-neglected theory of sexual selection in which the act of choosing a mate for purely aesthetic reasons--for the mere pleasure of it--is an independent engine of evolutionary change.

A Wrinkle in Time Quintet by Madeleine L'Engle
Rating: ★★★★★ / PG
Recommendation: Yes to everyone
Review: This was a re-read for me, as I read all these books multiple times growing up. The good news is the whole series holds up when I’m an adult too. While I enjoy all the books in the series, the first one A Wrinkle in Time will always be my favorite. Growing up I could completely relate to Meg’s awkwardness and self-consciousness, and I loved seeing how she grows into a strong woman and mother later in the series. The overwhelming message of all these books is love. Love conquers evil and gives us the strength and courage to do amazing things. Highly recommend to everyone. 

Summary: These books chronicle the adventures of Meg Murray and her family. 

Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
Rating: ★★★★★ / PG-13
Recommendation: Yes to everyone
Review: One of the things that I love most about books is that they allow me to have experiences that I would otherwise never have the chance to. Before reading this book, I knew little about apartheid in South Africa, but now I feel that my empathy and understanding has increased for not only that part of human history, but also my understanding of race and class. Trevor Noah manages to tell his compelling and interesting story with both humor and tragedy. Thank you for sharing and for broadening my own horizons. You don't have to know anything about Trevor Noah or The Daily Show to appreciate this book. 

Summary: The compelling, inspiring, and comically sublime New York Times bestseller about one man’s coming-of-age, set during the twilight of apartheid and the tumultuous days of freedom that followed. Trevor Noah’s unlikely path from apartheid South Africa to the desk of The Daily Show began with a criminal act: his birth. 


Here's the list of the rest of the books I read in 2018. Feel free to message or comment below with your thoughts if you read any of them too, or if you want to read any of them and would like to hear more about them!