36 Years of Reading!

This week I’m turning 36 and while I could get sentimental about time flying or wax poetic about the wisdom that comes with age, let’s be honest. You’re here for the books!

Looking back, I realized that my life can literally be charted in chapters!

By the books that kept me up past bedtime, sparked my curiosity, broke my heart, and made me believe in magic (and feminism, and dragons, and quiet, ordinary bravery). So here’s a look back at the stories that have shaped me, decade by decade!

Ages 0–10

These were the books of comfort, bedtime rituals, and the first sparks of imagination. Before I could read on my own, I was curled up with my mom absorbing rhythm, rhyme, and wonder. These stories were my foundation!

• Anything Dr. Seuss – The gateway to wordplay and whimsy. Who didn’t love the Cat In The Hat?!
• Blueberries for Sal – A gentle reminder that sometimes getting lost leads to the best adventures. Though I am pretty sure at that age I was in it for the sound effects! "Kerplink Kerplank Kerplunk"
• Berenstain Bears – I’m not saying these stories taught me all my moral lessons…but I’m not not saying that.
• I Love You Forever – I loved this one!
• The Very Hungry Caterpillar – Iconic, essential, and oddly satisfying.
• American Girl series – I was OBSESSED. History, heroines, and heart? Sign me up. Kirsten and Samantha were my favorites!
• Dear America diaries – These fictional diaries helped me time-travel before I even knew historical fiction was a genre.

Ages 10–20

This was the era of getting lost in stories and often wishing I could live in them! I gravitated toward heroines who were bookish and bold!

• Harry Potter series – I read them and then I got the books on tape and wore them into the ground!
• Little Women – Jo March walked so the rest of us could run with our pens and dreams. But as a kid Amy was my favorite!
• Little House on the Prairie – I was obsessed with these. I read them and the prequel about Ma and the sequel about her daughter. Then I got my Oma to sew me a Laura Ingalls costume and was incensed when people thought I was dressed as an Amish girl!
• Anne of Green Gables – Imaginative, stubborn, deeply romantic. Anne Shirley felt like a kindred spirit! My parents took me to Prince Edward Island and it is such a core memory for me!
• The Other Boleyn Girl – My Tudor obsession was born here.
• Emma – This one turned me into a lifelong Austen fan. Witty, imperfect, and timeless! My favorite Jane Austen book to this day!

Ages 20–30

These were the years of working hard, falling in love, starting our family, and slowly figuring out who I was. I very much stuck to the genre I knew and loved because I simply didn’t have the band width to try new ones.

• Snow Flower and the Secret Fan – A haunting, lyrical look at friendship, sacrifice, and culture.
• Secrets of a Charmed Life – One of the first books that made me ugly cry in public. No regrets.
• America’s First Daughter – Historical fiction done right. Political and personal.
• A Fall of Marigolds – Gorgeous storytelling that weaves past and present with grace.
• Scandal in Spring – This Lisa Kleypas romance rekindled my love of historical love stories.
• The Magnolia Sword – A Mulan-inspired story with lyrical prose and sharp edges.
• Lady Sherlock series – Who says Sherlock can’t be a woman? Smart, feminist, and so much fun!

Ages 30–36

With the kids older and a new found willingness to DNF books that are not for me this is where I really found my reading groove. Dual timelines, historical heroines, broody love interests, dragons, and deeply layered female leads? Yes, please!

• The Women of Chateau Lafayette – Sweeping, feminist, and deeply moving.
• The Rose Code – Brilliant and heartbreaking and so well written.
• The Nightingale – Everyone told me I’d cry. I did. But it was so worth it.
• The Knight and the Moth – Poetic, haunting, and that ending!
• Shield of Sparrows – Enemies to lovers, monsters, magic, and a forgotten princess who claims her own fate. One of my favorite reads of the year!
• A Terribly Nasty Business – Witty, romantic, and full of personality. I adored this one (and the sequel just came out!)
• Love, Theoretically – Give me all the Ali Hazelwood love stories!
• The Gentleman’s Gambit – An absolute joy! Charming, romantic, and funny as ever.

Final Thoughts

If there’s one thing I’ve learned in 36 years, it’s that books will always be there for you. When everything else feels uncertain, they offer escape, comfort, challenge, and clarity. They’ve taught me how to see the world (and myself) differently!

Here’s to the next chapter. May it be full of swoony romances, magical worlds, and heroines who rise. And if you’ve made it this far, I’d love to know what books defined your decades?