Top Ten Tuesday: What I Read as a College Freshman

For this week's topic, I had to do some digging through my Goodreads shelves to find out just what I was reading back in 2009 and 2010. The topic title is a bit misleading, as this list really encompasses some of my most memorable reads from the end of my senior year of high school through the end of my freshman year of college.

Oh, the fall of 2009. The Vampire Diaries had just started its first season, New Moon had just come out in theaters, and my obsession with YA paranormal romance was in full swing. Maggie Stiefavater and Cassandra Clare ranked high on my favorites list at the time.

To be honest, if it hadn't been for Stephenie Meyer, I probably never would have picked up The Hunger Games. Even after reading her praise for it, I was still pretty skeptical about whether or not it would be my kind of book. Boy, was I proven wrong! I read it over summer vacation before leaving for school and was hooked. The Road was another book that ended up surprising me with how much I enjoyed it ... though I'm not really sure enjoy is the right word. Can you really say you enjoyed a book that scared the absolute hell out of you? It was one of the books I read for my freshman intro to fiction class, one of the first classes I took that counted toward my English major, and it's stuck with me (not to mention given me nightmares) ever since.

As you can see, my last three picks don't fit neatly into one category. In between all the crazy dystopian and mythical creature-ridden worlds I was reading about, there were occasionally some that were more familiar. Going into freshman year of college, it had been my plan to major in English with a concentration in creative writing. So, in my attempt to learn more about how other writers did it, one of the books I read was Stephen King's On Writing. It's an interesting look into not only his writing process but his life as well, and I recommend it even if, like me, you're not a Stephen King super fan. I'm still haunted by his description of the procedure his doctor performed on him as kid to try to rid him of ear infections. *shudders*

When I wasn't reading about vampires, werewolves, or demon hunters, you could usually find me reading a Jodi Picoult book. I loved the way she wove so many characters' stories together, and I read quite a few of her books the summer before I went off to college. Once of the last books I read and loved that summer was Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen. I was looking for a beachy summer read to get me ready for our annual family vacation to Florida, and this was the perfect pick.

That's it for me! Are there any books from your freshman year of college, required reading or otherwise, that have stuck with you, or any favorites from that transitional summer leading up to your first time away from home?