The Best Book I Read in May (No spoilers)

Oh, May. A chaotic time. The month grades were getting finalized, summer break preparations began, and we bid our teachers farewell. That’s why I only read eight books last month (oops). At least that might make it easier to pick a favorite. Who am I kidding, it is always hard to pick a favorite, no matter how little books there are. That’s why I’ll be using a bracket technique to pick a favorite. 

To start, I’ll list all the books I read that month along with a few words to give you an idea of what it's about:

• The False Prince (A dramatic fantasy, minus the unicorns)
• The Double Life of Danny Day (What if you lived every day twice?)
• Girls Save The World In This One (A surprisingly good zombie attack story)
• Follow Me Back (A girl with a fear of crowds)
• After Zero (What if you chose to speak just 5 words a day?)
• Fairest Of All (A twisted tale on Snow White)
• The Library of Lost Things (Starring a girl who reads to cope)
• Offline (What if you refused to use social media for a month?)

Yay, an even number! Now, I’ll pit each of the books against another (Like After Zero against Fairest Of All,  The False Prince against The Double Life of Danny Day, and so on). Next, I’ll pit the winners of each set against each other, and so forth, until only one book remains. So, without further ado, let’s get started!

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The False Prince vs The Double Life of Danny Day: The False Prince. This was barely even a choice. The Double Life of Danny Day was a really light read, and I’d give it 3.5 stars. But The False Prince was superb (read my review of it). 

Girls Save The World In This One vs Follow Me Back: I’m going to go with Girls Save The World In This One. This question was tough, because both were fairly good. But, Girls Save The World In This One clearly deserved to win because it took an often cliched plot and turned it into something amazing.

After Zero vs Fairest Of All: After Zero wins, hands down! Fairest Of All was actually designed for a younger audience, maybe 8 year olds or so, but I read it anyway to test out my Kindle. After Zero, on the other hand, was superb.

The Library of Lost Things vs Offline: The Library of Lost Things. While Offline was a thought provoking read, it was pretty short. Although I wouldn’t say The Library of Lost Things is amazing, I can say with certainty that Offline is worse.

All right, we’re done with the first round of eliminations: two more to go! Half the books have already been scrapped; this is where things get interesting,

The False Prince vs Girls Save The World In This One: Ahhh, this is such a hard decision! I loved both of them to the moon and back. But, in the end, I’ll have to choose Girls Save The World In This One. It was such a unique read, and I enjoyed it a lot. This was my first zombie apocalypse read, but it swept me off my feet.

After Zero vs The Library of Lost Things: After Zero, of course! It was an intriguing read that posed questions we usually overlook. The plot is very well written, a web of honest drama, and the resolution tied everything together perfectly. A unique genre, too.

Two more books left. Only one crown. Which read will win?

Girls Save The World In This One vs After Zero: You are not asking me this question. You can’t make me choose! That’s the epitome of unfairness. 

"Girls Save The World In This One" is a fast-paced and empowering story that follows a group of teenage girls attending a zombie-themed convention. When they face a real zombie outbreak, they need to rely on their friendship, resourcefulness, and love for pop culture to save themselves and the world. 

On the other hand, "After Zero" takes a different approach, diving into the life of Elise, a middle school student struggling with selective mutism and anxiety. The story beautifully explores Elise's journey of self-discovery and finding her voice, as she navigates friendship, family dynamics, and the challenges of middle school.

They are both amazing in their own way, but alas, only one can be crowned. Only one will be called the best book I read in May, and that book is… After Zero by Christina Collins.

Look, the choice was hard, but I just loved that book. Even though I haven’t read many zombie apocalypse novels, I know that there are plenty out there.  On the other hand, I’ve never read a book like After Zero before. It was new and refreshing, a breath of fresh air. But it wasn’t just the genre that had me hooked, I loved the plot, too. There were so many plot twists, and I loved it.

So, all in all, After Zero gets the title of Best Book I Read In May. I hope you enjoyed reading this post as much as I enjoyed reading the books mentioned in it. Have a great day, and happy reading!

Paige, signing off.