Liliana's personal blog

I read a lot. And because I read a lot, I find a lot of really great books. I want to share my top sixteen (though it’s actually far more because I am counting series as a single book) with you, along with WHY I like them (because I think no book recommendation list is complete without the WHY).

So without further ado (and in no particular order):

Words On Fire, by Jennifer A Nielsen
Wow, this book is incredible. I recently read this for the first time, and this one is definitely worth rereading. It tells the tale of a young Lithuanian girl who's country is occupied by Russia. The Russians want to destroy the very culture of Lithuania, so they ban the Lithuanian language, religion, and books.

Guardians of Ga'Hoole, by Kathryn Lasky
This series of fifteen is absolutely thrilling as you follow the development of the main character, an owl named Soren, and his friends. These books are powerful classics on leadership, friendship, duty, and freedom.

How To Train Your Dragon, by Cressida Cowell
This delightful series of twelve follows our unlikely hero, Hiccup, as he develops his unique gifts, deals with a mischievous dragon, saves his life and the lives of his friends many times, and discovers and claims his destiny in order to save both the dragon and human world.

Rise of a Legend, by Kathryn Lasky
This powerful prequel to the Guardians of Ga'Hoole series follows the life of the greatest Ryb at the Great Tree. This book is INCREDIBLE, it might be my toppity-top favourite. You have to read it.

Wolves of the Beyond, by Kathryn Lasky
A series of six, this takes place in the same world as Guardians of Ga'Hoole and Rise of a Legend, except it focuses on the wolves, not the owls. It's super interesting to see a different culture surviving and thriving in the same world. Except... that world is falling apart, and it is up to Faolan to save it.

The Screwtape Letters, by C S Lewis
This fictional book is a very entertaining series of letters from a devil official, Screwtape, to his Nephew, Wormwood, who he is mentoring in the fine art of leading souls to hell. Profound, funny, and hard to put down, it's a great read that I highly recommend.

Macbeth, by William Shakespeare
Macbeth is my favorite play by Shakespeare. Murder, madness, and magic... this tragedy has it all. Killing the king, Macbeth usurps the throne, assured by three witches that he would rule until the trees of the forest marched up to battle him. A little hard to understand at first, I recommend finding a production of the play on YouTube to watch and following along in your book.

Animal Farm, by George Orwell
When the farm animals overthrow their drunkard master, they think they are bound for prosperity. But then the pigs take control, become above the law, and subject the other animals, leaving them worse off than ever before. This distopian is deep, and a little sad, but I still highly recommend it. It's an incredible freedom classic. If you choose to read it, I recommend doing so with a notebook and pen, and keeping a list of exactly HOW the pigs usurp power. You'll learn a lot!

Voyage of the Dogs, by Greg van Eekhout
What if... humans had found a way to shrink space, making it possible to travel to a planet in a whole other galaxy in less then a single human lifetime? And then... what if a meteor hit the spaceship, forcing the human crew to abandon it? And what if, the crew dogs had to be left behind? That is the premise of Voyage of the Dogs, a fictional account of pack of dog's attempt to finish the mission their people had started.

Property of the Rebel Librarian, by Allison Varnes
When the majority of books are banned at her school, June decides to take action. She starts a secret library, distributing books in the school so that other students can read too. When her resistance is uncovered, it is up to June to make a difference with her words.

The Giver, by Lois Lowery
Extremely dystopian, The Giver transports you to a world of 'sameness,' a world without color, music, love, or choice. When Jonas is chosen by his community elders to be a holder of memories of the past, he discovers these forbidden things -color, music, love, and choice- and decides that life can not go on as before.

Perloo the Bold, by Avi
A shy scholar, Perloo is tasked with leading his species. He does not want this leadership position, but is forced to take it, stop a war, and restore freedom to his people.

The Ascendance Trilogy, by Jennifer A Nielsen
This riveting trilogy tells the tale of Sage: an orphan, a prince, and a king. Filled with death defying action and phenominal story telling, this trilogy is absolutely inspiring.

Camp Half-Blood Chronicles, by Rick Riordan
This series twists modern with ancient, reality with myth. It's beautiful! Full of Greek mythology and lots of adventure, it's a page turner.

Artemis Fowl, by Eoin Cofler
This eight book series is filled with villainous genius! It follows the adventures of Artemis Fowl as he interacts with the fairy folk and outwits everyone.

Beauty, by Robin McKinley
This retelling of the classic story Beauty and the Beast adds a whole new depth of characters. Beautiful plot, beautiful writing; it's a very easy and engaging read. Even if you don't like the original tale of Beauty and the Beast, this is still a great read!


And so there you have it... sixteen of my favourite books! I hope you'll take the time to read some of them, and don't forget to comment below about your reading experiences!

It's already been a week of doing this! And yes, I started Project Otulissa before I started my blog.

I've learned some really cool things! I've read three books in the fifteen book series so far (no, I'm not going in order): The Burning (book 6); The Rescue (book 3); and The Siege (book 4).

Here is what I've learned:

~Stand up for what is right; do it precisely and powerfully and you'll make an impact.
~Book learning isn't everything.
~Your value is about you, not the family you're born into.
~Know that we can learn and have fun at the same time.
~Know that you can learn from other people, even those with "less intelligence."
~Dare to stand up for truth.
~Do what you know is right despite your fears.
~We have to acknowledge reality - that life is more than books, simulations, and study - before we can really live up to our full potential.
~After you read something, you need to discuss it.

Wow, lots of good stuff!

So here is what I plan to do based on these lessons:

~Discuss what I read (blog posts like this one are a part of discussion).
~Spend less time in books, or, in other words, try harder to find the balance between life and academic stuff.
~Learn from anyone and everyone.

So yeah, this week has been great! I'm already preparing to check out my next three books (#2; #7; #8) for this next week's reading. And also... you should read this series, Guardians of Ga'Hoole by Kathryn Lasky. It has amazing lessons on leadership, duty, mentors, freedom, and mission.

I have decided to take reading to a whole new level.

As I was pondering these last few weeks (which, thanks to CoViD19, are full of ponder-time, AKA nothing to do) I realized that the book character I am most like is Otulissa from the Guardians of GaHoole series by Kathryn Lasky.
Why?

I wrote, “I am probably most like Otulissa from Guardians of Ga’Hoole. Super nerdy, way too good at bragging, always willing to share TMI, but with deep fears that she will fail, that she won’t be enough no matter how much she knows or how hard she studies.”

Okay, but what does that have to do with taking reading to a whole new level?

Well, here’s the answer. I am going to read all the books in the series that include her (for the bazillionth time), but this time, I am going to do it while taking notes on her challenges, her victories over her challenges, her mentors and how she learns, and anything else.

I have to tell you, over the series she really changes. Not a bad, ‘wow, is that even the same owl?’ change, but she is polished. It’s really cool to watch.

So basically, I am going to glean all the wisdom I can from her and use it to polish myself.

Of course, this is going to be a process, not an over-night transformation.

And, of course, I’ll keep you guys updated. I’ll put in a new post about this every week. But until the next article... *salve!


*Salve is Latin for “goodbye” and it’s pronounced SAHLL-wayh

Many people don't care about what is going on in the world today, and if they do care, they don't understand. And if they do understand, they probably aren't sure how to go about influencing what is happening today.

That needs to change if America's freedom is going to be restored.


My name is Liliana. I've been homeschooled up until 9th grade, and now I'm going to Leadership Academy of Utah.

I am passionate about many things, some of which include current events, the United States Constitution, good books, designing and sewing clothes for me and my 18" doll, debate, and having a clean room.


I am very excited to have this blog and be sharing anything and everything I'm interested in with you.