**My Five Favorite Books: A Reflection of Gratitude and Love**

As I sit down to write this article, I am filled with gratitude for the books that have shaped my life and brought me joy. In today's fast-paced world, it's easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of daily life and forget to appreciate the simple things. But for me, reading has always been a source of comfort, solace, and inspiration. As I look around my bookshelf, I am reminded of the power of words to transform our lives and bring us closer together.

My love affair with contemporary books began with Sarah Dessen, an author who has become a favorite among many readers, including myself. Her lighthearted and relatable characters have captured my heart, and I find myself drawn to her stories time and again. There's something about the way she weaves together the complexities of life, love, and relationships that resonates deeply with me. Whether it's a summer romance or a coming-of-age story, Sarah Dessen's books always leave me feeling uplifted and inspired. And for that, I am eternally grateful.

Another author who has left an indelible mark on my life is J.R.R. Tolkien. My father gifted me his copy of "The Lord of the Rings," which has become one of my most treasured possessions. The worn cover and yellowed pages are a testament to the love and care with which he handled this book. I remember watching him read it, mesmerized by the world he created. As I grew older, Tolkien's stories continued to captivate me, transporting me to realms both familiar and unknown. His influence has been profound, shaping my love of fantasy and adventure in ways that are still unfolding.

**A Token of Love from My Father**

But what makes these books truly special is the connection they hold with my family. My father, who passed away when I was young, was a voracious reader who instilled in me a love of literature that has stayed with me to this day. His worn copy of Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings" serves as a poignant reminder of our time together, and I treasure it deeply. It's a tangible link to my past, a symbol of his love and legacy.

In many ways, books have become a bridge between us, allowing me to connect with him even in death. They represent a shared experience, a common language that transcends words and time. As I look at the pages of Tolkien's book, I am reminded of our conversations, our laughter, and our tears. It's a bittersweet reminder of what could never be again, but also a testament to the power of love and memory.

**A Story of Thankfulness**

As I reflect on these books, I am struck by the realization that they have become an integral part of my life. They've comforted me in times of sorrow, inspired me during moments of doubt, and transported me to worlds beyond my wildest dreams. And so, I want to take a moment to express my gratitude for these books, which have brought me such joy and companionship over the years.

In a world that often seems overwhelming and chaotic, it's easy to get caught up in our own struggles and forget the beauty that surrounds us. But as I look around my bookshelf, I am reminded of the simple pleasures in life: a good story, a comfortable chair, and a warm cup of tea. These are the things that bring me peace, that make life worth living.

So, I want to leave you with a challenge today: take some time to reflect on your own books, those that have shaped your life and brought you joy. What are they? Why do they matter to you? How have they impacted your journey, and what memories do they hold? For me, it's the simple act of sharing these stories that brings me peace and gratitude.

**A Message of Gratitude**

As we sit down to share our gratitude with one another today, I want to leave you with a message of appreciation for the books that have become such an integral part of my life. Whether they're classics or contemporary favorites, books have a way of touching our hearts and minds in ways that are both profound and intimate.

So, as we gather around the table, surrounded by loved ones and delicious food, I invite you to join me in this celebration of gratitude. Let us raise a glass (or a book) to the authors who have shaped our lives, to the stories that have comforted us, and to the memories that we've created together.

And as I look around at my fellow writers and readers, I am filled with hope and optimism for the future. For in the world of words, we find solace, inspiration, and a sense of connection that transcends borders and boundaries. So, let us cherish these books, these stories, and this community of readers who have become such an important part of our lives.

Thank you, dear friends, for joining me on this journey of gratitude and love. May our words be a source of comfort, inspiration, and joy to one another, now and forevermore.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enhello everyone and Happy Thanksgiving today is Thanksgiving Day at least here in the US either way I wanted to upload a video talking about the books I'm thankful for since today is Thanksgiving so I hope you're having a great Thanksgiving Day and if you're watching this a day after a day later I hope it's I hope it was an amazing Thanksgiving okay like I said it's Thanksgiving Day and today I'm talking about five books that I am very very thankful for so this is gonna be a little bit of Ikea now I wouldn't say recommendations I would say more of kind of like these storytimes looks I'm going to mention today you're probably gonna roll your eyes and be like you're really thankful for that either like you need to check yourself but I have stories for each one of them and why I am particularly thankful for them so before you click dislike or just click away from this video just hear the story I have to say about the book in particular because there's someone here that I look at it I'm like mmhmm no people like that here are the five books that I am really really thankful for because it's Thanksgiving Day let's be thankful the first book I want to talk about should be no surprise to anyone in the whole entire world and that is Harry Potter I'm sure a lot of people I'm by a hot I need him well enough people talk about being really thankful for Harry Potter myself included Harry Potter you know I think for a lot of us really kick-started a reading I was always a big reader before Harry Potter but what I discovered Harry Potter it awoke something at me and it woke like this need for reading and this love and passion for reading that I never had before Harry Potter started a lot of things for me it started my really big reading obsession it started my love for books it started so many it's sort of my first kind of love of a fandom and I'm so grateful and so thankful that Harry Potter was in my life and I discovered Harry Potter and I'll never forget the day I discovered Harry Potter I was at the library of my dad and my brother because it wasn't my dad week it was my dad's weekend with us kids because my parents were just nearly divorced and I decided to check out Harry Potter I was like 11 years old I heard a lot of people talking about it and that weekend I started it and I couldn't stop it and I just fell in love with the series by my time when I started being serious so only the first three books were out I think so after the first three books I kind of with Harry Potter every year I would wait eagerly for the next one and I would like preorder it and I would you know take my parents this door make them pick it up with me on the day I would go the day up oh shoot Potter it's just the beginning of my love story with reading and my love story books and so for that I am forever ever thankful for it because Harry Potter is always gonna be a big part of my life and a big part of who I am and I just I can't get enough of it and I'm just thankful for this series the I role section part of this video you're gonna see this book I'm about to talk about here would be like really just bear with me just bear with me the next book I am thankful for is Twilight I know go ahead convinced I rules in every way I am grateful and thankful for Twilight because this started my this kind of re reunited my left reading so while I did love Harry Potter a ton after that series ended or was coming to a close there was nothing out there that could really read a lot and in this time in my opinion why wasn't a big thing I didn't know about why books I don't think there was a ton of them out there like there is today and then Twilight came out I saw Twilight in the bookstore like back in the day when Walden's books were big and B Dalton was big like the kind of little bookstores inside of malls you know I'm saying like the of the Barnes Noble then you have like the subsidiaries of Barnes & Noble and borders oh those were the two stores and I had saw this cover I was like that's interesting cover and then I read the book jacket and it was about vampires and as a Buffy fan I was like yes I was it goes around 15 or 16 at the time became obsessed with a series I think a lot of us did we were younger now to be honest with you as a 29 year old woman if I could read read this would I be like I'm in love with this still probably not I probably read it and be like whoa what was I thinking but the fact of it was a big part of me when I was younger and that's okay I feel like Twilight as bad as it is to say and a lot of people may disagree with this I think Twilight really helped kick yaa into drive I feel like Twilight really helped the young adult like saying like Twilight really helped young adult fiction come to life and really reignite and get people more interested in actually like it really sparked a big thing and like I said a time people could disagree with that I don't know but I really looked Twilight because it really got me into why a fiction like when I read Twilight I wanted to read like every type of Y book there was and I really think it helps drive way so I'm forever thankful for Twilight for you know having another fandom for in my life um for getting me into kind of why a fiction and discovering there is why fiction because I never knew so yeah you know the cringe part is there it's really much there but I'm still thankful for Twilight a ton the next book that I am thankful for is divergent by Veronica Roth particularly because divergent brought me to book two I remember reading this before I even discovered book 2 this was back in the day when I would scour kind of Walmart and Target shelves and look for any type of interesting books that would catch my eye and this one caught my eye and I finished it and I was like whoa this book is amazed hey I need to talk to people about it and somehow I got up on YouTube and typed in this book and discovered the joy of booktube i think booktube is a huge deal now like a lot of people are book tubers and it's so the community has grown so so much but when I just guarantee it was still relatively small and even when i joined booktube it was still relatively small so the fact I'm just grateful and so thankful for divergent because it brought me to booktube it brought me to you guys it brought me this huge sense of passion that I have I love reading and to combine my love of reading and combining my love of talking about my love of reading into one thing is amazing so I don't know if I never read divergent I may never have been a booktuber so as weird as that is you know as again like Twilight will came back on this maybe I would reread this and be like I don't know if I love you quite as much because my love has definitely lessened a ton for an average but I'm still thankful for it because it brought me to this amazing community and I'm forever thankful for that my next book I am thankful for is just Sarah Dessen in general I discovered Sarah Dessen from a mutual friend that was a little bit older than me and she talked about Sarah Dessen and she lent me her books and she awakened this love for Sarah Dessen if you guys know me I love Sarah Dessen she's my favorite contemporary author she has like 12 books under her belt like she's she's written a ton and I still enjoy her work it's just the quintessential summer read in my opinion Sarah doesn't so grateful I'm thankful for Sarah Dessen books because they always put a smile on my face and she's my first like contemporary love like I love so many contemporary books there's no secret about that but Sarah Dessen she was my first she goes my first this is still my favorite because I just love her characters I love you just the kind of lightheartedness of her whole series with a little dash of depth in them I just really enjoy them you know they're not like the best written books or the best you know plot wise books but they put a smile on my face and they make me happy in summertime and springtime and I'm really really thankful for that so I'm just thankful for Sarah Dessen and the last book I am thankful for is J or Tolkien and that's not book the author this is a really beat-up copy you can see it is aged is torn this is actually my father's copy and he gifted it to me and I'm thankful for this because well I don't have the best relationship with my father and I don't know if I ever will I'm thankful for jr. talking because he really got my father into reading and I really think honestly sometimes your love of reading comes from your parents I don't know if that's some sort of journey it's just some sort of gene or DNA or it's like in your DNA you know like my dad loves reading so it's kind of in me he does that make any sense or if it's just watching your parents read it son I remember watching my dad read this a lot he loves jr. talking he loves Lord of the Rings he those high fantasy like Terry Brooks I actually got him into the Guinness Rohn series he's reading it and watching it um but I'm just thankful for junior Tolkien because he's made my dad love reading and it's kind of made me love reading because I think it's kind of in me and my brother loves reading too but he loves reading different things we still love reading I think it stems from our father and like I said well I don't have the best relationship with my father it's very much strained and just not the best I'm still thankful for a junior token because without you know him I may have never liked maybe loved Lord of the Rings as much as I do because I know my dad because my dad loves it as much or I may have not loved reading as much because my dad loves reading if that makes any sense so I'm just really thankful for you know this book and VF as it is it's one of my most treasured possessions because it was my father's and it just she goes to show you like how well-loved this book is and not okay with books being beat up because it shows you that they are well loved and they are well read in your library so there you have it those are the five books that I'm thankful for honest with you I'm thinking for every single book on my shelf I'm so happy to have all these books behind me and I love them all so very much each in their own individual and unique way I thought I would just share this video with you because it's Thanksgiving and it's time to be thankful and just for being really happy with what you have even if you may not have much I myself am blessed with so many things in my life I have a great husband I have a beautiful son I have a roof over my head you know I'm lucky that my husband I have stable jobs and I know a lot of those people may not be fortunate enough as myself so you know now's the time to be thankful grateful for what you have cuz I know sometimes everyday I know a lot of times during you know throughout the year I'm like oh I don't have this I don't have that that person has that that person has this big house that purse has this bigger car that person has all these books that person all that stuff it's really time to reflect to be like very grateful and very thankful for what you have I'm grateful for all the hardships life has brought me because there has been a lot of heartbreak and a lot of you know really scary and hard things in my life but I'm thankful for them because they made me who I am and they made me stronger so easily I just want to share with you these books that I'm really really Saint before each in their own individual way I hope you guys are having an amazing Thanksgiving and eating all the food and watching else and home alone a ton that's what we watch on my house repeatedly oh and if you have any books that you were really really thankful for please leave them down below and leave me your story of why you're thankful for them because I would love to hear your story with a particular book and why you're thankful for it I will talk to you guys later and have a great rest of your weekend and enjoy life bye youhello everyone and Happy Thanksgiving today is Thanksgiving Day at least here in the US either way I wanted to upload a video talking about the books I'm thankful for since today is Thanksgiving so I hope you're having a great Thanksgiving Day and if you're watching this a day after a day later I hope it's I hope it was an amazing Thanksgiving okay like I said it's Thanksgiving Day and today I'm talking about five books that I am very very thankful for so this is gonna be a little bit of Ikea now I wouldn't say recommendations I would say more of kind of like these storytimes looks I'm going to mention today you're probably gonna roll your eyes and be like you're really thankful for that either like you need to check yourself but I have stories for each one of them and why I am particularly thankful for them so before you click dislike or just click away from this video just hear the story I have to say about the book in particular because there's someone here that I look at it I'm like mmhmm no people like that here are the five books that I am really really thankful for because it's Thanksgiving Day let's be thankful the first book I want to talk about should be no surprise to anyone in the whole entire world and that is Harry Potter I'm sure a lot of people I'm by a hot I need him well enough people talk about being really thankful for Harry Potter myself included Harry Potter you know I think for a lot of us really kick-started a reading I was always a big reader before Harry Potter but what I discovered Harry Potter it awoke something at me and it woke like this need for reading and this love and passion for reading that I never had before Harry Potter started a lot of things for me it started my really big reading obsession it started my love for books it started so many it's sort of my first kind of love of a fandom and I'm so grateful and so thankful that Harry Potter was in my life and I discovered Harry Potter and I'll never forget the day I discovered Harry Potter I was at the library of my dad and my brother because it wasn't my dad week it was my dad's weekend with us kids because my parents were just nearly divorced and I decided to check out Harry Potter I was like 11 years old I heard a lot of people talking about it and that weekend I started it and I couldn't stop it and I just fell in love with the series by my time when I started being serious so only the first three books were out I think so after the first three books I kind of with Harry Potter every year I would wait eagerly for the next one and I would like preorder it and I would you know take my parents this door make them pick it up with me on the day I would go the day up oh shoot Potter it's just the beginning of my love story with reading and my love story books and so for that I am forever ever thankful for it because Harry Potter is always gonna be a big part of my life and a big part of who I am and I just I can't get enough of it and I'm just thankful for this series the I role section part of this video you're gonna see this book I'm about to talk about here would be like really just bear with me just bear with me the next book I am thankful for is Twilight I know go ahead convinced I rules in every way I am grateful and thankful for Twilight because this started my this kind of re reunited my left reading so while I did love Harry Potter a ton after that series ended or was coming to a close there was nothing out there that could really read a lot and in this time in my opinion why wasn't a big thing I didn't know about why books I don't think there was a ton of them out there like there is today and then Twilight came out I saw Twilight in the bookstore like back in the day when Walden's books were big and B Dalton was big like the kind of little bookstores inside of malls you know I'm saying like the of the Barnes Noble then you have like the subsidiaries of Barnes & Noble and borders oh those were the two stores and I had saw this cover I was like that's interesting cover and then I read the book jacket and it was about vampires and as a Buffy fan I was like yes I was it goes around 15 or 16 at the time became obsessed with a series I think a lot of us did we were younger now to be honest with you as a 29 year old woman if I could read read this would I be like I'm in love with this still probably not I probably read it and be like whoa what was I thinking but the fact of it was a big part of me when I was younger and that's okay I feel like Twilight as bad as it is to say and a lot of people may disagree with this I think Twilight really helped kick yaa into drive I feel like Twilight really helped the young adult like saying like Twilight really helped young adult fiction come to life and really reignite and get people more interested in actually like it really sparked a big thing and like I said a time people could disagree with that I don't know but I really looked Twilight because it really got me into why a fiction like when I read Twilight I wanted to read like every type of Y book there was and I really think it helps drive way so I'm forever thankful for Twilight for you know having another fandom for in my life um for getting me into kind of why a fiction and discovering there is why fiction because I never knew so yeah you know the cringe part is there it's really much there but I'm still thankful for Twilight a ton the next book that I am thankful for is divergent by Veronica Roth particularly because divergent brought me to book two I remember reading this before I even discovered book 2 this was back in the day when I would scour kind of Walmart and Target shelves and look for any type of interesting books that would catch my eye and this one caught my eye and I finished it and I was like whoa this book is amazed hey I need to talk to people about it and somehow I got up on YouTube and typed in this book and discovered the joy of booktube i think booktube is a huge deal now like a lot of people are book tubers and it's so the community has grown so so much but when I just guarantee it was still relatively small and even when i joined booktube it was still relatively small so the fact I'm just grateful and so thankful for divergent because it brought me to booktube it brought me to you guys it brought me this huge sense of passion that I have I love reading and to combine my love of reading and combining my love of talking about my love of reading into one thing is amazing so I don't know if I never read divergent I may never have been a booktuber so as weird as that is you know as again like Twilight will came back on this maybe I would reread this and be like I don't know if I love you quite as much because my love has definitely lessened a ton for an average but I'm still thankful for it because it brought me to this amazing community and I'm forever thankful for that my next book I am thankful for is just Sarah Dessen in general I discovered Sarah Dessen from a mutual friend that was a little bit older than me and she talked about Sarah Dessen and she lent me her books and she awakened this love for Sarah Dessen if you guys know me I love Sarah Dessen she's my favorite contemporary author she has like 12 books under her belt like she's she's written a ton and I still enjoy her work it's just the quintessential summer read in my opinion Sarah doesn't so grateful I'm thankful for Sarah Dessen books because they always put a smile on my face and she's my first like contemporary love like I love so many contemporary books there's no secret about that but Sarah Dessen she was my first she goes my first this is still my favorite because I just love her characters I love you just the kind of lightheartedness of her whole series with a little dash of depth in them I just really enjoy them you know they're not like the best written books or the best you know plot wise books but they put a smile on my face and they make me happy in summertime and springtime and I'm really really thankful for that so I'm just thankful for Sarah Dessen and the last book I am thankful for is J or Tolkien and that's not book the author this is a really beat-up copy you can see it is aged is torn this is actually my father's copy and he gifted it to me and I'm thankful for this because well I don't have the best relationship with my father and I don't know if I ever will I'm thankful for jr. talking because he really got my father into reading and I really think honestly sometimes your love of reading comes from your parents I don't know if that's some sort of journey it's just some sort of gene or DNA or it's like in your DNA you know like my dad loves reading so it's kind of in me he does that make any sense or if it's just watching your parents read it son I remember watching my dad read this a lot he loves jr. talking he loves Lord of the Rings he those high fantasy like Terry Brooks I actually got him into the Guinness Rohn series he's reading it and watching it um but I'm just thankful for junior Tolkien because he's made my dad love reading and it's kind of made me love reading because I think it's kind of in me and my brother loves reading too but he loves reading different things we still love reading I think it stems from our father and like I said well I don't have the best relationship with my father it's very much strained and just not the best I'm still thankful for a junior token because without you know him I may have never liked maybe loved Lord of the Rings as much as I do because I know my dad because my dad loves it as much or I may have not loved reading as much because my dad loves reading if that makes any sense so I'm just really thankful for you know this book and VF as it is it's one of my most treasured possessions because it was my father's and it just she goes to show you like how well-loved this book is and not okay with books being beat up because it shows you that they are well loved and they are well read in your library so there you have it those are the five books that I'm thankful for honest with you I'm thinking for every single book on my shelf I'm so happy to have all these books behind me and I love them all so very much each in their own individual and unique way I thought I would just share this video with you because it's Thanksgiving and it's time to be thankful and just for being really happy with what you have even if you may not have much I myself am blessed with so many things in my life I have a great husband I have a beautiful son I have a roof over my head you know I'm lucky that my husband I have stable jobs and I know a lot of those people may not be fortunate enough as myself so you know now's the time to be thankful grateful for what you have cuz I know sometimes everyday I know a lot of times during you know throughout the year I'm like oh I don't have this I don't have that that person has that that person has this big house that purse has this bigger car that person has all these books that person all that stuff it's really time to reflect to be like very grateful and very thankful for what you have I'm grateful for all the hardships life has brought me because there has been a lot of heartbreak and a lot of you know really scary and hard things in my life but I'm thankful for them because they made me who I am and they made me stronger so easily I just want to share with you these books that I'm really really Saint before each in their own individual way I hope you guys are having an amazing Thanksgiving and eating all the food and watching else and home alone a ton that's what we watch on my house repeatedly oh and if you have any books that you were really really thankful for please leave them down below and leave me your story of why you're thankful for them because I would love to hear your story with a particular book and why you're thankful for it I will talk to you guys later and have a great rest of your weekend and enjoy life bye you\n"