Once again, I feel the siren call to join in with Top 10 Tuesday, hosted as always by the fabulous folks at The Broke and Bookish.  Perhaps taking a few minutes to look back at my favorites from the first half of 2015 will make it seem less like the year is rushing away from me.   It was really hard to come up with this list.  Sure, my spreadsheet of books I’ve read for this year includes top-secret number ratings, but as more than 20 books (of 129) came up for my top ratings, I had to do significant pruning.

And now, on to the list:

Bone Gap by Laura Ruby – Beautiful, magical, thought-provoking.

Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson “The mix of universal and particular is seductive, and I found myself pushing to read just one more poem until I reached the end. “

Castle Hangnail by Ursula Vernon – Spot-on middle grade humor with surprising depth.

The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black “This is Holly Black in top form, mingling modern-day concerns seamlessly with the old legends into something compelling and darkly beautiful.”

The Detective’s Assistant by Kate Hannigan – I do love a good historical adventure, and this one was delightful.

Lulu and the Cat in the Bag by Hilary McKay – I haven’t kept up with reviewing this series, but I’ve been loving reading them with my daughter.

The Story of Owen by E.K. Johnston “The Viking traditions brought into the modern day and combined with sort of normal high school social issues was an intoxicating combination.” – but I loved the central importance of music as well.

Stranger by Sherwood Smith and Rachel Manija Brown “ This is one that I loved so much that I’m pretty sure my review can’t do it justice”

The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage by Sydney Padua – Padua imagines in graphic novel detail a world in which Lovelace didn’t die prematurely, but instead went on to help Babbage actually finish his Analytical Engine.  With lots of silliness, much of it cribbed from reality.

The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski “Romeo and Juliet had it easy.”

What have been your favorite books this year?