Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature/meme brought to you by the folks over at The Broke and the Bookish (the pic also belongs to them). This week’s theme is the top ten books that broke my heart a little.
This is a bit difficult for me, since I tend to cry at every good book that I read and have only just started to keep track of my reads, but here goes…
1. The Knife of Never Knowing by Patrick Ness- Even though I’d had a particularly sad scene spoilered for me, I still broke down at The Very Sad Part. And the end will crush you!
2. Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling- I think upon re-reading the series I cried a little during every book. Even Chamber of Secrets. Some tough stuff in these.
3. The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb- The Columbine shootings are discussed at length and have a domino effect on the lives of the characters. There is much tragedy here.
4. White Oleander by Janet Fitch- Astrid is put into foster care and suffers setback after setback. While it is sort of beautiful heartbreak, this is one of those Oprah books where All The Bad Stuff Happens.
5. This Republic of Suffering by Drew Gilpin Faust- Probably the most heartbreaking history book I’ve ever read, This Republic of Suffering describes the impact of Civil War deaths on individuals, literature, material culture, etc. Seriously sad, but seriously awesome.
6. Message in a Bottle by Nicholas Sparks- This may be the only Nicholas Sparks book I have ever read… I read it many years ago, but I remember that it was sad and romantic and cheesy in that Nicholas Sparks way.
7. First They Killed My Father by Luong Ung- If the title isn’t a clue to the heartbreak in this one, then perhaps the fact that it is a memoir about the genocide in Cambodia will clear up any doubt.
8.The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins- The Chaos Walking series sort of trumped this one for me, but yeah, I was still heartbroken when certain people died and other people were badly damaged.
9. Hamlet by Shakespeare- Calling this one in. It’s a tragedy. Isn’t that reason enough?
10. The Orpheus and Eurydice myth- It’s not a book, but isn’t traveling all the way to the underworld to get your love, only to lose her by looking back to be sure she is following a terribly heartbreaking story?
Don't Take My Books Away 
Oh I agree with The Knife of Never Letting Go (and the whole series). It’s very heart breaking.
Yes, that is the one word that came to mind through the whole series… but the books were SO awesome!
I just started reading Ness’s newer book “A Monster Calls.” I am pretty sure this one is also going to be a heartbreaker!
It is! Make sure you read it at home. You will most likely be sobbing.
This Republic of Suffering sounds fascinating. Is it nonfiction? Regardless I’ll have to see about finding it at my library. Thanks for the tip.
Happy reading!
Yes, it’s non-fiction. I read it in grad school, but I think it would be accessible and enjoyable to anyone who likes history. Let me know if you like it!