Top Ten Tuesday- "Gateway" Books

Top Ten Tuesday is a really cool original feature/weekly meme created over at The Broke and The Bookish. Each week they post a new Top Ten List that bloggers join in on answering... and today (April 1st) I'm one of them :)

Today's Topic

Top Ten Gateway Books On My Reading Journey

I've always loved reading from before I even knew how to read.  In middle school, however, is when my obsession really got big.  When I was in school, YA didn't really exist as it does today, so these were the books I gravitated to:

1.  Fear Street by RL Stine- oh I don't even know how much money my poor mom spent on Fear Street books in the 90's.
2.  Mysteries- Like Fear Street books, other "teen mysteries" were popular back then as well.

When I first went to college I thought I had to read "Adult" books (although I didn't do all THAT much reading in college because I was too busy socializing).  I found a few that I really liked, but for the most part, I didn't feel like I was clicking with what I was reading.  Then I found these books, and I knew where my home was:

3.  Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson- This was the first YA book I read after leaving high school.  And it blew my freaking mind.  I knew that these were the types of books I was meant to read.
4.  Just Listen by Sarah Dessen- Another book that cemented my love for YA Contemporary.  I was still on the fence about whether I should be reading YA or not when I found this book.  
5.  Harry Potter by JK Rowling- This book was one that made me realize that labels really don't mean much.  If a book is good, it's just good.  I always thought Harry Potter was for kids, but when I took a risk and read it, I knew I should stop with my preconceived notions.

During and after college I read some... but after I had my son is when I really picked back up on my reading obsession.  These were the catalyst books to that:

6.  The Boyfriend List by E. Lockhart- Oh how I loved Ruby Oliver.  I wish I could read this all over again for the first time :)
7.  Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
8.  The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson

These are more recent books in my reading evolution.  They are important because they made me realize that I CAN read books outside of my comfort zone:

9.  This is Not a Test by Courtney Summers- The first zombie book I ever loved!
10.  The Diviners by Libba Bray- Woah you mean Historical Fiction can be fun??  That's what I learned when I read this gem :)


So those are my "gateway" books.  Which books got you into reading/ back into reading??