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Top Ten Tuesday meme: Books that broke my heart a little

It's Tuesday, and that means the The Broke and the Bookish are accepting contributions to their Top Ten Tuesdays meme. There is a little bit of an anti-Valentine's Day sentiment going on, as they are asking for books that broke the readers' hearts a little.

Please visit some of the other participating blogs. If you like books full of emotion, you may find some great reads.

Warning: SPOILERS ahead!

  • Anne of Green Gables, Anne’s House of Dreams and Rilla of Ingleside by L.M. Montgomery. All concern deaths. If you have read them, you’ll know which ones. I’m counting them as one, because of the similar themes and because the books all belong to the same series.
  • The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. The book was fine - but the ending of the story of Arwen and Aragorn in the appendixes was heartbreaking.
  • Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. Not because of Beth’s death, although that was sad, but because Jo’s dreams never came true.
  • The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman. Because they don’t get to be together when they have saved the world.
  • Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling. Not because of all the deaths, but because it’s the last book in the series and it doesn’t look like there will be more.
  • Fasting, Feasting by Anita Desai. Because of all the tragedies in it, big and small, that echo reality.
  • The Diary of Anne Frank. So full of hopes and dreams and plans, but all the time you know how her story ended.
  • To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. If you have read it, you’ll know why. If not, I challenge you to read it.
  • Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie. This is a twofold tragedy. As a child I was saddened by the fact that Wendy had to grow up while Peter remained a child, but as an adult I see that by remaining a child forever, Peter will never grow up to experience the pains and pleasures of adulthood, especially the joys of parenthood that Wendy has experienced.
  • Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. Not so much because the protagonist dies by his own hand, but because he was driven to it by a society that treated him like a freak because he was different.
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Comments

Deb Nance at Readerbuzz said…
These are all terribly sad. And realistic, right? Life is full of tragic endings. Unfortunately.


Here's my Top Ten Books That Broke My Heart a Little.

I'd like to invite you to sign up for my February Giveaway! Win All Kinds of Kisses or a $25 Amazon gift card!
February 14, 2012 12:08 pm
MJ Thomas said…
Good list.... I had forgotten Anne of Green Gables when I made my list. I think Matthew's death affected me a lot more than the deaths in the other books.

Here's my list: M.J.'s Top Ten
February 14, 2012 3:05 pm
Kristina said…
Oh I forgot about The Amber Spyglass! Harry Potter, all those characters, it is so terrible.

http://kristina-worldofbooks.blogspot.com/2012/02/top-10-tuesdays-11.html
February 14, 2012 4:31 pm
Unknown said…
Aragon and Arwen <33 After reading their full story I almost wished I had just stopped reading after the end of Return of the King..:(
February 14, 2012 4:31 pm
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