"Like all magnificent things, it's very simple." I'm sure many of you have already read this story once before in your life. I decided to re-read Tuck Everlasting because I came across the DVD in the library the other day. Simple but magnificent, just as Babbitt wrote. The story of a bubbling spring that blesses (or curses) the drinker with eternal life, and how things are not always what they seem.

"“When you're happy for yourself, it fills you. When you're happy for someone else, it pours over." A gem of a book that was recommended to me by a friend. During the first few pages I almost gave up, but boy am I glad I didn't. The story revolves around two sisters and is based in a realistic-magical world. The garden at the Waverly's house is known for its "special" properties. The edible plants help nudge people towards different things: happiness, comfort, jealousy, you name it. The elusive apple tree in the yard is known to share the biggest moment of your life as soon as you take a bite. The book was filled with magical moments that had me grinning from ear to ear.

"The only time we waste is the time we spend thinking we're alone." By the author of "Tuesday's with Morrie" and "The Time-Keeper" (both of which I love) comes another short but meaningful story. "The Five People You Meet In Heaven" was filled with little surprises and anecdotes, like Albom's other works. I didn't love it as much as the first two I read, but still found some great moments. Albom continues his theme of helping us understand and appreciate our lives as we live through them.

"Her lips were always red, morning and night. As if minutes before you saw her, she had been eating sweet berries, or drinking heart's blood." Patrick Rothfuss is a magician with words. This novel sucked me in like a vortex, and wouldn't let me come up for air until I had devoured it in its entirety. Wise words wrapped with beautiful descriptions are thrown around in the story, allowing your whole heart to be invested into each character's life. This may be my favorite book I've ever read. The kind of book that allows you to believe in magic. Magic in music, magic in love, and magic in words.