January is a time of resolutions, and I seem to have quite a few this year: never leave washing up in the sink overnight, try to keep my flat tidy, no skipping meals during the day so I'm so famished by the evening that I eat ALL the food. So far, so good, but what about some bookish resolutions?
I'm not going to lay out a list of books I absolutely must read, because 2013 is a challenge-free zone, but there are some authors I've tried and loved, and some I've not tried but would like to, which I'm hoping will fill my free time during the year ahead. I thought I'd share a few of them with you.
1. Margaret Atwood
I read Oryx and Crake and The Year of the Flood in 2011, but never got round to reading any more in 2012. I know many people adore Margaret Atwood's writing and I loved the two books I tried, but I'd really like to go on and read her most famous books, The Blind Assassin and The Handmaid's Tale. I've also long had a yen to read her take on Homer's Odyssey- The Penelopiad - and now I've heard the final part of the Madaddam trilogy is out this year as well. 2013 may well turn out to be the Year of Atwood.
2. Gabriel Garcia Marquez
My favourite book of 2012 was, without a doubt, One Hundred Years of Solitude, so now of course I want to go on and read Garcia Marquez's other famous works, Love in the Time of Cholera and Chronicle of a Death Foretold. This IS going to happen!
3. Jane Harris
Gillespie and I was so wonderful, I'd read Jane Harris all day every day if I could, but it was only her second book so I need to ration myself. Her first novel, The Observations, is sitting on my shelf, but a part of me doesn't want to read it because then I won't have any more!
4. Angela Carter
After One Hundred Years of Solitude made me realise how much I like magical realism, I'd like to try the other master of the genre, Angela Carter. I have The Magic Toyshop and The Passion of New Eve ready and waiting on my shelf.
5. Jeffrey Eugenides
Middlesex had me enthralled, so I can't quite believe I still haven't got round to reading anything else by Eugenides. I especially want to read The Virgin Suicides, but I have The Marriage Plot too, as I like the sound of both of them.
6. Thomas Hardy
I live in Dorset, the county of Thomas Hardy, and yet up until a couple of years ago I'd never read any of his books. I've since pledged to read one every year and intend to continue this year, though I'm still trying to decide between Tess of the D'Urbavilles and Far from the Madding Crowd for 2013.
7. Charles Dickens
I think I was put off at school, when David Copperfield and Great Expectations were drummed into us and seemed like the most boring books ever written. I've never opened a Dickens book since, which is probably something I ought to put right. Has anyone got any recommendations as to where to start? Ideally one of his more amusing books to ease me in gently, but I'll try anything!
8. Dodie Smith
I Capture the Castle was such a lovely book, and one of my favourites from 2011, so when I saw a set of three more of Dodie Smith's books going for a song last year I bought them straight away. They are It Ends with Revelations, The New Moon with the Old and The Town in Bloom. I still haven't read them, but I'd really like to soon.
9. Julian Barnes
I never got round to reading his Booker prizewinner The Sense of an Ending, even though I really enjoyed one of his other books, Arthur and George. I've also got Flaubert's Parrot on my TBR.
10. Sarah Waters
I read Affinity and loved it, and I've purposely stayed away from the TV versions of Tipping the Velvet and Fingersmith so I could read the books, so why haven't I read them yet? Oh, and The Little Stranger needs to go on this list too... too many books, not enough time!
I could add all sorts of names to this list; Graham Greene, Shirley Jackson, F. Scott Fitzgerald, J.G. Ballard, Anne Tyler, Neil Gaiman, Joyce Carol Oates, Daphne du Maurier, Jeanette Winterson, Susan Hill.... it's endless, really. And who knows what new authors I'll discover to add to the pile. Now, if only I could find a way to freeze time.....
I read Oryx and Crake and The Year of the Flood in 2011, but never got round to reading any more in 2012. I know many people adore Margaret Atwood's writing and I loved the two books I tried, but I'd really like to go on and read her most famous books, The Blind Assassin and The Handmaid's Tale. I've also long had a yen to read her take on Homer's Odyssey- The Penelopiad - and now I've heard the final part of the Madaddam trilogy is out this year as well. 2013 may well turn out to be the Year of Atwood.
2. Gabriel Garcia Marquez
My favourite book of 2012 was, without a doubt, One Hundred Years of Solitude, so now of course I want to go on and read Garcia Marquez's other famous works, Love in the Time of Cholera and Chronicle of a Death Foretold. This IS going to happen!
3. Jane Harris
Gillespie and I was so wonderful, I'd read Jane Harris all day every day if I could, but it was only her second book so I need to ration myself. Her first novel, The Observations, is sitting on my shelf, but a part of me doesn't want to read it because then I won't have any more!
4. Angela Carter
After One Hundred Years of Solitude made me realise how much I like magical realism, I'd like to try the other master of the genre, Angela Carter. I have The Magic Toyshop and The Passion of New Eve ready and waiting on my shelf.
5. Jeffrey Eugenides
Middlesex had me enthralled, so I can't quite believe I still haven't got round to reading anything else by Eugenides. I especially want to read The Virgin Suicides, but I have The Marriage Plot too, as I like the sound of both of them.
6. Thomas Hardy
I live in Dorset, the county of Thomas Hardy, and yet up until a couple of years ago I'd never read any of his books. I've since pledged to read one every year and intend to continue this year, though I'm still trying to decide between Tess of the D'Urbavilles and Far from the Madding Crowd for 2013.
7. Charles Dickens
I think I was put off at school, when David Copperfield and Great Expectations were drummed into us and seemed like the most boring books ever written. I've never opened a Dickens book since, which is probably something I ought to put right. Has anyone got any recommendations as to where to start? Ideally one of his more amusing books to ease me in gently, but I'll try anything!
8. Dodie Smith
I Capture the Castle was such a lovely book, and one of my favourites from 2011, so when I saw a set of three more of Dodie Smith's books going for a song last year I bought them straight away. They are It Ends with Revelations, The New Moon with the Old and The Town in Bloom. I still haven't read them, but I'd really like to soon.
9. Julian Barnes
I never got round to reading his Booker prizewinner The Sense of an Ending, even though I really enjoyed one of his other books, Arthur and George. I've also got Flaubert's Parrot on my TBR.
10. Sarah Waters
I read Affinity and loved it, and I've purposely stayed away from the TV versions of Tipping the Velvet and Fingersmith so I could read the books, so why haven't I read them yet? Oh, and The Little Stranger needs to go on this list too... too many books, not enough time!
I could add all sorts of names to this list; Graham Greene, Shirley Jackson, F. Scott Fitzgerald, J.G. Ballard, Anne Tyler, Neil Gaiman, Joyce Carol Oates, Daphne du Maurier, Jeanette Winterson, Susan Hill.... it's endless, really. And who knows what new authors I'll discover to add to the pile. Now, if only I could find a way to freeze time.....
That's an ambitious list. I hope you get to fulfill at least some of it this year. Some great choices in there.
ReplyDeleteIt is ambitious, isn't it? I don't expect I'll manage all of it, but even if I only read half that would be something!
DeleteWhat a terrific list. Here's to a year of reading great writing :)
ReplyDeleteIt's easy to make the list - if only it was so easy to read all the books!
DeleteI need to read more Atwood and Waters too. Have loads of Atwood sat in my shelves do no excuse but I haven't read Waters' most famous titles, just the newer ones which I loved.
ReplyDeleteYou get so many amazing new books for review I can see it must be hard to find time to squeeze in some older ones too. I have a feeling we'll all be reading Atwood this year though. :-)
DeleteOooooh, I love so many of these authors! The Handmaid's Tale is my FAVOURITE Atwood, but I just finished The Blind Assassin and that was amazing too! And Sarah Waters is pretty great although I didn't like The Little Stranger, and *whispers* I didn't really like The Virgin Suicides, but I LOVE Eugenides' other 2 books.
ReplyDeleteSoooo... Those are just some of my opinions haha! But yeah, I hope you get round to reading all you want to read this year :)
Didn't like The Virgin Suicides? Oh, I thought that looked amazing, and Middlesex rocked my world so much I can't imagine Eugenides writing a duff book! Mind you, he's Greek like me so I may be ever so slightly biased. Fingersmith might be the next Sarah Waters to go for if The Little Stranger's not so good, and I'm just going to do eeny meeny between The Blind Assassin and The Handmaid's Tale as they sound equally fantastic.
DeleteSome brilliant resolutions! I'm reading Fingersmith at the moment and it's been the perfect read for the wintery new year. Really well written and surprising!
ReplyDeleteHowever, you must read The Handmaid's Tale above and before everything else. It's spectacular.
Now I just want to start ALL the books RIGHT NOW! There's really nothing more exciting than a book you really want to read that you haven't started yet, especially when lots of people you trust tell you how amazing it is. Soon, I promise!
DeleteGood list! I agree- we can never get enough of Dickens or Hardy, and Jeffrey Eugenides charms!
ReplyDeleteWell, I am yet to be convinced about Dickens, but I enjoyed Wilkie Collins so much with The Woman in White and The Moonstone that I think I'm ready to give Dickens another try.
DeleteNice choices! I still haven't even READ some of these authors (to my shame), so a few of them are firmly on my mental "GOOD GRIEF THEY'RE RIGHT THERE ON YOUR SHELVES JUST READ THEM ALREADY" list for 2013. I'm taking part in the Dickens February Celebrationy thing, which is a good push to finally return to his books - I've read him before, but not for yonks, so I'm diving into Edwin Drood and maybe Great Expectations next month. YAY FOR AUTHOR LURVE! :)
ReplyDeleteDickens February Celebrationy thing? This sounds like a good idea, who is hosting this please? It'd be just the thing to give me a push, I've got a lovely set of Dickens clothbounds and I still haven't opened any of them yet!
DeleteThat's a great list. I enjoyed the Handmaid's Tale.
ReplyDeleteThat seems to be getting thumbs up from everybody - I'd better start it soon!
DeleteThis is the challenge free year for me too and I hosted a I Want More specific to your post.
ReplyDeleteThe one for me is another Daphne du Maurier.
Enjoy the ones you do read more of.
Yes, I definitely want to read more Daphne du Maurier too! Rebecca is one of my favourite books and I also loved My Cousin Rachel, but there are so many others I haven't tried yet.
DeleteI'm catching up on blogs. I'm not so keen on Atwood but I like the sound of more Hardy, Barnes and Smith. I've got The Magic Toyshop out from the library at the moment for my Century of Books challenge - those helpful Penguin Decades editions come in handy for reminding me which authors I want to read more of have titles I can include... :)
ReplyDeleteThe Penguin decades books are great, with an interesting selection of titles. Your project is pretty ambitious - I hope it's going well and you're enjoying it :-)
Delete