Firstly I'm going to tackle the tbr pile: I'm aiming to have read 50 books off my tbr piles. The stacks are huge, I buy books and barely even look at them before stuffing them on the pile. Some of the books have been lurking since I started my A Levels (12 years ago). I'm not going to make a list however of the ones I want to tackle first, I've done this before and for some twisted reason it makes me avoid them even more!
I'm also going to cut down on buying books, I'm constantly buying books for challenges a lot of which I then don't read. I want to try and stick to this at least until the summer. It may even help me save for my trip.
In terms of what I'm actually going to read I'm trying to be a bit more selective. I've only joined a few challenges and bookrings this year so that I can have more freedom and control over my reading.
I want to read lots of classics - these could be the real classics, like The Divine Comedy but also those must read books which are more contemporary, like The Princess Bride. I'm aiming for at least a quarter of my books to fit in this category. This may also help me with my 1001 Books to Read Before I Die personal challenge. I've only read 18% so far.
I also am trying to read more books from around the world. I already read lots of international fiction, but seem to be stuck in a limbo reading the same countries - China always featured highly until last year - I'm part of the Olympic challenge on Bookcrossing and it is creating much more variety. Early in the new year I have books from Uzbekistan and Combros lined up.
An finally more non-fiction. I'm not sure if I'm just a typical girl but I read lots of fiction and struggle with the non-fiction. As my knowledge of history, politics, religion, science and general knowledge is fairly weak I know that this is an area I must really work on. I want at least every 4th book to be non-fiction and not just memoirs. I have a whole shelf and more of non-fiction which I plan on tackling this year. I've also picked challenges which hopefully will lead me this way.
Have you made any reading resolutions?
2010 Reads:
JANUARY
1. Doctor Zhivargo
2. Alice in Wonderland by CS Lewis
3. Little Stranger by Sarah Waters
4. After the Dance by Edwidge Danticat (Non Fict)
5. Sorrow Mountain by Ani Prachen (Non Fict)
FEBRUARY:
Summertime, J.M Coetzee
The Fire Gospels, Michel Faber
Ruins by Achy Obejas
Whole of a Morning Sky by Grace Nichols
Annie John by Jamaica Kincaid
A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth
March:
Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
Magpie by Jill Dawson
Amok by Stefan Zweig
visited 12 states (5.33%)
Create your own visited map of The World
Africa:
South Africa
Summertime, JM Coetzee
Americas:
Antigua
Annie John by Jamaica Kincaid
Cuba
Ruins by Achy Obejas
Guyana
Whole of a Morning Sky by Grace Nichols
Haiti
After the Dance by Edwidge Danticat
USA
The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
Asia:
India
A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth
Russia
Dr Zhivargo by Boris Pasternik
Tibet
Sorrow Mountain by Ani Prachen
Europe:
Austria
Amok by Stefan Zweig
The Netherlands
The Fire Gospels, Michel Faber
UK
The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters
Alice in Wonderland by C.S Lewis
Magpie by Jill Dawson
6 comments:
This past year I read much more international fiction and lately I've been reading much more non-fiction. Both have been great additions to my reading. There's so much wonderful stuff out there.
Happy New Year.
I've loved discovering international fiction, I need to wander around the nonfiction section of the library this year as I never know what to buy when I look on amazon
Good luck with your resolutions. I need to read more of my own books too. I want to read more international fiction too, so I am going to look for different challenges to help me with that.
On buying books-I try to buy no more books in a given month than I read in the previous one
I am also trying to read a diverse range of books from different countries-in 2009 I focused a lot on Japanese Literature
I also am hoping to read some of the classics I have wanted to read in some cases for 40 years!
great post, by the way
Happy New Year and good luck with reducing your TBR pile and I am sure you can resist the lure of too much book buying. Especially with a trip to Cambodia and Vietnam to inspire you!
That's very well thought out. There's a lot of great non-fiction out right now so hopefully you can find something that suits.
My goal for my TBR is to get rid of or read enough books off the shelves to get the ones stacked on top ON the shelves. I hope to post the rest of my goals on Sunday.
Post a Comment