I keep seeing stuff online about people who just read so much like: “Oh I’m trying to read 100 books this year”. I can’t do that, and I’m an English major. I love reading, but especially with school I’m not realistically spending my time reading books all day. I know people who do read a lot though and I admire them.
However, I do have a list of books I would like to read in 2024. But I probably won’t get to all of them. Especially since some have been on my list for a while.
- The Secret History by Donna Tartt - I’ve seen a lot of buzz about this one, but I honestly don’t like to get into books if a lot of people are talking about them. It just throws me off for some reason. I watched videos about it thinking I was never gonna read it, but decided to add it to my Christmas list. It sounds like something I would really be interested in.
- Parting the Veil by Paulette Kennedy - I was looking for a gothic romance, and I think I’ve found what I’ve been looking for. I love Jane Eyre and wanted to find something similar. I still need to order it, but once I do, I will be really excited to read it.
- Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor - I was gifted this one years ago I believe, but just never picked it up. Or maybe I opened a page and decided not to read it. I heard someone talk about it again with a passion which made me want to try it.
- Villette by Charlotte Bronte - I have already started this, but I stopped reading it I think because I was not in the mood for Bronte. I do plan on finishing it, especially since it is short and I am interested by it.
- Middlemarch by George Eliot - I started this one this summer, but I think I was too pre-occupied with my vacation to focus on it. I may start this in the middle of march, if I’m not too busy with my studies that is.
- A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens - If not in 2024, then I will read this eventually because I’ll probably have to teach it. I have a beautiful copy of it as well.
- Books about Russian literature or a biography about Dostoevsky. I found one at an old bookstore by Joseph Frank, and I think I may have read some of his critical work on Dostoevsky. I am really fascinated by Dostoevsky, and Russian literature (I’ve only read two books though). I do eventually want to study Dostoevsky at college/university or Russian literature, even learn Russian but that’s far in the future as my university doesn’t have Russian anything.
- Crime and Punishment, then The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoevsky. - If it’s not in 2024, then I will definitely read these at some point in my lifetime. I just want to learn more about Dostoevsky, Russia, and Russian literature first to make it easier. Even then, I’m still relying on translations. I do want to try to learn Russian in the future, though. I’ve only read Notes from Underground but that book, and critical writing upon it, has always stuck with me.
- I also hope to read work from Mary Shelley and Lovecraft, which I may wait until Halloween for.
I said “goals” but really this is just a list I’ll choose from going into 2024. I may only read one or two of them. I love classics, but I like to spend a while with them. Really, any book that I think is really artful I like to spend more time with so that I can annotate, re-read lines, and think about what the book is saying. Sometimes I just don’t have the mental capacity to do that, like currently I have been reading a bunch of romance novels (the kind I’m reading are ones that are just a bunch of tropes shoved together, but I love it). After filling my heart with romance, I feel like I can dive back into classics again. It’s almost like a palate cleanser for me, because if the romance plotline is good (even if it’s toxic) I can still really enjoy the book.
Feel free to share your reading goals, or just lists of books you want to read like I’ve done, or how many books you expect to read in 2024.
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