I love to read and this year I’m determined to read at least 52 books – one a week – in an effort to rekindle a passion for words that suffers because of the usual complaints … You know the ones: I don’t have time, I’m too busy, etc.
Included in this list are books I’ve read related to my studies (marked *) and books I’ve read for enjoyment. Not all of the books I read for study make it onto this list as there is a large pile of reference material sitting on my desk, but books I’ve re-read and regularly refer back to have been added while ones I skim through and read selected chapters from have been left out.
If you have any suggestions, please leave a comment! I love a challenge and I am working on reading things outside my usual repertoir!
- The Last Book in the Universe by Rodman Philbrick*
- Fever Crumb by Philip Reeve*
- Web of Air by Philip Reeve*
- The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson*
- Extras by Scott Westerfeld*
- The Boys From Brazil by Ira Levin
- No and Me by Delphine de Vigan
- Wanting by Richard Flanagan
- The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
- Room by Emma Donoghue
- The Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood
- Ecocriticism by Greg Garrard*
- Ideologies of Identity in Adolescent Fiction by Robyn McCallum*
- Evil Seed by Joanne Harris
- The Environmental Imagination by Lawrence Buell*
- Writing for an Endangered World by Lawrence Buell*
- The Future of Environmental Criticism by Lawrence Buell*
- Disturbing the Universe: Power and Repression in Adolescent Literature by Roberta Seelinger Trites*
- Sunshine by Robin McKinley
- The Ghost’s Child by Sonya Hartnett
- Peeps by Scott Westerfeld
- The Last Days by Scott Westerfeld
- Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler
- Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
- Iron Witch by Karen Mahoney
- Beastly by Alex Flinn
- A Kiss in Time by Alex Flinn
- Red April by Santiago Roncagliolo
- Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
- Rose Daughter by Robin McKinley
- Beauty by Robin McKinley
- The Fall by Garth Nix
- The Castle by Garth Nix
- Aenir by Garth Nix
- Magician by Raymond E. Feist
- Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
- The Fiftieth Gate by Mark Raphael Baker
- Literary Theory by Jonathan Culler*
- Tinkers by Paul Harding
- Deerskin by Robin McKinley
- Scrivener’s Moon by Philip Reeve
- Matched by Allie Condie
- The Red Tent by Anita Diamant
- The Solemn Lantern Maker by Merlinda Bobis
- Pegasus by Robin McKinley
- Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde
- Chalice by Robin McKinley
- The Magician’s Guild by Trudi Canavan
- The Novice by Trudi Canavan
- The High Lord by Trudi Canavan
- Little Ice Cream Boy by Jacques Pauw
- The Help by Kathryn Stockett
52 books and it’s only September! Given that 12 (did I count that correctly?) are Uni books, I’m going to aim to get through at least 12 more books before December 31st that aren’t related to my studies. The plot thickens …
- Life on the Refrigerator Door by Alice Kuipers
- Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice
- The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
- Drink, Slay, Love by Sarah Beth Durst
- The Hero and the Crown by Robin McKinley
- The Winner Stands Alone by Paulo Coelho
- Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
- Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
- Linger by Maggie Stiefvater
- Forever by Maggie Stiefvater
- The Dark Wife by Sarah Diemer
- I Came to say Goodbye by Caroline Overington
- Tithe by Holly Black
- Obernewtyn by Isobelle Carmody
- The Farseekers by Isobelle Carmody
- Ashling by Isobelle Carmody
- Forgotten by Cat Patrick
- The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
- The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness
- Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness
- Crossed by Ally Condie
- Eve by Anna Carey
- Royal Exile by Fiona McIntosh
- Book Lover by Jennifer Kaufman and Karen Mack
- The Fiction Class by Susan Breen
- Incognito by Claire Carmichael
- The Sex Lives of Cannibals by J. Maarten Troost
- Skinned by Robin Wasserman
- Crashed by Robin Wasserman
- Wired by Robin Wasserman
- The Famished Road by Ben Okri
- The Keepers and the Kept by Terry Boylan
84 books in 12 months – hurrah! I far exceed my goal of 52 books in a year … I wonder what 2012 will bring …
Hi! Can you tell me what beautiful books in this list are about love and family? Cos I love to read but sometimes it makes me feel sad cos I’m disappointed with the book that i chose. So please help me what best books should i choose about love and family? Thank you so much!
Hrm, there are a few on the list that would be relevant to love and family, though a lot of them are dystopian YA fiction, urban fantasy and fantasy … Do you have a particular genre you prefer?
Wow, that is incredibly impressive. I am a literature major and absoulutly love to read. The one thing that saddened me most when I moved to Sweden was leaving behind my bookshelf filled with books I have and haven’t read. Thankfully I have a Kindle, but honestly I haven’t rekindled my reading habits. Right now they have been replaced with writting habits, which is great- even if its in the shape of a blog, I need to get back in the swing of things. I love your blog, and your goals. Inspiring. Keep it up.
I’m glad you enjoy my blog =) I am yet to get my hands on a Kindle (my sister “bought” me one for Christmas but I haven’t gotten around to ordering it yet and just discovered they don’t ship to Singapore … looong saga of juggling deliveries – to be continued) and I want to join a library so I don’t have to buy (and then ship) a bunch of books to feed the bookworm within! If reading is to be replaced with anything, I think writing is a noble pursuit! Good luck =D
Woweee!! Do they have more hours in the day where you come from? 😉 I’m only up to just over 30 this year I think. Perhaps next year I will set a similar challenge to myself.
How are you liking the Obernewtyn Chronicles? I am up to the Stone Key, which I should probably read now that the next one has come out. I do enjoy them, but I sometimes feel that the endings are a bit rushed. It is a great story though.
Well done anyway for exceeding your challenge!
I read more than I sleep, I must admit! It’s great as previously my reading was restricted to books for uni or none at all. I lost the “reading for pleasure” habit and it feels so wonderful to have it back!
Loving the Obernewtyn Chronicles and waiting for the rest to come from the Book Depository … I know what you mean about the rushed ending feeling, though I’m loving the characters and the construction of a post-apocalyptic/fantasy world.