1001/1292 Books (Part 3)
Having a reasonable backlog of reading, I’m always on the lookout of ways to prioritise what I’m going to be reading next. What I don’t want to do, and what I do find myself sometimes slipping into, is simply reading the top book off the nearest pile or just the next book in a series I’ve already started. One way not to do that (the lazy thing) is to look at lists of recommended reading – like the one referenced over on Hannah’s Blog which is essentially a beefed-up 1001 Books to Read BEFORE You Die. So far, I’ve gone through the List looking for books already read and one’s that I own but have yet to schedule (yes, we get to the point finally!), which will help me going forward – I've already got a mini-stack together to slot in these books into my reading whenever possible. Naturally, the next part of the equation is future book buying (like I need an excuse). So, it will come as no surprise at all to know that I purchased two books off the List this week – although one was by George Orwell which I had intended to read (along with his major works) before seeing Hannah’s helpful List. So, here’s the next batch of my readings:
The Catcher in the Rye – J.D. Salinger
The Rebel – Albert Camus
A Town Like Alice – Nevil Shute
I, Robot – Isaac Asimov
Nineteen Eighty-Four – George Orwell
The Plague – Albert Camus
Animal Farm – George Orwell
Farewell My Lovely – Raymond Chandler
The Grapes of Wrath – John Steinbeck
The Big Sleep – Raymond Chandler
The Hobbit – J.R.R. Tolkien
To Have and Have Not – Ernest Hemingway
The Postman Always Rings Twice – James M. Cain
Testament of Youth – Vera Brittain
Brave New World – Aldous Huxley
The Maltese Falcon – Dashiell Hammett
All Quiet on the Western Front – Erich Maria Remarque
Lady Chatterley’s Lover – D.H. Lawrence
Steppenwolf – Herman Hesse
The Great Gatsby – F. Scott Fitzgerald
A nice mix there, I think! Some classic SF, Noir, Fantasy and classic Classics too. More to come.
4 comments:
Ooh, I can't wait to see your thoughts on The Catcher in the Rye. Also looking forward to your thoughts Animal Farm. I remember really liking it when I read it in school, but it was certainly an interesting one. There are a few others I've read here (love the glam of The Great Gatsby), and quite a few on my list as well. Happy book shopping as you move into phase four, LOL!
Sorry Hannah, these are books from your List that I've already read - some recently like 'A Town Like Alice' and others a LONG time ago. I read 'Catcher' back in my 20's I think so can't remember much about it. 'Animal Farm' I remember quite well and remember liking it quite a bit. It was probably part of my early political awakening (again read in my late teens/early 20's) which moved me very much to the Left. Oh, and I REALLY didn't like 'Gatsby'! I know a lot of people rave about it but I struggled not to DNF it!
Oops! Wow, I really must not have been paying attention when I read this! :(
Catcher in the Rye, I always love to see where everyone falls when they read it - it seems most people either love it or hate it, lol. And with Gatsby, I can see where it's difficult to get through it. I have a strong dislike of Daisy, but the glam... I love that part.
More likely me, I think! It probably sounded OK in my head before I put single finger to keyboard.
I certainly don't remember NOT liking 'Catcher', so I'm guessing I either liked it (but probably not a whole lot as I can't remember very much about it!) or thought it was at least readable.
I think I was going into 'Gatsby' expecting "The Great American Novel" so was already looking to fail. The only reasonable character was the narrator and I really didn't like Gatsby himself or Daisy. My review (if you're interested) is here:
https://cyberkittenspot.blogspot.com/2018/07/just-finished-reading-great-gatsby-by-f.html
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