These last two years were amazing reading years for me. I read 87 books in 2019 and 116 books in 2020. Hoy hell.
However, I’ve always been honest about how and why I read so much. I have had a lot of Internet-free downtime (I worked an average of less than one hour a day in 2020) in my job as a fisheries observer and my choice of entertainment is usually reading.
Now that I have a 9-5 (actually 8:15-5:15) job, I’m reading a lot less, much to my dismay. I read for at least 40 minutes everyday on my lunch break and sometimes and audiobook when I exercise, but that’s about it. That means I have to be more mindful with what I pick up as my reading time is more precious now. I’m used to instant gratification so this will be a good practice in really prioritizing what I want to read, taking the story in better over the course of a week rather than a day or two and being patient with longer books.
I’ve already read 14 books this year already and am currently reading two more, but here are 21 more books I want to prioritize in 2021, a lot of which are also on my PopSugar TBR…
✔️ The five highest rated books on my TBR: I thought this would be fun for a blog post and I’m currently reading one of them and loving it. GoodReads ratings are accurate to my taste most of the time and I look forward to these objectively amazing books.
✔️ One re-read: Just as it sounds. I’ve been thinking a lot about some of my favorite books I’d like to revisit (Into Thing Air, Stiff, Hoot, Your Inner Fish for starters).
✔️ It by Stephen King: I found a lot of satisfaction in reading a 1000+ page book last year (The Count of Monte Cristo) and would like to do it again. Not to mention, It has been on my TBR the longest, time to tackle this behemoth.
✔️ Brighton Rock by Graham Greene: As we all know, I lived in Brighton for two years and it’s my favorite place on earth. It’s also claimed to be one of the most fantastic murder thriller books out there, I can’t wait!
A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving: I’ve only heard wonderful things about this books and it’s my grandma’s all-time favorites.
✔️ Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen: This would be to fulfill the prompt for a book that everyone has read but me with over 3 million ratings on GoodReads (the only more popular book I haven’t read in 1984 and I’ve already tried twice).
Watchmen by Alan Moore: I wanted to read a graphic novel for a PopSugar prompt and my boyfriend happened to own Watchmen!
✔️ Notes from a Small Island by Bill Bryson: I’ve loved his informational non-fiction (The Body and A Short History of Nearly Everything) and I’m ready for another more personal book of a fellow American expat living in the UK.
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini: Another massively popular book I haven’t read.
✔️ Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer: As a nature lover, anti-imperialist and resident of an area with a large native population, I feel this book is a super important read for me.
✔️ Something by Talia Hibbert: I’m not sure if I’ll get around to all the Brown sisters books, but they seem really fun, steamy and diverse romance books.
✔️ Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman: One PopSugar prompt was to read a book by an author that has your same sign but I’m taking it a step further by reading a book with an author that I share a birthday with: Terry Pratchett. This seems like a good gateway book to the fantasy genre.
✔️ We Need to Talk about Kevin by Lionel Shriver: I’ve seen a lot of mixed reviews on this book and would like to form my own opinion. I’m partial to a good, dark read.
✔️ Bunny by Mona Awad: This would be for my dark academia prompt. I bought it ages ago and it’s time to get rid of this off my e-shelf.
✔️ The Midnight Library by Matt Haig: I bought this at a local bookstore recently, time to see what all the fuss is about.
✔️ The Story of Stuff by Annie Leonard: A YouTuber I used to watch strongly recommended it. I’m all about minimalism and trying to reuse, repurpose and recycle when you can so I’d love to see what I can learn from this book.
✔️ Recursion by Blake Crouch: I loved Dark Matter and have no idea why I’m dragging my feet to read more of his work!
Have you read any of these? Where should I start?!
Photo by Ashley Byrd.
