Rebecca Reads - Again!
I know, I know. Three posts in a day must be some kind of record for me. But, well. It’s about to get really busy around here, and this has to be posted by December 31st, so I’m doing it now while I have chance. I’ve been out and came back home and got straight back into bed with a cup of hot chocolate. Yummy!
Last year I signed up for the TBR Challenge. I failed. I read 8 of my books, I think, then lost steam somehow. I did learn a bit about myself, though. I learnt that the reason a lot of those books had been sitting on my shelves for so long was that I simply didn’t WANT to read them. I’ve become a lot more ruthless about what books I let in the house.
Here are my 12 for this year, anyway:
- The Bookseller of Kabul - Asne Seierstad (Chosen because I really enjoyed the Kite Runner this year)
- Blood of the Innocents - Chris Collett (Chosen because I like crime novels)
- The Sixth Lamentation - William Brodrick (It has kind of a Holocaust theme)
- Down and Out In Paris and London - George Orwell (My friend bought me this for my birthday and I’ve been wanting to read it ever since, especially since I reread 1984 in October)
- The Wrong Boy - Willy Russell (Himself bought me this for my birthday, totally off the cuff. I’m desperate to read it)
- Caedmon’s Song - Peter Robinson (Because I really love this author)
- We Need To Talk About Kevin - Lionel Shriver (Laura has been recommending this for months/years)
- The Unfortunates - Laurie Graham (I loved The Future Homemakers of America, so I’m hoping I’ll love this too)
- A Short History of Tractors in Ukranian - Marina Lewycka (Because everyone I know has read this. I bought it for myself off Amazon at somee point this year, but it’s been on my mental wishlist since it came out)
- Devil in the Details - Jennifer Traig (This was on my Amazon wishlist for 2.5 years before Mellissa bought it for me this July. Really looking forward to it)
- The Lake of Dead Languages - Carol Goodman (Zo bought me this! I loved the other one I read by her, so I’m hoping this will be similar)
- Hannah’s Gift - Maria HousdenĀ (This has sat on my bookshelves since 2003, it’s about time it got read!)
Here are my alternates:
- A Secret Madness - Elaine Bass (My aunt bought me this off my Amazon wishlist last Christmas, I need to read it!)
- Charlotte Gray - Sebastian Faulks (Because I really enjoyed Birdsong this year)
- Lucia Lucia - Adriana Trigiani (Because I had this in 2003)
- Midnight Champagne - A. Manette Ansay (I picked this up in a charity shop somewhen, it looks brand new, though!)
- The Lazarus Child - Robert Mawson (Because it’s an ethical type)
- Angels - Denis Johnson (Bought in a charity shop too)
I’m capping my alternates at 6, I think it’ll be plenty!