I was supposed to write this last December but here I am, writing it now. My reading list for the year 2023! Probably like most adults, I used to love reading. I used to love it so much that I was an avid reader. I'd read everywhere, anywhere, anytime, and all the time. My mother is who installed my love of reading and it is the true test of time that has corrupted those files.
I can remember being read to, very early on. My favorite book was this cute little yellow book. "Five Little Ducks" I took that thing with me everywhere. Being read to and reading was a nightly ritual for years to come.
There was one point in my youth, a point that I look back at and think “well, that certainly wasn't so. There is no way I once owned over 800 books or read 2 -6 full-sized novel books in a day.” But it is true. There were many days I'd sit in my childhood room and count the spines on my shelves. One, two, three, four - counting and list making, two very OCD traits of mine as a kid that still ring true today. I would spend hours rearranging and categorizing my titles, literally just for fun. (Man my childhood does sound sad...)
Looking back there are a few titles that caught my attention the most! P.C. Cast was the author of the House of Night series. Both she and her daughter wrote the whole series together. Then eventually there was Black Hills by Nora Roberts. Something definitely different than what I was used to reading. I've read titles like Mr. Mercedes and Doctor Sleep, things like Night by Elie Wiesel, and some of the school classics like The Great Gatsby.
But where am I going with this? How does this relate to my super late Reading List of 2023? Simple... what is reading? No your eyes don't need to be adjusted, you read that right. What the heck even is reading? Why, like most people, have I fallen out of the very thing that I used to claim to love doing? I've read a few articles about this and like many other people, the issue is me. How many excuses do I make? Inaction could be an excuse. Instead of turning on Netflix or whatever of the 40 other streaming services I have, I could easily just pick up a book.
As weird as it may be, there is one person I remember from my youth. We weren't friends, and like most of my classmates I'm fairly certain he didn't know I existed but I remember him well. Eric Redding. I may not even have that name right, but he was known as the reader of the school. You'd always see him with a book in his hand, sometimes walking in the crosswalk to go home, reading, just reading. I always wanted to be like him, and I still do. You my dude, wherever you ended up are an inspiration and my avid reading hero, I hope you didn't lose it like I did.
Do graphic novels and omnibuses count as reading? Or do I have to actually finish a 900-page novel? If not then I have finished things to completion as an adult (albeit in very sad amounts as opposed to before). Avatar The Last Airbender is one of my favorite TV shows and I was overjoyed to know that it continued in the comics. I actually sat out the other day to complete my trilogy of the Last Airbender comics. The Promise, The Search, and The Rift. I had already finished The Promise many months ago after re-watching the show and getting some Uncle Iroh wisdom for the 12,000th time. I could literally hear the voices of Aang and the Avatar Gaang.
Getting back into writing needed to come with getting back into reading. I mean how else will my vocabulary expand beyond uhh and hmm? So getting back into reading means dusting off the cobwebs on my metaphorical reading glasses and actually reading, daily. Have I done that yet? Have I read daily? The short answer is no the long and more complicated answer is: While it may be the 26th of January I have read at least 5 of the days.... that's better than the start of last year! Ghost Story, by Peter Straub, is my current read, and it has been a challenge to get into. I'm not sure if it is my inability to connect with the characters, (they are all much older men telling a story. I'm neither “old” nor a man...) my inability to see or envision the story clearly, or what! I picked up a book titled The High Mountain Court by A.K. Mulford a book with a story a little more me. I'm interested to see how I like it I guess it is a trilogy.
I took to Twitter to ask if it was weird as an adult to like reading young adult books. 24 hours later I realize my mistake. Even if reading Young Adult fiction is weird why do I care? If it is what I love to read it is what I love to read. Ta fuck with any other opinion, not that other opinions exist because that post effectively has zero comments or views. Even as a child reading Junie B. Jones I still had a much higher reading level throughout all of school. In elementary, I was reading what the kids in Junior High read. (Junior high means middle school for those who weren't raised by elderly dementia patients.)
The House of Night series I mentioned earlier, was the series I plowed through in a matter of days. I'm fairly certain that there are presently 12 books and 4 novellas. I have read all but one of the novellas and books. A fact I plan on changing now that I can actually go to the bookstore. I decided that I'd use those books to dust off the cobwebs. I've already read more (and understood more) with Marked than I have with Ghost Story.
Reading with me was an escape. A place where the magic I want to exist, can. Where the demons and monsters are controlled or at the very least controllable. Where faraway lands could be reached while I sat in my bed not thinking about tomorrow. I want to escape again. Find refuge in torn pages and worn words. Find solace in someone else’s chaos. Zoey Redbird was me and I was Zoey Redbird when she went through her change. I was Lil and Cooper when they traversed the Black Hills looking for a killer, I was them even when they shared some sweet exchanges.
I was Danny when he was trying to help someone that had the same gift as him in Doctor Sleep, I was Jack when the grand Overlook Hotel towered before me. I was Bill Hodges when Mr. Mercedes wanted him dead. I was Eragon as he rode Saphira into battle, I was Grace and Sam when Grace turned into a wolf in Shiver. Reading was an escape, an experience. Reading was my gateway to other worlds and lessons that I'll carry forever. The stories that I read still have memories in my head.
My reading list for 2023 is this: Read what I used to love and expand off of that.
All 12 books of House of Night and all 4 novellas for House of Night
Eragon and the other three of The Inheritance Series
Shiver, Linger, and Forever
Black Hills
The Great Gatsby
Night
and probably so many more.
I will get back into reading, I will read books like I used to and like my mother used to and I will love it again, I know I will. I just need to read the right things and read the right things and read the right things in the exact right way. I've heard people enjoy reading naked, is... should I try that? Is that a thing people really do? DO YOU?
What about tub reading? Is it safe to read while bathing, asking for a friend? Regardless of the outcome, I will read more books than I have in a while by the end of 2023. So expect to see an update with what I've read. (maybe some reviews for writing accountability.) In the comments below share with me your summer reading list, what you're currently reading right now, what you are going to read or what your next-door neighbor is reading. If your dog reads put it in here too!
Last December I actually picked up IT by Stephen King, a movie that I had seen in recent years. (It's surprising because I love horror... and... yeah... anyway...) There are a lot of pages in that book if you didn't know. It is probably not one I'd recommend to start reading again, the sheer volume of it is enough to make a good nightstand weapon. But as far as size, this book is my goal. Finish it so I can get the nightmares of Pennywise the Clown out of my head. Finish it so I can say I finished a large ass book.
Admittedly, I may not like Stephen King as much as I used to. If at all. While his work is excellently crafted, it can be hard to get into. Probably due to the different time periods, maybe it really is a “size matters” thing. Whatever the issue is, I fully intend on cracking the code in my brain. Reading daily, finding what I like to read, and being read to - these are my goals for reading. Finishing 5 books in a month, finishing 5 books in general, read one book a month are also my goals for reading. I think these goals work. One word, one sentence, one paragraph, one page, one chapter at a time.
There is a fancy book sale my partner's mom told me about. It happens once a year and you can find all sorts of books for really cheap like .25 cents cheap. Last year I missed it and spent the rest of the year sad about it. This year I'm going, writing about it and buying enough books to fill our apartment to the brim if the Mister doesn't catch on. rubs hands together oh yeah, book sale here we come. A full apartment with enough fire starters, I mean books, is on my horizon.
I hope you enjoyed reading my post about reading... yes I think I'm funny... comment below what you like to read! Let's get a miniature book club/love of reading club going in the comments.
What was your favorite book growing up?
What is your current favorite book?
What do you like to read?
What genre do you read the most?
Favorite Author?
Favorite Classic?
Top 5 books?
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