2011 will be the year I find my freedom once again, when I will not have to worry about squeezing in work and school and blogging and reading and the rest of my life because in 2011, June 11th to be exact, I will be finally graduating with my MLIS. So it is that I find my plans turning from “read whatever,” to “read these books.” It may backfire, going from loose to, well, an actual list, but it has been fun to think about the possibilities for the year before it has begun when there is so much promise and room to dream.
I’d like 2011 to be the year in which I finally get around to reading some of the authors I’ve always meant to but haven’t gotten around to yet. I’d also like to include books by authors I have read (and love) but that I haven’t gotten around to reading that particular book yet.
So for the authors I haven’t read but have meant to:
- Nadine Gordimer. I’m planning on reading The Pick Up as recommended by Michelle.
- Saul Bellow. His letters just came out and have been getting lots of press. I’ve read one or two short stories but not enough to say I have read him. I will very likely read Herzog since that is the book that is on my shelf
- Jorge Luis Borges. Is this terrible? I’ve never read him but for one, maybe two stories. I’m not sure which of his books to read, Ficciones? Labyrinths? Something else?
- Franz Kafka. How embarrassing to admit that I have only ever read a short story by him. I want to read The Trial.
- Vladimir Nabokov. I’ve read a few essays and his lectures on Don Quixote, but not his fiction. So perhaps this is the year to give Lolita a go.
- Anthony Trollope. He recently made the rounds of the Classic Circuit and everyone made him sound so good. I’ve got The Warden on my shelf and will go with that one unless someone manages to convince me otherwise.
For the authors I have read and loved but have one or more books I have meant to read but haven’t gotten around to yet:
- Margaret Atwood. I’m pretty sure I’ve read all her novels except The Handmaid’s Tale and The Robber Bride. I think it is time I stop putting off The Handmaid’s Tale.
- Virginia Woolf. Mrs. Dalloway is one of my top five all-time favorite novels but I have only read one other of her novels, To the Lighthouse and that so long ago that I can’t even claim to remember much about it. For this list though, it’s The Voyage Out, her first book. Any others I might be able to squeeze in during the year will be a bonus.
- Octavia E. Butler. She died almost five years ago and I am still sad about it. She was one of the best female voices in science fiction and her untimely death is a big loss. I’ve read many but not all of her books. This year I think it is time I get around to Fledgling.
- Charles Dickens. It’s been ages since I’ve read him and since he is my husband’s favorite author and one of my cats is named after him, it is perhaps time to dive into one of his books again. Not sure which one though. I’ll figure this one out when the time comes.
- Edith Wharton. Having finally made it through her biography has me wanting to read all her stuff but she is a most prolific writer so I will try to read one and anything else will be a bonus. The one will probably be Hudson River Bracketed but I hope I can slip Ethan Frome in too since it’s a short one.
There will also be Slaves books to read and I am going to try to read a few of The Wolves’ (formerly known as the Unstructured Reading Group) choices as several of them happen to be on my list of books I’ve meant to read for ages but haven’t gotten around to yet. These are the ones I know about so far:
- The Summer Book by Tove Jansson. This is the Slaves book for January.
- What Ever Happened to Modernism? by Gabriel Josipovici. The May read for The Wolves
- The End of the Story by Lydia Davis. The August read for The Wolves. I could also put Davis on my list of authors I have meant to read but haven’t gotten around to yet. I’ve read her Proust translation but that doesn’t count as reading her.
- The Memoirs of Hadrian by Marguerite Yourcenar. The September Wolves book. And another author and book I have meant to read for ages. It is so nice when things like this dovetail.
- House of Leaves by Mark Danielewski. The October choice for the Wolves and yet another author and book I’ve been wanting to read (I’m beginning to sound like a broken record).
- Buying a Fishing Rod for My Grandfather by Xingjian Gao. The December Wolves book. I have this beautiful and slim book on my book shelf and almost read it a few years ago but it got pushed aside by something sparkly and new.
The Slaves don’t don’t plan out their year so those books will be nice surprises.
I like to try and read every year a book that kind of scares me. I haven’t been very consistent with my attempts at doing this while I have been in school, but this year will mark the return. The book is Ulysses by James Joyce and I aim to start it on June 16th, Bloomsday. If anyone would like to join me in the undertaking, I’d love the company.
I realized that for the last two years I have reread an Austen novel. Two years ago it was Pride and Prejudice and this last year it was Mansfield Park. I think this year it will be Sense and Sensibility. I love the Emma Thompson movie and have seen it so many times since I have read the book that I don’t remember the book anymore. I would like to displace the movie and return Jane to her rightful place on this one.
As if all that isn’t enough, I’d like to get through two of the books that have been on my in progress shelf for far too long. Gaddis’ The Recognitions is sitting there looking at me and laughing. He thinks he’s beat me, but I’ll show him. I’m also still stuck in the middle of Proust’s Guermantes Way. I have a coworker who has been reading Proust in French (with the English translation on hand should she run into trouble) for the past several years. She has finally made it to The Captive and keeps offering her encouragement to me to keep going. It’s time to shake off the dust and cobwebs and start reading Proust again.
What an ambitious plan! See what being on the verge of freedom from grad school does to a person? Even if I don’t come close to reading all these books, just thinking about them has been fun and that’s worth something.
I hope everyone’s New Year celebrations are fun and safe. And here’s lots of good books and lots of reading in 2011!
Wow! You are nothing if not ambitious!
I enjoyed Ficciones and The Handmaid’s Tale, and loved House of Leaves (I’ll be very interested to hear your take on it — I hope you can explain it to me
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You have made some wonderful plans for reading in 2011. It will be nice to stop studying and get to read whatever you like!
Definitely an ambitious list but I look forward to reading your reviews!
Saul Bellow makes me want to throw books across the room in anger.
An ambitious but wonderful plan! I know the freedom you must be anticipating as you near the end of your program. Have been there a few times myself. And am honored that you are choosing to spend some of that time with The Wolves. And thrilled that you picked both of my titles from our pile for the year! And thanks for reminding me to finish my ride on the Proust train – a great ride. Happy New Year and happy reading!
I’m excited for you! Isn’t it nice thinking about what you’ll be doing when your time will once again be your own. You Must read The Handmaid’s Tale–I’ve read quite a few of her books, too, and that one several times! I’ve only read one short story by Kafka, too, so maybe I’ll join you in your Kafka read. It sounds like you have some wonderful (and a few challenging) reading plans–Enjoy! Have a great 2011, Stefanie!
I’ve been reading your blog for awhile but haven’t commented.I just wanted to say that I’ve been wanting to read Fledgling to for awhile. I think I might add it to my list for the year!
If you ever listen to audio books, I can’t say enough good things about Jeremy Irons reading Lolita. It’s gorgeous.
Yay, I’m thrilled, like Frances, that so many of the Wolves selections appeal to you, at least in theory, since I know we’d all love to have you along!
I’m intrigued that out of all Wharton you would choose Hudson River Bracketed, although I remember being interested in it myself after finishing that Lee bio. And actually, The Voyage Out is one of only two Woolf novels I haven’t read (the other one is Flush, and I’m not counting Melymbrosia as a separate novel), so I’ll be super-interested in your thoughts on that one.
I’d suggest “Barchester Towers”, the second of the Barsetshire novels, reading after “The Warden”. I remember the scheming bishop’s wife, Mrs. Proudie, as a rather comical character, as she tried to advance her (hen-pecked) husband’s career. Characters from “The Warden” reappear in this novel.
Your plans are wonderful and I wish you better luck than I had when I retired. I was going to do something very similar and then got lost in the acres of freedom I found myself experiencing. It may sound daft, but in my experience it actually takes as much discipline to read what you want as it does to read what you have to.
What a wonderful list of books to read. I agree, I think Emma Thompson’s screenplay is still the definitive movie adaptation of S & S. There’s a new version coming up this year, entitled From Prada to Nada, but sounds more like a farce. Here’s to another year of great reads in 2011. Have a Happy New Year, Stefanie!
Loving these plans! Particularly the authors you most want to try – I adore Kafka (in an intellectual way) and can’t wait to hear what you make of Nabokov and Borges (will join you on reading more of his work). In fact I’m interested to hear about all the books and authors you note – I found The Handmaid’s Tale harrowing but completely brilliant, but if you pack some Trollope either side, it should be fine. Oh and I really enjoyed Herzog, too, although be warned it’s a slow and careful read. Here’s to wonderful, bookish 2011, Stefanie, and your freedom!
I listened to The Recognitions earlier this year and I want to revisit it for reading. The first chapter provides a wonderful hook for the rest of it…looking forward reading your thoughts on it when the book stops laughing at you!
A very ambitious agenda indeed. Congrats on having you MILS so close at hand.
Happy new Year to you good health and happiness are wished for you.
What wonderful and ambitious plans you have, Stefanie. I can’t believe you’ve read most of Atwood save The Handmaid’s Tale! That’s usually the one everyone reads
I’d like to discover some of the same authors you mentioned and you’ve reminded me that I need to read Octavia Butler again. I’ve only read one of her books which I did love so I must get back to more.
Have a terrific New Year and already cheering for your school achievement!
What a fantastic list! I tried to read Ulysses a few years ago and it was a dismal failure, so I send you good luck! Also, I can’t believe you have never read The Robber Bride or The Handmaid’s Tale! So good! I need another Atwood; I’ve read *most* of hers but am afraid to restart Oryx and Crake. However, I might be up for it this year.
I’d like to read a Dickens also… maybe the same one?
Oh, and YAY for being so close to finishing school!!!
So many overlaps in our reading for 2010-2011: Ulysses is incredible and I look forward to your impressions. Kafka and The Trial are brilliant, but so are many of the short stories, I am rereading The Judgement on a weekly basis at the moment. Gordimer and much more Bellow and Nabokov are high on my list of priorities for 2011, as are several of The Wolves’ tempting selections.
Borge’s Ficciones is as good a place to start as any, but sadly no brilliant translation has been made into English yet.
Wonderful plans for a new reading year! You must be giddy with the nearness of your upcoming freedom from grad school
I remember feeling pretty thrilled by the approach of the end… Good luck and enjoy your last few months, and also enjoy the anticipation of all this fantastic reading.
Wishing you all the best for these last months of intensive study and a Happy New Year, Stefanie! Your list is impressive, I read Memoirs of Hadrian and another book by Yourcenar (L’ Oeuvre Au Noir – maybe not translated into English?) really liked them and am already looking forward to reading what you think of it. And I couldn’t help wondering: will there be no poetry this year?
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These sound like great plans! I’ll be joining you for some of it, including The Summer Book, and for reading Margaret Atwood (maybe I’ll read The Handmaid’s Tale in addition to Alias Grace!). Many of your other choices sound wonderful as well. Have a great 2011!
wil, if I’m going to dream might as well dream big!
kathleen, the end of my studies will be wonderful. It seems like I have been at it for so very long!
Yvann, thanks!
Lu, really? What don’t you like about him?
Frances, and happy New Year to you too! I am looking forward to the Wolves selections. I like that you all have picked such an interesting variety and it helps that a good many of them are books I have already and have been wanting to read!
Christa, hi! Thanks for reading and commenting! I have high hopes for Fledging especially since I love Butler so much!
softdrink, thanks for the tip on the audiobook!
Emily, thanks! I always love the Wolves postings so I am happy that I will be able to join in for some of them. Hudson River Bracketed sounded really interesting after reading the Lee bio and I had never heard of it before. I also wanted to read something from late Wharton but I might change my mind eventually and go for something else instead.
Bonnie, thanks for the tip on Barchester Towers! If The Warden and I get along, and I don’t know why we wouldn’t, I’ll be sure to check that one out.
Annie, oh you are right about it taking as much discipline to read what you want. There is no one holding my feet to the fire like there is for the required reading for class.
Arti, From Prada to Nada? Ugh. I’ll wait for your insightful review before I see that one! And happy New Year to you too!
Litlove, thanks for the warning about Herzog. I am very curious about Lolita especially after your reaction to it when you read it. Aren’t reading plans great fun?
Dwight, thanks! I hope it stops laughing at me very soon.
Bibliophile, thank you! And happy healthy wishes to you too for a book-filled 2011!
Iliana, thanks! Atwood is one of my favorite authors and in grad school the first time around I briefly considered writing my thesis on her.
Daphne, thanks! Have you read Atwood’s Surfacing? Brilliant. O&C isn’t Atwood at her best and is sometimes a slog but overall worth the read. Perhaps we might end up reading the same Dickens. I haven’t decided which one yet.
Anthony, I’ve heard that the translation of Ficciones isn’t that great which is very disappointing. But hopefully Borges is brilliant enough to overcome bad translating.
Melwyk, thanks! I am pretty giddy. It is getting harder and harder to concentrate on my schoolwork.
catharina, thank you and happy New Year to you! I am glad to hear you liked Memoirs of Hadrian. There will be poetry this year, that is something I don’t need to plan though as it happens on its own most of the time. There is a new Marge Piercy book of poetry I’ll be reading, I just put Hafiz by the bedside, and I am sure some other poetry books will find there way to my reading pile.
Dorothy, an happy New Year to you too! I do hope you like Alias Grace and of course if you get to Handmaid’s Tale as well, it will be great fun to compare notes.
wow, what a lot of ambitious goals. I’m glad to hear, though, that soon you will have a degree so you’ll have time to read all of these!
The Handmaid’s Tale is not my favourite, but definitely a must-read.
I like Borges’s short stories, but they can take a lot out of you. As for House of Leaves, do not plan to read it in bed, it’s simply not practical to do so and make sure you have long chucks of time so you can get into the book. I still haven’t finished it for those two reasons and I am losing interest in it; it’s a shame…
I must have been partying too much on New Year’s Eve and so missed your great plan for 2011. You have too much here for me to comment on so I’ll just pick a couple.
First, this must the year of SENSE AND SENSIBILITY as it is the 200th anniversary of its publication this year. My JA group will be studying it throughout the year so you may see the odd post on my blog. I must say that I really didn’t like the casting of the Emma Thompson S&S but will be looking at it again this year.
Nadine Gordimer. I really must read more of her. My intro was a collection of short stories Six feet of the country. I think I’ve only read one novel but have a couple on my TBR.
Saul Bellow. I’ve only managed to read one but I did enjoy it a lot: The adventures of Augie March.
I did read Ulysses at university. Would love to read it again. Keep in touch – though I suspect the way things go I’ll find time will get the better of me.
Anyhow, good luck with your plans for the year. I shall follow them with interest and pleasure.
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