How dare you not like Wuthering Heights??? JK, I get that book is not for everyone but I hope you enjoy it more the second time! The Mysteries of Udolpho is great too; it's pretty long and tedious but I ended up loving it and have since been wanting to read some of the "horrid novels" in Northanger Abbey though I haven't done any yet. I am currently reading Wives and Daughters which will probably become a new favourite and I would like to finally get into reading Charles Dickens this year as I never have before. Any suggestions for which of his books I should start with?
I am reading it with an open mind! Who knows, perhaps I will become a Wuthering Heights fan after all…
Wives and Daughters is so good; I find Gaskell to be a very easy-to-love author.
As for what Dickens to start with, I think David Copperfield would be fantastic! Or check out my post on Dickens; quite a few people weighed in and shared their favorites of his books, so you might get a few ideas there.
I seem to remember a childhood friend saying she was going to read "Wives and Daughters" and would later tell me if it was good so I could read it. She never did. Do you think the book would be a good read for a young adult (does it check the morality boxes, in other words)?
I am only about a third of the way through but it seems like a good read for a young adult so far. I am 21 myself and I do not read books that have much in terms of mature content btw :)
I'm looking forward to reading Jane Austen's Persuasion, The Mass of Brother Michel (a recommendation from a friend), Far From the Madding Crowd, and Diary of a Country Priest (idea taken from your photo). I will also probably re-read Jane Eyre. It has taken me a long time to return to it, since I'm not very much into the Gothic genre. Thank you for the recommendations! Would you consider writing a short article about each book after you've read it? Sort of like a book review?
Jane Eyre is one of my favorite books ever. I didn’t love it my first time though, but every time I read it I love it more (I’ve read it four times now, and need to read it again!).
Your books all sound fantastic; here’s to a wonderful year of reading!
I can’t promise a book review on every single book I read, but I will do my best to write when I can! Also—I do post short reviews on my goodreads page, so search my name there and you can read all of my reviews, which I try to do on every book I read.
I also have CS Lewis and Middlemarch on my list. I finished Trinity by Uris and am looking for a good used copy of the next one called Redemption. Also have been tackling "Black Lamb and Grey Falcon" by Rebecca West.
I'm reading Middlemarch too! I started back in Spring 2023 and dragged my feet. Picking it up again and plan to finish it in 2025. I'm intruiged by The Catherine Project. Thanks for posting!
That looks like some great reading! I saw Northanger Abbey last week in a bookstore but didn't pick it up. I have yet to read that one but it sounds fun. I will be tackling War and Peace this year which I'm looking forward to.
You have some beauties there, Shannon. I've always wondered why that Anne Bronte book is not as well-known as her sisters' books.
I haven't read anything by Hardy for a while but I have two that I want to read some time- Jude the Obscure & The Return of the Native. I loved The Mayor of Casterbridge which is one of his books that seems to be neglected compared to his others.
I was given An Experiment in Criticism a year ago so that is one I plan to read.
My first reading objective for this year is Les Miserables. I have a few others that are high up in my list but I like to leave room for books that come my way or that pop out at me from the shelf.
I read Jude the Obscure in college and I’m not sure I’ve yet recovered from one particular scene. It’s deeply disturbing. I would love to hear your thoughts on it, though, once you read it.
Enjoy Les Miserables! I will get to it eventually :)
Man, I had the exact same experience with the Brontës! I think viewing Wuthering Heights as a romance was one of the reasons. It’s 100% about the cycle of emotional and generational trauma/abuse. I’m reading The Tenant of Wildfell Hall now and so far I am in love with it!
Udolpho made me giggle. For all of the scandalous references in NA, I've never read it! I'll wait to hear from you on whether I should. ;) Middlemarch is one of my favorite novels. And I purchased a used copy of Wuthering Heights last year to read for the same reasons you mentioned. I took a class on the British Romantics in college and didn't enjoy WH, but I've been curious to try it again at this stage of life. Sometimes age and context warms me to different books. I love the list and pairings, Shannon!
Yes, our age certainly changes how we read things, doesn’t it?— I am very curious to see how Wuthering Heights goes this time around after living so much more of life.
When you find out what the appeal is with Wuthering Heights, PLEASE let us all know! 😂
I LOVE the idea of reading one of the referenced works right alongside Northanger Abbey. I just re-read it a couple months ago and thought that would be such a cool thing to do, particularly the one you chose.
I do hope you love Middlemarch! I read it before I read Silas Marner…and kind of wish I did it the other way around. I think Silas Marner is a great intro to George Eliot.
(Perhaps I should treat myself to another read of Jane Eyre…❤️)
Thomas Hardy is one of my favorites, and Far From the Madding Crowd is so wonderful! I also seriously disliked Wuthering Heights, but more in an active dislike kind of way -- I read it, and enjoyed disliking it.
I am most excited about reading War and Peace, in tandem with a good friend. We've only just started and it feels like an embarkment on something monumental. Also planning to read Les Miserables (for the first time!), Mere Christianity and the second two Kristin Lavransdatter books. Middlemarch has been on my radar, so now I may add that to the list as well!
I read a few Hardy novels in college (Mayor of Casterbridge, Jude the Obscure) and was fairly disturbed by some of the content. So I’m looking forward to one of the less-depressing of his books!
My husband just finished War and Peace and immediately started it over again. I love that you’re reading it with a friend—that is my favorite way to read!
There's a few on here I might decide to get to this year, as well! I went through Middlemarch for the first time this past year and enjoyed it so much more than I was anticipating (classics are always good, but our response to them can vary.... at least they do for me!) So it's one I certainly want to revisit either this year or next. Silas Marner was my follow-up to my George Elliot introduction, but want to get to The Mill on the Floss this year, as I've seen many others (like Alan Jacobs!) mention it.
And I'm glad to see you connected with The Catherine Project. Heard about it a few years ago but haven't yet joined in on anything.
It is hard to articulate how excited I was when I stumbled on the Catherine Project a few months ago; I wondered if I was the last person to hear about it!
I’m looking forward to reading the books I got for Christmas: Malcolm Gladwell’s THE BOMBER MAFIA and THE HARVEY GIRLS by Lesley Poling-Kempes. I also am behind on Hampton Sides latest — especially looking forward to HELLHOUND ON HIS TRAIL about the search for Martin Luther King Jr.’s murderer. In fiction I’m waiting for Robert Galbraith’s next Cormoran Strike book — my guilty pleasure listening to them on Audible.
I’m looking forward to reading the books I got for Christmas: Malcolm Gladwell’s THE BOMBER MAFIA and THE HARVEY GIRLS by Lesley Poling-Kempes. I also am behind on Hampton Sides latest — especially looking forward to HELLHOUND ON HIS TAIL about the search for Martin Luther King Jr.’s murderer. In fiction I’m waiting for Robert Galbraith’s next Cormoran Strike book — my guilty pleasure listening to them on Audible.
How dare you not like Wuthering Heights??? JK, I get that book is not for everyone but I hope you enjoy it more the second time! The Mysteries of Udolpho is great too; it's pretty long and tedious but I ended up loving it and have since been wanting to read some of the "horrid novels" in Northanger Abbey though I haven't done any yet. I am currently reading Wives and Daughters which will probably become a new favourite and I would like to finally get into reading Charles Dickens this year as I never have before. Any suggestions for which of his books I should start with?
I am reading it with an open mind! Who knows, perhaps I will become a Wuthering Heights fan after all…
Wives and Daughters is so good; I find Gaskell to be a very easy-to-love author.
As for what Dickens to start with, I think David Copperfield would be fantastic! Or check out my post on Dickens; quite a few people weighed in and shared their favorites of his books, so you might get a few ideas there.
Happy reading!
I seem to remember a childhood friend saying she was going to read "Wives and Daughters" and would later tell me if it was good so I could read it. She never did. Do you think the book would be a good read for a young adult (does it check the morality boxes, in other words)?
I think North and South would be wonderful for a young adult!
I am only about a third of the way through but it seems like a good read for a young adult so far. I am 21 myself and I do not read books that have much in terms of mature content btw :)
Oh, good! Thank you!
I'm looking forward to reading Jane Austen's Persuasion, The Mass of Brother Michel (a recommendation from a friend), Far From the Madding Crowd, and Diary of a Country Priest (idea taken from your photo). I will also probably re-read Jane Eyre. It has taken me a long time to return to it, since I'm not very much into the Gothic genre. Thank you for the recommendations! Would you consider writing a short article about each book after you've read it? Sort of like a book review?
Jane Eyre is one of my favorite books ever. I didn’t love it my first time though, but every time I read it I love it more (I’ve read it four times now, and need to read it again!).
Your books all sound fantastic; here’s to a wonderful year of reading!
I can’t promise a book review on every single book I read, but I will do my best to write when I can! Also—I do post short reviews on my goodreads page, so search my name there and you can read all of my reviews, which I try to do on every book I read.
I'll look for you there! Thank you!
EDIT: How can I find you? Do you have the same profile picture you have here?
https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1172450-shannon
Here’s my profile on goodreads!
Thank you!
oh I LOVED the Close Reads podcast discussions on Diary of a Country Priest.
I also have CS Lewis and Middlemarch on my list. I finished Trinity by Uris and am looking for a good used copy of the next one called Redemption. Also have been tackling "Black Lamb and Grey Falcon" by Rebecca West.
Fun that we have a few overlapping books on our lists.
I’ve never heard of Rebecca West; I will have to look her up!
I'm reading Middlemarch too! I started back in Spring 2023 and dragged my feet. Picking it up again and plan to finish it in 2025. I'm intruiged by The Catherine Project. Thanks for posting!
Excited to read it! I’d love to hear how you like it once you’ve read it.
That looks like some great reading! I saw Northanger Abbey last week in a bookstore but didn't pick it up. I have yet to read that one but it sounds fun. I will be tackling War and Peace this year which I'm looking forward to.
Haven’t yet done War and Peace but my husband just finished it and immediately begun again. So that’s a pretty great endorsement!
Enjoy it!
Almost 40% of books on your list are by / about CS Lewis. I’m 100% on board with that plan! Enjoy.
Ha, great analysis! This isn’t everything I’m reading this year but I’m always okay with lots of Lewis :)
You have some beauties there, Shannon. I've always wondered why that Anne Bronte book is not as well-known as her sisters' books.
I haven't read anything by Hardy for a while but I have two that I want to read some time- Jude the Obscure & The Return of the Native. I loved The Mayor of Casterbridge which is one of his books that seems to be neglected compared to his others.
I was given An Experiment in Criticism a year ago so that is one I plan to read.
My first reading objective for this year is Les Miserables. I have a few others that are high up in my list but I like to leave room for books that come my way or that pop out at me from the shelf.
Happy reading!
I read Jude the Obscure in college and I’m not sure I’ve yet recovered from one particular scene. It’s deeply disturbing. I would love to hear your thoughts on it, though, once you read it.
Enjoy Les Miserables! I will get to it eventually :)
Yes, that has put me off reading it so far. There’s a lot of books I couldn’t have handled when I was younger.
Man, I had the exact same experience with the Brontës! I think viewing Wuthering Heights as a romance was one of the reasons. It’s 100% about the cycle of emotional and generational trauma/abuse. I’m reading The Tenant of Wildfell Hall now and so far I am in love with it!
Ugh, you're probably right. I need to remember the genre (and all that goes with it!) and that may help this time around.
Excited to read Wildfell Hall! Glad to hear you're enjoying it.
Udolpho made me giggle. For all of the scandalous references in NA, I've never read it! I'll wait to hear from you on whether I should. ;) Middlemarch is one of my favorite novels. And I purchased a used copy of Wuthering Heights last year to read for the same reasons you mentioned. I took a class on the British Romantics in college and didn't enjoy WH, but I've been curious to try it again at this stage of life. Sometimes age and context warms me to different books. I love the list and pairings, Shannon!
Yes, our age certainly changes how we read things, doesn’t it?— I am very curious to see how Wuthering Heights goes this time around after living so much more of life.
I will report back on Mysteries of Udolpho :)
When you find out what the appeal is with Wuthering Heights, PLEASE let us all know! 😂
I LOVE the idea of reading one of the referenced works right alongside Northanger Abbey. I just re-read it a couple months ago and thought that would be such a cool thing to do, particularly the one you chose.
I do hope you love Middlemarch! I read it before I read Silas Marner…and kind of wish I did it the other way around. I think Silas Marner is a great intro to George Eliot.
(Perhaps I should treat myself to another read of Jane Eyre…❤️)
I’ve never heard that Silas Marner is a great introduction to Eliot!
I will certainly report back on my second time through Wuthering Heights!
Thomas Hardy is one of my favorites, and Far From the Madding Crowd is so wonderful! I also seriously disliked Wuthering Heights, but more in an active dislike kind of way -- I read it, and enjoyed disliking it.
I am most excited about reading War and Peace, in tandem with a good friend. We've only just started and it feels like an embarkment on something monumental. Also planning to read Les Miserables (for the first time!), Mere Christianity and the second two Kristin Lavransdatter books. Middlemarch has been on my radar, so now I may add that to the list as well!
I read a few Hardy novels in college (Mayor of Casterbridge, Jude the Obscure) and was fairly disturbed by some of the content. So I’m looking forward to one of the less-depressing of his books!
My husband just finished War and Peace and immediately started it over again. I love that you’re reading it with a friend—that is my favorite way to read!
Happy reading!
There's a few on here I might decide to get to this year, as well! I went through Middlemarch for the first time this past year and enjoyed it so much more than I was anticipating (classics are always good, but our response to them can vary.... at least they do for me!) So it's one I certainly want to revisit either this year or next. Silas Marner was my follow-up to my George Elliot introduction, but want to get to The Mill on the Floss this year, as I've seen many others (like Alan Jacobs!) mention it.
And I'm glad to see you connected with The Catherine Project. Heard about it a few years ago but haven't yet joined in on anything.
It is hard to articulate how excited I was when I stumbled on the Catherine Project a few months ago; I wondered if I was the last person to hear about it!
I’m looking forward to reading the books I got for Christmas: Malcolm Gladwell’s THE BOMBER MAFIA and THE HARVEY GIRLS by Lesley Poling-Kempes. I also am behind on Hampton Sides latest — especially looking forward to HELLHOUND ON HIS TRAIL about the search for Martin Luther King Jr.’s murderer. In fiction I’m waiting for Robert Galbraith’s next Cormoran Strike book — my guilty pleasure listening to them on Audible.
I didn't know Malcolm Gladwell had a new book out! I'll be curious to check that one out...Happy reading, Elizabeth!
Thanks, Shannon -- always enjoy hearing about your reading life.
I’m looking forward to reading the books I got for Christmas: Malcolm Gladwell’s THE BOMBER MAFIA and THE HARVEY GIRLS by Lesley Poling-Kempes. I also am behind on Hampton Sides latest — especially looking forward to HELLHOUND ON HIS TAIL about the search for Martin Luther King Jr.’s murderer. In fiction I’m waiting for Robert Galbraith’s next Cormoran Strike book — my guilty pleasure listening to them on Audible.