Every year I start on the 52 in 52 reading challenge, and every year I fall short by quite a way. We're almost into February and I've only read one book. I took English Lit for my undergrad degree at Sussex, and I did a Masters in Comparative Literature at Goldsmiths, but since I graduated I haven't been able to concentrate on reading as much as I used to.
So instead of focusing on quantity of books, I've decided to focus on quality. I'm reading books that have been recommended to me, or are on essential reading lists, or are just known as classics.
Reading on the job - taking a break in between sets onboard the Belmond British Pullman.
Here are a few of the books that I would thoroughly recommend, if anyone is looking for suggestions.
The Passage - Justin Cronin
I read The Passage during the summer after I finished university, and I read it in a few days; partly because it was captivating and impossible to put down, and partly because it scared me to an insane degree and I needed to get through it to try and avoid the fear (it didn't work; this doesn't have the happiest of endings). It's a chilling dystopian novel about a highly contagious virus that transforms humans into vampire-esque creatures. Look, I know what it sounds like. You have my word that this book is fantastic. There's also two more in the series, so get reading.
We Should All Be Feminists - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
We Should All Be Feminists is an essay looking at feminism in the twenty first century. It's beautifully written and certainly answered questions for me about what it means to identify as a feminist in today's world. I would recommend this to everyone; it's an important piece of work.
One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
I am a huge fan of Gabriel Garcia Marquez's writing; it's rich, bold and eloquent to the extent where I visualise scenes in a way that I don't with any other writer. One Hundred Years of Solitude is my favourite, but Love In The Time of Cholera is a close second.
The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
Margaret Atwood is my favourite author of all time; I have enjoyed every piece of Atwood's writing I have read. If you haven't read this book yet you need to immediately. The Handmaid's Tale is a terrifying take on the recent future, and the parallels between the current political climate and Atwood's portrayal of the fictional Republic of Gilead is chilling. As Atwood herself has said, she never writes about anything that isn't currently happening or hasn't happened at some point somewhere in the world.
Feeling Sorry For Celia - Jaclyn Moriarty
I love Young Adult fiction, particularly books that I read as a teenager. Feeling Sorry For Celia is a book that I first read on my 13th birthday and it still makes me laugh out loud today. Jaclyn Moriarty tackles all kinds of subjects in her writing, making her characters relatable but not always likeable, which is one of my favourite features of novels. I love it when I don't love the characters. There are two books by Moriarty that I haven't read yet and they're on my list for this year.
Comment below if you have any book suggestions!