Books I haven't read that I really should

We can't read everything. That's a fact. Even if as you work your way through your TBR there is more to be added in to it: new releases, books your friends have just read and loved, a book by that great author on the podcast you just listened to. But you know there are just some books you feel you need to read, and should have by now? Here are mine. 

Philip Pullman, Northern Lights- I haven't read any of the His Dark Materials books, which I feel is a travesty on my childhood. I can definitely remember starting it, but I don't know what ever happened to finishing it. I believe Jen Campbell is holding a read-along of all three in December because she re-reads them all every Christmastime (dedication, I think that they must be good), and I'm looking forward to losing myself in one of the greatest magical worlds ever created.

Jane Austen, Emma and Persuasion- I feel the need to complete Jane Austen's back catalogue. This are the last two of her novels that I haven't read and are next on my list. 

Daphne Du Marier, Rebecca-Another one I remember picking up but don't know why I didn't finish. And I'm sure I didn't finish, as I think it's quite a memorable one. Surely I need to read the book of which the opening lines I know off by heart?

Anything from J.K. Rowling (or Robert Galbraith) post-Potter- I admit, whilst I was a Harry Potter fan, I wasn't all that curious when Rowling came out with something new (I think first it was The Casual Vacancy). Who could ever recreate something like Potter? But the rave reviews of Rowling's detective series as Robert Galbraith have got me intrigued, and I'm going to try and reserve them at the library. 

Man Booker Excitement

With all the hype around the Man Booker longlist announcement and the already great GoodReads group, I'm really wanting to get into an attempt to read my way through the nominees. However, with the length of the list and the other books I'm dying to get to, this is probably a little unrealistic. Heck, I've still got books I'd like to read from last years list (How to Be Both, Us, The Lives of Others). So I've chosen, in order, the few I'd really like to get to, and this will be my reading aim, if not by the time of the shortlist announcement, by the time of the winner.

A Little Life by Hanya Yanigahara- OMG I wanted this book so much. And there was such a long waiting list at the library. So this one, I have purchased. And it is beautiful, and I spend a while staring at it each day. I've heard such fantastic reviews of this one, I can't wait to read it.

A Spool of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler- a family drama told in an interesting way- backwards. It sounds rich and emotional, and something that I would love.

The Chimes by Anna Smail- an intriguing and beautiful fantastical tale, in a world in which words have been replaced by music. This concept has really hooked me.

The Illuminations by Andrew O'Hagan- I don't know too much about this one, but I know that is has mixed perspectives, which I always find interesting.

August To-Be-Read

Whilst I'm on a hunt for a full-time job I'm also trying to read as many books as possible. This is because once I get the full-time job I know I'll have very little time to read. Here is a selection of the list of books I have to get to before I get there:

Go Set A Watchman, Harper Lee- I requested a copy from the library and to my shock, actually managed to get one really soon after publication. I'm looking forward to discovering it for myself after the mixture of hype and criticism.

Suite Francaise, Irene Nemirovsky- An epic home front war story I'm sure I'm going to love. I'm still trying to recapture the amazing-ness of Kristin Hannah's The Nightingale. 

Not that Kind of Girl, Lena Dunham- Another library borrow, one I don't think I'm going to be able to renew as it's so in demand. I've wanted to read this one for ages. If I love it, I might purchase a paperback copy.

Special Topics in Calamity Physics, Marisha Pessl- I recently devoured Night Film, a hefty thriller novel by the same author. This is her first novel, widely praised and heralded as similar to The Secret History, one of my favourites. Excited.

The Shadow of the Wind, Carlos Ruiz Zafon- I've heard so much hype for this one, I'm intrigued. I've been on the reserve list at the library for so long I'm not sure I even remember what it's about. But I'm looking forward to it anyway.

May To-Be-Read

Belated May TBR (basically all of the books I have on reserve in my local library). 

The Hero of Ages, Brandon Sanderson- I've technically been 'currently reading' this for like a week and a half, but I think I only made it past the first 100 pages or so a day or two ago. I found it really hard to get back into the world, and I was intimidated by the page count (700+). Also, I don't think I'm going to be a fantasy girl in the long run. But right now, I'm hooked. I just want to know what happens in the end. 

Beginners, Raymond Carver- I watched Birdman. That's all, really. Also, we did an exercise in the first year of my degree in which we compared on of the stories in this to the parallel story in What We Talk About When We Talk About Love. This book is basically the unedited version of WWTAWWTAL (even for an acronym its long). Gordon Lisch was Carver's editor and apparently he was ruthless. Since then, I've wanted to read both to really see how much was edited out of the originals, so I plan on reading this and the others to compare. 

A Tale for the Time Being, Ruth Ozeki- I can't quite explain it, but I saw Mercedes' review and this seems like something I'd love. I'm not even sure on the plot, but I'm looking forward to it. 

Brooklyn, Colm Toibin- He's an author I've wanted to get into for a while, and this is one of his most popular books, which won the Costa Novel Award and was on the Booker longlist in 2009. 

The Interestings, Meg Wolitzer- I don't know much about this one. All I know is it's about a group of childhood friends and how they deal with the success or failure of their dreams as they grow up. 

'Pretending he's beside me...'

Books that I want to read before the end of the year that have been sitting on my shelf forever. 

1) A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R Martin- I love the TV show and I have read the first book but it just didn't hook me so I didn't pick up the rest. But now all my friends seem to have read them and want to talk about them so I really do have to finish them; I'm hoping that once I start I'll be drawn in and will hurtle through the remaining six books. 

2) Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy- this is a classic that I've had on my shelves for years, after finding a free copy in a book recycling shop. It always looks a bit daunting on the shelf but it sounds like a beautiful story.

3) Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez- because I still haven't started my quest to read some Gabo.

4) The Scarlett Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne- this is one I bought when I was still a teen and pretty much obsessed with the Pretty Little Liars books and wanted to read anything referenced in them, but I never actually got around to it. Another classic I'd like to read.