My read-o-lutions for 2019 are much as they were for the past year: keep on reading on. (2018 was a great reading year!)
Except more non-fiction, more poetry, more letters, more graphic novels and comics. More storybooks, writers’ biographies and histories.
The underlying theme? More. But not necessarily more books. More kinds of books. With 36% of last year’s reading literary novels, I’d like to shake things up!
Series
With 25% of my reading in 2018 devoted to serial stories, I can’t help but be pleased with this.
Particularly as that includes finishing 13 series. The longest being Mazo de la Roche’s Jalna.
But I love returning to familiar characters. I still have series in my stacks for 2019!
Short Stories
Through the year, I read 14 collections of short stories (compared to 18 in 2017) along with some memorable singles in magazines and journals:
Spring 2018,
Summer 2018,
Autumn 2018,
Winter 2018.
Along with my Mavis Gallant reading, another three of her collections, I hope to read even more stories in 2019.
MustReadEverything Authors
With 20 struck from these lists over the past year, and only 12 the year before, I have a guess as to why I read fewer short story collections.
Nonetheless, there are authors on this list whose works I haven’t read for more than five years, so I hope to pull some of those from the shelf soon.
In 2018, I finished David Mitchell’s books and now I am reading through China Miéville, whose list of publications is even longer.
Adding MRE authors to the list when I haven’t finished reading everything from the previous lists of everythings? Foolishness.
20-Somethings and Stucks
Both longtime projects – books neglected on my shelves for more than twenty years and books which I’ve begun to read more than once but faltered with completing – saw a bit of progress (20 books in total).
My favourite read of the year was a 20-something shelf-sitter, Elizabeth Arthur’s Antarctic Navigation. It was also nearly my longest read (Paul Auster’s 4321 nudged past.)
The longest one I’m aiming for this year, in this category, is Kathleen Winsor’s Forever Amber. (1944)
Better
Last year, I noted there was one thing I needed to do better with. A stack of books that was being shuffled from room to room.
There has been some progress. In that they no longer reside on the floor. They’ve made their collective way onto a bookshelf.
But they remain unattended and unappreciated. I will try again.
I like those plans! My plans are just to read a good mix of different kinds of books, which is pretty much what I do already! But even more so – classics and contemporary fiction, poetry and nonfiction, authors from all kinds of different backgrounds, etc. I’m always torn, though, between broad and deep reading – I also love the idea of reading everything by a particular author or reading deeply on a particular subject. But for now, I seem drawn to breadth instead, so I’ll stick with that. Happy reading this year! Glad I discovered your site in 2018 and looking forward to what 2019 brings.
Your recommendation of the Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah definitely nudged that collection up my TBR (I did hear the NYT interview too, but sometimes it takes awhile for me to follow-up with their rec’s): I’m looking forward to sharing more bookchat with you this year. The matter of broad and deep is such a dilemma: each has its merits. Lately I am in a breadth phase, fuelled by being settled in a city with 100 branches of the public library system to explore: I don’t expect to always have that privilege, so I’m taking advantage. (Borderline abusing!)
My “read-o-lution” is to have more time. There are so many fun reading projects, plus my regular reading, and unexpected reading… and I wish I had time for all of it!
I was surprised at your 36% for literary fiction, but then I remembered that your 36% is probably my 95%. 🙂
Heheh Yeah, it’s well over a hundred books. But I do think the percentage is probably higher in other years (half, at least, even in the years I’ve read more non-fiction). My Jalna reading definitely took a lot of time out of this reading year, though, and it’s not what one would now call literary fiction (in its day, when compared to Galsworthy, maybe). And the series of children’s books I’ve been finishing impacted the statistics too. S’ok: I’m pleased with all of it. And I totally hear you about the reading project situation. 🙂
I wanted to tell you that I bought an e-book copy of Mavis Gallant’s Home Truths so I can read some of the stories! I’m not committing to reading all of them along with you, but I’d like to read a few and discuss them! Neither the library system where I work nor the system in the county in which I live had a copy – sad face. So I took the plunge and bought an e-book. Normally I don’t enjoy the e-books, but I want to try her and Montreal Stories is set for a long time from now!
Oh, I hope you will enjoy the ones you choose to read! Even though Montreal Stories and Paris Stories were published relatively recently, they gather together older, previously published stories, so by the time I get to read those collections, I will have already read and posted about most of the stories in them (I think there are three between the collections, which will be new to me). Home Truths is a terrific collection. (I read it several years ago.)
Love China Mieville! I’ve read a couple of his books. I tried to read his nonfiction about the Russian Revolution but it is huge and slow going and I had it from the library and couldn’t even make it halfway. It is well written though. Maybe I will try and pick it up again some day in the future. Good luck with all your goals!
That’s one I borrowed as well, but I didn’t even get that far. He just seems so damn clever! At least now when we re-request a copy, there will be less demand for it, so we have a chance of actually finishing. But, at the same time, now there are newer books competing for our reading attention. I’m definitely not going to finish his books this year, but I hope to squeeze a couple of them in, so I don’t lose track of my intentions. I’d also like to read more Amitav Ghosh. Did you ever get to the third Ibis book?
Heh, no I never did get to the third Ghosh book. I will one of these days but at the moment I am busy reading lots of books about regenerative agriculture, biodynamics, and environmental ethics while trying to figure out when I might be able to get to the third book in Elena Ferrante’s Neapolitan series. Mieville is so smart and I like that he asks his readers to be smart along with him. I admire you read all of David Mitchell last year. I would really like to do that too. Did you read them in any particular order?
You’ll enjoy the third one more than the second, I believe. But you’re already into another series! Let alone more serious non-fiction. The Mitchell novels I read in publication order, and I’d hoped to read them in a single year but it was more like two. Er, nearly three. To keep all the interconnections in mind, I should have read them in closer proximity. But, even so, I really enjoyed his works, each on its own terms. And they would definitely hold up to rereading too.
I actually started the Ferante series a couple years ago and was aiming for at least one of them a year but missed book three in 2018. I will get to the final Ghosh book. As for Mitchell, maybe I will try to start in on his books by the end of the year. Don’t want to be too ambitious 😀
I used to read one Dickens novel every year (and, then, just lost the habit) but, for the most part, I feel like a single book/year isn’t enough to keep things fresh for me. Black Swan Green is a totally accessible read if you’re at all anxious about beginning with Mitchell. Although there you are, reading about permaculture: doubt you’re intimidated by the idea of an atlas of clouds. 😀
Hey old friend! 🙂 How are you? I think your theme of “more” is a good one. My reading resolutions are similar: more books by people of color. That’s it. Everything else is extra. It’s absolutely amazing that you read fourteen short story collections last year. Did you decide that you wanted to read more collections or did it happen organically?
Hey, N! So nice to see you here. You must be rediscovering some pockets of time once more! We share that goal. I would like my percentage to be a little higher yet. Are there specific authors you’re targeting? I’d like to finish Toni Morrison’s books this year (four left) and maybe Octavia Butler too.
The short story project is a habit by now. I aim for a short story each weekday, and then I get distracted, but I still end up reading a collection each month and, sometimes, a little more. After finishing Alice Munro’s stories, I have been working on Mavis Gallant’s, for two years now, another two years to finish (at a comfortable pace – 3 or 4 of her collections each year). And, yes, I’m already thinking of another short story project to follow!
Great read-o-lutions! I feel like I relied on my usual reads too much. I need to make sure I’m expanding my horizons. So hopefully more non-ficton and works in translation for me this year! Hope you achieve your year of more!
It works well for me to attach a particular figure to a goal, even if it’s just a single book each month. In the end, it all adds up. But sometimes it’s nice to have a comfortable reading year too, especially when there are stresses and strains to cope with.
I have read Two of David Mitchell’s books, he is just so creative. He is on my read everything list also. I am getting more and more into Yiddish Literature. For The first three months i hope to read a good bit of Japanese lit. I am three stories behind in The Mavis Gallant read along but hope to catch up. Glad you got into Clarice Lispector.
Have you tried China Mieville? His The City & The City has a very interesting political angle to it, which I think you might appreciate. Not that he fits with either of your current reading projects, so feel free to ignore the question. 🙂 Don’t worry about catching up with the Gallant stories: the posts will be there whenever you are in the mood.
Good luck with your 2019 reading goals! I’d like to read more non-fiction this year.
Thanks: you too, Rachel! Do you have specific books in mind – on your shelves, or on a list – for increasing the non-fiction you read this year?
I’d like to have MRE authors, besides of course Jane Austen of whom I have read everything, but I’m not prepared to make this a focus. (There are authors though that I informally plan to read everything of, and they are a few Australian authors.)
I loved your concluding paragraph about the stack of books being shuffled from room to room. This is my goal this year – to get my stacks together. I have a few of them spread over a few rooms and they are becoming out of hand. First though, I have to work out where they are going to go, and what system I want to use to prioritise them. (The only priority system I have is for review copies. I write them in a book as they come in and I read them in that order. I don’t write in, though, books that come unsolicited and don’t meet my reading preferences. They get ignored!)
There are some younger/newer Canadian writers who aren’t formally a part of my project either; I guess I feel the need to list some writers formally because their work doesn’t receive a lot of media attention (and some are no longer alive/writing) and, so, they are not brought to mind often but the list jogs my memory about their backlists. But now I feel like there are so many of those, that I’m losing track of them as well – perhaps a subset list? Hah.
Ah, that stack. Maybe I will take a picture of it, in its current state, shoved on a hallway bookshelf, bottoms-out (as not all of them will fit together when properly shelved, which would allow for their spines to be read). At least it’s not in the kitchen anymore! 🙂 But three weeks into the new year, and I haven’t even pulled off a book yet. shakes head at self
Your system for review copies is great. So many readers and reviewers struggle with deadlines and response times, but obviously you take your process seriously and the Australian publishers must love you for it!
I’ve never read China Meiville’s stuff-looking forward to your reviews of those!
Well, I’ve read two so far, but I haven’t written up either. They’re strange and engaging, but I tend to read them quickly, taking very few notes.
‘Read-o-lutions’ – I like it. All the best with your literary plans for the year, Marcie.
Thanks, Paula. I wish you well with your literary plans for this year as well!
Good luck with your reading resolutions, I certainly like the idea of more short stories. I have lots waiting to be read and have been thinking about trying to do one collection a month at least. Having had a challenge heavy year in 2018 I am looking forward to reading mire of whatever I please
It’s the kind of thing that really does require a determination to change one’s habits, I believe. One just becomes accustomed to reading longer forms and, without practice, the shorter stuff takes a back seat (sometimes waaaay in the back). Challenges are good, in moderation. I hope you enjoy your 2019!