Remember this reading list?

Today, all of a sudden, I remembered that I had once created a reading list for 2010 and I began to wonder how many of the books on said list I’d actually read. I’ll definitely revise this for 2012.

1. White is for Witching – Helen Oyeyemi (CW highly recommended this one)-

Note from 2011 me: I’m sorry CW.

2. Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen (This book has been sitting in my bookshelf for most of my adult life. 2010 will be the year I read it.)

Note from 2011 me: Jane Austin is BOOOOOOOORING. I would’ve been happier if the heroines ditched the guys all together and started their own radical ladies-only commune.

3. Hard Times: An Oral History of the Great Depression - Studs Terkel (I borrowed this one from my economist friend about a year ago. I’m guessing she wants it back.)

Note from 2011 me: I finished this one, but I also I spilled soup all over it. CE never got her book back. However, I did buy her a new copy because I’m not an animal.

4. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn – Mark Twain (I’m not sure how I escaped middle school without reading this one.)

Note from 2011 me: Well, shit. Didn’t read it.

5. The Blind Assassin – Margaret Atwood (A favorite book of one of my Denver Publishing Institute friends. My other DPI friend loathes it. I must enter the conversation) 

Note from 2011 me: What the f&$@ is wrong with this novel? I made it through the first few chapters and I just couldn’t engage with it.

6. The Art of Mexican Cooking – Diana Kennedy (Yes, I read cookbooks. After hearing an interview with Kennedy on “The Splendid Table”, I can’t wait to read her cookbook!)

Note from 2011 me: Thanks to McFad’s grandpa, I now own this book. The recipes are complicated as hell and look delicious. I have yet to make anything from it, mostly because I don’t have a lot of ham hocks and corn husks sitting around.

7. Midnight’s Children – Salman Rushdie (Again, I’ve been putting off this one off for years)

Note from 2011 me: Still putting this one off.

8. Great Expectations – Charles Dickens (Ditto)

Note from 2011 me: Still ditto.

9. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone – J.K. Rowling (This one has been on my list since I was schooled by the English Department Chair’s children a few years ago. Afterwards, they asked me “Are you really smart enough to finish your master’s degree?” Thanks, boys. I’ll read this, but I will never be able to answer your math story problem flashcards. NEVER.)

Note from 2011 me: I’m pretty proud of this one! I’ve read the whole series and seen the entire movie series (last two in IMAX-3D…woot woot!).

10. Ulysses – James Joyce (I won’t lie. I’m still intimidated by Joyce. I’ve read parts of this, but never all the way through)

Note from 2011 me: Made it to page 3 and yelled, “What do you have to prove, Joyce?!”

11. Let the Great World Spin – Colum McCann (Amazon e-mails me this book as suggested reading CONSTANTLY.)

Note from 2011 me: Amazon no longer recommends this; therefore, I refuse to read it.

12. My Last Supper: 50 Great Chefs and Their Final Meals – Melanie Dunea (Features an almost-naked Anthony Bourdain. This makes it a must read for me)

Note from 2011 me: Hell. Yes. I read this and loved the photos.

 13. War Dances – Sherman Alexie (He can be a little preachy, but I still love his writing)

Note from 2011 me: Sorry, Shermie, I haven’t read you yet.

14. Lights on a Ground of Darkness – Ted Kooser (Kooser’s work appeals to my midwestern-growing-up-in-a-shack-in-the-middle-of-nowhere-on-the-prairie roots. I read everything he writes)

Note from 2011 me: Absolutely beautiful!