But I am gonna try to be better about reading this year. Last year, I let life snag that pleasure from me. Which is INSANE. INSANE I tell you.
This year, I’m back to a classic novel a month. And I think I’ll return to my hero versus hero blog posts. It’s unclear who’s the hero of Can You Forgive Her? yet. But I think we can all agree that this beard is a hero like no other.
If I were to have a dinner party with anyone from all time, I think that Anthony Trollope would get an invite for the sake of his beard. Plus that man was a writing MACHINE. And he’s freaking hilarious. I bet he was one of those dudes who says something that seems nice and you think about it later, and you realize he was a clever, insulting bastard. Who would you invite? I’d have to invite Jane Austen (of course) and probably I’d invite William Shakespeare. And then…I just don’t know. I might have to write a blog post about this. I think that the Pastel Ninja should do the same.
I have narrowed the field of the classics that I will read to those that are currently on my kindle. Except for The Jungle Book. I’m getting that one since there’s a movie coming out. Dudes. Jungle Book strikes that place in my heart with crazy love for things like Tarzan and that martian series by Edgar Rice Burroughs. Maybe after I read The Jungle Book, I’ll re-read The Graveyard Book. How freaking fun would that be?
Possibly I will then re-read the Tarzan books. I’ve only read the first 3. But they’re are the most delightful cheese. And that takes me, in my crazy head, to the Bulldog Drummond books. I want to re-read those. I never did finish that series. I think there was some trouble with what was available where and how. I hate that.
Let’s just take a moment to appreciate that this lives on:
And dudes. This:
Tee-freaking-hee.
I mean… Let’s just take a moment. Tarzan was written in 1912. It is coming up on its 103rd birthday. It has 25 sequels. And right now…imdb.com has a Tarzan movie listed for 2016 by the same dude who is doing the new JK Rowling movies. I mean. Come ON. This is the story of a boy raised by apes, who falls in love, is the Lord of some random estate in England, and lives in the jungle with his girl.
Um…
It should have died a fiery death. But it lives on. Probably because freaks like me love that crazy story.
Anyhow. We were talking about classics and goals and shit like that. So..these are the books on my radar, classic wise, for 2015.
The Anthony Trollope series. Can You Forgive Her? is the first of 6 books in the Palliser series.
The Jungle Book
Villette
Shirley
Probably a re-read of a Tarzan book or two after that. Or maybe I’ll just introduce Boyo to the Tarzan movies. I bet he would LOVE them.
Maybe some more of the Jeeves series and the Oz series
Robinson Crusoe
A Little Princess
Some more of the Pimpernel series if they’re out. If they’re not and you’re listening, Caprisha Page–hint, Hint, HINT.
I might re-read The Great Gatsby
Now I’m not saying I’ll read *all* of these. They’re just on my radar. What’s on yours? Anyone else make some reading goals for 2015?
Oh The Scarlet Pimpernel. Oh you.
~Amanda
For books that aren’t classics that are on my radar, I’m looking seriously at a re-read of The Grand Sophy and of the Flavia de Luce series culminating in reading for the first time the two most recent books. And then probably finishing that Laini Taylor series that rocked my world and the Leigh Bardugo series. And maybe, I’ll read Looking for Alaska by John Green and possibly, should hell freeze over, I might read that final book in the Wheel of Time. Maybe.
Just maybe.
Or maybe I’ll go back to listening to youtube. You just can’t predict what the future will bring.
Amanda A. Allen 