Looking ahead to 2017
This week’s Top Ten Tuesday hosted by the Broke and the Bookish asks for 10 books I’m most looking forward to in the first half of 2017.
Since I am planning to put a temporary halt on my book buying habit for those months, (out of necessity) the books I am looking forward to reading all come from my TBR.
In no particular order here is a selection.
1. A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
2. Border Country by Raymond Williams
3. A tale for the time Being- Ruth Ozeki
4. The Murder of Halland, Pia Jul
5. The Kill, Emile Zola
6. The Cheltenham Square Murder, John Bude
7. Snow Country, Yasunari Kawabata
8. A Brief history of Seven Killings, Marlon James
9. True History of the Kelly Gang, Peter Cary
10. Sacred Hunger, Barry Unsworth
As you can see this is a mixture of Booker prize winners ( I am determined to finish this project!) and some novels in translation. I’ve also given myself an indulgence in the form of The Cheltenham Square Murder. The Kill is the second in Zola’s Rougon-Marquet series which is another little project of mine. I bet few – if any of you – will recognise the second book on my list…. Border Country is by a Welsh author who when he wasn’t writing fiction was one of the leading literary academics in the 1970s and 80s.Among his most important academic works is The Country and The City in which he used alternating chapters on literature and social history to consider perceptions of rural and urban life. Border Country was first published in 1960, then re-issued in 2005 as one of the first group of titles in the Library of Wales series, having been out of print for several years.
Those are the books on my radar screen. How does your wishlist for next year look?
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The Ozeki is wonderful. I have a plan to do no challenges next year (I might do 20 books of summer again, however). I want to read some more Trollope, get my TBR down again and do a month or so of re-reading at some point. Happy 2017 reading!
I’ve only read The Kill and it’s excellent.
Happy reading!
I am acquiring the whole series gradually and lining them all up to read one day.. If you’ve not read much by him I can recommend L’Assommoir and Germinal
The few times I have planned my reading (or anything for that matter) so far ahead in time, I have never actually managed to accomplish anything. This year, I had an ambitious plan to read three Thomas Hardy books, and I didn’t manage even one. I think my plan for next year is not to plan at all!
There is a lot to be said for not planning. I keep telling myself to just go with the flow and then a shortish challenge comes along that sounds too good to miss and before I know whats happening I have a plan
Exciting list. I found myself making a list of several pages when trying to map out just January and February! I have to say of your full list that A Fine Balance is epic in all the right ways and unforgettably beautiful. I was surprised at how I enjoyed The Kelley Gang, as well. Looking forward to reading your thoughts.
I took them from a list of 25 I sent as part of a challenge called Chutes and Ladders but getting my TBR down to that list was the hard part
In my opinion, A Fine Balance is clearly the best of Mistry’s three Booker shortlisted novels, one of those books that may have been a winner if it was in a different year or if the judges were slightly different. I’ll be posting my 2017 list next week. Such is my method, I already know what I’ll be reading in 2018 and 2019 as well! The only thing that may change things is the arrival of Hillary Mantel’s third Cromwell novel.
Any news on when Mantel will publish the third book? i just finished watching the BBC adaptation of books 1 and 2 and its just left me desperate for more.
you already know what you will be reading in 18 and 19!!! I can’t even decide what to eat tonight let alone think that far ahead
Wikipedia is still expecting the third book in 2017, I guess we’ll all have to wait and see if it arrives and what that means for the Booker. I find it great fun to try and come up with reading lists for future years – trying to figure out how much I can realistically read, get the balance right between fiction and non-fiction, as well as countless other consideration (you’ll see what I mean when I put my 2017 List up next week). Eventually I come up with something that is hard to argue with. 2018 is pretty much locked in, but 2019 still has some holes.
I’m going to be taking a good look at your list next week – am very curious what you come up with
Nice list. I had to laugh at the Marlon James thought because I have had myself a task reminder set for months to pop up to tell me to borrow the book. I set it up under the illusion that if I scheduled it I would actually request it and read it. That was in September. And every time it pops up I say dismiss and remind me again in 2 weeks. I wonder how far I will get into 2017 before I either get tired of the reminder and delete it or actually request the book?
I think there is a message there – maybe your inner voice is telling you that you don’t really want to read this book ???
LOL! I really do though since James teaches at a local university and has become quite the celebrity in these parts
A Fine Balance may be my all time favorite book. It’s crushing. I love it.
The Peter Carey is great but it’s one of those books that you have to let the language seep into you for it to work because it’s written in a very particular voice. Once you’re into it, you’re right.
My top pick though of your list – by far – is A fine balance. It’s one of my top books ever.
I shall have to pick my moment to read the Peter Carey in that case
A Tale for the Time Being is great (I’ve convinced my partner to read it; he’s making his way through it now!) and I also loved A Brief History of Seven Killings, although I suspect it’s more of a Marmite book. I do recognise Raymond Williams’s name! Several of his books were secondary reading in my first year of uni.
Im a little nervous about History of 7 Killings because it includes a lot of Jamaican patois apparently – did you find that an issue?
No, not really—it’s one of those where, if you can just get a decent run at the thing, it all makes sense. (Look up “raasclaat” and “bombocloth” before you start—they both literally mean “asswipe”, but are used interchangeably and as a kind of all-purpose swearword, functioning roughly the way “fucking” does in English.)
thanks for that tip Elle
The only one I’ve read from your list is A Fine Balance, which I think you’ll like, despite the fact that it’s depressing. 🙂
I still haven’t read A Tale for a Time Being!
Looking forward to your thoughts on the rest!
Ive sort of saved A Fine Balance for a rainy day – which of course never materialises in the book world!
I am making *no* plans at all – and it feels wonderful!!
You should follow my motto – all reading plans are tentative until the moment I pick up the next book
I like that! 🙂
I’m also planning a period of no-book-buying – I’m toying with a whole year *gulp*. I easily have enough books to see me through, but will my willpower hold out? only time will tell. It means I’l finally get round to reading the stash of Graham Greenes I’ve been collecting so I should be fine.
that’s ambitious – you might want to take a look at the approach Cathy uses at 746books.com blog. She gives herself a bit of flexibility re acquiring new books but is still very focused on getting her tbr down
I’m a great fan of A Fine Balance, an excellent choice for a winter read – completely absorbing.
Good to know that – I had a feeling it could be special
I have had A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry on my TBR for well over a year now – I really do need to read this one. Look forward to hearing what you think of these over the course of 2017.
its been on my TBR for even longer – I feel guilty!
It looks like you have some great reads lined up!
I certainly hope so Krysta.
I loved A Tale for the Time Being! Hope you like it as well. I don’t really have a reading list for 2017, there’s plenty left on my TBR.
I only did the list because I am joining in with a TBR challenge for the next few months
I’m continuing with my book-buying-ban next year as well (it wasn’t as difficult this year as I first expected!). I have a Brief History in my TBR stack as well – haven’t picked it up yet because it’s literally so heavy!
Of those you’ve listed, I’ve read True History of the Kelly Gang and loved it.
I have a feeling it might be difficult to go through six months without anything new – but my plan is to use the library instead for contemporary novels
Although I found that once I’d tuned out the ‘noise’ surrounding new books it was easy. I think I’ve noticed it more at this end of the year when people are posting ‘best of’ lists filled with books I haven’t heard of!
Those best of lists are tantalising – every one of them I see contains books I have not heard of but instantly want to read…
I used other bloggers and readers as my ‘publicist filter’. For example, one of the books that appeared on those lists this year that I also saw on bloggers lists and was recommended by a good friend who likes the same stuff as me was Anne Patchett’s Commonwealth – it will be the first book I buy next year I think.
I could possibly manage not buying any books for a time… but it wouldn’t help much with my unread books, as a have a serious library habit! Good luck with your list! My TTT
I often end up requesting books from the library and then realising I have over stretched myself because they all end up being available at the same time
I do that, too. *book nerd high five*
Great to find a soul mate!
I do t recognize any of your titles.
I have finally bought a copy of The Game of Thrones and I intend it to be the first novel I read in 2017.
My husband is thinking of getting the DVD of Game of Thrones but I suggested we watch just one first before committing a lot of money on a series we have never seen
I did start watching the TV series and it’s excellent.
No, I’m not making any reading plans, they only make me feel absurdly guilty when I don’t fulfil them…
But I have Sacred Hunger on my Booker Prize shelf, and maybe I will get to it in 2017, I’m trying to read the ones I have in chronological order and I think I’m close to SH….
Would you believe I haven’t read the Peter Carey? What kind of Aussie doesn’t read an Aussie Booker winner, eh? I should, and of course one day I will:)
I don’t believe it – an Australian authored book you haven’t read???? I was certain you’d have read this one Good grief girl, you are slipping
My list for the first half of 2017 involves finishing the last ten of the top 100 novels in English according to the Guardian, then moving on to some more contemporary novels, including this year’s Booker winner ‘The Sellout’, which is on my Christmas list.
now thats what I call a very structured approach. wish I was near the end of some of my projects too but I keep getting distracted
All the books on my list for this week’s TTT are books are already own too. Happy reading and good look chipping that TBR pile down 😀
I realised I had to do something otherwise the attic space where I keep the TBR is going to get so full i wont even be able to get in through the door before long