I Read 88 Books in 2019, and Here’s What I Thought about Them
I originally wanted to read 100 books in 2019, but I unfortunately made the goal in the middle of the year, so for 2019, I’ve read just 88. I wanted to keep track of their titles to see which I would and would not recommend. Since writing and reading about 88 books sounds exhausting, I’ll just highlight some surprises I had along the way. But I’ll also link my full list as well!
I realized some of the pitfalls of two of my favorite genres: Sci-Fi and Horror
When I started looking for books to add to my reading list, I knew I liked movies that focused on antagonists that represent facets of human nature that we fear, and I knew that many samples from Sci-Fi and Horror genres delivered on that front. But I noticed in most of the the books I disliked reading in 2019 from these genres, they had a pattern. They were filled with in-your-face sexual themes or the author deemed sexual tension to be the best vehicle to deliver their themes. Examples of books I don’t recommend for these reasons are Stranger in a Strange Land by Heinlein, Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan, and American Psycho by Bret Ellis.
But this pattern makes perfect sense when I think about something we fear that’s rooted in the human condition, we fear isolation. And writers and artists can often be isolated and distressed due to their pastor the demands of their profession. I prefer more calm, collected authors usually, ones that do not get self conscious about their personal fears, ones that focus on the bigger picture and the world they create. The theme of isolation is handled excellently in my opinion in the book Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K Dick or I am Legend by Richard Mateson, it is obvious in both of these books that the author thought of the world they were creating reflect our world, just enough to make it feel real, only distorted by a fear we all share. Something we can all relate to.
The label of “Classical Literature” is confusing
Another aim I had while making a reading list for myself was to read classical literature and see why each title was held to that standard of “classic“. I assumed that books in this category would be labeled that way because of popularity or themes or skillful writing that stands “the test of time”. Who actually knows how long a book must be widely appreciated to earn this title? I’m definitely not sure, but I’ll assume it’s at least 10 years.
1984 by George Orwell was well constructed and haunting, The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris was creepy and creative, I could understand why those are classic. Meanwhile titles like A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess, The Great Gatsby by Scott Fitzgerald, and The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas have me a bit confused as to why they are “classics“.
Clockwork Orange is meandering, difficult to read due to an in-universe language that is all-over the place, and has no translation guide to be found unless you google it. The author cuts corners in order to propel the absurd without an effort to guide the reader to a suspension of their belief. The Great Gatsby is clumsy as it describes elements of furniture, people and rooms in way that confused me as whether he was done setting the stage or not, for a few chapters. The Count of Monte Christo centered on a man who was tortured by circumstance surely, but could not make up his mind for far too long. Despite the book taking a religious tone, most of the main lead’s lines were praising God in one moment and denouncing him in the next.
I understand that by no means does one opinion determine what is a classic and what is not. Though I am intrigued by the trend of former high-school students disliking classical titles they were assigned in school. Despite the qualms I may have, I’m still curious to read more classics and see what they actually are like. I’m pleased that I found some classical books that I can remember for a long time.
I would all in all, highly recommend that when you aim to read a certain number of books in a year, a few months, or even a week, that you keep track of the titles, and note down what you thought of them. This has helped me greatly, as I can now see patterns much easier among books I loved, and books I didn’t love. I can’t wait to write my post about my 2020’s completed book list. Happy reading, and stay safe!
