On The "To Read" List for 2014
/A BUNCH OF PEOPLE (4 or 5) HAVE ASKED ME WHAT'S ON MY TO-READ LIST FOR 2014.
A list? I don't have a list. But then as I thought about it: I do have a list, of sorts, a least a partial one.
Another question that comes up: how do you decide what to read? Sometimes I'll hear or read a review on NPR or in The New Yorker, which I read every week. Also, for several years now, I've included some of the books that are on the list of the Reader's Guild of the International Arts Movement.
And then there are some people I know I can trust for a recommendation, like: My sons Corey and Kyle, Rob Carmack, Kara Wynn, Alissa Wilkinson, Andrea Gandy, Amy Merrill, Kevin Roose. Most of these people you can find on goodreads.com.
I try to include some fiction, non-fiction, some history, some poetry, some humor and a classic or two. I'm always looking for good recommendations, so let me know if you have one for the list.
Here's what I have so far:
- The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
- The Moth (Book) Stories from the Public Radio program
- Consider the Lobster and Other Essays by David Foster Wallace
- The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman
- The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism by Doris Kearns Goodwin
- Help, Thanks, Wow: The Three Essential Prayers by Anne Lamott
- The Pearl by John Steinbeck
- A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan
- Hopkins: Poems by Gerard Manley Hopkins
- The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
- The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
- Plainsong by Kent Haruf
- Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
- The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel and Bret Witter
- This Is Where I Leave You by Jonathan Tropper
I've finished the first two on the list: The Goldfinch and The Moth. The Goldfinch is nearly 800 pages and at 750 pages in, I still wasn't sure where the story was headed. Several times I got weary of the pages of pages of character development and subplots, but hang in there. The time will come when you will be grateful for it. It is worth the trip.
The Moth is a collection of stories that are typically spoken stories at Moth events. You can find out all about it at www.themoth.org. My son Corey gave me this book for Christmas. If you love telling and hearing stories, as I do, you will really appreciate this book and The Moth project.