Without a doubt 2017 has been my most accomplished reading year ever. The year introduced a new way of reading for me (audiobooks!) as well as a dramatic spike in fiction books. I have never been much of a fiction reader. I have always gravitated to nonfiction books. This year I explored diverse fiction and read things that used to languish on my TBR list. My goal is to keep up the momentum and continue to add new things. Here are some topics, authors and titles that I am looking forward to reading in 2018.
Roxane Gay
As a thirty something woman living in a time of political turmoil…to be frank it is terrifying to be a woman in 2017…and 2018 is looking even worse…so it is important to me to fill my mind with meaningful words written by fierce women. High on that list is Roxane Gay. She is a writer, editor and professor. I have had so many different bookish reference points rave about Gay and I am determined to explore her for myself. I recently heard that she is the reader for her memoir Hunger so I plan to listen to that one. The best thing I can do as a woman is support other women and educate myself.
Joan Didion
I have become a faithful follower of the online book community Belletrist co-created by actress Emma Roberts. She is very vocal about her admiration of writer Joan Didion. In fact, the first book selected for Belletrist was Joan Didion’s South and West. I love the passion that Roberts shows for Didion’s work. It makes me ashamed that I have never read her so I plan to change that in 2018. Didion is a journalist but is best known for her literary journalism and memoirs. As of now I plan to follow Belletrist’s lead by reading South and West which is a 2017 release but I first want to read her backlist. The White Album is a “journalistic mosiac” of the 1960s and 1970s. I knew that Didion had a connection to the Manson Family and this the book that discusses it. I then plan on reading her autobiography The Year of Magical Thinking.
Diverse Characters
I read alot of fiction books that featured African Americans. There was some really great stuff released in 2017 features minority characters. I fully am committed to continuing on this reading path in 2018 but with even more diverse characters. One way I plan to do that is with the Crazy Rich Asians series by Kevin Kwan. I have heard great things about this series and the first book is being made into a movie. I am really looking forward to jumping into Asian culture which I am only slightly familiar with.
Book Publications I Am Looking Forward To
I read the first thirty pages of The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin. I am trying to get access to an advanced reader copy so I can be a reviewer so fingers crossed! The premise has alot of promise. How would you live your life if you knew the exact date you would die? Four siblings visit a physic as kids and their lives are never the same. I have heard a ton of chatter about Girls Burn Brighter by Shoba Rao from trusted bookish sources. I don’t know much about it but all the chatter has peaked my interest. I cannot wait to get my hands on it in March. So far it has thirty three reviews on Goodreads and is rated 4.5/5. Not a bad start for a debut novel! I read a Meg Wolitzer book a few years ago. While it did not knock my socks off the book stayed with me. The book was called The Interestings and involved a group of friends from a summer camp and how different their lives were as adults. Some excelled and some got stuck but there friendship remained over the years. For that reason I look forward to reading her newest release in April The Female Persuasion.
I am hopeful that I can continue on my quest of another epic reading year. Books are my life. Books are my love. Books are my passion. They have so much to offer. An escape from reality. Adventure. The ability to walk in the shoes of others. Knowledge. Books can challenge your way of thinking and expose you to various ways of thinking. They have the power to change you.
This Bookish Life 
Another great message!
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