Reading with Kim, 2018 edition

It’s that time of the year when I get together with my dear friend Kim, to choose what books to read together. We love doing so, and then we talk about them and many more things when we meet for a coffee.

These were our past titles:

1. Brothers Karamazov ,which we will read from April till June, ✓
2. Tales of the Alhambra, by Sleepy Hollow’s author Washington Irving
3. Starting in June, we’ll listen to The Gray House.✓
4. In July, we have decided to read The Daughter of Time,✓ and
5. Northanger Abbey, Jane Austen✓
6. In August, we’ll read Ten Fingers for God ✓
7. In September, we have The Scent of Water,✓  and
8. Silence
9. In October, The Moviegoer

From those nine, we completed five: Brothers Karamazov, The Daughter of Time, Northanger Abbey, Ten Fingers for God, and The Scent of Water. I read The Gray House together with others, Kim didn’t.  As you can see, our list is not set in stone, but subject to some changes.

This year, we’ve thought about these titles, (but we don’t know how long it’ll take us, or if we’ll even get to them all.)

1. Mansfield Park, (we both have started reading it.)
2. To the Lighthouse, Woolf
3. The Last Castle
4. The Reading Promise
5. News of the World
6. Howard’s End
7. Howard’s End is on the Landing
8. I Capture the Castle
9. The Unconsoled
10. Brideshead Revisited

1. Kim read her first Austen’s book with me. We both decided on Northanger Abby together. I had previously read Pride and Prejudice, and Emma. But now she’s beat me to reading her six major novels. This is the last of those 6 books for her, but only my 4th. I’m getting adept to reading or re-reading one or two Austen titles a year. I like her books, but I’m not a die hard fan.

2. I have not read any novel by Virginia Woolf yet, only a short essay, and her longer one, A Room of One’s Own. I’m curious about her as a novelist. Kim is curious too, thus we both have picked To the Lighthouse.

3. The Last Castle is also a title that was picked by my book club friends. Kim looked at my book club list, and decided to join for a couple of titles in it, this one, and next,

4. The Reading Promise, by Alice Ozma, a book I’ve seen highly praised at other blogs.

5. She told me about News of the World, and it’s intriguing, and not too long. She’ll read it first, -since she owns a copy, and pass it to me.

6. I plan to do the same with Howard’s End. It also has a Close Reads podcast devoted to it, so we’ll try to listen to it.

7. We may read Howard’s End is on the Landing. (Though I’m not sure if I’ll love it or hate it, granted I get to read it.)

8. I Capture the Castle is another one like #7, I hear mixed reviews among friends, either it’s loved, or hated, nothing in between.

9. The Unconsoled, is a book by my beloved Ishiguro. I intend to host a book club here, and read it along with others in 10 weeks time, -maybe less.

10. We come to the last one for this edition, Brideshead Revisited, another book that has a Close Reads podcast.

I don’t know if I’ll attempt all of them, or if I’ll complete them. (Last edition, we both were excited about Silence, and we both decided, -independent of each other, to quit after a few pages.)

Apart from Kim, I also read some books with my friends at the bookclub, and I have a few other commitments.

With Sherry, I’ll be reading The Dehumanization of Art and Other Essays, by Ortega y Gasset. We want to start this one in March.

With whoever wants, I’ll be reading The Unconsoled this summer.

Informally, Maximilian was talking about reading Ulysses, and when I knew he was reading Kristin Lavransdatter’s trilogy, I joined with the last book. I had read the first two, and now that I’m reading #3, I’m glad I decided to do so. I want to read The Ulysses this year, I just don’t know when. (I’m a tad intimidated, at the same time, I’m excited thinking I may end up loving it.)

With a Goodreads friend, Kalliope, who commented how she had read Galdós first Episodio Nacional, called Trafalgar, and how she was going to read the other 45 in 5 years. (I don’t know if I’ll do that, but I LOVE Galdós, I had read Trafalgar as well, so now I’m in the middle of the 2nd book in this historic fiction long series, called La corte de Carlos IV. I’m enjoying it. It’s such a fun way to learn history. Galdós is the best writer of dialogues, the most fun author I’ve read. He’s my favorite, competing with Cervantes.

Do you like reading along with others? Or choosing books your friends love?