The Stack

It’s something of a joke among booksellers in general, and bookstore owners in particular, that while reading books is a crucial part of this job, most of us have precious little free time in which to actually, you know, read. When I do get a chunk of time to devote to a good book, my first impulse is to pick up something that’s either brand-new or yet to be released…but what of the hundreds of books that have been part of my home library for years, many of which I haven’t read yet?

A few weeks ago, I surveyed my bookshelves and pulled a handful of titles that I’ve been meaning to read (or reread) for far too long. These books will make up my “To Read in 2015” stack, and my mission is to finish them all before the end of the year. In no particular order, they are:

Netherland (Joseph O’Neill) – My husband keeps talking up this book, and is amazed that I haven’t read it yet. I think it’s time to give this one a shot.
Tender is the Night (F. Scott Fitzgerald) – Back in college, I took a seminar on F. Scott Fitzgerald, and was blown away by the utter gorgeousness of the language in this book. College, of course, was a LONG time ago, and I want to see if I still feel as strongly about this book as I did back then.
On Such a Full Sea (Chang-Rae Lee) – I bought this in hardcover when it first came out, because I was totally intrigued by the premise. I feel guilty for having waited this long to read it!
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay (Michael Chabon) – Two things I truly love: New York stories and Big Sweeping Epics. This book, happily, seems to be both.
The Sound and the Fury (William Faulkner) – This is an embarrassing admission for a college English major…but I’ve never read ANYTHING by Faulkner. It’s time to change that.
Stoner (John Williams) – I was completely unfamiliar with this book until my husband and I ran into an acquaintance at the Book Table in Oak Park and she recommended it. It’s a seemingly simple story…but sometimes the simplest stories are the most compelling.
Gilead (Marilynne Robinson) – My colleague Emily, who reads far more than I do, said that Robinson’s Lila was the best thing she read last year. And since Lila features the same setting and many of the same characters as Robinson’s earlier Gilead, why wouldn’t I start at the beginning?
One Hundred Years of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez) – Another beautiful book I’m embarrassed to admit I’ve never read.

So! What’s in YOUR “to read in 2015” stack?