Reading Plan for Modern Mrs Darcy's Reading Challenge

One of the blogs that I follow the most closely is Anne Bogel’s Modern Mrs Darcy. I love how she approaches reading and I find the way she writes and speaks to be extremely calming.

Her motto is to help people get more out of their reading lives. Her podcast “What Should I Read Next” is dedicated to helping readers find new books they love. As an avid reader I appreciate her approach and so this year I have decided to participate in her reading challenge. Find it here. For the rest of this post I am going to share the books I am thinking of reading for each category.

1. A book published the decade you were born
2. A debut novel
3. A book recommended by a source you trust
4. A book by a local author
5. A book outside your (genre) comfort zone
6. A book in translation
7. A book nominated for an award in 2020
8. A re-read
9. A classic you didn’t read in school
10. Three books by the same author

A Book Published the Decade You Were Born (1990s)

• The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien
• The Giver by Lois Lowry
• The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan

A Debut Novel

I am already reading a debut novel and that is Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid. Others I may consider:

• Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
• Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
• The Seven and a Half Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton

A Book Recommended by a Source You Trust

• Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick (Modern Mrs Darcy)
• Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe (Friend)
• Deep Work by Cal Newport (Dad)

A Book by a Local Author (South Africa)

• Thoughts in a Makeshift Mortuary by Jenny Hobbs
• Cry, The Beloved Country by Alan Paton
• Zoo City by Lauren Beukes

A Book Outside of Your Genre/Comfort Zone

Historical fiction outside of WWII novels or fantasy based historical fiction do not make it into my hands very often so this is what I have chosen to list

• The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton
• A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
• A Tyrrany of Petticoats by Jessica Spotswood (Ed.)

A Book in Translation

I have already read a book in this category. The first book I read this year was The Perfect Nanny by Leïla Slimani which was translated from French. I would like to read more of these, however, so here are more I am considering.

• A Man Called Ove / Beartown by Fredrick Bachman
• 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami
• The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

A Book Nominated for an Award in 2020

We will see as the year progresses what gets nominated for awards.

A Re-read

• The Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling
• All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
• Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng

A Classic You Didn’t Read in School

• Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
• To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
• Dracula by Bram Stoker

Three Books by the Same Author

I would like to read books by Brandon Sanderson this year. I might also choose to read John Grisham this year or Ken Follett.