Review

My goals for 2009 were to read five of the books considered by Penguin to be the Best Books Ever Written, and to buy napkins. I am happy to say that I achieved both of these goals!

I read:
1) The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli
2) The Idiot by Fyodor Dostoevsky
3) Fifth Business by Roberston Davies
4) The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
5) Lady Chatterley's Lover by D H Lawrence

I almost didn't make it: it was mid-December and I hadn't read a fifth book yet. The ones I had on board didn't really appeal to me, and they seemed difficult when I just wanted an easy read. But then Lady Chatterley's Lover arrived in the mail and drew me in, and I was able to finish it in time. Hooray!

I liked having this goal. It encouraged me to read more intelligent literature and to experience for myself a few of the literary classics that culture so often alludes to. At the same time that it provided a suggested reading list, it also encouraged me to deviate from that list and read other classic books.

I also valued how this goal was not restrictive: it didn't define everything I had to read all year. I had time to achieve it and also to read anything else I wanted, whatever that was.

Reading Statistics 2009

Total number of books read: 43

Fiction 27
--- smart fiction 7
--- respectable fiction 10
--- easy/silly fiction 10
Non-Fiction 16
--- food 2
--- politics 3
--- Christian reflections 5
--- relationships 3
--- philosophy 2
--- misc 2
Religious 10 (some fiction, some non)