As my Goodreads to-read shelf creeps closer to 500 books, I've been eyeing it with a growing feeling of apprehension. It would take forever to get through so many...and that's not counting all of the new books I hear about along the way. Thankfully I discovered Lost In A Story's series (by way of Boston Book Reader) at the end of last month and it sounds like a great way to trim down my TBR.
The guidelines, per Lost In A Story, are simple:
- Go to your Goodreads to-read shelf
- Order on ascending date added
- Take the first 5 (or 10 if you’re feeling adventurous) books
- Read the synopses of the books
- Decide: keep it or should it go?
THE BOOKS
Essays and Poems by Ralph Waldo EmersonI periodically try to find poetry that I enjoy reading, to no avail. One day I need to try again, and while I'm sure that Emerson is an excellent place to start, it's just not a project I'm interested in taking on right now.
PASS
The Seven-Percent Solution by Nicholas MeyerI absolutely loved the film adaptation of this! (It was the first Holmes movie to ever acknowledge his cocaine habit, and it wasn't even from ACD's original stories.) I'm a huge fan of Holmes and have had some success with other authors continuing or expanding the canon, so I'm happy to keep it.
KEEP
Prometheus Bound by Aeschylus
Like last week, I'm fairly certain this is a hold-over from one of my college courses that I foolishly thought I'd get to in my spare time.
PASS
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams
Williams is a genius playwright, but an awfully depressing on as well. Her stories are ones that I only need to experience once; anything more, and my appreciation settles into a vague and unshakable sadness.
PASS
Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert A. Heinlein
My dad recommended this to me after hearing how much I enjoyed Brave New World. He's never steered me wrong in the past and I always love a good dystopian novel, so there's no good reason to toss it.
KEEP
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K. Dick
Much as I enjoy Blade Runner, it seems like Ridley Scott could never settle on a version he was happy with. All that tinkering made it hard to truly love the movie in spite of all its promise. I have yet to read anything by Dick, but since I like the premise so much, this seems like a good place to start.
KEEP
The Sandman #1 by Neil Gaiman
I love Neil Gaiman. I love the synopsis. I'd like to read more graphic novels, especially ones so revered. Easy decision!
KEEP
Sin City by Frank Miller
During the time when all of Miller's comics were getting turned into movies I wanted to keep up with the source material. I'm over both the films and the graphic novels they were based on.
PASS
300 by Frank Miller
Same exact logic as above. It may have interested me 5+ years ago, but not now.
PASS
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
I remember when everyone went absolutely bonkers over this book. Maybe it was even an Oprah Book Club selection? Honestly, I didn't even know what it was about until I read the synopsis for this post. It doesn't sound bad, but it doesn't grab me either.
PASS
Only 4/10 books survived this week's cut. There are still a lot of "expectation" books on my list: titles I added because I thought I needed to, rather than out of genuine interest. It may feel easy now, but I'm already dreading when I get to the part of my TBR that's been added to more recently!
What did you think of my choices this week? Be sure to share your thoughts down below, and let me know if you're inspired to tackle your own TBR list!