Literary Wrap Up

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Happy New Years!

I really am so sorry for being SO late in posting this. I've been sick on and off since Christmas. And then school started back so I've been so caught up in that. So yeah, I'm about a month late. Sorry, I fully intended to post this sooner. 

I honestly can't believe that it's already the middle (or end) of January 2025! The beginning of 2024 seems like it was just yesterday.

This post is a wrap of my holiday reading and yearly list (which I so badly failed at). 

Overall Literary Theme of the Holidays

This one kept showing up throughout the November and December months. 

A Christmas Carol!

I did not read the book this year, but I did go see it as a play at a local theater downtown! It was a really fun experience! At some of the parts the room went dark, and fog filled the stage. The music maximized the emotions! It was so fun, and I would totally go again! 

In addition to watching, it as a play I listened to an audiobook called Scrooge: A Christmas Carol! In this retelling it features an expanded redemption story. This audio drama's cast features Sean Astin as Ebenezer Scrooge, John Rhys-Davies as the narrator, Lucy Punch as the Ghost of Christmas Past, Ben Barnes as the Ghost of Christmas Present, and Juliet Mills as the Ghost of Christmas Future. 

I completely recommend listening to this audio drama this next Christmas season! 

2024 Reading Goal

The past few years I have made myself the goal of trying to read 100 books. So far, I don't think I've ever hit that number, in 2023 I read 87 books.

This last year was rather sad as I only read a total of 29 books and a few unfinished ones. 

My Reading List

Without further ado I present to you my 2024 reading list!

1. Born Again by Charles Coleson 

2. Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan 

3. Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan 

4. Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Titan’s Curse by Rick Riordan 

5. The Odyssey by Homer 

6. Up from Slavery by Booker T. Washington 

7. The Narrative Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass 

8. Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan 

9. Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan 

10. The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

11. The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare 

12. Starship Troopers by Robert Heinlein

13. Sense & Sensibility by Jane Austen 

14. The Three Musketeers by Alexander Dumas

15. The Man in the Iron Mask by Alexander Dumas

16. Arazen’s Wolves by John Flanagan

17. Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Chalice of the Gods by Rick Riordan

18. Eragon by Christopher Paolini

19. The Giver by Lois Lowry

20. Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry 

21. Beowulf by Unknown 

22. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight by Unknown 

23. Eldest by Christopher Paolini 

24. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen 

25. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontё

26. Brisingr by Christopher Paolini 

27. Inheritance by Christopher Paolini 

28. Murtagh by Christopher Paolini 

29. Scrooge: A Christmas Carol (audio drama) by Hope Media Group

Sadly, this summer I only read three books. They were all kind of big, so I guess that's why.

Unfinished Books:

Most of these were books for school that I didn't get around to finishing...

1. Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan
2. Paradise Lost by John Milton

3. Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Dafoe

So, I was wrong, all of those were books I didn't finish for school.

Favorite Reads

My two favorite reads this year were Pride & Prejudice and The Three Musketeers. I recommend them to you so go read them!

Recommendations

If you are into Greek mythology, then you should read Percy Jackson & the Olympians or The Odyssey.

If you like sci-fi then Starship Troopers might be the book for you.

Fantasy fan and have some time to kill? Then The Inheritance Cycle should keep you reading awhile.

Helpless romantic? You should definitely read Pride & Prejudice. (Although it might make things worse)

Want a classic with some action and a really terrible villain? Try The Three Musketeers! All for one and one for all! 

History buff? (Especially American history?) The Narrative Life of Frederick Douglass, Up from Slavery, and Born Again will teach you a thing or two. 

In desperate need of a dramatic comedy? Taming of the Shrew is right for you! 

If you need a random book to read, then read The Giver. It's interesting and doesn't make any sense until the last chapter (literally).

In Conclusion

I read a variety of books in 2024 which is definitely a step up from last year (I think?) although this next year I would like to read more different types of books rather than only reading classics. 

Yet again my biggest goal of the year is trying read 100 books! Hopefully I will be able to accomplish this but I'm not off to a great start. I don't think I've only finished two books so far...