Books I Want to Read Before I Die
I’m jinxing myself. I’m creating a post about things I want to read before I die. This, above all other things I’ve said and done, will seal the fact that I am going to die extremely soon—definitely before I can get to these books. Yet, here I am, writing this post… tempting fate like I’ve never tempted it before.
In today’s post, I’ll be talking about the books that I really want to read before I die. Let me start by saying that these are not all of the books I want to read. These are the books that I think are most important for me to read before I am reincarnated as an illiterate naked molerat. No offense intended to any literate naked molerats out there who can read this. The books I list here are ones that I believe will have the most meaning to me or will be the most important for me to read. A lot of these will be older works that I believe to be influential in the literary space, but that I still haven’t read. At least one of them, though, is one that will be a deeply personal read for me.
On to the list!
Neuromancer
by William Gibson
William Gibson is often referred to as the father of cyberpunk, and I really enjoy cyberpunk aesthetics. My own world that I’ve been workshopping for years and years is cyberpunk-esque. I see all sorts of opportunities for the exploration of meaningful ideas and concepts in cyberpunk settings. Yet… I haven’t read Neuromancer, one of William Gibson’s most popular works. Don’t worry, though, Neuromancer is pretty much at the top of my TBR, and I intend to read it this year. Assuming I don’t die in 2022, this is one that I will get to experience. Fingers crossed!
My hope in reading this influential work is that it will give me a better understanding of the cyberpunk subgenre and its origins. I’m sure that there are other works that are equally (if not more so) influential on this category of literature, but Neuromancer is the one that I see pop up constantly.
1984
by George Orwell
Yeah, I probably just caused a lot of people to gasp and click away. Sorry if that was you! I somehow have never read 1984. I have read Animal Farm and I really appreciated that and found it to be an important work (with its importance only growing as I’ve grown older), but I haven’t read 1984, yet. I know it’s an important book; everyone talks about it! But I haven’t touched it myself, yet. I want to, but I just haven’t yet. I’ll be doing it at some point in the future, I promise.
Unless, you know…
I die.
To the Lighthouse
by Virginia Woolf
This is a sudden change of pace from the previous two books, isn’t it? Virginia Woolf is an author who was (and continues to be) highly praised and extremely influential in the literary world, writing books that were introspective overall. A lot of people praise her books and state that the works have had an impact on them, which is what I want from a reading experience. To the Lighthouse is the one that sounds most like what would resonate with me, but if there are others that would be better suited for me that someone would suggest, I’ll consider alternatives!
I have mentioned a few times on my website that I really think it’s important to broaden your horizons and not sit in the same rut when it comes to media, whether it’s books or movies or shows. I like to try new things and I always seek to discover something that’s outside of my normal wheelhouse because, for all I know, that new thing could become a new favorite. So I’m eager to add literature like this into my repertoire.
Kingkiller Chronicles
by Patrick Rothfuss
I haven’t read the Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfuss! I want to and I’ve even checked the first book out from the library a few times in the past, but I have a hard time starting a series when I don’t know when (or if) the final book will be released. It’s been a long time since the second book was launched and while Patrick Rothfuss has released the prologue for the first book as of a month or two ago, we still don’t know when that third book will be out. I decided a bit ago that I will pick up Kingkiller when we have a set release date for the final book.
Patrick Rothfuss’s series made waves, and there are a lot of reasons why I love him as a person. He has a lot of crossover in other spaces I’m a part of, namely tabletop gaming (or even just gaming in general). Every time I have seen him in live streams or playing a game of Dungeons and Dragons, he seems like such a wonderful person. Not to mention the fact that Writers of the Future launched his career, which is the same contest I’ve won a few times, so there’s a bit of camaraderie here and a desire to support his work.
I’m looking forward to Kingkiller Chronicles and I will definitely read it, but I’m waiting until we have a release date for the final book in the series, which we don’t quite have yet.
The Shepherd's Crown
by Terry Pratchett
Yes, that’s right. I am one of the big Terry Pratchett fans who has left one of his books unread—untouched. I received this book as a present many years ago (the version that I received back then is currently in storage with other books, but I do have the collector’s edition on my shelf right now). I haven’t even read the first page. I know only that it’s a Tiffany Aching book, which just makes it all the more meaningful because Tiffany Aching was my introduction into Discworld, so it serves well that it will be my exit. When Terry Pratchett died, I couldn’t bring myself to read his last book, (which I know he’d likely think is a ridiculous thing, since books were written to be read). Later, I found out that many other fans of Terry Pratchett had not read the book for the same reasons, so I continued to let it sit on my shelf—a single, unread Terry Pratchett book.
But the bandaid has to be ripped off at some point. I can’t let it sit unread for the rest of my life, which is undoubtedly a very short amount of time given that I’m releasing this fate-enticing post. I plan to read The Shepherd’s Crown next year, even though it’s a bit hard for me to wrap my head around it being the last of Pratchett’s Discworld novels.
Annihilation
by Jeff VanderMeer
This is actually a pretty recently-written work, having been published in 2014. However, I’ve heard that it is excellently written and extremely impactful. As I mentioned, this is what I am wanting from these books: an impact. I know very little about this story, though I do know it was made into a movie (which I have not seen). I am really excited to read this as there are many people whose tastes tend to align with my own who have praised this book and have stated that it continues to resonate with them long after they’ve finished it. That’s the feeling I’m chasing, so Annihilation is definitely a book I want to read before I die.
Conclusion
All right, kids! This has been a list of books that I really want to read before I die, which means I should get to them pretty quickly now that fate is definitely coming for me. Some of these are on my reading list for this year, but many of them are going to be on my list next year. I’ve just got to hold on a little bit longer and I’ll be able to knock them all out. We’ll see how I go—fingers crossed! While we wait for me to die, I’d love to hear if there are any books on your reading bucket list! Did I inspire you to add any to that list? Are there any that you think I should add to my list? Let me know!