10 Books on My 2020 Reading List

I’ve always been a book worm but in the last couple years the amount of books I managed to read in a year has drastically decreased. Why? I guess there’s not really a reason other than lack of time and maybe motivation too. These aren’t necessarily good reasons but haven’t we all gone through times where we suddenly enjoyed things less that once meant a lot to us? In my defense, studying English literature required quite a lot of reading itself so my mind probably just wanted to get invested in something other than books every once in a while.

With the start of a new decade and now that my life isn’t entirely revolving around Shakespeare and Wilde anymore. I finally want to help my bookworm self resurface from the depths of my soul. Which is why I took it upon me to read at least 30 books this year. Starting it slow. I used to read at least 50 a year during my teenage years but we aren’t here to burden ourselves. Books are supposed to be a safe haven, a place to get lost in, to thrive and learn of. Even if it’s just a short read for inbetween, there’s always something to be read inbetween the lines.

Before diving into my new found literature treasures I thought I’d share with you a couple of the books I’ll be reading this year. And maybe it makes you want to join the book challenge in the attempt to read more and widen our horizon.

Five Feet Apart – Rachael Lippincott

Even though this book has already been turned into a movie – featuring the gorgeous Cole Sprouse btw but that’s a different story – I’m still refusing to watch it before I’ve read the books. I find myself being much more endeared by words and their power than moving images on a screen.

The book description reminds me a little bit of A Fault in Our Stars and that fact alone had me hooked. I guess tears will be inevitable with this read and who wouldn’t get emotionally involved in a mixture of young love and life being unfair.

All The Light We Cannot See – Anthony Doerr

Literature about WWII has literally dominated half of my academic career. Especially when I was still in school, our teachers tried their best to educate us about the mistakes that were made in the past by assigning us books dealing with the matter in various ways. It would be a lie to say that our young generation isn’t still affected by what happened 80 years ago. The stories many of our grandparents tell really make you shiver to the bone.

Which is why I am excited yet a bit anxious about reading this particular piece. I have had books that left me in awe and others which had me cry for hours after finishing the last page. I am curious about the journey this piece will be taking me on.

Everything I Know About Love – Dolly Alderton

Growing up is a struggle, with all that this process comes with. Especially those in their early to mid twenties will probabyly have already gone through multiple mental breakdowns over love, money, careers, friends and life in general. I have too. Way too many times actually if I’m being frank. Still strong and standing though. And this is also the reason why I’m very eager to read Dolly Alderton’s book. Not only have I read amazing reviews about this book, I also believe that, since it’s autobiographical, it brushes a topic that many people can relate to. And it might even help some people to not be afraid of growing older anymore – me included.

Educated – Tara Westover

A family living isolated from society, never attending school and treating sickness with herbalism? Sounds like a story deriving from a feverish dream, too far from our own perception of normal to actually be real. Tara Westover really grew up like that before breaking the ties to wonder the world and educate herself. I am very excited to be diving into this memoir because I feel like it’s going to help me broaden my horizon and see my own privilege of growing up with the steady support of my parents in a different light.

QualityLand – Marc-Uwe Kling

A German author mocking our digitalised society by creating a futuristic world where all decisions are made for you but life isn’t as perfect as it sounds? I’m hooked. As someone who some kind of influencer, although I utterly dislike the word, social media and the digital world consume quite a bit of my time on a daily basis. Which doesn’t mean that I’m not aware of the issues this digitalisation brings along which is why I love books that criticise and reveal the dangers of getting lost in it in a satiric way.

Das Buch vom Süden – André Heller

Doesn’t it pull all of us to more southern parts of the world once in a while where the sun is warmer and the light brighter? Where life seems to be easier and more enjoyable. Well, I guess that feeling is what André Heller’s book is about as well. Perfect for a sun chaser like me who constantly wants to explore the beauty of this world.

I Wish You All the Best – Mason Deaver

I love how our generation and society in general is finally starting to accept people of all genders, no matter what they identify as, or don’t for that matter, I find it even more incredible that people who have formerly been seen as „different“, „strange“ or „indecisive“ finally get heard and get to tell their stories, in their own way. Just like non-binary author Mason Deaver, who write about non-binary Ben De Backer and let us be part of an exceptional journey of finding themselves.

Begin Again – Mona Kasten

Once in a while you just need a classic romance read to wind down and just get lost in the pages and I guess this book is perfect for that. Girl moving out for college across the country, moving in with a bad boy. The premise: to never hook up. Well, I’m excited for the read but we can guess where that’s going already, can’t we? Oh, and it’s the first part of four books.

The Book Thief – Markus Zusak

Another fiction book that dives into the depths of the WWII era, following a girl grieving her brother on the hunt for all the books and words she can possibly find and devour with her eyes. All of that happening amidst the madness of the war. I have heard about this book before but have never come around to read it. Can’t wait to find out where that story leads.

Anarchy – Megan DeVos

Apparently this used to be a fanfiction novel with singer Harry Styles as a protagonist but people have recommended it to me so many times that I just decided to give it a try and read it. As it seems to be about a similar topic as the Hunger Games, which is one of my all time favourite book series, I will probably enjoy reading the Anarchy series too. It consists of four books so I’ll have a lot of reading material for 2020. Sometimes I absolutely love getting lost in mythical and fictional worlds because you can simply let your mind create a movie in your mind.

All of these books and authors cover such different topics and genres within the book industry and what I love most about literature is that there will always be something for every kind of reader and every possible interest. I will keep you updated with my own reading progress and share my opinions on the individual books everytime I finished one.

How many books are you planning on reading this year? Have you put yourself up to a challenge?