Finally had a chance to come back to this post. Very neat concept here!
I too read Jane Eyre in High School and loved it. It was the first classic I really loved, and it proved to me that classics are worth loving. It has always stuck with me. So much so that I named my dog Charlotte.
I've had The Idiot on my shelf for a while. Let me scoot that one on up the list.
This was so interesting to read. Thank you for sharing. I loved loved loved ‘Heart the Lover’ it was one of my first five star books of this year 🤍🤍🤍 and I will be wanting to read the books I haven’t yet read from your list. Thank you for the recommendations)))
The Series of Unfortunate Events came into my life at such a critical time. I started reading it when I was 10, a few weeks after my dad died by suicide. Reading such a sad tale was so cathartic and reading about kids my age dealing with adult issues helped me not to feel so alone. Those books will always have a special place in my heart.
i am so terribly sorry for your loss, and so relieved to know that the right books were there for you when you needed them most. thank you for sharing this reminder of the power of reading
Woah! That’s such an intricate list, I’m highly impressed. It’s so amazing that you get to sort of narrate your whole life through the books you’ve read! Now my everlasting tbr has grown even more🫠
Reading is a visceral part of me and I cannot emphasize enough how tremendous the impact of it is, the title really sums it up. For me, my dark Vanessa played a huge part in my making, that book shook me to the core so much so that I couldn’t pick another book for 3 months. Have you read it?
Wow, I just wrote a piece like this and /also/ called out Royal Diaries! I loved Marie, but Elizabeth was my main girl. I still have all of my copies with their pretty gold edges. And big same for The Great Gatsby and Six of Crows, also at those ages!!
I read the color purple this month and I’m going to be thinking about it the rest of my life. You’re so right about one day. Perfect title. Perfect, eloquent thoughts.
This is interesting to think about. For me it's the Bluest Eye, which I stole from the library as a young teen. Not intentionally. I just couldn't bear to return it after reading it. I still have it. Autobiography of Malcolm X, Night, The Fire Next Time, Two Thousand Seasons.
As a little kid, The Velveteen Rabbit, all of the Little Golden books, the Sweet Pickles series (now I am dating myself).
Ran across a review of yours on my search for more women going crazy/rip my heart out and grind it to dust while making me laugh books, so ill likely be digging through your archive. Incidentally, thank you for the pile of recs. This is gonna be more indecisive, but i tend to fall in love with authors and have a hard time cutting down to single book choices.
Speaker for the Dead defined my teens and was a huge influence on my philosophy and ethics. Quite like your mention of coraline though, there were *things* I did not know at that point, and having just read it for the first time since my teens (late thirties now) im still baffled how this book came from such a hateful man.
The Guards subseries of Discworld did similar for me in my early twenties, though Pratchett has thankfully proven to be far more trustworthy than Card.
Seanan Mcguire and T Kingfisher helped pull me back into my love of books, helped me find my name during my transition, and started me down the path of weird fic which in turn led to:
V Castro, whose works' underlying discussions center on feminism and reclamation of one's culture in the wake of colonial devastation. She's been such a major influence in my journey to learn and understand experiences outside of my own, and I've adored everything ive read from her. Also I think the Haunting of Alejandra was my first major women going crazy title, so there's that.
Emily Austin is the latest in this line. Everything ive found from her has been amazing, and her article on sad seratonin books as well as her stacks on goodreads have led me to some of my favorites in the last couple years.
thank you so much! immediately i knew we must have a wide shared interest bc of that introduction, and i am a huge emily austin fan - and seanan mcguire as well. between that level of agreed upon taste and these wonderful explanations i am convinced that i need to read more from your list!
If you don't mind, can I ask about your Jane Austen reads/takes on classics in general? I've been thinking of grabbing some of Austen's books cos shes so clearly been a major influence for a bunch of the stuff I read, and is an icon in her own right besides. I've had a difficult time with many of the classics though - not in comprehending the older language, but in dealing with the social mores and expectations of the times. Like, take the picture of dorian grey; I know it was written specifically to highlight the high society bullshit, but it did such a good job in the depiction that it was too grating to finish (a fact which makes me feel like a literary heretic).
So I suppose I'm asking if you've read any other classics from the 1700s/1800s, and if so, how you feel about them as compared to Austen's work in specific, and regency romance in general? Also, pardon if this is the wrong place/way to ask this; never used substack before yesterday.
Hi, Emma! Looks like we're the same age. I'm 28 too. This list makes me want to start on my Rooneyverse marathon soon, because I have not read her other books, aside from her short story and Normal People, which I've now long forgotten. As for Toni Morrison's novels, I've only read Sula, but I love it so much and I consider it as one of the most fundamental novels that would help people get to know me. I think I read Sula for the first time when I was 21, and that was way too long ago, but it just transformed my life. That being said, I'm interested in making a post like this too, and I will include your post as a reference!
oh i can’t wait to see your post, it seems like we have so much in common in our reading taste so i know i’ll get some great recommendations! thank you!!!
Perfect list!! Completely agree with the books I've already read and excited to add the other ones to my reading list
omg!!! thank you!
Finally had a chance to come back to this post. Very neat concept here!
I too read Jane Eyre in High School and loved it. It was the first classic I really loved, and it proved to me that classics are worth loving. It has always stuck with me. So much so that I named my dog Charlotte.
I've had The Idiot on my shelf for a while. Let me scoot that one on up the list.
charlotte is an INCREDIBLE name for a dog. especially w that perfect back story.
i hope you love the idiot! keep me updated. and thank you!!!
Love this! And I can say The Royal Diaries series did the same for me 👑
princess alert! thank youuu
This was so interesting to read. Thank you for sharing. I loved loved loved ‘Heart the Lover’ it was one of my first five star books of this year 🤍🤍🤍 and I will be wanting to read the books I haven’t yet read from your list. Thank you for the recommendations)))
thank you!!! heart the lover absolutely broke me in half (in a good way). i hope you find more favorites among these!!
The Series of Unfortunate Events came into my life at such a critical time. I started reading it when I was 10, a few weeks after my dad died by suicide. Reading such a sad tale was so cathartic and reading about kids my age dealing with adult issues helped me not to feel so alone. Those books will always have a special place in my heart.
i am so terribly sorry for your loss, and so relieved to know that the right books were there for you when you needed them most. thank you for sharing this reminder of the power of reading
Woah! That’s such an intricate list, I’m highly impressed. It’s so amazing that you get to sort of narrate your whole life through the books you’ve read! Now my everlasting tbr has grown even more🫠
Reading is a visceral part of me and I cannot emphasize enough how tremendous the impact of it is, the title really sums it up. For me, my dark Vanessa played a huge part in my making, that book shook me to the core so much so that I couldn’t pick another book for 3 months. Have you read it?
thank you very much! i’m honored — it was such a fun post to write.
i have read my dark vanessa, and it definitely could’ve made it to this list! that book is so impactful
Wow, I just wrote a piece like this and /also/ called out Royal Diaries! I loved Marie, but Elizabeth was my main girl. I still have all of my copies with their pretty gold edges. And big same for The Great Gatsby and Six of Crows, also at those ages!!
oh my gosh i wish i had that collection!!! amazing … we are living parallel lives
I adored all of this, and I’m leaving the post with more to add to my reading list!! Thank you for sharing your passion
this makes me so happy. thank you so much!
SUCH GOOD BOOK RECS OMGGG
thank you!!!
I read the color purple this month and I’m going to be thinking about it the rest of my life. You’re so right about one day. Perfect title. Perfect, eloquent thoughts.
oh the color purple is such an excellent selection. i couldn’t agree more
This is interesting to think about. For me it's the Bluest Eye, which I stole from the library as a young teen. Not intentionally. I just couldn't bear to return it after reading it. I still have it. Autobiography of Malcolm X, Night, The Fire Next Time, Two Thousand Seasons.
As a little kid, The Velveteen Rabbit, all of the Little Golden books, the Sweet Pickles series (now I am dating myself).
oh this is a great list! now i need to read the ones i haven’t yet…
Ran across a review of yours on my search for more women going crazy/rip my heart out and grind it to dust while making me laugh books, so ill likely be digging through your archive. Incidentally, thank you for the pile of recs. This is gonna be more indecisive, but i tend to fall in love with authors and have a hard time cutting down to single book choices.
Speaker for the Dead defined my teens and was a huge influence on my philosophy and ethics. Quite like your mention of coraline though, there were *things* I did not know at that point, and having just read it for the first time since my teens (late thirties now) im still baffled how this book came from such a hateful man.
The Guards subseries of Discworld did similar for me in my early twenties, though Pratchett has thankfully proven to be far more trustworthy than Card.
Seanan Mcguire and T Kingfisher helped pull me back into my love of books, helped me find my name during my transition, and started me down the path of weird fic which in turn led to:
V Castro, whose works' underlying discussions center on feminism and reclamation of one's culture in the wake of colonial devastation. She's been such a major influence in my journey to learn and understand experiences outside of my own, and I've adored everything ive read from her. Also I think the Haunting of Alejandra was my first major women going crazy title, so there's that.
Emily Austin is the latest in this line. Everything ive found from her has been amazing, and her article on sad seratonin books as well as her stacks on goodreads have led me to some of my favorites in the last couple years.
thank you so much! immediately i knew we must have a wide shared interest bc of that introduction, and i am a huge emily austin fan - and seanan mcguire as well. between that level of agreed upon taste and these wonderful explanations i am convinced that i need to read more from your list!
If you don't mind, can I ask about your Jane Austen reads/takes on classics in general? I've been thinking of grabbing some of Austen's books cos shes so clearly been a major influence for a bunch of the stuff I read, and is an icon in her own right besides. I've had a difficult time with many of the classics though - not in comprehending the older language, but in dealing with the social mores and expectations of the times. Like, take the picture of dorian grey; I know it was written specifically to highlight the high society bullshit, but it did such a good job in the depiction that it was too grating to finish (a fact which makes me feel like a literary heretic).
So I suppose I'm asking if you've read any other classics from the 1700s/1800s, and if so, how you feel about them as compared to Austen's work in specific, and regency romance in general? Also, pardon if this is the wrong place/way to ask this; never used substack before yesterday.
Hi, Emma! Looks like we're the same age. I'm 28 too. This list makes me want to start on my Rooneyverse marathon soon, because I have not read her other books, aside from her short story and Normal People, which I've now long forgotten. As for Toni Morrison's novels, I've only read Sula, but I love it so much and I consider it as one of the most fundamental novels that would help people get to know me. I think I read Sula for the first time when I was 21, and that was way too long ago, but it just transformed my life. That being said, I'm interested in making a post like this too, and I will include your post as a reference!
oh i can’t wait to see your post, it seems like we have so much in common in our reading taste so i know i’ll get some great recommendations! thank you!!!
I made my own list! https://open.substack.com/pub/pakwanseed/p/books-that-made-me?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
i love!!! we have so many favorites in common!
One of the main reasons I'm subscribed to you is your adoration of Alice in Wonderland. It is not appreciated enough at all.
I love the way you organized this!