Day 406: Book Haul!

Based on a previous post about broadening my horizons, I compiled a list of books to read that come from genres I usually don't touch. I hit on romance and horror like I mentioned, but also crime, another genre I don't usually read much. I went for a mix of classic and contemporary to get a nice swath of books. I'm hoping that this experiment will give me some new inspiration, if not some new genres to read deeper into.

First up is a classic that people have brought up in both my writing club and the book club I attend, 'Jane Eyre' by Charlotte Brontë. If it's going to come up that often, I figure I should probably mark it off the list. I've heard this referenced so often I'm afraid my expectations might be a little too high. When I went into 'Dracula' expecting a polished masterpiece due to it's reputation I was pretty surprised when I read what was essentially nineteenth century pulp fiction. Given the other novels I've read from that period, I'm certain I can expect something totally unhinged to happen in three scenes at the minimum, characters who have never heard the words 'personal boundaries' in their lives, and probably at least one crime of passion. Let me know in the comments if this is accurate or not.

Next is horror, and a couple of stories I had never heard of. 'The Willows' and 'The Wendigo' by Algernon Blackwood. Now if that isn't the best name for a horror writer ever, then I don't know what is. It isn't a pseudonym either. That was really his name. These are his most famous works, combined into one paperback that I can't wait to get my hands on, in no small part because the edition I've ordered is called the 'Heathen Edition.' These people know how to sell some books. Apparently this author has inspired countless creepy tales with his works, from ghost stories to monster movies. It feels weird that I haven't heard of him until now. I guess that hole in my reading was bigger than I thought.

For crime, I have two books. First is a book that someone has suggested multiple times, and I can't ignore it anymore. It's called 'The Cuckoo's Calling' and was written J.K. Rowling under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith. This is of course a more modern novel by a big author and I'm looking forward to see how much of Harry Potter I can see in this book.

Finally, I have a book from a local author who I've met personally in my writing club called 'What the River Buries' by Rocky Hirajeta. You can find it right here by the way. What I'm most excited about for this novel is the chance to discuss a book with the person who wrote it. I've never had the opportunity so I plan on taking full advantage and talking his ear off about it if I can. This one should be very informative at the very least.

That's about it for the books I'm reading next. Hopefully they'll all actually arrive at my house this time. I'm ordering from Amazon this time, which is more expensive, but if the king of all book sellers can't deliver my books, nobody can.

Thank you for reading,

Benjamin Hawley