Books To Read in 2022

I have kept lists, plural, of books that I want to read. 

Books that get quoted in lectures, books that get recommended on podcasts or webinars, books my friends rave about...

but then I forget which notebook the lists are in and I forget to consult any list before starting another book. 

So this year, in an effort to be more strategic and deliberate, I am compiling all the lists into one and posting it here. 

These are the books I want to read this year. 

One year, I focused on reading everything by CS Lewis and that was one of the best reading years of my life. I have decided to do something similar with Malcolm Guite this year. 

Note: This is not all of his books, but these are his books that have been recommended to me and also the ones that really interest me. 

Waiting on the Word

Reflections for Lent

The Singing Bowl

After Prayer

Faith, Hope, and Poetry

Beholding the Glory

I fell in love with Dickens upon rereading and writing about A Tale of Two Cities in a graduate class. He was a genius! So I want to read more of him. 

Also, a few characters from his novel Martin Chuzzelwit are mentioned in The Celestial Omnibus, one of my favorite short stories of all time. So I will start with Dickens's:

Martin Chuzzelwit

I also plan to read his:

David Copperfield

Because I've heard it's got great characters, too. 

I've read already read Hard Times, Oliver Twist, and A Christmas Carol, and even though I know Dickens is worth rereading, I want to focus on his books I haven't read yet. So I am leaving another blank for something else by Dickens below.  

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Tom Jones is another character mentioned in The Celestial Omnibus, so my interest is peeked and I want to read Fielding's:

Tom Jones

Coleridge, Shelly, Swineburne, and Keats are all affectionately mentioned by CS Lewis in his writings, so I want to read something by each of them this year. 

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The last time I read a Pulitzer Prize winner, it was totally life-changing. And this book comes recommended by someone I respect:

One Hundred Years of Solitude by Marquez

This book is often referred to and mentioned as a great book. I've owned it for years, but it's time to finally read:

Faust by Goethe

I asked my daughter to choose one book that we had to read before she leaves for college in the fall. She said she wants to reread:

Paradise Lost by Milton

I love reading about educational philosophy. Some books in that vein that I have been wanting to read are:

Teaching from Rest by MacKenzie

Caldecott's Beauty in the Word

Sister Miriam Joseph's The Trivium

Who Killed Homer? by Heath and Hanson

I heard a portion of this book read aloud by Peterson at Hutchmoot in 2021 and now I have to read the whole thing:

The God of the Garden-

Peterson

My two oldest kids read these books and then insisted that I read them, too. But I never got to it. Then my middle daughter lovingly read all these books aloud to her younger sister, and now, I feel I really need to get on board and read them, too:

Green Ember-

SD Smith

I often listen to Cindy Rollins on podcasts or webinars, so I want to read her book:

Mere Motherhood

Two books on my list that are also often quoted or mentioned:

The Rule of Saint Benedict

Every Moment Holy

More than one good friend has recommended that I read more of the Christian mystics. So I am leaving a blank for at least one book in that category:

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In my Bible reading, I plan to focus on Paul's letters this year. I've read through Romans and I'm part way through 1 Corinthians now. I'll see how many times I can read through them by the year's end. I may add some books specific to Paul's letters or topics in his letters, too.  

I also plan to read through Paul's letters in the Latin Vulgate at least once. My Latin continues to improve. I'm familiar enough with the English Scriptures that it makes reading the Latin Scriptures really easy and enjoyable. And the Latin Scriptures are just so beautiful! 

I've got other books I have to read for tutoring Challenge 4 and books we'll read aloud as a family, etc. But this list is a good start. My goal is to read or listen to 100 books this year. I'm not sure it will happen, but I always read more when I have a goal.