Top Ten Tuesday – 10 Books Older Than Me That I Want to Read

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.  Top Ten Tuesday has been one of my favorite memes ever since I started blogging, so huge thanks to Jana for taking over the hosting duties!

This week’s TTT topic is  Books Written Before I Was Born.  This was actually a really hard topic for me because up until about ten years ago, I was very much into reading classics. I guess it was an extension of my college and grad school studies but I read most of the well known classics and then branched out and read a lot of more obscure titles as well.  That said, I was still able to come up with 10 titles that were published before I was born that I haven’t read yet but would like to at some point.

* * * * *

10 Books Older Than Me That I Want to Read

1. THE MURDER OF ROGER ACKROYD by Agatha Christie

Even though I selected this title, I’d actually really like to read everything by Agatha Christie. So far I’ve only read And Then There Were None and Murder on the Orient Express and I loved both of them.

2. I CAPTURE THE CASTLE by Dodie Smith

I’m always up for a good coming of age story and this one has received lots of high marks from reviewers I trust.

3. REBECCA by Daphne du Maurier

As much as I enjoy Gothic stories, I’m surprised I haven’t gotten around to this one yet.

4. THE GODFATHER by Mario Puzo

I actually haven’t read the books or seen the films.

5. THE HEART OF THE MATTER by Graham Greene

I took a course on 20th Century British Literature when I was in grad school and we read several of Greene’s novels.  I really enjoyed his writing style and read a couple more of his after I graduated.  Somehow I never got around to this one though, even though it’s probably one of his better known novels.

6. THE BIBLE

This might seem like an odd choice, but I’ve honestly never been a big Bible reader.  I remember reading a few passages here and there back when I used to attend Sunday School but that’s about it.  I remember wanting to take a course called “The Bible as Literature” when I was in college but it was so popular that in all four years, I was never able to get into the class.  One of these days I would like to do some kind of a Bible study, whether it’s as literature or a more traditional study.

7. INFERNO by Dante Alighieri

This is another where I’ve read various passages here and there, usually in order to understand references to it in other works of literature.  One of these days I would like to read it in its entirety, mainly just so I can say I did it, haha.

8. FRANNY AND ZOOEY by J.D. Salinger

I’ve re and re-read The Catcher in the Rye but somehow Franny and Zooey slipped through the cracks and I have yet to read it.

9. THE WOMAN IN WHITE by Wilkie Collins

Like Rebecca, I’m actually surprised I haven’t picked this one up yet since I usually love those 19th century gothic reads.  I remember this one being mentioned a lot in class and that all of my professors loved it so someday I’d like to read it.

10. DOCTOR ZHIVAGO by Boris Pasternak

I think the only reason I haven’t read this yet is because the subject matter sounds a bit daunting with its extensive focus on Russian history, particularly the Russian Revolution.

Have you read any of these oldies but goodies?