I was struggling quite a bit to come up with an idea of what kind of post to make this week. Anything that I had in mind already seems to be an upcoming Top 10 Tuesday topic. While looking back at my blog to get some ideas, I came across posts I had made whenever it was a “freebie” topic in the past — a look back at the books that have been on my TBR for the longest that I hadn’t read yet. I started a TBR in 2015 when I first made my Goodreads account. At first, I pretty much added any book I had even the slightest interest in reading (mostly classics) just to see how the list worked, but since then, it has grown into a genuine and massive list of all the books I would like to read at some point. I know a lot of people end up splitting their Goodreads lists into different “shelves” such as long-term and short-term TBRs, by genre, etc. but I actually find it more confusing to have to look in several different places to find a book.
I find it strangely fun to look back at my TBR and see all the books that I had marked as something I want to read. It’s still extremely rare for me to actually remove anything from the shelves, even though some have been there for about 4 years now. When I go back and read the synopsis again, it reminds me of why I wanted to read it in the first place, and ends up staying. I think the hope of making previous posts about the books that had been on my shelves the longest was to give myself a bit of a push to remember to read them. To be fair, when I make those posts, I don’t do it very methodically. I don’t write about every single book that I added, but instead I pick a few highlights. In a sense, this is similar to the “TBR Shame” tag, but I really didn’t want to go through the process of listing all of the nearly 3000 books on my TBR, or even compiling a list of the unread books that I own. For now, I will just look back at my first two posts (July 2017 and September 2017) and see whether I’ve actually followed through and read them. Since in most cases I’ve already given a synopsis and/or explanation of why I added it, feel free to check out the original posts to see more specifics about the books!
From my July 2017 Post
1) Looking for Alaska by John Green
Date Added: March 9, 2015
Read: Yes! Almost exactly three years late, on March 26 & 27, 2018
Why/Why Not?: I had a reading challenge prompt that required reading a book from the first 10 added to my TBR, and this was one of the only books in my first ten that was not a lengthy classic.
2) Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier
Date Added: March 9. 2015
Read: No
Why/Why Not?: This was a gift from my brother’s girlfriend at the time (now wife), so I feel a bit bad that I haven’t read it yet! I just haven’t been in the right mood to pick it up.
3) The Maze Runner by James Dashner
Date Added: March 9, 2015
Read: No, and I’m not sure I will to be honest. I might take it off my TBR.
Why/Why Not?: I added it to my list in the first place because I had it in mind for a reading challenge prompt during my first year of challenges, but ended up replacing it and haven’t been that interested ever since. I was never super interested in it, and I’m a little over dystopians in general right now.
4) Before the Storm by Diane Chamberlain
Date Added: March 14, 2015
Read: No
Why/Why Not?: I had this one in mind for a 2015 challenge prompt as well, but couldn’t read it because my library’s only copy went missing, and I was told it was out of print so they couldn’t get another one. A few years later, I found a copy at a library book sale, so I now own it! I just haven’t read it yet.
5) The Last Time We Say Goodbye by Cynthia Hand
Date Added: July 22, 2015
Read: No
Why/Why Not?: I have a ton of YA realistic fiction on my TBR in general, so I just never got around to it. I have a copy from Book Outlet now, but no immediate plans to read it yet, even though I’ve heard great things about this author.
6) The Kindness of Strangers by Katrina Kittle
Date Added: May 22, 2015
Read: No
Why/Why Not?: I had trouble getting a copy of it from the library, and it wasn’t the highest priority for me at the time. I now own a copy of this one too from Book Outlet, and might read it this year as part of my reading challenge.
7) Who R U Really? by Margo Kelly
Date Added: April 21, 2015
Read: Yes! I read it on February 27 & 28, 2018
Why/Why Not?: I hadn’t read it up until then because I couldn’t find a copy from the library, so I was pretty excited to find it at a library book sale. As soon as I got it, I incorporated it into my challenge plans right away.
8) Creepy and Maud by Dianne Touchell
Date Added: July 29, 2015
Read: Not yet, but I will soon!
Why/Why Not?: It was completely inaccessible. Even asking the library to buy a copy didn’t work since they said it was out of print. I was lucky enough to notice it on our library’s online ebook system earlier this year, and immediately worked it into this year’s challenge plans.
9) #scandal by Sarah Ockler
Date Added: August 20, 2015
Read: No
Why/Why Not?: I own a copy of it from Book Outlet now, which I picked up in the first place because I knew it had been on my TBR for so long. I haven’t read it yet because I need to be in the right mood for this kind of YA story, especially one that involves some kind of celebrity.
10) Things I Want My Daughters to Know by Elizabeth Noble
Date Added: June 5, 2015
Read: No
Why/Why Not?: It wasn’t the highest priority when I added it, but interests me enough to keep it on my TBR. I keep putting it aside in favour of other books that I wanted to read first.
From my September 2017 post
1) Songs of the Humpback Whale by Jodi Picoult
Date Added: March 9, 2015
Read: No, and this is probably the most embarrassing one considering she is my favourite author.
Why/Why Not?: I’ve owned this one for years, but kept putting it off because I’m always a little hesitant about very early books by favourite authors, where their style is likely to be pretty different.
2) A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
Date Added: March 13, 2015
Read: No, and I’m on the fence about whether I want to.
Why/Why Not?: I added it to my TBR in the first place because I own a copy that I got many years ago through a library book sale. I’ve heard some great things about this series and especially about Libba Bray as an author, but I’m not sure how interested I am in trying this one anymore.
3) When Lightning Strikes by Kristin Hannah
Date Added: March 14, 2015
Read: No, and I’m on the fence
Why/Why Not?: I’ve really enjoyed the few Kristin Hannah books that I’ve read so far, but this is one of her much earlier works and I’m not sure how much the story really interests me. I haven’t even been able to find an online preview to read a couple of pages and see.
4) While My Sister Sleeps by Barbara Delinsky
Date Added: March 14, 2015
Read: No
Why/Why Not?: There’s no specific reason, I just haven’t been able to fit it into my reading challenges yet since there are always other books that I want to prioritize more. I’ve enjoyed the two other Barbara Delinsky books that I’ve read so I’m sure I’ll like this one too.
5) Me & Emma by Elizabeth Flock
Date Added: March 14, 2015
Read: No
Why/Why Not?: My library doesn’t have it and it’s not something that I want to read strongly enough that I’d consider buying although I do still want to read it eventually.
6) The Lies We Told by Diane Chamberlain
Date Added: March 14, 2015
Read: No
Why/Why Not?: No specific reason. I’m slowly making my way through Diane Chamberlain’s books in general, but in no particular order. There have just been others that have interested me more, so I’ve read those first.
7) The Good Sister by Drusilla Campbell
Date Added: March 14, 2015
Read: No
Why/Why Not?: Honestly, I forgot about it completely. I see it whenever I look through my TBR list and remember that it seemed interesting, but it’s not really something that I think of when choosing books for my challenges. It’s also not available at my library so it would be hard to get a copy.
8) Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan
Date Added: March 28. 2015
Read: No, but there’s a (slim) possibility that I’ll read it this year.
Why/Why Not?: I think this is the only John Green book I still have left to read, but I just haven’t gotten around to it yet because I prioritized his other books first. I will definitely read this at some point, but I’m not sure if it will end up being this year.
9) Story of a Girl by Sara Zarr
Date Added: April 8, 2015
Read: No
Why/Why Not?: Technically, this has been on my TBR from before I even started on Goodreads. I saw it one day while browsing Amazon and it interested me, but I never actually picked it up. I keep putting it off now because I’ve probably outgrown it a bit, but I kind of still want to read it on principle since I’ve been meaning to for so long.
10) No One You Know by Michelle Richmond
Date Added: April 25, 2015
Read: No
Why/Why Not?: I have many other similar books on my TBR, so this one ended up being lower priority. For some reason, I also thought it would be hard to find a copy but it is actually available at my library so I don’t know why I thought that.
Wrap-Up
Of the 20 books that I listed over the course of those two posts, I’ve only read a grand total of 2! There are another 2 or 3 that I might end up removing from my list, but also at least 2 that I plan on reading this year. A huge factor in why I haven’t read some of these books seems to be a matter of accessibility. Especially in the cases of Creepy & Maud and Before the Storm, I really wanted to read them and planned to read them several years ago — I just couldn’t find a copy! I was also a bit surprised to realize that I hadn’t made nearly as many blog posts on this topic as I had thought, so if anyone is interested in seeing more of my backlist books, please let me know! Looking ahead at my other backlist posts, my track record with the books listed there really isn’t any better, but it still might be a fun way to motivate myself a bit, or at least discuss some of the books that probably wouldn’t come up much otherwise.
Abyssal Librarian 