Top Ten Tuesday: Books That Have Been on my TBR the Longest

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly event originated in 2010 by The Broke and the Bookish and operated as of January 2018 by That Artsy Reader Girl. It was born out of a love for lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bloggers together. Each week a new Top Ten topic is posted. After that, it's bloggers UNITE! Participate with your own Top Ten post, have fun, and get to know your fellow bloggers.

This Week's Topic:

Top Ten Books That Have Been on my TBR List the Longest and I Still Haven't Read

My TBR is monumentous. Seriously. It should be legendary, but really it's more just, well...embarrassing. I slowly whittle books off it each year, but (inevitably) I'm pretty sure I add more than I remove. There are just too many good options...or at least options that I perceive as good and/or worth my time in the beginning. 

Some poor books have landed themselves on my official TBR (in Goodreads) for a ridiculous amount of time. This was also inevitable, I suppose. These ten have been unlucky enough to have resided there the longest...

1. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

About half of today's list consists of classics that I have been remiss about reading. Like a couple of later entries, Of Mice and Men is one you would have thought I would have read in either high school or college, but somehow my English courses slacked in their assignment of Steinbeck and I didn't manage to motivate myself to grab it off the shelf of my own accord.

2. Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut

This one actually landed on my list when I was in high school. It was during a phase when I also developed an interest in Upton Sinclair. Ah, stereotypical literary associations. I really do want to read this one, somehow I just keep putting it off. 

3. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

The Kite Runner ran in my literary circles for a while. It seemed like I was hearing about it left and right. I struggle finding the motivation on this one. It's well-reviewed and I typically enjoy historical fiction, but for some reason, I just can't find the desire. If you've read this one, please let me know your thoughts. I could use a bit of encouragement if you found it enjoyable and, if you didn't...well...then maybe I can feel better about ignoring it.

4. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

Sense and Sensibility is one of only two Austen novels that I have yet to read. Emma has also managed to remain untouched. I have zero reasoning for this one. I actually enjoy Austen's work quite a bit.

5. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

Another high school and college mishap. How I never came across Brave New World in a syllabus is beyond me. Given my predilection for dystopian fiction a few years ago (Hunger Games, Divergent, Matched, Delirium), you would have thought this one would have come up. It's an especially atrocious oversight if you also consider that I've read 1984 and The Handmaid's Tale twice each. Shameful.

6. The Shining by Stephen King

There was a junior high phase wherein I read nearly nothing but Stephen King and Anne Rice novels. And yet...one of King's most famous novels escaped my eyes. Hmm. Maybe I have an internal freezer tendency like Joey from Friends. It? Read it. Cujo? Read it. Christine? Four Past Midnight? All read. The Dark Tower? Half the series. And yet...The Shining sits without even having the cover cracked open. Seriously, some of these entries are just embarrassing. I feel like I'm losing street cred here.

7. The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks

One of two movie motivated additions to the TBR. Yes...I'm a sucker for The Notebook. It's just a good, sappy, girly movie. I think some of the avoidance on this one has been the result of my historic issue with book/movie combinations. It typically goes in one of two ways: (1) I read the book first and the movie is just disappointing in it's lack of following the narrative or (2) I watch the movie first and then the book is somewhat ruined for me and I just can't find a love for it. I guess I just don't want this one to be sullied.

8. The Princess Bride by William Goldman

The avoidance of The Princess Bride follows the same logic as The Notebook. I mean, this is a classic...both in movie and book form. I'm nervous to meet the potential that reading the book could tarnish a childhood favorite.

9. The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing by Melissa Bank

This one is the one book on this list that I honestly can't remember. I mean, I recognize the title and I have vague memories of thinking I should read it, but I don't remember what motivated me in that direction. And...it's probably the one book on the list that I feel the least regret for avoiding. It just gives me a bit of a meh factor. Maybe that's a sign that it shouldn't be on the TBR after all. Ugh. Let's be honest though, I won't remove it. I don't know that I've ever removed a book from the TBR without at least and attempt at reading it.

10. The Confession by John Grisham

The Confession by John Grisham may be one of the saddest entries on the list. You see, once upon a time, I was a Grisham aficionado. I bought his novels as soon as they came out in paperback (I was young and cheap...budgets are real, my friends) and devoured one after another. He was by far my favorite author and I could hardly wait for the next published read. And then...somewhere around The King of Torts, I just stopped. I picked up a couple of his pieces beyond that over the years, but not in the voracious way I had read his previous works. There really was no reason for this shift, just one of those moments when reading tastes change, I suppose. I'm still interested in his work. A Time to Kill still ranks up amongst my favorite reads. And yet, here The Confession sits...just gathering TBR dust.

What about you? Have any of my TBR veterans landed on your list as well? How about personal favorites? I'll take any motivation you'd like to give.