2019 Reading Resolutions

Happy New Year!

I can feel that 2019 is going to be a special year. Mainly because it is my first year not in education since I was 4 years old and it will see my one year anniversary at a job I love. With the anticipation of an excellent year ahead, I've been thinking about reading goals I want to achieve by the time 2020 ticks around. Though my current success rate with resolutions is pretty poor, who's to say 2019 won't be the year that all changes?

1. Read ALL unread books in the flat

My current TBR totals 52 books, which is actually a lot better than I thought it was. Considering I read around 80 books a year, this leaves me with a few spaces to fill with upcoming/new releases, rereads, and library books. To help, I'm getting involved in The Unread Shelf Project 2019 on Instagram, and I'm also going to be extra vigilant when it comes to DNFing. I feel like the ultimate goal of a 0 TBR is within reach, and I look forward to the day I can walk into work and buy a book without feeling the overwhelming guilt about the stack left unread at home.

2. Read 2 Agatha Christies per month

A large chunk of my TBR is the Agatha Christies I have been buying whenever I see them in charity shops. There's no reason to keep letting them build up because they're murder mysteries i.e. gripping reads, and also relatively short. I currently own 14 Christies, meaning I'll be able to pick up a few throughout the year if I spot any good deals but will still be able to keep on top of them.

3. Read more German

This is a goal that I have every year, and every year the improvement is miniscule. Since starting to work though, my German has become in handy several times but I've noticed it is not as easy as it once was. My hope is that by reading more in German, my fluency will gradually build up again.

4. Read bigger books

In an effort to reach my Goodreads goal, I often shun doorstop reads, which means I'm missing out. One big book in particular I want to read this year is The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt, which I have heard nothing but good things about.

5. Read more short stories

I've never quite got into short stories, and I think this is because, again, I'm so desperate to finish a book and add it to Goodreads that I try to inhale them all at once rather than taking one at a time and mulling over them before moving onto the next one. I have some fairytale collections on my shelves which make the ideal start to this goal!

6. Be more adventurous

I have a terrible habit of being guided in my reading by what I already know. Basically, I'm a sucker by hype. I pick up things I've seen on Instagram often, or maybe I keep seeing a publicist tweet about a particular release. Rarely do I ever just pick up a book because I like it's title, or I'm intrigued by the cover - I always know something about it first. I would like this to change so that I might find those hidden gems more often, and also be able to bring something new to the table in terms of recommendations at work!

Do you have any 2019 resolutions, reading-centred or otherwise? It would be great to hear them, so let me know in the comments below!

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The Return of Readabilitea

So it turns out that juggling a full-time job, an MA dissertation, and fun things like reading and blogging is pretty hard. Who knew?

But I'm back from the unplanned 3 month hiatus and I'm pumped. Firstly, it's winter which means colder weather, bigger jumpers, and Christmas. Secondly, I have time. Such a novelty! I can read what I like when I like and I'm able to jump right back into all that fun stuff I missed out on.

Whilst I'm not starting afresh as such, I have removed a lot of my posts from the past two years. This is because in the last year, they've been a bit half-arsed and also some of the older ones aren't posts I'd post now or they're in dire need of updating. I've kept some of the most popular ones, such as my bookish guide to York, as well as the Publishing MA series, but other than that it's time for brand new content.

To bring you up to speed with my reading life in the last 3 months, here are the books I have read (left) and the books I have bought (right).

Dissertation certainly slowed down my reading dramatically, but that didn't mean I wasn't able to squeeze in some absolute gems into my free time. Sally Rooney knocked it out the park with Normal People, a book which, ever since putting down I've wanted to pick up again. Circe has actually managed what I thought was impossible and has gotten me interested in classical civilisation and made me want to read texts like The Odyssey and The Iliad. Finally, Diary of a Bookseller is a fantastic book about the realities of the post-Amazon bookselling world. It's hilarious and heartwarming and reminded me of the exact reasons I went into bookselling in the first place.

Whilst my reading pace slowed down, my book buying didn't. I do have the excuse that it was my birthday and I went to Bath specifically to visit bookshops. It also doesn't help being surrounded by amazing books all day, making staff discounts all too appealing. High up on the priority list is Everything Under by Daisy Johnson, Crudo by Olivia Laing, and Outline by Rachel Cusk. 

If I have any chance of reducing my TBR drastically before Christmas, I need to check myself. I've been doing quite well at reading books bought this year, but there are many books on my TBR from years ago which are just sat, festering. Over the next month, I'm going to try and make them more of a priority/have a long, hard look at my books and try to be honest with myself re: what I actually want to read.

In short, I am back. Expect reviews, photos that try to defy basement flat lighting, and general bookish ramblings to ensue.

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Publishing Masters: Semester 2 Reflection

And just like that, my Masters is over (aside from my dissertation which I’m deliberately not mentioning). Can you believe that? Can you believe that I now have to be a fully-functioning adult? Help!

A Beginner's Guide to Agatha Christie

If you’ve been kicking around Readabilitea for long enough, you’ll know that one of my favourite authors is Agatha Christie a.k.a. The Queen of Crime. A lot of people often ask me where to start with Agatha Christie and I can see why; she’s the author of 66 detective novels and numerable short stories about murder and the supernatural, so it can be difficult knowing the best place to begin. This is where I come in!

Publishing Masters: Semester 1 Reflection

Semester 1 is over and with Semester 2 just around the corner, I feel suitably distanced from it to write about how it was without rolling myself into a ball and rocking softly.

What Do You Do On A Publishing Masters?

I’ve told you about why I chose to do a Master’s in Publishing, but what does it actually entail? Although I can only speak for my course at Oxford Brookes, there are similarities across the courses available in the UK.

I’m doing my Master’s full-time, which means it’s going to take 1 year. This year is split into 3 semesters: semester 1 runs until Christmas, semester 2 runs until May with a break for Easter, and semester 3 runs until the last day of September of 2018 a.k.a. the due date of my dissertation.

Why I Chose to Do a Publishing Masters

If you had told me 3 years ago that I would be doing a Masters, I’d have laughed in your face - why would I sign myself up for yet more university?

Well, here I am, 3 weeks into a Publishing Media MA at Oxford Brookes University. I’ve chosen to blog about my experiences of my Masters a) to help others, but also b) to have a record of what I imagine is going to be quite a pivotal point in my life.

So what led me here? In a sense, it’s you guys (thank you).