It’s been a slow reading year honestly, but before now, I put that down to having a busy summer in the best way.

Since then, the world has changed dramatically. Three weeks into semester 1 and I was forced to stay home, with the rest of the country following suit a week later.

With the spread of the coronavirus, life has been stressful and anxiety inducing. Pretty much the entire world is in lockdown with no end in sight.

But there are two main things that are a going to keep me sane during this period; books and Netflix.

Over the next few weeks I’m going to share as many book-related and Netflix-related posts as I possibly can. Starting with today’s post; 10 books I want to read during quarantine.

We will get through this tough time together if we remember to stay home and WASH OUR HANDS.

The Handmaids Tale – Margaret Atwood

Starting off with a solid recommendation from many people (and the internet). I got this book late last year. I know I’m late to the game on this one, but the good news is I haven’t even watched the TV series, so no spoilers. So far, I know it’s set in this dystopian world where women are treated terribly. And that it’s supposed to be some kind of commentary on sexual politics? I have to admit, that even when this book first started getting a lot of hype, I wasn’t that keen on it (even when the show came out). It sounded a bit dark for my taste in Fiction. But alas, I gave in and decided to give it a try. The more I think about it, the more interested I become. We’ll see how this one turns out.

You are a badass at Making money – Jen Sincero

Following my trend of reading one fiction and then one non-fiction, my next pick is this self-help book about making money. For those of you who roll your eyes or simply loath self-help books, I hear ya. Feel free to skip. However, I will tell you that I have also always been very cynical about self help books. I prefer to read them as if I’m just reading someone else’s point of view (these types of books can often be quite entertaining when the author inserts their own experiences). But I don’t read these books in the expectation that I will find some life changing answer to a deep personal question. I’m particularly sceptical of books that claim to have these get-rich-quick ideas. But the reason I picked up this book is because I read the author’s first book ‘You are a badass’ and I quite enjoyed her writing style.

The Outsiders – S. E. Hinton

Ah a classic! Don’t judge me for not having read this yet. I recently got a whole stack of classics for Christmas which are sitting on my shelf ready to read. I will be quite honest, this one? I have no idea what it’s about. Truly. But the reason why I’m interested in it is because it’s been referenced many times in other books I’ve read. I’m pretty sure there’s a movie too which I’d like to watch afterwards.

Let the Elephants Run – David Usher

This book came to my awareness via a youtuber’s recommendation. I liked the idea of this one because it was about unleashing your creativity. I often find myself at a creative block as a writer and it always drives me crazy. But I think that’s the same with every artist. It would be really cool to see how this author views creativity and what enhances it.

Daisy Jones and the Six – Taylor Jenkins Reid

This just looks cool! From what I’ve heard, it’s about a rock chic and her band set in the 70s I think? Its written through a series of interviews which I just find so interesting. I’m really excited to read this story because the premise is already so cool. Did I mention it looks cool?

The Future of Capitalis – Paul Collier

Oops! Did I put you to sleep? Sorry. Now normally I’m not one to read books on economics – even though I do like political literature. But I am currently doing a course called ‘Politics Communicated’ and my teacher talked about this book on the first day. Some of the ideas we’ve been learning about lately are surprisingly fascinating (for real) and I want to learn more. So, I snatched this book off Amazon. My hope is also that by brushing up on my economics knowledge, that I can have more scintillating discussions with my economics-obsessed father.

Animal Farm – George Orwell

Another classic from extensive list. Again, this was one that is often referenced to in other books. I found that it’s about a group of animals that rebel against their human farmer in order to create an equal society amongst animals and humans. I think its supposed to be a political commentary. It’s was first published in the 1940s so perhaps it references the Holocaust or world war? I can’t be sure. Whatever it’s about, I’m pretty sure it’s a much read for any literature buff.

Leave your mark – Aliza Licht

This is a self-help book for the modern female entrepreneur. I know I’m not an entrepreneur per se. However, I believe that I’m still creating a brand with myself as a journalist as well as my blog of course. Anyway, I love hearing stories from girl bosses far and wide because the fact that I can hold somebody else’s work in my hands (their book), is inspiring enough for me to want to go out and kick some goals.

The Nightingale – Kristin Hannah

I’ve heard many times over by many booktubers that this is a beautiful story. And I do love beautiful stories. All I know is that this is a historical fiction set in Paris during WW2. But I have this feeling that I’m going to truly love this book. Plus, even the cover is gorgeous and very enticing.

Letters of Note – Shaun Usher

And finally, this little anthology of letters collected from all sorts of people from all over the world from all eras in time. This is the first book of a duo. I actually read the second book last year before realising there were two. But at least they’re not a joint story but a bunch of little stories in letters. Some funny, some sad, some inspiring, some revealing. I loved the book I first read because it really made me appreciate the art of letter-writing and more so made me miss the act of writing and receiving letters.

And that concludes my list of 10 books I hope to read during quarantine (so far). Stay tuned for more posts to come.