Top 15 Books I Want to Read Before 2015 Ends

I've seen people doing these a lot on BookTube, usually making the number of books they want to read match the last two numbers of the year (sucks when you're in like the '50s-'90s). So I decided that I will do only the top 15 for every year, but this time I'm just starting with the 15 I want to read now before this year is over. I won't feel bad if I don't manage to read them all. Sometimes other books just come up that are far more interesting to read that I just need to get done. These aren't written in priority like the first one is the one I most want to read. They are just written in the order I thought of the book. Now then, let's get on with my list!!

Book #1: Cujo by Stephen King – Why this book? I actually borrowed it from my mother last year and I still haven't finished it. It's gotten so long since I picked it up last that I will actually need to start it again because aside from bats...I don't actually remember what I've already read.

Book #2: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green – My sister lent me this book saying that I needed to read it. I have had it for like four or five months now and haven't even started it yet. I feel so ashamed of myself. It isn't the kind of book I would normally read, as I am not a fan of contemporary, but I promised my sister I'd try.

Book #3: David Copperfield by Charles Dickens – Oh yes, a classic. I got a set of gorgeous leather bound gilded classics one year from my dad for Christmas, and despite many starts, I've never actually read the entire unabridged version of Charles Dickens. I'm actually pretty sure I've never read an abridged version either. This one I have is gorgeous though I will only be reading it at night. It weighs about seven pounds by itself and is gigantic with tiny font.

Book #4: Grave Beginnings by R.R. Virdi – I actually know him. Sort of. He's in a group I am on Facebook and I think his was the second ebook I actually bought for my Kindle. I'm part of a site that sends me free ebooks for Kindle (because I'm broke). I got a bit of money in and I bought this one because I'd heard so much about it and it sounds so good. Note this is also the only ebook on my list.

Book #5: Wicked by Gregory Maguire – I actually thought I lost this. I had lent it to a friend and her mom, and they did return it, but I thought I had left it in the bottom of a box of junk from my dad's house that I didn't want any more. I knew I had snagged the important stuff and I had just thought it was gone. I found it in another room of the house. I am going to re-read this before starting the other books because it's been so long that most of the details are fuzzy.

Book #6: Son of a Witch by Gregory Maguire – Really? Did anybody not see this coming? I got them all for Christmas (though not all the same Christmas which was fun). I did start this, but then put it down for unknown reasons and never picked it up again. I want to actually read the entire series.

Book #7: A Lion Among Men by Gregory Maguire – I just haven't gotten to it, and I am counting them as their own individual books instead of as a series because hello, I am a terribly slow reader. I plan to get to this one as soon as I can.

Book #8: Out of Oz by Gregory Maguire – I want to finish the series. I love the Wizard of Oz and I loved Wicked and I think I enjoyed what I read of Son of a Witch. It's been so long that I don't remember even reading it, but hey, I can always re-read the books and then finish up these ones.

Book #9: The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini – Because September 27 to October 3 is Banned Books week and this one was on the 2014 Top 10 Challenged Books list. I've never actually read a banned book during banned book week that I am aware of. I know I've read them before, I just have never timed it to coincide with the special week dedicated just to banned books.

Book #10: The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien – I have read this one before, but again like with Wicked, I don't remember what it was that I read. It's been so long since I read it (years) that all information I had is now gone from my mind. I know I really really enjoyed the book and I thought I'd give it one more read before my copy is too old to be read again.

Book #11: The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien – I made it like 95% of the way through this book. I got to almost the end and just fizzled out. I couldn't do it. I don't even remember where I stopped. I just couldn't do it any more. I now know, thanks to a friend, that this is actually the slowest of the three books. I really want to finish it this go round.

Book #12: The Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien – I am a terrible fan of LOTR. I have owned this book since 2001, probably earlier...and never actually read it. This was one of the first purchases I ever made through that Scholastic magazine thing that they would send to schools with books in them. I grew up in a household where money was often very tight and to be allowed to spend $20 on a set of books was like Christmas in September.

Book #13: The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman – I tried to read these before. A friend (the same one that told me about The Two Towers in fact) lent them to me and I didn't even make it to chapter 4 of this book. I loved the movie, adored it, and I want to see how close they got to the book(s).

Book #14: The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman – As long as I have all three of them in the series I may as well read them, right? It's not like an opportunity will present itself like this all the time. I heard lot of good things and a lot of bad things about this book series. I don't know which one I am going to believe, but as long as the story is well-written, I don't think what the writer's personal life is like is all that important.

Book #15: The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman – Because I have all three of them. That is the only reason why this book made it onto the list. I don't want to leave the series unfinished unless I really really don't like the first and/or second volume of the book. I know I liked what I read of volume one, I just got very busy and had to put it down.

Well that's my list. I'd love to know if you read any of these books or if you have suggestions for books I should read. If I don't get to all of these books by the end of December, they will just go into the 15 Books I Want to Read in 2016 pile.