Or semi-plan.

I don’t usually plan my reading for the year, but this year, inspired by some fellow book bloggers, I’ve decided to add a list of classics or near classics to my typical ARC and contemporary reading.

While I knew that I already wanted to read Walden by Henry David Thoreau and Emma by Jane Austen, I decided to take a look at some of the “best” lists that are abundant on the web. The remainder of my selections came from a list provided by Penguin UK 100 must-read classic books, as chosen by our readers and another of their lists Must-read books by women, as chosen by our readers.

Considering that I majored in English Literature in college and chose literature electives in high school, I have read many of the classics on the Penguin list. However, I did find the necessary 10 to round out my list of 12 classics for the year.

Here’s the list in no particular order, well, except in the order they were chosen.

1.  Walden by Henry David Thoreau

2.  100 Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

3.  The Secret History by Donna Tart

4.  Persuasion by Jane Austen

5.  The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

6.  Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck

7.  The Sea, The Sea by Iris Murdoch

8.  The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

9.  Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky

10.  Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig

11.  The Amateur Marriage by Anne Tyler

12.  Emma by Jane Austen

The first book I’m going to undertake is The Sea, The Sea by Iris Murdoch. Here’s the blurb:

Join me, if you like!