Top Ten Tuesday: Books on my Spring TBR

"Top Ten Tuesday" is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by The Artsy Reader Girl!

The cloudy Washington skies are starting to clear up for an afternoon at a time, the flowers that we planted in good faith in the fall are finally pulling through on their promises and brightening up our front yard, and Instagrams from younger collegiate friends still spending their breaks in Cabo mean that Spring has totally arrived!

With that comes daydreams of new gauzy Easter dresses, breaking out old and battered Saltwater sandals, mixing up pitchers full of lemonade, and blessing my skin with moderate amounts of Vitamin D... and, of course, my now-annual Spring sojourn to my favorite place in the whole world, Sunriver, Oregon, tagging along with my younger siblings on their Breaks, too.

Which, of course, means plenty of reading time is opening up in front of me (despite the fact that my writing has never kept me this busy, either). When it comes to selections for my Spring TBR, I'm getting pretty varied... and I wouldn't have it any other way!

1. The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath
A classic I've reread many times since my first venture in high school, but haven't touched in the past few years, I first entertained the idea of trying on this powerful work after reading All the Lives I Want, by Alana Massey, last year. In her essay, "Recovering Sylvia," one of the collection's most powerful, she examines Plath as a figure of literary study and pop culture fixation, and it really resonated with me, so I've been dying to give it another go.

2. The Magician's Land (The Magicians #3), Lev Grossman
I finished the first book last February, and the second this past Feburary, and now I'm just excited to take on the third so I can not only round out the series, but give myself full permission to become obsessed with the SyFy adaptation. 

3. Oh My Gods: A Modern Retelling of Greek and Roman Myths, Philip Freeman
I don't know whether it's the deep-dive obsession I did into the Cast Soundtrack for off-Broadway's Hadestown musical last Fall (which tells the story of Orpheus and Eurydice), or just the fact that I've been feeling the urge to read up on something really classic lately, but this collection has really been calling to me. I tried to read it last Spring Break as a library impulse pick, but never got around to it... now that it was a part of my most recent Book Outlet haul, I'm more tempted to commit!

4. Bloom: Navigating Life and Style, Estee Lalonde
I've been saving this pastel-hued package from one of my favorite YouTubers for a while now, but was looking for the right moment to read. Her familiar voice and expert sense of style imbues this half-memoir-half-guide to living a life of confidence and authenticity. At least, that's what the reviews say. I, of course, have not read it yet, despite having owned it for over a year (Oops!).

5. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, J. K. Rowling
As a part of my ongoing quest to reread all of the Harry Potter novels in 2018, I've got these two lined up fresh for reading this Spring! I mean, yes, technically I'm reading the third right now... but that's because I have to hurry it up, so my brother can read it after me.

6. Ordinary People, Judith Guest
The most recent selection on our Sigma Kappa Sorority National Book Club Reading List! Sure, I have absolutely no idea what this book is about, but at least I can rest easy knowing I'm probably not the only one going in blind. It worked out well with Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, didn't it?

7. A Series of Unfortunate Events #5 - 8, Lemony Snicket
Like with the Harry Potter series, I'm rereading these with my brother, and like with the Magicians series, I'm reading them so that I can watch an excellent television show without any guilt. The new season is coming out on Netflix on March 30th, and I am not prepared!

8. The Power, Naomi Alderman
I kid you not: I've got quite a bit of history with my local library, and I'm not a stranger to their rentals system. But what I am a stranger to, is joining a hold line for a book that has seven copies available, and over 17 people in front of me. Yeah, you heard right. Now I've finally got my hands on it, and there's already a line of 13 behind me, so no chances at renewing here.

9. my WWII-era Nancy Drews, Carolyn Keene
So I listened to the podcast Into the Twilight, and immediately reread the first Twilight novel (and watched the movie, and held a discussion with my family, etc). Now that I've started listening to the funny and conversational Get a Clue, Nancy Drew, I'm not only ready to reread some of my favorites, but I really want to read them in as close to their original state as possible... and there's nothing that screams authenticity like a frontispiece that tells you all about paper rationing.

10. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F***, Mark Manson
As it appears, I'm a sucker for self-help books whose titles run completely counterpoint to the way I was raised and presently conduct my life: I just finished The Art of Non-Conforming, by Chris Guillebeau, and really enjoyed it! This one, though, is propped up by my Dad's praise, too, and I'm looking forward to discussing its merits with him. And, you know, not giving a f***.

What's on your Top Ten? Let me know, in the comments below!