January;

It's currently the 3rd of January and I'm a bit late with this post but better late than never! I've been away for a few weeks and it's so nice to be back home. It's quite cold today which is nice because we've had shocking heat for the past week or so. It's great weather to stay in with a book or two. I finished the Devil by Leo Tolstoy this morning which was a disappointing and uncomfortable novella for me but I'm planning to read Mrs Dalloway by Virgina Woolf next so hopefully I have more success with that one.

I have a few reading plans for January but I'm trying not to put too much pressure on myself to read set books. I always read more when I just let myself read what I want. In the past I've noticed that I've felt like I need to persevere through books even though I'm not enjoying them and that's something I'm trying to change. There's no use not enjoying your reading experience and I think that's why I've been in reading ruts through the years; I just stop enjoying the experience. Along with writing more reviews/writing original content that's the other bookish resolution I'm determined to stick to.

As for my reading plans this month I have a few books I want to read. Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf is the first one. I was determined that it would be my first book of 2016 but I didn't finish The Devil in time so it'll be my second. Still, I'm very excited about reading this one. I've wanted to read it for years but something has scared me about it. I'm not sure why because I loved To the Lighthouse and that didn't intimidate me at all. There's just something about Mrs Dalloway that scares me. I'm looking forward to the challenge though. I also bought Mill on the Floss by George Eliot which I'm desperate to read as soon as possible. I've heard nothing but great things about it and it seems like a book I'll absolutely love. I'm making a deliberate choice to read more literature written by women this year and I hope to read at least three or four texts by women this month. For my first Deal Me In text I drew White Nights by Fyodor Dostoyevsky which is really more of a novella than a short story so I hope I have more luck with that one than the Devils. I want to read a Euripides play or two this month as well. I also need to continue reading Sir Gawain and the Green Knight as I've been unable to read it in recent weeks due to my leaving it at home when I went away. Other than that I'm just going to see where the wind takes me.

Happy reading!