BIG Books on my TBR!

When I was younger I was never intimidated by big books, but I suppose 'big' is very subjective. For me, a really big book is anything that's 600 pages or more, and yet when I was younger reading Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix was nothing, nor were the chunky latter two books in Cornelia Funke's Inkworld trilogy. Lately the biggest book I've read is the conclusion to Marissa Meyer's The Lunar Chronicles, Winter.

For some reason, as I've gotten older, I've begun to find larger books incredibly intimidating and I'm not 100% sure why. I think I've been so eager to read as much as I can in one year because there's always so much I want to read and too little time to read it all in that I've let the big books on my TBR gather dust. Well not anymore! Some books have been on my TBR for far too long, and if I could cross even one of these books off my TBR this year I'd be a very happy bunny.

My lovely friend Natalie @ A Sea Change has sung the praises of Susanna Clarke's Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell many times, but I still haven't read my copy despite owning it for a few years now - it has footnotes, for Heaven's sake! I've heard so many readers praise it as a masterpiece, however, so I need to read it soon.

I'm not the biggest fan of Stephen King's writing, especially when he writes about the supernatural - so far Misery is the book of his I've enjoyed most - but I adored the 2017 adaptation of IT so much that I'd really like to give the book a shot. It's just so huge...

This year will mark nine years since I bought my copy of Alexandre Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo. Nine years. I love a good ol' revenge story and I've actually tried to read this one a couple of times and haven't been able to get into it. One of these days I need to give it another try and, if it still isn't for me, it's time to send my edition off to a more loving home.

Despite being a proud northerner and a lover of Victorian literature, I'm ashamed to admit I've yet to read any Elizabeth Gaskell. One of these days I'm going to read North and South because I love the 2004 adaptation starring Richard Armitage and Daniela Denby-Ashe, but Wives and Daughters is the one that's really calling to me because I've heard so many good things about it. I particularly like that it features a friendship between two stepsisters at the centre of it - step-families have something of a bad reputation in fiction!

I fell in love with Italy when my friend Elena and I visited Rome in 2015, and I've since been lucky enough to visit Florence and Bologna, too. Italo Calvino has selected and retold a variety of stories in Italian Folktales - there are just so many crammed into one book that the idea of starting it makes me feel a bit nervous! I think it's a book I might have to work my way through over an extended period of time.

I've said time and time again how much I want to start Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series, particularly as I'd like to watch the TV adaptation, but the series is so long and each book is so big that it seems like such a huge commitment. One of these days, though, I'd at least like to cross the first book off my TBR and see what I think of the series.

The shortest book on this list, Ken Liu's The Grace of Kings is still a fairly chunky one at just over 600 pages. I was very kindly sent this one for Christmas by Lorraine @ Insanity Sandwich and was thrilled to receive it as I'm very eager to explore more Asian and African-inspired high fantasy. This is one I'm hoping to cross off my TBR very soon!

Another one I've had on my list for a few years now, as a historical fiction fan I'm ashamed to admit I've yet to read any Sharon Kay Penman. Here Be Dragons is a novelisation of Joan, Lady of Wales (also known by her Welsh name, Siwan) who was the illegitimate daughter of King John and was married to the Welsh Prince Llywelyn the Great (or Llywelyn ap Iorwerth). I've been fascinated by her ever since I learned about her which is particularly frustrating because so little about her is actually known. This is another one I'd like to cross off my list sooner rather than later!

Are you intimidated by big books? Which larger books would you like to cross off your TBR?

Top Ten Tuesday | Shut up and take my money

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature created at The Broke and the Bookish. Each week you compile a list of ten books which coincide with that week's theme. You can find everything you need to know about joining in here!

This week's theme is 'Ten Books You'd Buy Right This Second If Someone Handed You A Fully Loaded Gift Card', which I actually found quite tough purely because I have no control - I buy way more books than I should, in fact most of my wages go on books, but I do have a few I still haven't completely convinced myself to buy. Yet.

Tale as Old as Time: The Art and Making of Beauty and the Beast by Charles Solomon: Disney's Beauty and the Beast is my favourite film. Ever. The Mummy is a very close contender, but I've adored Beauty and the Beast since I was a little girl and still love it now. I wish I had this book on my shelves, but I believe it's out of print which means it's being sold for around £200 online. I want it, but I don't want it that much. One day I hope I can find one for a decent price!

His Last Fire by Alix Nathan: This is a collection of historical fiction short stories, something I very rarely come across. I love historical fiction and I'd like to read more short stories in this genre, and this collection has received a lot of wonderful praise.

Red: A History of the Redhead by Jacky Colliss Harvey: I came across this book in my local Waterstones a couple of weeks ago and almost bought it, until I discovered this beautiful hardback edition existed. Unfortunately the hardback is a little expensive, so I'm hoping to either snap it up when the price has come down or ask for it for my next birthday.

Italian Folktales by Italo Calvino: Since going to Rome last year I've completely fallen in love with Italy, and was lucky enough to return there again earlier this year when I went to Florence. This is quite a chunky book of folktales, and another fairly expensive one, so I think it's another book I'll be adding to my birthday list this year...

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo: I've never been too fussed by Leigh Bardugo. The Grisha trilogy doesn't interest me and while I've heard great things about Six of Crows, and I do love a heist story, nothing has compelled me to pick it up until I read her short story 'Head, Scales, Tongue, Tail' in Summer Days & Summer Nights. I really enjoyed Bardugo's addition to the anthology, so I'd like to check out Six of Crows soon!

The Uninvited by Cat Winters: Mallory @ The Local Muse has been recommending Cat Winters to me for yonks, and I love the sound of The Uninvited. I think I'm going to pick a copy up near Halloween, as I'd like to read a bunch of spooky novels this October!

Female Gothic Histories by Diana Wallace: Unlike any of the other books on this list, Female Gothis Histories is actually a piece of academic criticism - it's the kind of book I was always dipping in and out of during university to pick out quotes for my various essays. I actually work at the publishing house which publishes this book and therefore can get a discount, but even with the discount this book, being an academic book, is very expensive. Diana Wallace specialises in the study of historical fiction, during my MA I ended up dipping in and out of her other books, and in Female Gothic Histories she explores how female writers have used the Gothic to rewrite women into history, which is an idea that fascinates me.

The Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood: I seriously need to read more Atwood. One of my colleagues recently recommended The Robber Bride to me, and it wasn't until he recommended it that I realised it's actually a fairy tale retelling. I really enjoyed The Penelopiad (reviewed here!), another of Atwood's retellings, so I'd like to get my hands on a copy of this one, too.

Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: I've heard nothing but amazing things about Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and her novels have recently been released in these gorgeous new editions, so I'd like to treat myself to a copy of her debut novel soon.

Doomsday Book by Connie Willis: Doomsday Book sounds like time travel that's dedicated to accurately portraying the history rather than exploring the science, and I love the sound of that. I've heard it takes some getting into and that it's rather slow-moving but I don't mind that at all - I think I may add this book to my Christmas list this year!

Which books made your list this week?