cup of black coffee

There is nothing better than settling in to read a new book with a cup of something warm to drink. I love reading on the beach, and I love reading outside, but there is something so soothing and relaxing about opening a book with a hot beverage curled in the fingers of my non-dominant hand. Yeah, it gets awkward when you need to turn the page, but years of practice have paid off. The best thing to drink, in my opinion, is a cup of coffee, black. So I'm looking forward to the me-time that I think this little experiment will bring. My book and my beverage, curled in bed or on the couch, navy bootcamp sweatpants (I stole them from someone and he's never getting them back now), glasses on. It's my happy place. I can't wait.

I've been slowly putting together a list, and I wanted to share with you how I'm going about creating this list. I want it to be a good mix of classics and contemporaries, so I'm doing my research. Other than suggestions of friends, family, and (hopefully soon) followers, I've been digging around and here's what I've found:

YALSA
YALSA is part of ALA, the American Library Association. It awards work in Young Adult literature, and I used this website extensively during my Young Adult Lit class in college. I've been scouring through recent and past award winners, trying to look in the non-fiction sections, as well.

1001 Before You Die
This is part of the 1001 series. They provide a list of 1001 books people should read in their lifetime, compiled by over one hundred literary critics worldwide. It's got a very wide range, so I went through all 1001 and picked out some that sounded interesting, or that I'd always wanted to read. Eventually, I'd LOVE to get through the entire list. Can you imagine how satisfying that would be?

GoodReads
Another one from my Young Adult Lit class. It has recommendations, and ranks them with the most popular. Each book also comes with reviews written by real people (not critics, but people who just love to read!).

All TIME 100 Novels
This is TIME Magazine's top 100 English language novels since 1923. It's along the same lines as the 1001 Best Books, just a list of books that are considered great.

100 Books Every High School Student Should Read
If this is the list of books every high school kid should read, I guess I should read them, too? That's what I figured, anyway. I graduated from high school without reading a decent number of these books, and now I teach high school. I need to get on this... And soon.

But the most important part of my list comes from everyone who offers me suggestions. I love to read books other people love. There is such a communal feeling, like you are in a relationship with the author and the other person, sharing something wonderful, like a secret.

So go check out the websites! See how many of the books you can say you have read. :) And keep leaving suggestions!