In 2025 I got out of my comfort zone and read a lot of things I wouldn't have read normally. This as well as the amount of books I was able to get through were from the sheer amount of literature courses I took in 2025 (4 in total; The Bronte Sisters, Environmental World Literature, Scandinavian Crime Fiction, and Monsters and the Monstrous in British Literature). I was worried at first that I wasn't going to like taking courses on literature because even though reading is something I've always loved to do, I wasn't sure if I'd be able to enjoy it as much in a college classroom setting. As it turns out, I think these were the most fun classes I've taken! I was happy I got to branch out my reading this year and was pleasantly surprised. I got to read classics that I'd always meant to but never got around to on my own like Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte, and The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson. I also read books that were completely new to me but that I was surprised by how much I liked them like House of Many Gods by Kiana Davenport, Lady Audley's Secret by Mary Elizabeth Braddon, and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte. I read a lot outside of my classes, too, but I think the classes gave me a greater appreciation for what I was reading. I found value even in the books I didn't enjoy all that much. Over all, I'd say it was a great year!
1. Cowboy Park by Eduardo MartÃnez-Leyva
Some of the poems were more explicit while others were more sad, but all of them were some kind of vulnerable and intimate. This was his debut collection, but his is a name I will definitely remember and be on the lookout for whenever I'm looking at poetry.
2. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
I had so many feelings about this book, and I think I'm still trying to sort them out properly. Brilliant Novel.
3. The Rabbit Factor Trilogy by Antti Tuomainen
Genuinely, I loved this trology so much! I usually gravitate more towards horror or similar genres, so this was refreshing. I might see about reading even more of Tuomainen in the future.
4. Lady Audley's Secret by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
Every time I thought I knew what was going to happen, I was pleasantly shocked to find myself wrong.
5. The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
I was surprised by how much I liked this book! I think Salinger did an amazing job writing a teenager, especially with such emotional depth and attention to the fragility of Holden's psyche. Definitely one of my favorite books I've read this year.