Backlist Books I Need to Read In 2025

I have a running Notes app list of books I've seen in bookstores and recommended online that I want to read eventually. I used to just put in Libby requests, but sometimes they don't have the book, and that was also a great way to create a holds avalanche. At the start of the year, I started using Storygraph for the first time, and I decided to transfer my list into the app to formalize it. Now, I'm sharing them all with you along with where I heard about the books and why I want to read them to both hold myself accountable to reading these throughout the year and share some reading inspo with you. 

 Scaffolding by Lauren Elkin

This is a book that I saw talked about in Jack Edwards's video of books he wants to read this year. It's from 2024 and is about 2 different couples that live in the same apartments at different points in time. I am very sentimental about the places that I've lived, so I feel like this will be a super interesting read.

Slow Days, Fast Company by Eve Babitz

Now for a major blast from the past, this goes back decades to its first publication. But reading Didion & Babitz at the start of the year has re-sparked my curiosity for reading Babitz's work. She sounds like a very fun author, and I believe that this is more like a short story collection than a typical novel. Slow Days seems to be her most lauded work, some regard as peak-Eve, so that's where I think I'll start.

Small Rain by Garth Greenwell

I picked this up at the library but then set it down because I tend to be sensitive about stories where death and illness are super top of mind, and I hadn't seen anyone talking about it. The second the book had flashed onto my radar, though, I started to notice it in a ton of booksta posts, and it was also featured in Jack's recent video. This will have to be timed for when I'm in a really good headspace, but it sounds beautiful based on the reviews I've seen.

I Hope This Finds You Well by Natalie Sue

I was a little slow to finish writing this post, so I've already read this one. The pink and red cartoon cover caught my eye, and I always find books set in any kind of workplace interesting. I thought it was interesting the way that the book used romance tropes that were very familiar in unexpected ways.

Sirens & Muses by Antonia Angress

This is a campus novel about painters, need I say more? I think I saw this on a table at Waterstones, though I'm not totally sure where I found this. I'm curious about the interweaving narrative and the setting. It's also gotten strong reviews on Storygraph, which is exciting.

This Is How You Remember It by Catherine Prasifka

I think it's the cover that drew me in to this one. A good, quintessential lit fit cover. I think I saw this one recommended on Bookstagram and added it to my TBR list without even reading the summary. I'm surprised I didn't notice till now that this is a Prasifka book since I've had her other book on my TBR for so long. It bills itself as "about a life lied online," and that's always a hook that will get me.

Dear Dickhead by Virginie Despentes

This recommendation came from Jack Edwards talking about it a few different times. The title is definitely eye-catching. I believe that this is a novel told through emails, and I am a lover of the epistolary format. I think it also involves an actress and a novelist, which holds its own kind of intrigue. I believe this is a French novel, which I haven't read much of before, especially modern novels.

Dinner Party by Sarah Gilmartin

Here's another one I've checked off the list before I even finished writing it. Sarah Gilmartin's more recent book, Service, was a surprise favorite of last year, so, of course, I wanted to read her other book as soon as possible. Gilmartin writes the most captivating prose and carries a breathtaking realism across her work. I'm a huge fan.

Jane Austen, The Secret Radical by Helena Kelly

This I know I did find in Waterstones. I'd bought too many books to pick it up, and I was hoping there was an audio version (I don't think there is). But this is a nonfiction title delving into Jane Austen, writer of my favorite classic but an author I don't know much about. I was thoroughly intrigued by the summary here.

Everyone I Know Is Dying by Emily Slapper

This is just one of those titles that will get me. I'm not a fan of either book that this one is comped to (Sorrow and Bliss and Cleopatra and Frankenstein). But I do like the general ideas of both of those books. My problems were with the execution. This seems to be a toxic love triangle, exploration of depression type story. I don't read those as often now, but there's something about this one that made me put it on my list to try out.

None of This Is Serious by Catherine Prasifka

This book has been on my list for years. I almost bought it in Edinburgh, but the Goodreads reviews were so deeply mixed that despite being intrigued by it for years, I couldn't bring myself to purchase it. Reading the first few pages in the store, I didn't love the voice, and discovering that there was a speculative twist made me uneasy. But I've wanted to read this so long that I should probably get it from the library if it comes available.

* I didn't realize until I sat here and typed out the list that I had two different books by Catherine Prasifka on the list. If you want a fun bit of random trivia, I learned from Goodreads that Catherine Prasifka is related to Sally Rooney via Rooney's husband. 

Comments

  1. I hope this finds you well is also on my list! And dear dickhead sounds absolutely hilarious 🤣

    Kristina @ books-and-dachshunds.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It does sound hilarious! I can't wait for my hold to come in.

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