My reading list

If you know me, you know that I absolutely love books and reading. So I thought I'd keep a list of books I read. This will be updated as I go, so keep checking back here from time to time :)

2024

1. The Way Home: Tales from a life without technology, Mark Boyle. Non-fiction, memoir, off-grid living.

2. The Sandman, Volume 1, Neil Gaiman. Fiction, comic book / graphic novel, fantasy.

3. The Sandman, Volume 2, Neil Gaiman. Fiction, comic book / graphic novel, fantasy.

4. The Sandman, Volume 3, Neil Gaiman. Fiction, comic book / graphic novel, fantasy.

5. By Ash, Oak, and Thorn, Melissa Harrison. Fiction, children's, nature.

6. Stolen Focus: Why you can't pay attention, Johann Hari. Non-fiction, social sciences, psychology.

7. Cat Lady, Dawn O'Porter. Fiction, popular fiction, independent women, pet lovers.

8. Assistant to the Villain, Hannah Nicole Maehrer. Fiction, fantasy, cosy, lighthearted, humour.

9. One Good Thing, Alexandra Potter. Fiction, popular fiction, independent women, starting over, pet lovers, community, friendship.

2023

1. Latitude, Nicholas Crane. Non-fiction, history, scientific exploration.

2. Taste, Stanley Tucci. Non-fiction, memoir, food.

3. Scenes from Prehistoric Life, Francis Pryor. Non-fiction, archaeology, British prehistory.

4. Burn, Ben Short. Non-fiction, memoir, traditional skills, forestry, lifestyle change, mental health.

5. I Am Ace: A Guide to Living Your Best Asexual Life, Cody Daigle-Orians. Non-fiction, queer/LGBTQ+, asexuality.

6. Holes, Louis Sachar. Fiction, children's/teens.

7. Loveless, Alice Oseman. Fiction, teen/young adult, queer/LGBTQ+, asexuality, aromanticism.

8. Sounds Fake But Okay, Sarah Costello & Kayla Kaszyca. Non-fiction, queer/LGBTQ+, asexuality, aromanticism.

9. The Ruin of All Witches, Malcolm Gaskill. Non-fiction, history, 17th century America, witch trials.

10. The Willows in Winter, William Horwood. Fiction, classic literature, children's, talking animals.

11. It's Not That Radical: Climate Action to Transform Our World, Mikaela Loach. Non-fiction, climate justice, social justice, activism.

12. A Fortunate Woman: A Country Doctor's Story, Polly Morland, Non-fiction, biography, rural society.

13. The Salt Path, Raynor Winn. Non-fiction, memoir, walking, homelessness, personal endurance.

14. The Living Mountain, Nan Shepherd. Non-fiction, memoir, nature writing, Cairngorms.

15. The Borrowers, Mary Norton. Fiction, children's, classic literature.

16. Wolf Brother, (book one of The Chronicles of Ancient Darkness), Michelle Paver. Fiction, children's, historical fantasy.

17. Legends & Lattes, Travis Baldree. Fiction, fantasy, low-stakes, cottagecore.

18. Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries, Heather Fawcett. Fiction, historical fantasy.

19. Untypical, Pete Wharmby. Non-fiction, autism.

20. Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, Gabrielle Zevin. Fiction, contemporary, friendship, love, gaming.

21. The Hobbit, J.R.R. Tolkien. Fiction, classic, fantasy, children's.

22. Conan Doyle for the Defence, Margalit Fox. Non-fiction, true crime, history, detective literature.

23. The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupery. Fiction, classic, children's, fable.

24. The Druidry Handbook, John Michael Greer. Non-fiction, druidry, earth-based spirituality.

25. Being Pagan, Rhyd Wildermuth. Non-fiction, paganism, earth-based spirituality.

26. Endeavour: The ship that changed the world, Peter Moore. Non-fiction, history, exploration, discovery.

27. The Lost World, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Fiction, classic, adventure.

28. Equal Rites, Terry Pratchett. Fiction, fantasy, witches.

29. What Do Druids Believe?, Philip Carr-Gomm. Non-fiction, druidry, earth-based spirituality.

30. Magic Lessons, Alice Hoffman. Fiction, historical fantasy, witchcraft. (A prequel to Practical Magic.)

31. Godless Paganism: Voices of non-theistic pagans, John Halstead. Non-fiction, atheist paganism.

32. Atheopaganism: An Earth-honouring path rooted in science, Mark Green. Non-fiction, atheist paganism.

33. Godless Magick: A brief guide on atheistic witchcraft, Anna Mist. Non-fiction, atheist witchcraft.

34. The Rules of Magic, Alice Hoffman. Fiction, fantasy, witchcraft. (A prequel to Practical Magic.)

35. A Spell in the Wild, Alice Tarbuck. Non-fiction, memoir, history, witchcraft.

36. Unmasked: The ultimate guide to ADHD, autism, and neurodivergence, Ellie Middleton. Non-fiction, autism, neurodivergence.

37. The Dictionary of Lost Words, Pip Williams. Fiction, historical, words, feminism.

38. Sleep: Redefine your rest for success in work, sport, and life, Nick Littlehales. Non-fiction, sleep science.

39. Journey to the Centre of the Earth, Jules Verne. Fiction, classic, adventure.

40. A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens. Fiction, classic.

2022

...I didn't record this! But I do remember I re-read an old fantasy favourite of mine, The Black Magician's Trilogy by Trudi Canavan, which was prompted by reading Beltane by Alys West, which I devoured over a couple of days because it took me right back to my teenage love of magic and witchcraft and the story I used to try to write. And Lolly Willowes by Sylvia Townsend Warner, which is a short novel from the 1920s about a spinster aunt who decides to leave her family in London and move to a random village in the middle of nowhere, eventually making a deal with Satan to become a witch. The second half of it is really quite odd and it ends rather abruptly, but it was quirky and interesting.

2021

1. "The Other Bennet Sister", Janice Hadlow. Fiction, historical, Austen-style.
2. "Stories of the Woods and Wild Places", Jason Buck. Fiction, folk tales, short stories, storytelling.
3. "Miss Austen", Gill Hornby. Fiction, historical.
4. "Finding Merlin", Adam Ardrey. Non-fiction, history.
5. "A Murder is Announced", Agatha Christie. Fiction, crime, mystery.
6. "The Shepherd's Life: A Tale of the Lake District", James Rebanks. Non-fiction, memoir, nature, farming.
7. "Anne of Green Gables", Lucy Maud Montgomery. Fiction, classic, children's, rural idyll.
8. "A Year of Living Simply: The joys of a life less complicated", Kate Humble. Non-fiction, simple living.
9. "Birds, Beasts, and Relatives" (book two of The Corfu Trilogy), Gerald Durrell. Non-fiction, memoir, natural history, living abroad.
10. "Friendship in the Age of Loneliness: An Optimist's Guide to Connection", Adam 'Smiley' Poswolsky. Non-fiction, friendship, connection.
11. "The Garden of the Gods" (book three of The Corfu Trilogy), Gerald Durrell. Non-fiction, memoir, natural history, living abroad.
12. "The Vine Witch", Luanne G. Smith. Fiction, fantasy, romance, paranormal, escapist.
13. "The Switch", Beth O'Leary. Fiction, chick lit.
14. "We Should Get Together: The secret to cultivating better friendships", Kat Vellos. Non-fiction, friendship, connection.
15. "Goddesses in Everywoman", Jean Shinoda Bolen. Non-fiction, psychology, archetypes. 
16. "The Secret Life of Bletchley Park: The wartime codebreaking centre and the men and women who worked there", Sinclair McKay. Non-fiction, history, WW2, military intelligence.
17. "Let's Talk About Love", Claire Kann. Fiction, young adult, romance, LGBTQ+, asexuality.
18. "The Comfort Book", Matt Haig. Non-fiction, hope, reflections, anecdotes, mental health.
19. "Great Expeditions: 50 journeys that changed our world", Mark Steward, Alan Greenwood, Christopher Riches, Richard Happer. Non-fiction, history, expeditions, adventure, science, discovery.
20. "English Pastoral: An inheritance", James Rebanks. Non-fiction, memoir, nature, farming.
21. "The Fifth Sacred Thing", Starhawk. Fiction, solarpunk, utopia/dystopia, environmentalist.
22. "Come As You Are: The surprising new science that will transform your sex life", Emily Nagoski. Non-fiction, science, women's sexuality.
23. "The Running Hare: The secret life of farmland", John Lewis-Stempel. Non-fiction, nature writing, memoir, farming.
24. "Conversations on Love", Natasha Lunn. Non-fiction, love, friendship, relationships, family.
25. "Microadventures: Local discoveries for great escapes", Alistair Humphreys. Non-fiction, outdoor activities, adventure.
26. "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring", J.R.R. Tolkien. Fiction, high fantasy, adventure.
27. "Ace: What asexuality reveals about desire, society, and the meaning of sex", Angela Chen. Non-fiction, a/sexuality, LGBTQ+.
28. "A Single Revolution: Don't look for a match, light one", Shani Silver. Non-fiction, singlehood, dating, society.
29. "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers", J.R.R. Tolkien. Fiction, high fantasy, adventure.
30. "The Making of the British Landscape", Nicholas Crane. Non-fiction, history, natural history. 
31. "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King", J.R.R. Tolkien. Fiction, high fantasy, adventure.

2020

1. "Between Stone and Sky: Memoir of a Waller", Whitney Brown. Non-fiction, memoir, nature, traditional skills, feminism.
2. "The Earthsea Quartet", Ursula Le Guin. Fiction, fantasy.
3. "Hearth Witch", Anna Franklin. Non-fiction, spirituality, paganism, witchcraft, nature.
4. "The January Man: A Year of Walking Britain", Christopher Somerville. Non-fiction, walking, nature, Britain.
5. "Seasons of the Sacred Earth", Cliff Seruntine. Non-fiction, spirituality, paganism, nature.
6. "The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know Is Possible", Charles Eisenstein. Non-fiction, philosophy, nature, spirituality.
7. "Dear Fatty", Dawn French. Non-fiction, memoir.
8. "Norse Mythology", Neil Gaiman. Fiction, mythology, a bit dip-in dip-out.
9. "Eight Master Lessons of Nature", Gary Ferguson. Non-fiction, nature, philosophy, personal growth.
10. "Sense and Sensibility", Jane Austen. Fiction.
11. "Emma", Jane Austen. Fiction.
12. "England, Our England", Alan Titchmarsh. Non-fiction, anthology, miscellany.
13. "Unorthodox: The Scandalous Rejection of my Hasidic Roots", Deborah Feldman. Non-fiction, memoir, religion, culture.
14. "The Secret Garden", Frances Hodgson Burnett. Fiction, classic children's.
15. "Jane Austen: The Secret Radical", Helena Kelly. Non-fiction, literature, history.
16. "A Room of One's Own", Virginia Woolf. Non-fiction, essays, literature, writing, women, feminism.
17. "My Family and Other Animals" (book one of The Corfu Trilogy), Gerald Durrell. Non-fiction, memoir, natural history, living abroad.
18. "Diary of a Young Naturalist", Dara McAnulty. Non-fiction, memoir, diary, nature, wildlife, conservation, autistic experience.
19. "The Lost Queen", Signe Pike. Fiction, fantasy, historical.
20. "As Always, Julia: The Letters of Julia Child and Avis DeVoto". Non-fiction, collection, personal letters.
21. "A Thousand Days in Tuscany", Marlena de Blasi. Non-fiction, memoir, food, living abroad. 
22. "Murder on the Orient Express", Agatha Christie. Fiction, crime/mystery.
23. "A Series of Unfortunate Events, Book the First: The Bad Beginning", Lemony Snicket. Fiction, children's, gothic, absurdist.
24. "A Series of Unfortunate Events, Book the Second: The Reptile Room", Lemony Snicket.
25. "A Series of Unfortunate Events, Book the Third: The Wide Window", Lemony Snicket.
26. "A Series of Unfortunate Events, Book the Fourth: The Miserable Mill", Lemony Snicket. 
27. "A Series of Unfortunate Events, Book the Fifth: The Austere Academy", Lemony Snicket.
28. "Northanger Abbey", Jane Austen. Fiction.
29. "Fantastic Mr. Fox", Roald Dahl. Fiction, classic children's.
30. "The Wild Places", Robert Macfarlane. Non-fiction, nature, Britain.
31. "Esio Trot", Roald Dahl. Fiction, classic children's.
32. "Matilda", Roald Dahl. Fiction, classic children's.
33. "The BFG", Roald Dahl. Fiction, classic children's.
34. "Salmon Fishing in the Yemen", Paul Torday. Fiction.
35. "Secret Britain", Mary-Ann Ochota. Non-fiction, archaeology, dip-in/dip-out.
36. "Robin Hood", John Matthews. Non-fiction, mythology, folklore.
37. "Heidi", Johanna Spyri. Fiction, classic children's, rural mountain idyll.
38. "Good Omens", Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett. Fiction, fantasy.
39. "Back to Nature: How to love life - and save it", Chris Packham & Megan McCubbin. Non-fiction, nature, conservation.