2022 reading goals..? hopefully! Yes :-)
Feb. 7th, 2022 11:37 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
g3ryonhappy february! I have been meaning to create a more organized plan of my reading goals for 2022 so here I am. Not to be corny but the #bookaissance of my life has been the most fulfilling thing that has happened to me recently, especially considering pre 2020 I had only been reading books seriously for school. The sad truth - I still wonder what happened in the jump from book obsessed late-to-class-from-overstaying-in-the-library elementary school me to middle and high school me, who lost out of touch with reading regularly for fun. But maybe that doesn't matter, I'm just happy I'm reading regularly again now :P Honestly I'm surprised with the variety of books that I managed to read in 2021, though it isn't a lot! And I'm proud of myself for even surpassing my reading goal of 15 books. My favorites of 2021 were:
- Água Viva, Clarice Lispector
- Zami: A New Spelling of my Name, Audre Lorde
- The Lesbian Body: Monique Wittig
- Last Night at the Telegraph Club: Malinda Lo
Not sure if reactivating goodreads helped keep my goal in check? I liked being able to track my progress and organize my shelves... I also joined several groups like the sapphic lit group (hey oomfaisha) which were fun. That being said, despite having reading apps like goodreads and storygraph, I've found that their recommendation algorithms (goodreads especially) haven't been too good, the interfaces are ass, and it got boring for me really fast? idk! Will still keep using goodreads casually but i'm Excited to experiment with a longer form platform like this (thanks oomfvivi for the rec, the blogaissance agenda is so Real).
Anyway....!! here are my main Reading #goals for 2022 and yes I will be sticking to them whatever affirmation tactic that's like you attract what you already are yadda yadda
1. Read more sapphic lit: I read four sapphic lit books in 2021: We Are Okay by Nina Lacour, Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo, and the Forgotten Gods duology by Marie Rutkoski which includes The Midnight Lie and The Hollow Heart. The first two books were part of the sapphic lit group monthly reading challenges and they were instant favorites!!! I love love lesbian media and being a lesbian and I need to read more lesbian books because I know there are good ones out there! Following sapphic lit bot is proof of that.. so. Idk there are just a lot I've taken note of and I am determined. I reckon it'll be good for my soul :B And iiiii also want #painful works lol? Like I don't really want sapphic books that necessarily have romance as the main plot or more especially a happy, sweet ending feel good romance. This sounds so pretentious lol but I want gritty and morally ambiguous characters ! The weirdness of lesbian desire ! Feelings of isolation and consumption and obsession and going crazy (I am obviously not well in the head) ! This was basically The Lesbian Body by Monique Wittig (does that count as sapphic lit? idk. it was like an insane epic book length lesbian poem) Going to open this goal to all genres, so would loveee to read lesbian/sapphic memoirs and works by sapphic authors in general; though I do need to read more fiction! Which brings me to my second goal:
2. Read more fiction (aka things outside of my comfort zone): I think having a general balance of fiction and non fiction would be good this year, and I think reading fiction might jog my brain in different ways/recall my high school English Lit tendencies lol! I am thinking that one way to accomplish this goal could be to specifically find books that can be allegorical to contemporary social issues and or Marxist fiction (the Forgotten Gods duology is an example of this: so many themes of class, empire, domestic labor that can be analyzed through a Marxist feminist lens): authors like Sally Rooney (excited to read Beautiful World, Where Are You? after being completely shattered by CWF and Normal People), Ottessa Moshfegh, James Baldwin, and Toni Morrisson come to mind. And my brother recently recommended me the sci-fi series Terra Ignota by Ada Palmer (a post-capitalist allegory ?!) and Same Same by Peter Mendelsund: his taste in books is very different from mine (fiction, especially sci-fi, I recommended him Água Viva last year and it was not his favorite) so it would be nice to further discuss reading and books with him in this way. :)
3. Read more art/cultural theory and criticism: I feel like this is a no brainer for me LOL it's important for my own artistic practice and shit is just INTERESTING man. Like there are really so many topics Ive been meaning to read on and foundational theory I need to understand and apply (to contemporary social contexts, to the fast changing technological transition and transformation of art and art mediums). I've been reading The Wretched of the Screen by Hito Steyerl and WOW what a collection of essays...! Steyerl talks about the collapse of the horizon, the image and consumption, art and work and the consequences of capitalism in such a uniquely thoughtful and striking way: as Goodreads user Julia comments, "I felt a similar way reading [Steyerl's] writing to how I felt reading Clarice Lispector - like the sentences aren't two-dimensional but three, that you step halfway into an idea or a phrase before having to turn around and re-orient yourself. Her words aren't flat on the paper and neither are her ideas; they're rooms into which you step, graph-paper sculptures of space and time and constructs that might fly invisible if you don't look closely enough." Also, the political intimacy class I am taking this semester which is my favorite class so far is currently discussing socially engaged art and pedagogy which is fucking awesome - we recently read Pablo Helguera's Socially Engaged Art and the collaborative participation of socially engaged art. General authors I have in mind: Sianne Ngai, Susan Sontag, Boris Groys, Christina Sharpe, Rey Chow. Also also alsooooo. I've been reading Vision and Difference by Griselda Pollock and Membaca Praktik Negosiasi Seniman Perempuan Dan Politik Gender Orde Baru (lit. translation: Reading the Negotiation Methods of Women Artists and Gender Politics during [Indonesia's] New Order) by Alia Swastika - WE (I) FUCKING LOVE MARXIST FEMINIST ART HISTORIANS...... and we (I) simply need to read more. AND Indonesian art historians. WHICHHH brings me to my next goal:
4. READ MORE INDONESIAN LIT!!!! Also another no brainer for me! I'm especially interested in reading Indonesian poetry (especially women poets, especially contemporary poets) because I generally read English poetry and it would be interesting to compare the difference of use of (objective/figurative) language in either language. Reading more Indonesian would be good practice for me anyway especially since moving out has reduced my amount of both verbal and written Indonesian communication. I also want to read more Indonesian fiction, as well as Indonesian critical and Marxist theory as that will solidify my understanding of and ability to discuss theory in both languages and move towards praxis, especially with other Indonesian Marxists. which brings me to my final goal :))))
5. Read more Marxist/communist theory: the other fulfilling thing that came from the fulfilling thing that was my 2021 #bookaissance was my gradual radicalization into communism and the deep contemplation it provided me in a time of despair and isolation, especially in combating the liberalism that has polluted spaces of academia as evidenced since high school. I am reminded that my natural vocation seems to be learning and eventually communicating this information with others towards a collaborative, liberatory future: I am grateful for the light that learning about revolutionaries of Indonesia, of Southeast Asia, and around the world and reading their work has given me, and especially for dialectical materialism and the Marxist method which has also deeply influenced my own personal and artistic practices. I am very much still a baby Marxist lol, and this is a constant goal that will not just be for this year, but for so long in my duty as a scholar and as someone who hopes to organize in the near future. I forgot who said this, but there is a quote that goes along the lines of "reality is left/the more educated someone is, the more they'll/their reality will skew left." Topics I aim to dive further into this year include Marxist and proletarian feminism, imperialism/globalization and culture and colonialism, postcolonial and decolonial theory and indigenous studies, racial capitalism, queer Marxism, and Marxism in Asia/Southeast Asia. Hoping to balance work by both contemporary and classic authors: general authors I have in mind include Alexandra Kollontai, Anuradha Gandhy, Jasbir Puar, Vijay Prashad, and members of the BPP such as Huey Newton, Assata Shakur, and George Jackson.
Anddd that about sums up my main reading goals for 2022! Reading goal this year is 30 books but I am aiming to go past that, though 30 books is already a good jump from 15. Smaller goal is just to expand my reading of poetry and prose and essays especially by my favorite authors (Carson, Lorde, Lispector, Wittig, basically my newly found 2021 favs) hehehhe. Also would like to clarify that these goals extend to literature outside of [books], so essays, journal articles, etc. so they would be counted in separate reading lists from my formal book list. But yeah! This is fun. Let's fuckinnnnnn read :)
- Água Viva, Clarice Lispector
- Zami: A New Spelling of my Name, Audre Lorde
- The Lesbian Body: Monique Wittig
- Last Night at the Telegraph Club: Malinda Lo
Not sure if reactivating goodreads helped keep my goal in check? I liked being able to track my progress and organize my shelves... I also joined several groups like the sapphic lit group (hey oomfaisha) which were fun. That being said, despite having reading apps like goodreads and storygraph, I've found that their recommendation algorithms (goodreads especially) haven't been too good, the interfaces are ass, and it got boring for me really fast? idk! Will still keep using goodreads casually but i'm Excited to experiment with a longer form platform like this (thanks oomfvivi for the rec, the blogaissance agenda is so Real).
Anyway....!! here are my main Reading #goals for 2022 and yes I will be sticking to them whatever affirmation tactic that's like you attract what you already are yadda yadda
1. Read more sapphic lit: I read four sapphic lit books in 2021: We Are Okay by Nina Lacour, Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo, and the Forgotten Gods duology by Marie Rutkoski which includes The Midnight Lie and The Hollow Heart. The first two books were part of the sapphic lit group monthly reading challenges and they were instant favorites!!! I love love lesbian media and being a lesbian and I need to read more lesbian books because I know there are good ones out there! Following sapphic lit bot is proof of that.. so. Idk there are just a lot I've taken note of and I am determined. I reckon it'll be good for my soul :B And iiiii also want #painful works lol? Like I don't really want sapphic books that necessarily have romance as the main plot or more especially a happy, sweet ending feel good romance. This sounds so pretentious lol but I want gritty and morally ambiguous characters ! The weirdness of lesbian desire ! Feelings of isolation and consumption and obsession and going crazy (I am obviously not well in the head) ! This was basically The Lesbian Body by Monique Wittig (does that count as sapphic lit? idk. it was like an insane epic book length lesbian poem) Going to open this goal to all genres, so would loveee to read lesbian/sapphic memoirs and works by sapphic authors in general; though I do need to read more fiction! Which brings me to my second goal:
2. Read more fiction (aka things outside of my comfort zone): I think having a general balance of fiction and non fiction would be good this year, and I think reading fiction might jog my brain in different ways/recall my high school English Lit tendencies lol! I am thinking that one way to accomplish this goal could be to specifically find books that can be allegorical to contemporary social issues and or Marxist fiction (the Forgotten Gods duology is an example of this: so many themes of class, empire, domestic labor that can be analyzed through a Marxist feminist lens): authors like Sally Rooney (excited to read Beautiful World, Where Are You? after being completely shattered by CWF and Normal People), Ottessa Moshfegh, James Baldwin, and Toni Morrisson come to mind. And my brother recently recommended me the sci-fi series Terra Ignota by Ada Palmer (a post-capitalist allegory ?!) and Same Same by Peter Mendelsund: his taste in books is very different from mine (fiction, especially sci-fi, I recommended him Água Viva last year and it was not his favorite) so it would be nice to further discuss reading and books with him in this way. :)
3. Read more art/cultural theory and criticism: I feel like this is a no brainer for me LOL it's important for my own artistic practice and shit is just INTERESTING man. Like there are really so many topics Ive been meaning to read on and foundational theory I need to understand and apply (to contemporary social contexts, to the fast changing technological transition and transformation of art and art mediums). I've been reading The Wretched of the Screen by Hito Steyerl and WOW what a collection of essays...! Steyerl talks about the collapse of the horizon, the image and consumption, art and work and the consequences of capitalism in such a uniquely thoughtful and striking way: as Goodreads user Julia comments, "I felt a similar way reading [Steyerl's] writing to how I felt reading Clarice Lispector - like the sentences aren't two-dimensional but three, that you step halfway into an idea or a phrase before having to turn around and re-orient yourself. Her words aren't flat on the paper and neither are her ideas; they're rooms into which you step, graph-paper sculptures of space and time and constructs that might fly invisible if you don't look closely enough." Also, the political intimacy class I am taking this semester which is my favorite class so far is currently discussing socially engaged art and pedagogy which is fucking awesome - we recently read Pablo Helguera's Socially Engaged Art and the collaborative participation of socially engaged art. General authors I have in mind: Sianne Ngai, Susan Sontag, Boris Groys, Christina Sharpe, Rey Chow. Also also alsooooo. I've been reading Vision and Difference by Griselda Pollock and Membaca Praktik Negosiasi Seniman Perempuan Dan Politik Gender Orde Baru (lit. translation: Reading the Negotiation Methods of Women Artists and Gender Politics during [Indonesia's] New Order) by Alia Swastika - WE (I) FUCKING LOVE MARXIST FEMINIST ART HISTORIANS...... and we (I) simply need to read more. AND Indonesian art historians. WHICHHH brings me to my next goal:
4. READ MORE INDONESIAN LIT!!!! Also another no brainer for me! I'm especially interested in reading Indonesian poetry (especially women poets, especially contemporary poets) because I generally read English poetry and it would be interesting to compare the difference of use of (objective/figurative) language in either language. Reading more Indonesian would be good practice for me anyway especially since moving out has reduced my amount of both verbal and written Indonesian communication. I also want to read more Indonesian fiction, as well as Indonesian critical and Marxist theory as that will solidify my understanding of and ability to discuss theory in both languages and move towards praxis, especially with other Indonesian Marxists. which brings me to my final goal :))))
5. Read more Marxist/communist theory: the other fulfilling thing that came from the fulfilling thing that was my 2021 #bookaissance was my gradual radicalization into communism and the deep contemplation it provided me in a time of despair and isolation, especially in combating the liberalism that has polluted spaces of academia as evidenced since high school. I am reminded that my natural vocation seems to be learning and eventually communicating this information with others towards a collaborative, liberatory future: I am grateful for the light that learning about revolutionaries of Indonesia, of Southeast Asia, and around the world and reading their work has given me, and especially for dialectical materialism and the Marxist method which has also deeply influenced my own personal and artistic practices. I am very much still a baby Marxist lol, and this is a constant goal that will not just be for this year, but for so long in my duty as a scholar and as someone who hopes to organize in the near future. I forgot who said this, but there is a quote that goes along the lines of "reality is left/the more educated someone is, the more they'll/their reality will skew left." Topics I aim to dive further into this year include Marxist and proletarian feminism, imperialism/globalization and culture and colonialism, postcolonial and decolonial theory and indigenous studies, racial capitalism, queer Marxism, and Marxism in Asia/Southeast Asia. Hoping to balance work by both contemporary and classic authors: general authors I have in mind include Alexandra Kollontai, Anuradha Gandhy, Jasbir Puar, Vijay Prashad, and members of the BPP such as Huey Newton, Assata Shakur, and George Jackson.
Anddd that about sums up my main reading goals for 2022! Reading goal this year is 30 books but I am aiming to go past that, though 30 books is already a good jump from 15. Smaller goal is just to expand my reading of poetry and prose and essays especially by my favorite authors (Carson, Lorde, Lispector, Wittig, basically my newly found 2021 favs) hehehhe. Also would like to clarify that these goals extend to literature outside of [books], so essays, journal articles, etc. so they would be counted in separate reading lists from my formal book list. But yeah! This is fun. Let's fuckinnnnnn read :)
