Ten Books I Can't Believe I Read...and Haven't Read

I had a bit of a tricky time thinking of things for this week's Top Ten Tuesday, so I originally wasn't going to do it. Yet, when reading other people's lists I stumbled across I Wish I Lived In A Library's take on it (Books I Can't Believe I Haven't Read), and it inspired me to do something similar with mine. Thanks to That Artsy Reader Girl for hosting TTT once again.

Books I Can't Believe I Read

1. Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
   The only real reason I am surprised I read this book is that I read it at 25, not the target audience of 11. Even though I read it as an adult, it's one of my favourite books of all time now, and I sought out a copy soon after finishing it to add to my collection.
   
2. The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
   There are few books that I hate more than this one...if any. I could not relate to this whiny protagonist who creates most of his own problems. And no, I wasn't forced to read this in school - I unfortunately picked it up by choice. I had purchased a cheap, used copy that was in really good shape, and donated it last year deciding after a few years that I really didn't want to give it a second chance...ever.
   
3. The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams
   Most people don't read plays for fun, but I did. This one means so much to me, and I'm so glad I read it.
   
4. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
   This book was just an utter disappointment. There was almost nothing about it that I enjoyed, and I am extremely surprised that it didn't end up DNF'ed.
   
5. Saving the World and Other Extreme Sports (Maximum Ride # 3) by James Patterson
   Was this book terrible? No. However, I have no idea how I made it this far into the series. I enjoyed the storyline of the first few books, but the chapters were only a few pages long and the sentence structure was terrible. I spent more time complaining about these than I did reading them.

Books I Can't Believe I Haven't Read

1. Villette by Charlotte Brontё
   The Brontё sisters are hands-down some of my favourite authors, and Villette is generally considered to be Charlotte's best novel. Yet I am nervous to pick it up lest it doesn't live up to my expectations. There is also a little part of me that doesn't want to be out of Brontё novels to read.
   
2. Emma by Jane Austen
   See above. But also, Emma is my least favourite of all of the stories, and so I'm actually more worried that I won't like it!
   
3. The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis
   I made the mistake once of trying to start with The Magician's Nephew...and then lost all momentum to try these. I also didn't really want to start with The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe because I knew the storyline, but didn't want to skip to Prince Caspian in case I missed something. What a mess.
   
4. Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery
   I adored the mini-series with Megan Follows so much that I can't believe I never got through the books. I read a Great Illustrated Classics version and enjoyed it, but the language of the original book always bored me. I do really want to try it again though.
   
5. The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough
   If only you knew how much I love the mini-series *sigh*. Well, I own it and I've read chunks of it, but I've never actually read it cover to cover. That really needs to change.