So, we’re back with another Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl. This week’s prompt is: Books Written Before I Was Born (These can be books you’ve read or want to read!) (submitted by Davida Chazan @ The Chocolate Lady’s Book Review Blog)
Well, I can’t say that I’ve ever done a prompt like this one before! Prior to starting this book blog I never really paid attention to when books were published. To be honest, even with this book blog, I’m only mostly aware of pub dates for books that I’m reading for blog tours or for ARCs, but otherwise I still don’t pay dates that much attention. So I wasn’t even sure how to go about doing this list but thanks to Goodreads’ compiled lists for books going back to 1980, my decision was made easy! Since I was born in 1988 (I’m old?!) I thought I would share two books from my born year and share one each year going back to 1980. I’m quite surprised to find that I actually do have at least one book for each year! All of these are on my TBR (but like, long, long list TBR with the only exception being Midnight’s Children which is almost immediate TBR lol) and I’ll read them one day… One day! 😂






1988: The Queen of the Damned by Anne Rice
1988: The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie
1987: Beloved by Toni Morrison
1986: Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
1985: Perfume: The Story of a Murderer by Patrick Süskind






1984: The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera
1983: Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce
1982: The Gunslinger by Stephen King
1981: Midnight’s Children by Salman Rushdie
1980: The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco

Have you read any of these books or are they on your TBR too?

Yeah, I don’t pay much attention to publication dates either. I had to do lots of searches to write my list this week!
Have you read Beloved yet? You might really like it!
Thanks for stopping by earlier.
LikeLiked by 1 person
All of these are on my TBR so I haven’t read Beloved yet but I hope to one day (maybe hopefully) soon? I am very much looking forward to giving it a go though! It’s a classic for a reason, right?!
LikeLike
Great list, Dini! Tamora Pierce is an author I really need to read–even though I’m a fantasy fan, I feel like there are so many classic authors in the genre I haven’t read–and I’d like to try The Name of the Rose and Beloved, too. Howl’s Moving Castle is so fun! I love the Studio Ghibli film as well, even though it’s very different. 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Jess! I’m looking forward to giving Pierce a try because her books are so popular. I LOVED the Ghibli for Howl’s so I’m definitely curious about the novel. I guess I should keep in mind how different they are before I go into it though so I don’t have expectations? 😅
LikeLiked by 1 person
This challenge threw me as well! My first thought was how to change it, because I specialise in YA and trying to find good quality images of YA covers before 2010? Not happening. I went with books set in the 80s instead.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Loved your take on the prompt! If I tried to do that I’d probably struggle harder to make a list haha 😂
LikeLike
Aw, the 80s. What a fun decade for everything including books. I was born right before, but I would have loved to have been able to put some great ones like these on my list.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I was honestly surprised to find that I had a book for every year in the 80s on my TBR! I’m excited to give them a try 😊
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes I had an Anne Rice book on my list too!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve only read Interview with a Vampire and have still to finish the second book in the series, but I kept this on my TBR cos (and I know this is so silly) but whenever I think of Queen of the Damned I think of Aaliyah 😂
LikeLiked by 1 person
OMG, I totally forgot about that movie! 😱 I miss Aaliyah ❤️
LikeLike
The Alanna books were a huge part of my childhood!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve heard really good things about the fantasy classic so I’m defo keen to check it out!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve been curious about the Anne Rice books for a while – thanks for reminding me! Happy TTT 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve only read the first in the Vampire Chronicles but I really enjoyed it and am keen to check out the rest of the books in the series!
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s a good sign!
LikeLike
I haven’t read any Anne Rice but have been curious. You are not old! I was born in 1987… I don’t feel old.. okay, I do most days. Maybe that’s the lack of sleep with toddler life mixed. haha. Howl’s Moving Castle is one that I really enjoyed!! I read it last year and loved it!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hahaha okay, I’m not old physically (well, sorta) but I’m a nana at heart and I’m honestly totally okay with that. The oldie life is my speed and I don’t care what anyone else says! 🤣
LikeLiked by 1 person
The Gunslinger is so short, but a hard read. So important in the SK universe, though. I love that series.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Is it short!? I think I remember seeing the book in-store before and it seemed pretty standard in thickness… BUT I have heard a lot of people say it’s a struggle to get through but that it does pick up in the sequels 😅
LikeLiked by 1 person
I always felt it was short, but now that I look at the page count I guess it’s short compared to the other books in the series and most other Stephen King books. It’s over 200 pages, so not as short as I thought.
LikeLike
Oh I like your idea Dini, I’m an 89 child and had a really hard time getting books for this list… clearly I like more modern titles 😂. I did have Howl’s Moving Castle on mine, and I will definitely be checking a few of the others out.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yay for 80s babies! I was honestly surprised I had books for each year in the 80s since I pay so little attention to pub dates and only a few are on my med-high priority TBR so who knows, I’ll probably never get around to the rest 😂 Hope you enjoy Howl’s, Becky!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I read The Name of the Rose! It was powerful. My sister keeps telling me to read both Beloved and Midnight’s Children, but she didn’t care for his Satanic Verses. Sounds right. I’ve read two other Rushdie and one I loved and one I didn’t care much for.
LikeLiked by 1 person
One of my close friends recommended it to me and she had previously recommended another book that became an all-time favourite of mine so I’m hoping to have the same luck with Name of the Rose! 😃 I’ve heard Satanic Verses is quite a controversial book but also not as great as his others though I haven’t tried Rushdie yet as I’m a bit intimidated 🙈 Midnight’s Children is on my med-high priority TBR though so I hope I can get to it soon!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I really liked Rushdie’s The Golden House, but the one before that… too fantasy/weird for me.
LikeLike
Great list! I especially love Howl’s moving castle ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m looking forward to checking out the novel although I’ve heard it’s quite different to the movie (which I loved)! 😍
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh this is a fun list! I forgot that Howl’s Moving Castle was an 80’s book. It doesn’t feel dated at all. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I had no idea it was an 80s book and actually I had no idea any of these were 80s books until this prompt had me investigating pub dates 😂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I haven’t read any of these but I do have Howl’s Moving Castle on my tbr!
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s a popular one on TBRs this week actually! 😂 I hope you enjoy it, Joanna!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Well, you’re braver than me! I didn’t share the publishing date or the date I was born. Haha! I haven’t read any of these yet, but Beloved is on my tbr. Happy reading this month, Dini! ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
Haha, I’m only 32 but I’m already living that nana life and the pace definitely suits me so my age is kinda whatever 😂 I hope you enjoy Beloved as well, Dedra! Happy reading to you, too 😊
LikeLiked by 1 person
Haha! “That nana life” is highly underrated, right?! 😍
LikeLike
I don’t pay attention to pub dates either. 😅Great list, Dini! The 80s are amazing, I was born in the 80s too! 🥰 💛
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yay for being 80s babies! 😍
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love how you approached the topic this week! And so many of these are ones I’ve either just read or, in the case of Beloved, I’m reading now.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ooh, I hope you’re enjoying Beloved! I’m kinda intimidated by it but I’m looking forward to hearing your thoughts on it 😊 Happy reading!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I ended up loving it! I totally understand what you mean, but I cannot recommend it enough. It’s totally accessible and incredibly powerful.
LikeLike
[…] by Kathryn S RoseBlog Tour Review: The Death of Honor by Lyra Thorsson#WWWWednesday: 03 February#TopTenTuesday: 10 Books from the 1980sJanuary Monthly Wrap Up!Blog Tour Review + Giveaway (INT): The Viscount’s Unconventional Lady […]
LikeLike