Two literary classics and one childhood favorite that will celebrate special anniversaries in 2025
Three all-time favorites will reach special milestones in 2025, and you can bet they’ll be on my TBR list for the upcoming year.
While I work my way through a libertarian dystopian fiction onslaught with some good old Harry Potter sprinkled between reads—hey, it’s that time of year—there are three all-time favorites gearing up for their 100th, 65th, and 25th anniversaries.
And yes, I’m starting to feel rather old, considering Book No. 3 on this list was released when I was in the fourth grade, and I think I read it like two years after it came out. You may have never heard of it, but if you have kids at the mid-grade level or the equivalent, it’s worth reading, trust me.
As for the other two, you’ve heard of them. In fact, I’m sure you could have guessed Book No. 1 on this list without even looking, right? If not, keep reading, and you’re going to be like, “Ohhhh….yep….”
Book No. 1: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Words can’t express how entertaining I find this book. But then again, doesn’t this one hit home on human nature? It wasn’t until much later did I realize that the work had a bit of a true story inspiration to it, making The Great Gatsby even more memorable.
See, F. Scott Fitzgerald had this obsession with socialite with Ginevra King, whom he’d had a relationship with at one time. The two fell in love but, unfortunately, King’s family wasn’t too thrilled about her courting Fitzgerald, thanks to their differences in social status. Bummer, right?
That would be like you meeting your celebrity crush, the two of you finding yourselves head over heels for one another, but nobody seems to approve of it, then bam, it’s game over. Anyway, Ginevra married some rich guy named Bill Mitchell, so Fitzgerald proposed to another girl with money named Zelda Sayre—just for the record, that’s gotta rank No. 1 for the coolest name ever.
But Zelda wanted to ensure Fitzgerald had some money before marrying him. And yep, you can guess what happened: Fitzgerald went on a mission to make some serious dough, just like our old sport, James Gatz. Yeah, you want to read that book now, don’t you, knowing it was a reflection of Fitz’s personal life?
Once April 10th arrives, I’ll be binge-reading this book.
Book No. 2: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
This one qualifies as one of the best books I’ve ever read, hands down, and if you’ve read it, it probably left a lasting impression. In fact, it wasn’t until a few days ago did I cross some random person (going to be vague about where) and I nicknamed them Boo Radley, despite having last read To Kill a Mockingbird in 2017.
Hey, I give everyone I don’t know nicknames, especially at my local gym. Some of which are nicer than others. Anyway, back to the work at hand: I know it’s a polarizing one, but if I ever decide to pass on my DNA at some point, it would be one of many books I’d love to see the Little TCs read.
Well, that and about a thousand other works. But I’d probably start them off with something small like, Oh, the Places You’ll Go by Dr. Seuss, so they’ll learn to never trap themselves in the infamous ‘waiting place.’ Best scene in the book, y’know?
Again, back to the work at hand: To Kill a Mockingbird also features one of my favorite protagonists, Jean Louise “Scout” Finch. Fierce, independent, curious, and intelligent. In a way, Scout personifies that now-popular strong female protagonist, a trope that I can hardly get enough of these days.
Anyway, I can’t wait until July 11th, 2025, rolls around because you know what I’ll be doing then.
Book No. 3: A Year Down Yonder by Richard Peck
I first became interested in Richard Peck in 2001 when I had to write a report about him back when I was in middle school—one of the few assignments that year I actually looked forward to. Not long after, I stumbled upon what was then a rather newly-published book called A Year Down Yonder.
And in case you're looking for the libertarian message in this one, well, there are several, the first of which occurs within the first few pages. Here’s your hint: The book was set in 1938, and our main character, Mary Alice Dowdel, is forced to live with her grandmother for an entire year after Franklin D. Roosevelt’s mass interventionist campaign didn’t quite work wonders for her parents.
Big surprise, right? Anyway, this one’s unique as it’s classified as a novel yet reads more like a short story cycle. Each chapter comprises a story within the story, much like its predecessor and another favorite, A Long Way from Chicago.
That said, it’s more of a cozier tale than the other two since its genre is technically children’s historical fiction and one that I’ll have on the nightstand when I’m looking for an uplift in my current mood following some hardcore dystopian reads.
Chances are, I probably won’t wait until October 2025 to read this one unless I can stretch out a few other books from my middle school days, including The Giver, A Long Way from Chicago, and Number the Stars—quite a few libertarian concepts in that last one for sure.