Reading Like My Zodiac
To try and find the best books for my reading taste, I want to see if reading books based on my zodiac will be the best TBR hack. I also want to see if my star sign has anything to do with my reading taste. To make this experiment even more impactful, I decided to pick recommendations based on my "Big 3", aka my sun, moon, and rising sign. These three placements are considered the most important in an astrological chart. I will also be adding on some bonus books to really test this experiment. One book will be from my Chinese zodiac (I am year of the Snake) and a Libra recommendation. I want to see if the Chinese zodiac recommendation fits anywhere to me, and if it's more accurate than the Western zodiacs. Since my best friend is a Libra, I want to read one of the recommendations to see if this were a book I would recommend to her.
Before we get into the books, I want to share my “Big 3” and what these signs are all about.
Now, I just want to say, I am very neutral towards zodiacs. However, I do find the idea really interesting, and it is fun to play around every once in a while. The “Big 3” (sun, moon, and rising) are considered to be the three most influential placements in a birth chart. The sun sign is the one sign people most readily know. It’s the sign someone is referring to when they say, “omg, that’s such Gemini move”. But your moon and rising play a big role in defining your characteristics. Your sun sign is who you are at your core; it most closely relates to how you see yourself. Your rising sign correlates toward how others perceive you. And your moon sign relates to your emotions- how you feel, how you react to your feelings, and how you react to other’s feelings.
My sun is in Aquarius. Aquarius is an air sign, represented by the water bearer. An Aquarius’s most notable trait is their individuality- we tend to beat to our own drum. We don’t just think outside the box, we are outside the box making new shapes. Aquarians are known to be humanitarian; they are called to serve others and fight for what they believe in. We are original and eccentric. Because Aquarians are intelligent and visionaries, they tend to be great problem solvers because they are always thinking of unique ways to approach situations. But for every positive, there are negatives. Sometimes aquarians can be cold because we are often detached from the world around us. Living in reality and being connected in one’s body is incredibly difficult most of the time, so often this detachment comes off as callous and uncaring in others. It also makes us hard to be emotionally available because we don’t normally take stock in our feelings. We are considered the aliens of the zodiac and I love it. My rising is in Aries. Aries is a fire sign and represented by a ram. Those with Aries as their rising are often independent, brave, and opinionated. These strong opinions can sometimes get us in trouble because we are too stubborn. Very little can sway our opinions, even if we know we are wrong. But, in conjunction with our fierceness, being so opinionated gives us something to fight for. My moon is in Taurus. This is an earth sign represented by a bull. The number one defining trait of a Taurus is stubbornness. We are unmoving in our resolve; once we have our eyes set on something, our minds cannot be changed. Since this placement revolves all around feelings, we are very sure of our feelings and stay loyal to ourselves, our instincts, and those we trust deeply.
Now that you have a ton of information on my signs and way too much insight into my character, let’s get into the recommendations.
Aquarius Recommendations
I am excited about these picks. I know almost nothing about any of them, but I think that could be winners. I even own House of Leaves, which is incredibly promising. I have had my eye on Sex Cult Nun for a long time now, so I am incredibly excited to get to read this. I have never heard of the other two. To Write As If Already Dead is about a writer struggling to get through a piece about the philosopher (I think). I know nothing about this book other than it includes writers, pretentious language, and Foucalt, so I need to know nothing else to be intrigued. I Might Regret This is a collection of essays written by one of the creators of the TV show “Borad City.” Abbi Jacobson is also a voice actor who did work on Bojack Horseman (one of my favorite shows), and I love a memoir, so I am hyped. It makes sense these are recommended to me: a self-help cult nonfiction, a pretentious fiction, a puzzle mystery, and a comedy memoir are all perfect (hopefully) books for me and other Aquarians alike. Our originality makes interesting and unique books intriguing.
Aries Recommendations
Finding a book from all of the Aries lists was a challenge. This makes total sense because most of the books recommended are dystopian novels or at least have some kind of survival plot. I just personally don’t like dystopian plots all that much. But, the other most recommended books were thrillers. This I could work with. I haven’t heard anything about The Verifiers, but it’s pitched as a detective, crime mystery, and this seems right up my alley. And with Gone Girl I cannot remember if I have seen the movie and I really don’t remember reading the book so let’s hope I don’t already know how this story unfolds. But I am excited to listen to the audiobook. I found it very interesting that almost every book recommended featured a strong female main character, which bodes well for me. But I did struggle with this because I just don’t do well with dystopians.
Taurus Recommendations
Nonfiction and classics is perfect to recommend for Taurus’. For the logical, grounded Taurus, these genres are probably pretty safe. The Picture of Dorian Gray is one of my favorite Wilde novels, so I am excited to get to reread this. And I love nonfiction books surrounding the decades, so I feel like The Nineties will be a slam dunk. These seem like the safest options.
Bonus Recommendations
I am obsessed with novels with East Asian settings, so a literary fiction taking place in Bangkok makes me very excited. I am near certain this will be a four or five-star read. And It Ends With Us is my most uncertain recommendation. I guess it makes sense since it is not recommended for me and is recommended for Libras. But this book fills my TikTok, so I am curious to see if I will like this book. If I am being honest, I don’t think that I will love this book, but my curiosity for this novel outweighs my dislike for romance novels.
BOOKS READ
Let’s examine my thoughts on the books, if I liked them, and if I think they are accurate recommendations.
Please note, I do not rate memoirs and nonfiction. I will let you know whether or not I enjoyed the book, but it will not get a rating. I do rate fiction, and I will write out my ratings if applicable.
Sex Cult Nun by Faith Jones
I loved this book. I found it insightful, insane, and deeply disturbing. I don’t want to say I enjoyed reading this, but I did enjoy the information the author gave. This is written in a journalistic style that is not for everyone. But I enjoy memories written through journal entries. This book concludes with an almost self-help feeling that I found empowering. I think this is a great addition to the true crime world.
I think this was a great recommendation for an Aquarius. It has a social justice angle that is perfect for Aquarians. And the systematic, almost robotic, and strange writing is in line with how Aquarians think and behave.
To Write As If Already Dead by Kate Zambreno
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
I didn’t know what this book was about before I read it, and I still don’t really know what this book was about. This is a pretty short book (just over 150 pages) but, I slogged through it. Every time I thought I made decent progress I had not made a dent. I just wanted to throw my Kindle across the room in frustration. When I finished this, I almost cried tears of joy because it was finally over.
While I really disliked this book, I totally see why this was recommended. If I was an outside person, I would recommend this book to me. It’s pretentious and head-y, which I normally enjoy. I just think this was well-written. But the vibes and the idea are spot on.
I Might Regret This by Abbi Jacobson
This was a fun listen! The audiobook was narrated by the author, and that made the experience was even better. I do think that if I physically read this book, I would have enjoyed the book less. As a fellow insomniac, I found her “stream of conscousness” while lying sleepless incredibly relatable.
I find this recommendation very valid. Abbi Jacobson seems to also have some trouble connecting her mind and body, just like an Aquarius.
House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
This book made me want to claw my eyes out of my head, yet I loved it. It was confusing, wild, and made almost no sense at all times. But, I enjoyed the confusion. A quarter of the way into this book I just decided to be confused and be okay that I would not understand what was going on. And once I started just to have fun being confused, I started having fun with this book. I do think this book is a bit too long, but overall this was weird and wild.
This is an amazing Aquarius recommendation. Honestly, the book itself is an Aquarius. It is complex and one-of-a-kind and just so bizarre. Of all the books I read for the Aquarius picks, I would say this is the most accurate to the attributes of the sign.
The Verifiers by Jane Pek
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
This is a detective, crime novel that I knew almost nothing about. I wish I liked this more than I did. The book did nothing bad it just felt very forgettable. I found the plot intriguing, but the way it played out really didn’t shock me or do anything new. I loved the main character though. She really stood out in this story.
It makes sense this book was recommended for an Aries. The main character, Claudia, has to be an Aries. She is stubborn and strong-willed, and she has a noticeable fire about her. This was recommended for an Aries but the main character reflects traits of an Aries herself, even if the book does not have that same spirit.
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
I absolutely loved this book. It was tense, and I couldn’t put it down. This is a domestic mystery/thriller done so incredibly well. I think it’s better if you know less going into this, but it is about a woman who goes missing and her husband knows nothing about her disappearance, except that he is being framed for her disappearance. The one thing about this book is that I guessed the major twist, and I do not know of it is because I just guessed it, or if I have seen the movie and already knew the twists. So, the entire time reading this book I spent half the time trying to remember whether or not I have seen the movie.
While I have no clue what zodiac sign these characters would be, the essence and themes of this book reflect that of an Aries to the extreme. It takes the idea of revenge to the very edge, but the stubbornness and drive in which is woven throughout the book is very indicative of an Aries.
The Nineties by Chuck Klosterman
I love history, I love the nineties, and I love nonfiction. So, this book was an easy win for me. I loved how the author was able to blend facts with humor and personal stories. If you like history and US history, I would recommend this audiobook. However, I did not love how American-focused it was. I wished there was a bit of a wider scope to what was going on in the 1990s. Or at least I would have liked to see how American culture and events affected other countries. But I do understand that was not the purpose of this book.
A nonfiction history with a bit of personality is a perfect recommendation for a Taurus. Taurus is an earth sign, and Taurus’s love to stay grounded, so a book based in facts but that is also very charismatic fits perfectly for a Taurus.
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
This was a reread for me, and I was so happy to get to read this again. This is a classic about a man who sells his soul in order to stay young. It is written beautifully, has amazing quotes, and brings about such interesting themes to think upon and discuss. I also think this is a good book to read to if you want to read a classic but you’re intimidated by them. Yes, it has a bit of an old English style of dialogue (it was written in the 1800s) but it’s not too overwhelming or confusing.
This is a really interesting pick for a Taurus, but after rereading it, the selection makes perfect sense. The themes of art, life, growing old, and old society really fit into the way I would imagine a Taurus to look at and approach these subjects. The beautiful writing combined with a dark, twisted plot makes sense for a Taurus. And the seemingly short quotes can be disecescted for hours, which is something I think a Taurus would enjoy. Overall, this is an amazing recommendation for a traditional Taurus.
It Ends with Us by Colleen Hoover
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
tw: sexual abuse, domestic violence
I was terrified to read this book. It is so hyped on BookTok, but I am not a huge romance reader and so I had no interest in this. I actually found myself cringing and the synopsis for this book. But, when I saw this recommended for Libra, I knew that I was just going to have to suck it up and read this book. And oh boy, did I hate this book. I actually didn’t hate the beginning because I found it really funny. But not comedy funny, funny because it was so cringe I couldn’t help but laugh. And then, the book was no longer funny. Really dark themes were brought into the book and even though the writing stayed cirngeworthy, the subject matter did not. The writing sucked, the pacing was confusing, the characters are insufferable (and have the dumbest names) the romance was terrible, and the plot was awful.
I would not recommend this to my Libra friend, however, I do see why this was recommended for a Libra. Libras are all about balance, and this book places a huge emphasis on finding balance within yourself and your relationships. So, the themes are very Libra-esque, but the book as a whole is not.
Bangkok Wakes to Rain by Pitchaya Sudbanthad
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
I knew nothing about this book, but it ended up really surprising. Even though I gave it 4 stars, it does feel a tad forgettable. However, the writing was so beautiful that it didn’t really matter that I did not fully connect to the plot. The plot was good, don’t get me wrong, but it just was not the easiest for me to personally connect to (which is a fault of me, not the book).
This was recommended to me based on my Chinese zodiac, which is the Year of the Snake for me. I was curious to see if this was more accurate than any of the other recommendations. And while I would say this book is not as strong of a recommendation, it was still really good. And I think I would need to read more books recommended by my Chinese zodiac to fully judge and see the difference in recommendations.
Stats:
Books Read: 10
Pages Read: 3,738
Average Star Rating: 3.57 stars
The Books that Fit the Recommendation
The Books that Fit the Recommendation but I Didn’t Love
FINAL THOUGHTS
I loved doing this experiment. I read books on my TBR, books I’ve never heard of, and books that I have been too scared to read. While I don’t think this is the end all, be all of TBR hacks, I do think that looking up books recommended for your Zodiac is helpful if you are in a reading slump or you can’t figure out your TBR. The recommendations were all really good, even if I personally didn’t love each book. And I think a lot of the reason some of the books didn’t work for me is more personal taste than the books themselves. Overall, I would say this experiment was a success and I recommend it for people who need a little help picking up what to read next.
If you want to see pictures and videos from this experiment, please check out my Instagram and my TikTok. Be sure to follow along here and on my socials for more reads and more reading experiment journeys!