Wait, what? 10 years of blogging? Are you kidding me?
In 2016 I started this blog and I can’t believe it’s already been 10 years. Back then, I thought Readers’ High Tea would be mostly about books – reviews, lists, and keeping track of what I read.
What I didn’t know then was that this space would also become a record of my reading journey. Looking back now, my reading life falls into 4 clear chapters — shaped by where I lived, what I was curious about, what I feared missing out on, and, eventually, what I chose to let go of.
1) Classics, trends + Dutch influences
When I started this blog, back in 2016, I was mainly reading books that were either famous (e.g.: newly published) or classics that I felt I needed to read in order to be a “good reader”. That was the time I struggled so much to finish War and Peace by Tolstoy, The Circle by Dave Eggers (very popular at that time), and To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.
I was also interested in stories somewhat related to the Netherlands, as I had lived there for 2 years right before starting the blog. For example, Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier or The Miniaturist + its sequel: The House of Fortune by Jessie Burton.
2) Dystopia time
Then came a time when I was super interested in reading dystopian stories. This period is marked by The Climate Quartet by Maja Lunde, a lot of Margaret Atwood (who also became one of my favourite authors of all time): The Handmaid’s Tale + The Testaments, the MaddAddam series.
Plus other exciting stories, such as The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa and The New Wilderness by Diane Cook, just to name a few.
3) Stories from around the world
Next followed an intense period of reading books from around the world, especially books not from UK or US. I wanted to expand my cultural horizon and also I felt the injustice of the language barrier for writers from non-English speaking countries.
That’s how I got to read The Mountains Sing by Quế Mai Nguyễn Phan (story set in Vietnam), Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Nigeria), Red Island House by Andrea Lee (Madagascar) – this was also one of the first books I read as an advance review copy.
Reading stories from around the world also inspired the current motto of the blog:
4) Sticking to a book club
Over the past 2 years I outsourced my reading list to a book club. Interestingly, the books we read fit very well with the motto of the blog – all the stories I read were under my radar, by authors I haven’t read before (most of them I haven’t even heard of). Plus, if I were to ask myself: “would I get to read that book on my own?“, the answer was no for most of the books.
Joining a very good book club is definitely a way to read out of your bubble. Plus – the conversations sparked by the book are absolutely delicious, sprinkled with personal stories and insights.
If there’s one thing these 10 years have taught me, it’s that our reading changes when we give ourselves permission to change. Today, reading feels less like a test or a task I must complete, and more like a conversation — with writers, with other book enthusiasts, and, most importantly, with myself.
Thank you for reading, and for being here — now or at any point along these 10 years.
‘Till next time … happy reading!
Georgiana
Readers' High Tea 
Congratulations on 10 years!
I’ve noticed my reading habit has changed over the past few years, I find it really interesting to look back.
P.S here’s to many more years of blogging and reading
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Congratulations on 10 years of blogging!
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I have noticed that since I started my projects to read short lists for several prizes, my taste in reading has refined. I am pickier about what I read and what I like. I’m not saying these books are uniformly better but a lot of them are better than what I had been reading before. The blog has also made me more aware of other people’s blogs, so I get recommendations from the ones that I trust instead of just blindly picking out books.
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Congratulations, 10 years is fabulous!
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