I love to read and I read a lot. I always have a book on the go. I love to read and I love when I love what I'm reading. But I don't retain what I read for long. I love the Harry Potter series and I've reread them a few times but I am not one of those people who remember every nuance of the plot and characters. I have a vivid imagination and use it to lose myself in the book I'm reading. But once I'm finished the book, once I'm back in daily reality, the vividness of the plot and characters (or information in non-fiction books) fades rather quickly. Within days, I'd guess. The really good books that I adore will leave basics of plot and character identity, even after rereading. I don't know why this is and, aside from frequent rereading, I don't know how to improve my reading memory. I can at least say that depending on how much time passes between rereadings, I can still be surprised by a book I've already read. I guess there are advantages either way.
Read on,
Paula
Friday, April 13, 2012
Sunday, April 8, 2012
New book motto
"Never read anything but what you like." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
This is my new reading motto. Since I have 600+ titles on my to-read list, I really don't have time to waste reading a book I don't enjoy. The problem is that I feel obligated, once I start, to finish it. But the book that convinced me to use this new motto is "Infernal Devices" by K.W. Jeter. I started it, it was interesting, but then I got distracted. It sat on my currently-reading list for weeks while I wasn't currently reading it. I finally went back to it and couldn't remember what was going on and had to start over. Reading this book, I now know that I like books with plotlines, a sense of direction, even if you don't know what will happen, you at least have an idea. This book does not have one. I guess it is so far outside my comfort zone that I just couldn't follow. I got to the end of the second part feeling interested because some of the mysteries had been answered. And then I was presented with a blank page and a 'Part Three' title page. And that's when my interest fizzled out. If the next page had been a new chapter, I would have kept on reading. But for there to be such a sharp separation between what I had just read and what I was about to read, I just couldn't muster enough interest and motivation to keep going. I feel bad that I made it so close without finishing. I do. Mostly because this is considered a steampunk classic. It's not that I don't like steampunk. I just couldn't find any characters worth caring for, even the main character. But as Nancy Pearl said in one of her radio shows, (and here I paraphrase) guilt has no place in reading. I will endeavour to stand by that, and my new motto.
Read on,
Paula
This is my new reading motto. Since I have 600+ titles on my to-read list, I really don't have time to waste reading a book I don't enjoy. The problem is that I feel obligated, once I start, to finish it. But the book that convinced me to use this new motto is "Infernal Devices" by K.W. Jeter. I started it, it was interesting, but then I got distracted. It sat on my currently-reading list for weeks while I wasn't currently reading it. I finally went back to it and couldn't remember what was going on and had to start over. Reading this book, I now know that I like books with plotlines, a sense of direction, even if you don't know what will happen, you at least have an idea. This book does not have one. I guess it is so far outside my comfort zone that I just couldn't follow. I got to the end of the second part feeling interested because some of the mysteries had been answered. And then I was presented with a blank page and a 'Part Three' title page. And that's when my interest fizzled out. If the next page had been a new chapter, I would have kept on reading. But for there to be such a sharp separation between what I had just read and what I was about to read, I just couldn't muster enough interest and motivation to keep going. I feel bad that I made it so close without finishing. I do. Mostly because this is considered a steampunk classic. It's not that I don't like steampunk. I just couldn't find any characters worth caring for, even the main character. But as Nancy Pearl said in one of her radio shows, (and here I paraphrase) guilt has no place in reading. I will endeavour to stand by that, and my new motto.
Read on,
Paula
Saturday, April 7, 2012
Bookish limbo
"Books were a shelter and a friend to me when that shelter wasn't available in real life." - Jacqueline Mitchard
I have so many titles on my to-read list (600+) but I don't plan what I will read next. I let the books come to me mostly. Have you ever checked a book out from the library, kept it for three weeks, then returned it unread? That happens to me somewhat frequently. That's me trying to guess what I should read next and getting it wrong. That's when I find myself in a bookish limbo. I don't know what to read next and nothing has jumped out at me. This doesn't mean I'm not reading though. When I am in a bookish limbo, it means I've got a large variety of books on the go all at once. My preferred reading state is when I am reading one or two books wholeheartedly; in a bookish limbo, I enjoy what I read but am not enveloped by it. I prefer to drown in my books, to be so enmeshed in what I am reading that I forget the real world exists. And it's not as though I lack for access to books: I belong to two libraries of vastly different collections and I have 190 books in my personal library (most of which I have not read...yet). So I'm in a bookish limbo waiting for the right 'next book' to come along. Earlier today I was sitting looking at my personal library. I'm waffling over the idea of finding a temporary indication of the books I've read, whether sticker or some sort of mark on the spine. I throw out the idea because I figure I know which ones I've read and which ones I haven't. And then I reinstate the idea because I come across one that I can't remember if I have or not (turns out I have). I don't mind rereading but I wouldn't want to pick up a book thinking I haven't read it, only to discover that I have. Of course, I keep a list on Goodreads, Shelfari, and LibraryThing of what I have read but that's not exactly a quick-access resource if my computer isn't on. Hmm. Yes? No? I'll keep thinking about it.
And now I'll go add some more books to my to-read list.
Read on,
Paula
I have so many titles on my to-read list (600+) but I don't plan what I will read next. I let the books come to me mostly. Have you ever checked a book out from the library, kept it for three weeks, then returned it unread? That happens to me somewhat frequently. That's me trying to guess what I should read next and getting it wrong. That's when I find myself in a bookish limbo. I don't know what to read next and nothing has jumped out at me. This doesn't mean I'm not reading though. When I am in a bookish limbo, it means I've got a large variety of books on the go all at once. My preferred reading state is when I am reading one or two books wholeheartedly; in a bookish limbo, I enjoy what I read but am not enveloped by it. I prefer to drown in my books, to be so enmeshed in what I am reading that I forget the real world exists. And it's not as though I lack for access to books: I belong to two libraries of vastly different collections and I have 190 books in my personal library (most of which I have not read...yet). So I'm in a bookish limbo waiting for the right 'next book' to come along. Earlier today I was sitting looking at my personal library. I'm waffling over the idea of finding a temporary indication of the books I've read, whether sticker or some sort of mark on the spine. I throw out the idea because I figure I know which ones I've read and which ones I haven't. And then I reinstate the idea because I come across one that I can't remember if I have or not (turns out I have). I don't mind rereading but I wouldn't want to pick up a book thinking I haven't read it, only to discover that I have. Of course, I keep a list on Goodreads, Shelfari, and LibraryThing of what I have read but that's not exactly a quick-access resource if my computer isn't on. Hmm. Yes? No? I'll keep thinking about it.
And now I'll go add some more books to my to-read list.
Read on,
Paula
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