on reading

you guys. i am currently reading three books and i need to talk about it.

i have always been an unself-conscious reader. i don't care how many books i read simultaneously, although i think my limit is actually three at a time. i have been testing my limit these days... sometimes, i start a new book while i'm already into another one, just to give myself a little break from what i'm already reading. i like to mix it up and switch stories occasionally—it keeps me interested in continuing each book, but it also is a cool way to subconsciously compare writing styles. well, sometimes that works, other times it doesn't.

in the last post on reading, i had just finished nicole krauss's the history of love. i started it while i was in the middle of a different book, mainly because i was impatient to start reading it. once i'd finished it (and digested it properly), i went on to finish the book i'd abandoned. sometimes we don't have power over these things. but still, sometimes i wonder if i am being lazy when i read more than one book at a time. i know that sounds odd, but think about it—i am basically admitting to having a short attention span. here's the conundrum, though: is it really ME? or is it the BOOK? i mean, maybe the book is really just not that good. or maybe there are slow bits that make my eye rove.

then, of course, there is the issue of i want to read lots of books at a time so that i can shelve them, read-through, and talk about them with people. oh, the life of a bookgirl. yesterday someone asked me whether i had a list of my favorite titles ever. i gave her three titles that i loved, with the disclaimer that my list often changed. seriously, how many books are out there that i haven't read? sometimes i can't even think about it. it's too upsetting. so many books. so little time. i suppose that is the meat of the problem. for me, the solution is to try to read more than one book at a time. some might argue that i'm shortchanging myself by doing so, or that it's taking me thrice as long to finish one book than it might if my cheatin' heart didn't force me to read two others at the same time. wow, that was a wordy sentence. time to wrap this up.

in the end, i can't conclude anything from what i've just written except that i just can't help myself. sometimes a girl just needs to branch out. sometimes i need to read about food and chicago history and also enjoy a pulitzer prize-winning novel. other times, i pick something up and it's so tasty that i can't put it down. either way, i am reading, and that means i am happy.

so, what are these three books i'm reading at the moment? and what was the book i put down in favor of the history of love? secrets revealed below.

what i was reading before nicole krauss roped me in:
exley, by brock clarke


the pulitzer prize-winner (yes, i'm very proud that i am reading 
a pulitzer prize-winning book): tinkers, by paul harding


hey, some nonfiction.
finally i am learning a bit about why chicago = the white city:
devil in the white city, by erik larson


 and the wild card that i don't know anything about, other than
that a regular recommended it to me: 
house of tomorrow, by peter bognanni.


that does it for today. i hope i didn't overwhelm you by going on and on. at any rate, have a wonderful weekend! it's friday! hasta el lunes, dear readers.

Comments

  1. I love this philosophical discussion - now I know it is OK to read more than one book at a time, even a good idea!

    ReplyDelete
  2. teehee, mom. thank you. :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. i'm so glad to find out you read 3 books at a time. I used to do that and thought me strange! and now,I know I'm not! tnx :))

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment