Weekend/End of Month Update-January

I surprised myself with how quickly I read both War and Peace and KL. This week I read My Antonia by Willa Cather, which was a super quick, beautiful read that took me back to a favorite childhood series: Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House on the Prairie. Gorgeously written, My Antonia is actually the third in Cather's Prairie trilogy but easily stands alone. It is a story about an orphan boy sent to live in Nebraska with his grandparents and their immigrant neighbors, the Shimerdas from Bohemia, and their life growing up in the newly settled Black Hawk. I may go back at some time to read the first two books in the series: O, Pioneers! and Song of the Lark but I really need to make some progress on my back list, which somehow has grown rather than shrunk this month (read with a small note of sarcasm--haha)

How my list has grown: Working in a bookstore, we receive a good deal of ARCs (Advance Reader Copy) from publishers and I picked up a few the other day to add to my TBR list: Edgar and Lucy by Victor Lodato, Setting Free the Kites by Alex George, and At the Water's Edge by Sara Gruen (which this last one is already published--just an old ARC sitting in our box to share. I loved Sara's Water for Elephants so I'm looking forward to reading this new one.) Who doesn't love free books, right?

I also went on a Barnes and Noble tour this week and visited a couple of our sister stores up in Walpole and Braintree. I love going to see our other stores, how they're set up, all the other beautiful books and merchandise they have that we don't have room to carry in our tiny Dartmouth location. Of course, I can't stop in a bookstore without buying a book or a few, so I picked up 50 Great Short Stories and Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks, justified by the notion that I need to read both of these for my reading challenges this year--the short stories for a genre I don't typically read, and Year for my A to Z challenge, I needed a title that begins with a Y. Perfect!

And the final addition to my TBR list this week came from a friend who'd seen I added Liane Moriarty's Big Little Lies to my Goodreads Want To Read list, and she surprised me with a copy yesterday! Yay! Thanks so much Courtney!!! So my backlist now contains 127 titles, up from 122 at the start of the year. It might take a miracle to cull it to my goal of 81 books if I carry on in this manner....I can't help myself, I just love books!!

Currently I'm reading Victor Hugo's Hunchback of Notre Dame. Les Miserables is one of my all time favorites, so I hope this one becomes another love. Do you give classics a chance? Some of them can be a struggle at times to get through, but I find that if I stick it out, I'm rarely disappointed. I suppose they're "classics" for a reason, right?

Whatcha Readin' Wednesday

I finished The Versions of Us by Laura Barnett last night. Not a great read. Granted, it was probably just the mindless fluff I needed after the heaviness of War and Peace and KL. And the actual writing wasn't bad. It was just absolutely pointless. It's the story of these couples, the choices they made, then could've made. It explores the paths their lives take along each possibility. But...but...each marriage fails, they all cheat on each other and get cheated on by the ones they cheat with. They have kids, then have different kids in the different scenarios. The only one constant is the main character's best friend, Penelope, who seems to appear steadily in each and every scenario--the rest is such a convoluted jumble and utterly senseless.

I kept wanting something significant to happen, some sort of redemption or resolution but it never came. It left me wondering what was the whole point? Rather Ecclesiastes-like, all of our choices are pointless, chasing the wind--it got me nowhere, only wanting more. Quite shallow and stupid.

So, moving on this morning to a book that was recommended to me by a fellow bookseller back when I worked at Books-a-Million in Tennessee, My Antonia by Willa Cather. I came across a copy at a used book sale last year and it's been sitting there ever since, so I'm actually quite excited to finally begin this one. I have much greater expectations for it at least than I did for Versions--here's hoping, anyway!

The good news, I suppose, is that I'm back on track to meet my reading challenge goal of fifty-two books for the year, and that makes me feel better. What's on your reading list this week?

KL: A History of the Nazi Concentration Camps

 

I finished KL yesterday. I imagine this book will haunt me for a long time to come--as it likely should. KL was an incredibly difficult read, emotionally. There simply aren't adequate words for what happened during this era in history. Brutal and horrifying, the capabilities man has against fellow man to humiliate, torture, and ultimately kill...Reading this book was like witnessing a voraciously evil cancer take hold and grow, tormenting and devouring its victims with greater, more tremendous savagery as time went on.

I found myself Googling a lot throughout reading this book--realizing just how little I truly knew about the Holocaust. But the actual Holocaust is only a tiny portion of what happened throughout this history of the Nazi concentration camps. I think this book is a must read for every human being on earth--to acknowledge, to remember, to truly know the atrocities that happened at the hands of these monsters.

So I've started the year with a couple incredibly heavy reads with War and Peace and KL. I'm definitely ready for something lighter and happier and am starting Laura Barnett's The Versions of Us--an alternate universe sort of story, imagining "what if", the possibilities of missed opportunities in life and relationships.

I also discovered a super cute used bookstore this week not far from home, Annie's Book Stop in Raynham. I was immediately enamored with the store and picked up a couple previously read mass market paperbacks for a new fantasy series I've been wanting to read, Brent Weeks' Night Angel trilogy. So much for culling some of my backlist--I also picked up A Strangeness in my Mind by Orhan Pamuk when I popped into Westport's wonderful Partners Village Gift Store yesterday and ordered James Corey's Caliban's War with a Barnes and Noble coupon this morning...A girl just can't help herself! There are much worse things I could spend my money on, right???

How is your reading list growing?

Weekend Update

I managed to finish War and Peace in record time this past week: 17 days. I was certain it would take me well over a month to read this immense book but by virtue of being sick, I parked myself with my Glowlight and poured through the final chapters on Thursday and finished up early yesterday morning.

My bullet journal reading tracker showing my final sprint to the end

 

I had watched the BBC mini series last year and fell head over heels in love with the story. The book itself had been on my To Read list forever but honestly overwhelmed and intimidated me with the breadth of what could possibly lie between its covers, and so I put off reading it until now.

When I first attempted Les Miserables by Victor Hugo, I just gave up. The awful dragging through all the historical parts killed it for me. Then, once I'd seen the musical and absorbed the gist of the story, I went back and read the entire book--quite happily and loved it, hated for it to end (even though, those historical parts are still quite tiresome...) But this gave me hope to be able to make it through War and Peace, knowing the story and having faces to go with the characters in my head--and it did very much help. I've even ordered the DVD so I can watch it all over again--ah, happiness!

Pierre, Natasha, Prince Andrew, Nicholas and Sonya

 

Moving on to my next book, I requested KL: A History of the Nazi Concentration Camps

from the library. I first saw it at work and was intrigued but not quite sure it was a book I'd want to spend $40 on to own and, in spirit of trying to cut down my on hand backlist, I thought it'd be wiser to check it out free from the library. Smart move as it's pretty intense and I don't know if I'll be able to stomach it the whole way through. It's staggering to imagine the depths of hatred and cruelty human beings are capable of towards each other. We'll see if I make it to the end...

Bullet journal reading tracker for KL

So, what are you reading?

How to Read More Books This Year

I have forever loved reading but I didn't always get to indulge that love as much as I'd like. Once I started at Barnes and Noble last year, I determined to commit more time and focus to my reading list so I could better recommend books to our customers (and, yeah--feel like a well read book snob--haha! True confession...) Anyways--how was I to do that? And how can you do it too? Here's a few quick tips...

1. Set Reading Goals 

Having a reading goal helps you figure out how much reading you need to do in a week or even a day. For example, this year, my reading goal is to read 52 books. Since there are 52 weeks a year, each week I need to read at least one book. Having a reading goal helps to strategize how much time is needed to allocate each day and week for reading. I've also begun to create trackers in my bullet journal for a visual guide to keeping up with my daily reading goals--it's just a little trick to help me stay engaged and on track. Google different tracking layouts to find one that works for you!

2. Join a Reading Challenge

This step gives a sense of accountability and also a direction for your reading through the year. I've committed my 52 book goal on Goodreads which is a wonderful website for readers to track their reading lists, find new recommendations, share books with friends, and join online reading groups. There are lots of other great reading challenges you can sign up to add more interest and spark to tackling those reading goals for the year--check out the master list of online challenges here.

3. Prepare Your Reading List in Advance

To keep your reading momentum, always have the next book ready. Don’t wait until you finish, then find the next book to read. You’ll waste unnecessary time trying to find the next book.
Instead, prepare a reading list in advance. List all the books you want to read. Add books that are recommended by your friends and family. Go to your local bookstores and see what intrigues you. You can also find a list of recommended books suggested by bloggers on their websites.

I started my original To Read list with the idea of tackling the 100 Books to Read Before You Die list, then incorporated the list of 100 Best Loved Novels and after that stumbled across the 51 Best Fantasy Series Everyone Should Read....and hence my To Read List grew and grew and grew. I had well over 500 books on my wish list and then realized how much it would cost to actually BUY ALL THOSE BOOKS!!! Yeah, it's more than intimidating. But, fortunately there are used book sales, the library--and a huge help: classic books are often free on e-reading apps! So that was a big boon to amping up my on hand backlist. So--google reading lists, ask for recommendations from your friends or the neighborhood bookseller, your favorite librarian...oh! I also realized a great way to find new books is award winner lists! Take a book you loved and see if it won any literature awards. Look up that award site online and read other of their winning choices! There is no end to the great books out there waiting for you to discover them!

And track those wish lists! Goodreads, Barnes and Noble and even (booooo) Amazon have wishlist capabilities--use them to keep track of all the wonderful recommendations you'll begin to unearth!

4. Use Your Free Time

Reading in the morning before you have to go to work or reading at night when you're winding down are the best times to read. Quite often you find you won’t get caught up in the daily distractions that interrupt your reading. Also, to maximize your reading time, try carrying a book with you wherever you go. There will be times during the day when you're free or waiting in a check out line. Use this time to catch up on your reading. Read while you're eating. If I'm sitting still, I can pretty much guarantee you'll find a book in my hands! I've even buzzed through several pages sitting in the drive thru line waiting for coffee or take out!

5. Find a Quiet Place

Reading requires focus and concentration. If possible, find a quiet place to read. Reading in a quiet environment increases your comprehension. You don’t get disrupted by external noises. You don’t have to reread previous pages and paragraphs to recall what you've just read. So choose a good environment in which to read. Switch off your phone or put it away. Close your door if necessary. You read more in one hour of focused reading than in three hours of interrupted reading.

Read, read, read--and don't forget to share those books you love with the people you love!!