read 52 books in 52 weeks

Brown – Big Bad Love

Week 6 – Book 9.

My son has been trying to get me to read this book for a while. He has read 9 books in the series, so far. I just wasn’t into getting sucked into a new series of books, but he kept after me.

It was a really good book.

I could be very disciplined and read something else before reading another book in the series. My old behavior was to gobble them down like a box of Godiva chocolates. It’s hard to be an adult.

I have two non-fiction books I am reading now, and a lot of “literature” that I have on my TO READ list. I will be disciplined.

What’s the difference between these really great series and literature? To me, these series draw you in and make you a part of that world for however long it takes to read the books. You close the book (or in my case turn off the book) and you get sucked back into the real world.

Literature is sticky, and months after finishing the book, you still have particularly lines stuck in your head, and when you aren’t occupied thinking about something else, you find yourself thinking about the book. Maybe you don’t remember particular details, but the theme of the book haunts you…you have to read the book again to remind you of what made you feel that way.

Okay, I have to postpone starting to read more to about a week later. I was told I have to do a presentation for school next week and need to study some texts for that, so I hardly have any time to read. I hope I will be able to start after next week’s over, though :(.

Aaand hello again!! :)

Since I want to have one entire week time for every book on my to-be-read list I will start tomorrow with the 52-week-challenge :D. Meaning I finished the books for school (“Brave New World” (A. Huxley) and “The Reader” (B. Schlink)) ...

I need some inspirations, though. I have so many books on my to-be-read list, but I haven’t bought them yet. Shame on me.

I don’t know which book I will start with. I hope it won’t be that kind of challenge that puts you under an extreme amount of pressure. (blah!) But I want to read more, and I want to learn more, so … This is going to be a good idea :D.

Boonville – Anderson

I need to slow down, I guess. This is the second book this week. I read it in one day. I am not sure why I chose this book. I saw another book by the same author on the New York Times Bestseller’s list and rather than read that book, I chose another book by the same author. I obviously enjoyed it because I read it in one day. The characters were compelling and the situation was unique. It was a little close to the harlequin romance line. All the characters are beautiful and talented, although there is some human failings in them…and that kept the book on the far side of the silly romance spectrum. Book No. 8.

I chose this book because it is on the New York Times Bestseller List. This book was composed entirely of letters. I didn’t think I would like it at first, but I ended up loving it. The main character of the book is an author who is writing a book about a woman she never met. The whole thing takes place on a channel island just after world war II. The German’s occupied the channel islands during the war and the subject of the main character’s book was sent to a concentration camp and later died. It was quite ironic to learn about the characters of the story through letters, just like the main character of the book was learning about her subject second hand. Book No. 7.

Read in 2 days, which gives me till a week Thursday to read ‘A Prayer for Owen Meany’ by John Irving

I rate Exit Music 8/10

By Aurthur Phillips

I’ve wanted to read more serious books. I don’t want all 52 books to be paperback detective novels.

This book was beautifully written. Maybe too beautiful. I get lazy. I read books with simple language and simple plots that pull me right into the big event and then end with everything tied up into a neat package. The words of this book were sticky and it was hard to race through them. This was a book to read slowly so as to savor it. It’s hard to change gears for that kind of book.

The characters were interesting. Maybe a little two dimensional…like a vivid painting with brushstrokes of intricate metaphors. But I didn’t feel real empathy with any of them. I didn’t feel like I stepped into their world.

But, I did enjoy the book. The twist at the end made me laugh out loud.

But after that I raced through two more books this week. Another Lee Childs Reacher novel and then a harlequin romance (embarrassing as that is). It’s like going to a gourmet restaurant and getting a frou frou meal and needing a hamburger and bon bon to fill up with after.

So at the end of week four I’m at six books. Fourty-six more to go.

I’m going to try to start reading more serious books. I got this book because the author was speaking at the local library and I thought I would go hear her speak. However, I kind of got bogged down with the book. It’s a memoir. I enjoyed the storytelling part of the book, but stopped reading when she got to the preaching part and stayed away for a few weeks. But then, I got bogged down with another book I was reading and needed to finish a book for this week and decided to finish the Cracker Queen.

I had been doing some thinking about it. I like the girl of the story, but I generally avoid loud, over the top women. They make me feel uncomfortable and it just isn’t who I am.

I guess I didn’t finish the book because I am insecure enough to think that the author is saying that that I have to adopt her philosophy for myself in order to be worth a shit. When I realized that was what I was doing, I realized how silly that was and I was able to finish the book. She’s just saying that this is HER philosophy…what works for her and I can take from it what I liked, and leave what I don’t. Most of it I like and after reading the book I will aspire to be more Cracker Queen like in living out loud and being tough, adaptive, and generous. I’m especially working on the generous…that’s not me and I’d like it to be.

I missed her speak when I had originally planned to go, but I noticed she is going to be at a bookstore near here today. I might go get a few books signed to give to a few people I think need a little Cracker Queen in their life.