My Goodreads account is making me feel guilty.
At the beginning of this year, I made a goal to read 52 books and, well, it is letting me know in its calm yet non-confrontational way that I am “21 books behind schedule.”
Yikes.
I could chalk it up to, I don’t know … writing my own book, finishing my thesis, reading the thesis submissions from my cohorts in the MFA program, and moving ourselves to a new house.
Or maybe I was just lazy.
That’s sad news for someone who regularly lists her favorite hobby as “reading.”
So now I’m attempting to make amends, although since we’re a third of the way through September, I’m not sure I’ll reach my 2017 goal. And it certainly isn’t for lack of books to read. In fact, as I mentioned, we moved ourselves to a house in a new town. That of course meant packing up our many shelves of books. As we packed, I attempted to organize the books into boxes so that unpacking and placing them on new bookshelves would be an easier categorizing process.
We purchased 5 new bookshelves. A few of them are here on our sunny landing where I also have my work office and an old library table that doubles as my desk.
Then we bought a couple more shelves for our entryway:
And we have shelves in our bedroom. I have one shelf that is now dedicated to my “to reads.” In other words, as I shelved the books from the boxes, I set aside all the books that I’ve been meaning to read for a long time — books that were purchased and then made their way to various nooks and crannies and promptly were forgotten.
Now, this way, I always have my “to reads” right in front of me. Here’s a picture of my shelf.
It’s an eclectic mix of fiction and fantasy and memoir and nonfiction. There are 40 books on the shelf; reading half this shelf will get me to my reading goal.
But more than just meeting a goal, I’m excited to finally get through each of these books. They sit there in all their glory, promising so much.
Right now, I’m reading a book written by one of our Professional Writing graduates — a debut novel that won a prize from Simon & Schuster, was first an ebook, and then was released in paperback. I’m so proud of Chandler and what he has accomplished in his young life as a writer. It’s fantasy, so a new genre to me. I’m diving into The Facefaker’s Game.
After I finish that, then I’m on to another book on my shelf. No more looking around wondering what to read next. No more feeling at a loss. The shelf is there. When I finish one and move it upstairs to the other categorized shelves, I’ll have space to add another that I will inevitably purchase.
Because, no matter how far behind I get, I’ll just keep on reading.
What are you reading right now?
Linda Taylor: Teacher, Editor, Publishing Professional 
I didn’t realize you moved, Linda – I must have missed that news. Best novel I have read in years is The LIght Between Oceans. It was made into a movie but the book is way better.
Ha! Yeah. We slipped to a new place on July 1. Can message you the new address if you need it . . . or if you’re ever down this way. We’re not far from where we were. Haven’t heard of that book! Must check it out!
Currently, I’m reading “Pride & Prejudice” for my Jane Austen class.
For fun, I’m reading an ARC of “Artemis” by Andy Weir. I can’t wait for it to be released, although the first few chapters aren’t as interesting as The Martian, and I’m beginning to get worried.
I feel you on the bookshelves, though. I’m currently a last year graduate student living in a small apartment with a roommate, and I need like three more bookshelves to store all my books on. (They’re currently sitting in boxes or sitting on the floor.) I just keep buying books and I don’t have the space to put them anywhere!
That seems to be a problem for us readers … I tried the library thing once so I wouldn’t buy so many books, but I really love to own the books so I can make notes in them and mark passages for further reflection. I hope you’re enjoying the Jane Austen class! Sounds wonderful! There’s a recent article in The Atlantic magazine called “Jane Austen Is Everything.” Don’t know if you can read it, but here’s the link. https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2017/09/jane-austen-is-everything/534186/
“I can feel your pain.” lol. We have so many books that we had to relegate some of them to boxes in our garage. It’s a lot of bother to go out and fish for them. But when I do, it’s like finding hidden treasure. I truly forget what I had stored away those months ago. So, long live reading! Currently I am into short stories, the inspirational type. They fit into my busy schedule quite well.
I hear you! Long live bookshelves!
Currently reading The Lord of the Flies because I never did before.
I read it a long time ago, hated it, and have been told I need to try again. Let me know what you think.
Question: do you ever just not finish a book? I think I have a short attention span, but if it doesnt grab me pretty quickly, I put it down and eventually give it away or shelve it. I always felt I HAD to finish what I started and that included books. Nowadays I figure life is to short to read bad books!! Lol. (Off subject, I know, but I was just pondering)