It was impulsive: about a week from the end of June, I decided that I was tired of seeing the same old books on my stack, and something had to be done.
Oh, poor things. It wasn’t their fault. “It’s not you, it’s me.” I said.
But I realized, even as I said it, that nobody ever really believes that line.
So I had to prove it. And, it actually was me, not them, after all.
Both Kristin Lavransdatter and A Game of Thrones were wholly enjoyable. And my reading stack weighed only a fraction of what it had before, when I finished these two.
And, then I got carried away and finished Lawrence Hill’s A Book of Negroes, which I had started only in mid-June, but I thought I would try this whole one-book-at-a-time thing that so many readers swear by.
Turns out that I like it, with some adjustments.
Meaning, that I always have a book of poetry, a book of short stories, and a book of non-fiction also on the go.
Wait a minute, I hear someone saying: that’s not one-book-at-a-time. And maybe that’s true: but it’s as close as I get.
And, at least in mid-summer, when the humidity has been so atrocious, that suits me well.
Highlights for July?
* Finally squeezed my affection for Carrie Snyder’s The Juliet Stories into a Spelling-It-Out post
* The High Summer read-a-thon, hosted by Michelle, which kept my nose in the books more evenings than I seem to manage when the heat is intense
* My belated celebration of Dutch Lit Month, hosted by Iris, which was a full weekend at the end of the read-a-thon with four books in total
* Lyanda Lynn Haupt’s Crow Planet, which changed the way that I walk in my neighbourhood
* Only 46 magazines still on my reading pile (there were about 70 when I started my catch-up project)
* Another Orange Prize nominee, Aifric Campbell’s On the Floor, for Orange July
And in August?
* More Alice Munro, currently The Moons of Jupiter, next The Progress of Love
* George Elliott Clarke’s George and Rue, a novelistic exploration of the events that he wrote about previously in Execution Poems: The Black Acadian Tragedy of ‘George and Rue’
* catching up on the books in my library stack that I’ve already borrowed once before and still haven’t read (why do I do this?)
What about you? How was your July?
What are you looking forward to in August?
Zibilee – July was definitely better reading for me than June. Here’s hoping you’ve had a more book-filled August than I!
Iris – It’s hard to cram when you know your reading time is going to be more limited in the future. Suddenly all the books feel that you must read them RIGHT NOW!
Jessica – Sounds like we have similar reading styles, for now, anyway. Though I suspect I’ll be adding more fiction to my stacks as prize season takes hold this autumn…
Well done on bringing your tbr pile down. I used to only have one book on the go at a time, but have now found I read best with a selection. I still only have one novel on the go because otherwise I tend to loose the thread of the story but alongside that I will also have a poetry collection and a non-fiction work usually. Working well for me so far 🙂
My July was pretty good. I even got to finish most of my planned reading. My reading for August is looking chaotic though, because I want to read too much before I start work in September.
My July was pretty good, with me finishing about 6 to 8 books, whereas the month before, I only finished 2 or 3. I am hoping for the trend to continue and for me to get lots more read in the upcoming month. Hopefully that works out for both of us!