Deciding what to read

[numom499]

anyone else have this problem? I have about 200 books on my "to-read" list.

Every time I come to this forum, I add at least 5 more. I read about 2 books per week. But still, I am afraid I am never going to get through all the books I want to read in my lifetime

How do you decide what to read?

I have started alternating beteween fiction adn non-fiction (I tend to read a ton of novels even though there are a bunch of non-fiction books I want to get to as well).

Do you ever get annoyed that you "wasted" time reading a book that was not interesting, etc?

[artgoddess]

Originally Posted by numom499

Do you ever get annoyed that you "wasted" time reading a book that was not interesting, etc?

Oh I know exactly what you mean, and I hate that. I was recommended a book by Michael Savage, not only was that book a waste of time, anything that man prints is a waste of paper.

[numom499]

Originally Posted by artgoddess

Oh I know exactly what you mean, and I hate that. I was recommended a book by Michael Savage, not only was that book a waste of time, anything that man prints is a waste of paper.

sometimes I feel the same way about certain peoples posts right here on mdc...

[numom499]

but really, I think Michael savage has a lot of really interesting thoughts.

[numom499]

Originally Posted by artgoddess

Oh I know exactly what you mean, and I hate that. I was recommended a book by Michael Savage, not only was that book a waste of time, anything that man prints is a waste of paper.

oh, and btw, I'm flattered that you have nothing better to do that read all my posts and follow me around from thread to thread

[artgoddess]

:

[calicokatt]

oh, and btw, I'm flattered that you have nothing better to do that read all my posts and follow me around from thread to thread

I am quite impressed with your ability to snark, yet remain within the boundaries of the user agreement!

[fullofgrace]

Originally Posted by numom499

How do you decide what to read?

I decide which books to read based on the reviews for them made by the posters who recommended them. I read the reviews made here much like the ones I read at Amazon and other sites like that. I look at their recommended reading list and read their reviews/posts to see if their viewpoint is at least similar to my own gentle, open-minded, open-hearted, AP/NFL one.

Originally Posted by numom499

Do you ever get annoyed that you "wasted" time reading a book that was not interesting, etc?

Using a poster's past posts as a guideline has yet to steer me wrong, and I've been blessed to have been pointed to some fabulous books on such topics as Special Needs, Parenting, and Spirituality by various members here. I haven't been sorry to have either purchased or borrowed a book yet!

[zaftigmama]

Originally Posted by calicokatt

I am quite impressed with your ability to snark, yet remain within the boundaries of the user agreement!

Ok, that's the funniest thing I've read today!

That is the funniest thing I've read today.

Back to the topic at hand - I find personal recommendations enormously helpful. My librarian at school and at the public library I go to are both extremely knowledgable and often have great suggestions.

There are simply too many books out there. Even though I tend to read quickly and read a lot, my list of books I want to read grows longer than the list of books I have read.

I really want to read History of Love by Nicole Krauss. Many people have told me it's great and that's always a good sign. Then again, many people told me Time Traveler's Wife was great and I hated that. We'll see!

[cathe]

About the wasting time reading an uninteresting book - I too have so many books I want to read and just not enough time to read them all so if a book doesn't grab me in 1 chapter - I stop and move on to another. Usually I can tell within a couple of pages if I will like the book and the writing.

[snozzberry]

Lately, I've been trying to give myself permission to not finish a book that doesn't grab me in the first few chapters, but it's hard. I can count on one hand the books I've started and not finished!

But I've amassed about 500 books in my house that I haven't read yet, and that's a serious problem because 1) I'm reading just 1 book a week if I'm lucky, and 2) for some reason I'm accepting loans from other people, which doesn't help make progress on the original backlog. But I'm trying to say no more often to that...we'll see.

(And lest you frugal mamas balk at my 500 books, rest assured that I've accumulated them over several years and mostly from library sales!)

As for what to read, I've started a spreadsheet of my to-read list. I track the title and author, the date I added it to my list, who recommended it (someone in MDC forums, Nancy Pearl the librarian, national awards, etc), and finally what my intial spark of interest was in the book. Is it about Mothering-style parenting? Does it have a strong female character? Then when I'm in the mood to read something in particular, I can search my spreadsheet.

There are just so many good books out there I want to read! How do you guys fit in the time to read so much, anyway? I've been trying for 1 a week this year, and it's kind of hit or miss. If I'm lucky, I can sneak in reading at lunch a couple days during the week and then here and there on the weekend. Do you guys just not own TVs at all?

[cathe]

I think no TV does help - I read a couple of hours most nights after kids go to bed.

[zaftigmama]

I have trouble not finishing a book. Once I start, I usually push myself to fininsh it, unless I just absolutely hate it. I always, always read at least 100 pages.

I think I'd like to start to give myself permission more often to not finish evey book I start.

Take care,

[fullofgrace]

Originally Posted by cathe

I read a couple of hours most nights after kids go to bed.

Me, too! It's my quiet time to wind-down at the end of the day and relax me so I'm better able to fall asleep. But then, like zaftigmama, I tend to stay up to 'just read a few pages more'.

[fremontmama]

Originally Posted by cathe

About the wasting time reading an uninteresting book - I too have so many books I want to read and just not enough time to read them all so if a book doesn't grab me in 1 chapter - I stop and move on to another. Usually I can tell within a couple of pages if I will like the book and the writing.

Yeah that!

I always give a book a chance, but if after 50 pages I am not enjoying it or if I dont care about how it turns out, I stop. Life is too short and there are too many good books to waste time reading a book that I am not enjoying.

As far as deciding what I am going to read, it's a pretty organic process for me. I take recommendations from friends and family, eagerly look forward to new books from authors I like, search for non-fiction in any topic that interests me, write down any book that crosses my path that looks interesting. Then I keep a list in my palm pilot of all the books I want to read and slowly but surely I read them.

[Petersmamma]

You get through 2 a week!!?? I'm just jealous! How do you find the time?