Since starting a more formalised Reading Plan I decided in 2024 that I was going to introduce quarterly reviews, now life is settling down after the tumultuous events of 2023 (see previous Reflections for details). Naturally when one goes through the gateway periods of life, when nothing is quite the same afterwards, my plans have shifted somewhat. What has not however is the sheer size of the book pile … it does net seem to get any smaller.
The main challenge I face is that I am interested in so many topics and frequently go down extended side journeys, which needs more books to be purchased and thus the pile expands. For some people this might be a source of stress, all these books and realistically I probably will only make another 40 years of life, which at 60 ish books a year gives me 2,400 books. That really isn’t a lot when you take into account that those 60 books will contain a number of re-reads, but that is absolutely fine. Afterall the purpose of a plan is that is should be about quality not quantity.
That is not to say my reading is entirely stress free, because it is not. One major source is the number of books I have being read at any one time, it is currently at 10. Under normal circumstances I will have a few which I am reading at the same time:
Audiobooks: I like to have one audiobook to listen to for when I am travelling or when I want a book before I go to sleep but I am struggling with energy to focus on the written page.
Kindle: One book on the kindle, again primarily for travelling. I have slightly extended this to also include a non-fiction book on the kindle app.
Fiction: One fiction book, usually a classic work of literature and this is a physical book. I tend to read mostly in bed but if I am at home alone then I do like to curl up on the sofa with my current read.
Non-Fiction: I generally prefer these as physical books but occasionally if there is a book on Kindle which I want to read and it is in the sale I may swap to reading on my tablet. I only normally like to have one non-fiction book on the go at a time so I can absorb the information properly.
Sitting slightly outside the above are my year long reads which can be a more dense or long book that I want to read over the course of twelve months or else books designed to be dipped into once a day. I try to have only one long read and one daily inspiration book on the go at a time.
Current reading audit
It does not take a mathematical genius to discover that 10 books does not equal the 6 maximum I have set out above. Hence why a quarterly review turned out to be a very good idea. As you may have gathered from some of my other posts I have been struggling with my health for several months, it’s always a bit tricky to manage, it has been worse than normal of late and not responding to my usual interventions. Which is a very long way of saying I have not had the energy or focus to be able to read like I normally would.
In reviewing these books have I discovered any that I am no longer interested in reading? No, which is the advantage of having a plan because all the books I am reading are meeting one or more of my reading goals. However I have noticed a pattern in my reading, I start a book with enthusiasm but when brain fog descends I stop, I will make several attempts to continue. I will state at this point that I do not have ADHD but when I am in a low energy state there are behaviours which overlap, namely seeking the boost of dopamine by starting a new book. Not helpful in the long term but it is useful to acknowledge these patterns.
So, what does this mean for my reading plan for the next quarter. Firstly, I have identified a number of books which I am keen to dedicate some time to so that I can finish them:
· War & Peace, which is one of my favourite books, but my reading was interrupted when my mother became ill and subsequently died. However, nine months on it is time to get it finished.
· Seneca’s Consolations – these were letters which Seneca wrote on the occasion of bereavement, both his own and to others. Reading these while managing my own grief has been challenging because Seneca definitely comes from the tough love school of consolation, so not perhaps suitable for the first pangs of grief but I am finding it useful.
· How to Read a Book by Charles Van Doren – the reasons for starting this are still very valid and I was learning a great deal, but I need a clearer head, so this one is actually coming off the reading pile and going back on the to-read one instead.
· A medical book which I need to finish before an upcoming appointment, so I don’t get bamboozled by doctors.
That’s the tidy up of what I am currently reading but in terms of my plans going forward I am still focussing on that huge pile of 330 books on my to read pile, even though I cannot resist acquiring new ones all the time … biblioholic remember! I will be continuing to read from the topics I set out when I developed my own Lifetime Reading Plan. If you are interested, I have popped my review on what I read in Q1 and my plans for Q2 at the end of this newsletter.
Acquisitions
My husband and my sister both despair about my increasing book collection. It dawned on my sister, as one of those cheery thoughts which crop up occasionally, that as the youngest of the three of us it is going to fall to her to sort out my books when I die. As for my husband he is always reminding me of the lack of bookshelves, despite hopefully having some new ones built in a few weeks time.
Remember there is no such thing as too many books … only a lack of shelf space!
I am trying to be circumspect in my purchases, focussing on acquiring books because they are part of a series or fill an identified gap in a collection. For example, I am planning on reading one of my collectible editions of Dickins but there are lots I don’t own so if I happen to spot a second-hand copy for sale I will buy that. However, I really do need to curb my Kindle Book Deal addiction, even though I haven’t really purchased much outside my plan it does feel like it might be getting out of hand, and it is not like I don’t have anything to read!
So, until next time, I hope your reading is bringing you comfort, delight, adventures and challenges as much as mine does for me.
Kindest wishes
Rachel
You may also be interested in reading:
Reading Review & Plan
Q1 2024
Overall, I read 14 books but mostly they were gentle reads, reflecting my energy levels for the month.
Fiction
Murder Most Royal – SJ Bennett
Death in Diamonds – SJ Bennett
Elephants Can Remember – Agatha Christie
The Sittaford Mystery – Agatha Christie
A Death in the Parish – Richard Coles
The Light Fantastic – Terry Pratchett
The Last of the Wine – Mary Renault
Barchester Towers – Anthony Trollope
Doctor Thorne – Anthony Trollope
Non-Fiction
Loves Guest – Marc Aronoff
P is for Pilgrim – Stephen Cottrell
The forgotten skill – Marcelo Gameiro
Majesty – Richard Harries
Prayers for the Pilgrimage – W Taylor
All of the Non-Fiction books were advanced reader copies and frankly of varying quality. This is one area I want to dial back on in future.
Plans for Q2 2024
Fiction
Dickens – one novel not previously read, probably David Copperfield
Bronte – Shirley as I have owned it for years and is I think the only Bronte novel I have not read
Kafka – The Castle – my mothers favourite book
Robinson Crusoe – one of those books you think you know but I’ve never read
Trollope – Framley Parsonage – the next Barchester Chronicle
Orlando – Virgina Woolf I have a copy, seen the film but never read the book.
Non-Fiction
How to read a book – I’ll be restarting but I do want to read this one
Beevor – The Second World War – really not a light read so this will be energy dependent
Tom Holland – Dominion to go along side my reading of The Bible
Bilbro – The Liberating Arts. Another ARC but as this is what I am trying to achieve with my reading it has to be on the list.
The Way of the Pilgrim –
Poetry & Plays
John Betjeman poems – I inherited a copy and I don’t think I have ever read it
Keats – I have his complete poems but only know the usual suspects so a chance to expand my horizons
Shakespeare – Henry VI Parts 1,2&3. I will probably look to find an audio production and read along with it, or see if there is a production available to watch online (ideally Globe with Mark Rylance)
BTW I have read Jane Eyre and have a beautiful edition with a matching copy of Wuthering Heights
Your reading lists is formidable compared to mine. I do read a lot and occasionally 2 at the same time, usually one fiction and one nonfiction. Most of my reading involves current fiction of a wide variety; presently The Circle by Maggie Shipstead, Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange, The Women by Kristin Hannah, The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride, The Running Grave by Robert Galbraith, Horse by Geraldine Brooks, When All Is Said by Anne Grifin, The Invisible Life of Addie Laurie by V.E. Schwab.
Books read twice; War and Peace, The Goldfinch and Prince of Tides.