Day: June 22, 2008

This week, I read Gilead, Once Upon a Time in the North, The Geography of Bliss, and Anil’s Ghost (review up tomorrow). My review for Best American Travel Writing 2007 also went up.

Today, I am reading William Shakespeare’s Sonnets and I will begin Morrison’s Beloved. I will also start Boris Pasternak’s poetry with My Sister Life and Other Poems.

I have read quite a bit of nonfiction this month, and the transition was noticeable when I finished reading Gilead which is quite literary. I find going from fiction and literature to nonfiction easier than the other way. I wonder why that is, but it is true that there is a marked difference in the style of the writing especially since I will be reading more poetry this week. I always attempt to have a wide variety of prose and poetry in my reading habits. I am quite pleased I have been reading more nonfiction lately.

Actually, June and May have been good reading months. I have been on a downward curve in number of books read since 2004, and I will definitely read more than I did last year. It’s not so much that I am reading faster now, but I have been able to make time for books again. The reading challenges do help. Though I think I will join less challenges in the future. It is becoming harder to predict what I will read and when. Even if I do manage to read more books this year, every year, I become unsure though reading will always be in some way central to my life. My biggest and main hobby in life even if I do manage to read a sliver of what I read years ago.

Have a good week!

Literary Links:

Lit 101 Classics in Three Lines or Less – Brilliant.

Zoomi.com and Zoomi.ca – I don’t personally buy a lot of books online, but this website makes browsing Amazon.com books more fun.

EW’s 100 New Classics: Books – I actually agree with a few of these.