October Book Project Report
Hey, it’s November! That means it’s time for National Blog Posting Month (hereafter NaBloPoMo) again. And, as usual, I am participating. Not much will be different around here, since I update every day (and have been doing so for almost three years), but I’m hoping to see a few new faces in the comments. And, for NaBloPoMo’ers visiting the site, I hope you enjoy poking around, and please pop into the comments and say hello! Since there are new readers, before I plunge into the October Book Project Report, I thought that I should explain what the Book Project is. Old hands can skip the next paragraph.
In 2008, I’m writing about every single book I read, and keeping statistics on my reading habits. I was curious to know what I was reading, and how much I was reading, and that’s why I started the Book Project. As an aside, I’ve also pledged to read everything recommended/sent by readers, within their power, and I have been introduced to a lot of great books that way. (And some not-so-great ones.) So, now you know. This site isn’t just about politics (although you might think so from what’s on the front page right now…I actually don’t talk about politics that much the rest of the time, I swear).
We’re on the home stretch of the year, and the Book Project. And, I have to say, as much as I am loving the Book Project, I am also ready for it to be over. It’s hard to write about every book I read. Sometimes, I honestly don’t have that much to say about a book. So I have to cast about for something to say, and I note a lot of repeat phrases (”crisp writing” “interesting” and so on) in my book reviews.
That said, October was a pretty prolific month, reading-wise. I read 44 books, almost one and a half a day, and 15,352 pages (495/day). I still haven’t beaten the July record of 46 books, but it was a fairly solid month. I note that I read a lot of young adult/teen fiction, along with a number of apocalypse related books, which I thought was an interesting pattern.
The best book I read, I think, was The Cure for Death by Lightning, recommended by Lara. I also read some really crappy books. Some of which were highly recommended. I loved re-reading And the Band Played On, a great history of the early years of the AIDS crisis, and Slouching Towards Bethlehem. Another piece of new fiction, The Brief History of the Dead, something I randomly pulled off the shelf, turned out to be pretty good too.
Alas, my library holds are taking forever again for no apparent reason, so I don’t have a nice stack of new books to read through this wet weather. Looks like a weekend of re-reading is in store.
Tags: book project