So when I was picking the books for Bout of Books today (and in my mind earlier this week), I faced this problem again - I don't really have any slim books... Most of the books I own are either classics or fantasy/sci-fi, and they do tend to come in rather voluminous sizes. Even my Women's Prize selections are all around 450 pages! *grumble* And here I was, thinking, for the reading event as such I'd try to pick slimmer volumes.
But anyway, one has to do with what one has at hand, and I've put together *drum roll* the Bookpile for the Readathon. It's not my goal to read all those books, but rather it's the books to choose from, and even if I feel reading/starting a different book every day, it's perfectly fine! (No pressure.)
* Ray Bradbury "Something Wicked This Way Comes" - is from my Classics Club list and one of the shorter books I could find from my shelves.
* Robin Hobb "Ship of Magic" - I came to realisation that if I visited for my blog for the first time right now, there would be no way of saying I actually love fantasy literature... And I miss reading it. So I am not hoping to finish this one (unless it is highly addictive), but at least to make a good start into it.
* Gabriel García Márquez "One Hundred Years of Solitude" (in Estonian - obviously) - I just tossed it in for a good measure to basically be reminded of those Classics Club books I should read more of, plus since I was kind of disappointed with the latest Murakami, I am craving for some magical realism. (It's a re-read.)
* Arthur Conan Doyle "The Hound of the Baskervilles" - this actually counts as a slim volume, since I am not reading the Complete Sherlock Holmes at once, and have been quite up to date with my Baskervilles-readalong so far. I think I will finish it off during the next week.
* Barbara Kingsolver "Flight Behavior" - I started this one yesterday, after yet another failed attempt to get into "A Tale of Two Cities" (I think I'll give up on this one for now and try it again later - I really want to enjoy it and not just force myself to plow through for the sake of it...). I am beginning to see a pattern here - all the slumps can be remedied by Women's Prize books... Not sure I like that trend that much to be honest, but whatever keeps me reading (as long as it's not Dan Brown or 50 Shades :) *)
So this is 3 classics, one fantasy and one Women's Prize book, which seems about the kind of balance that I was looking for. (For now, let's not try to think of the books I ordered that will arrive some time in the beginning of the next week...)
Other goals for the readathon (slightly modified from this post):
* Finish at least two books - with the selection of the books I have, and if I count "The Hound of the Baskervilles" as a separate book, this is perfectly doable. I expect to also finish Bradbury and Kingsolver.
* Read at least two hours a day - like, one hour before bed, and then throughout the day. I have things coming up like seeing a friend, my weekly Finnish class, THE JOB, but if I manage to be dedicated, I predict to get a lot of reading done.
* Visit at least five blogs of the other participants a day - and by that I mean not the blogs of the girls I visit regularly anyway (like Sam, Ellie and Sarah), but new ones. Bookmark those that I would like to examine more thoroughly after the readathon.
* Regular daily updates - boring tidbits like page count, how many books read, did my cats like the books I am currently reading (they measure the likeness by the cover - is it good to rub against or not :p), etc. + an occasional tweet or two (@Rivorniel).
Less than a day left now!
* Edit: Just to put it out there - I have no other problems with Dan Brown and E.L. James other than they are just not for me. I read mainly for the pleasure of the beauty of the word, and in that department I find them both lacking, for my taste. (I always thought Dan Brown would probably make a lot better movie industry person than an author :) )
That is nice looking stack of books! Something Wicked This Way Comes and Hound of the Baskervilles are two of my favorites. I still have not read One Hundred Years of Solitude. *hangs head in shame*
ReplyDeleteHappy Reading!
Thank you! To be honest I did not enjoy One Hundred years that much first time around (mainly what I remember was that every second character was called Aureliano and that was CONFUSING :D), but then again I was very young, and I expect to have more mature view on that book this time around :)
DeleteYayyyy Bout of Books piles!!!! I haven't started my post tomorrow, cause apparently I procrastinate like that. I think your goals are really good though! I usually aim to read around 2 books as well, and I pick a page goal to aim towards.
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to see what you think of that Bradbury book - I'm kind of in the mood for more Bradbury since reading The Martian Chronicles a while ago.
I actually started this Bradbury a while back (last autumn), but somehow didn't get into it. Although the premise - carnival - is very interesting (it was more to do with mental state and overall lack of concentration). I'll give it a go the next thing once I finish Flight Behavior.
DeleteAnd I really have to buy the Martian Chronicles, I lent my copy out to someone long time ago and never got it back :( Shouldn't maybe lend out your favourite books like that.
Hello! I'd be curious to see what you think of the Robin Hobb. I remember reading the Assassin books, the Liveship trilogy and the Tawny Man trilogy all in one summer about 6 years ago. I seem to remember zipping through them quite quickly, though the Liveship books were my least favourite. Have you read the Assassin books?
ReplyDeleteGood luck for Bout of Books. I'm aiming for about 2 or 3 hours of reading each day, with only 3 books on my to-read list, though they are subject to change.
Hello Katie! Awful nice to meet another Robin Hobb reader :) I have read the Farseer trilogy indeed and although at first Hobb's style felt a bit too soap-opera'ish for me, I got well into the books by the end of the last book. I actually wanted to get the Tawny Man trilogy, but the boyfriend pointed out that Liveship is in between there somewhere, so I figured I give that a go before. I really, really liked and was puzzled by the character of Fool in the Assassin books, and I was so hoping to read more about him?/her? (see what I mean :D) in future books.
DeleteI can kind of see how the Liveship series will not become my favourite either since I am not that attracted to all the ship and sea business in general, but I am totally ready to be pleasantly surprised and converted.
Yes, 2-3 hours is a good time for me too (maybe I'll manage to increase that a bit during the weekend). I'll go check out your books now, and hope you will have fun reading this week :)
I read Hobb's Farseer Trilogy and the Tawny Man Trilogy and somehow completely missed the Liveship one. I really need to go back to that at some point.
ReplyDeleteHave fun!
Hey Rob, I think (though I am not sure) that these are perfectly readable separately and independently. What did you think of the Farseer and the Tawny Man books? I am just hoping that the following trilogies manage to be as captivating as the first one :)
DeleteSo you don't give yourself an easy time...they are some mighty fine chunksters. I'm really interested to see what you think of Flight Behaviour. It's one I don't much fancy mostly because Barbara Kingsolver intimidates me a bit, oddly.
ReplyDeleteIt's happening tomorrow! I'm looking forward to any posts you do write and to some twitter chats. Have a gooden! :)
Thanks Ellie! What'cha gonna do, I love my chunksters... most of the time :) And no say - I was intimidated by Kingsolver as well (to think of it, for no adequate reason). But, although Flight Behavior will not be a life-changing experience for me, already I know there was no reason to be scared. Her writing is very accessible and she has these little humorous remarks here and there, plus the theme of environmental issues is something really new for me to read, so I am enjoying it (half way through already).
DeleteAnyway, compared to Hilary Mantel, Kingsolver is really harmless. Now there's a lady that can make my head spin with her text :)
I just bought my first Robin Hobb book recently, Assassin's Apprentice. I'm quite new to fantasy & hoping I will enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping to bookmark some great new blogs too, we'll have to share notes :)
I'll definitely point out any awesome new blogs I find :) And I think Hobb is actually a good starting point for fantasy. She really isn't too pretentious, there is plenty going on, she has some unique viewpoints to "your regular neighbourhood" fantasy creaters... Maybe it's not exactly earth-shattering that she writes, but there is definitely a certain charm to it. (Another reason I read her is that most of the fantasy I read/have read is written by males, so having a bit of a feminine touch there has really opened my eyes a bit more :) )
DeleteI really hope you enjoy the Assassin books, first one might be the slimmest but for me, the longer it went on, the better it got, so although the third one is the biggest, it took me less time to read it :)
That bit about your cats made me chuckle...they're funny little creatures aren't they?
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely :D If you head to bed with a book, one of them always comes and attempts to lie down on the book so that you would be totally incapable to see anything (while purring loudly, of course). I don't think they have a good idea what books are about, except that they make good mattresses :)
DeleteThe Ship of Magic one looks good. I love fantasy too, and I get cravings for it sometimes. I'll be interested to see if you end up liking it.
ReplyDeleteIt's been what feels so long since I last read proper fantasy book (I think it was the latest Martin earlier this year), that I am even a bit hesitant to dig in to these different worlds, but hopefully I will adjust fast :)
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