Sunday, February 22, 2015

My Reading Week (or Lack Thereof)



In the heady, book-a-day summertime, I forget the reading dearth I always hit at the end-of-winter-but-not-quite-spring. That's where I am now. A meeting or book club or yoga class every day after school and conferences and tournaments and carnivals and lesson planning every weekend leave little time for free range reading. When you get home at five-thirty every evening and it's already starting to get dark, you just want to eat a little supper and take a bath and go to bed.

All of which is to say that I didn't finish anything last week. I read little bites of Middlemarch and Redwall and Sketch and The Year of Reading Dangerously, but nothing I can write down in my reading log.

My mailbox, on the other hand, was full.

When I saw that I'd managed to accumulate over $250 at Amazon, I decided it was time to break down and start ordering some wish list books. So I did. I ordered fifteen books. So far, I've received Maira Kalman's My Favorite Things and Danny Gregory's new Art Before Breakfast, along with Literary Listography: My Reading Life in Lists and A Kid for Two Farthings and Doodling in French and The Essential Scratch and Sniff Guide to Becoming a Wine Expert.

I haven't broken them open yet (I'm soooo good at saving) but I'm enjoying, for now, just looking at this huge stack of wish list books that are awaiting me.

How was your reading week? Have you read anything I should be reading? Does winter slow down your reading?


What is the Sunday SalonImagine some university library's vast reading room. It's filled with people--students and faculty and strangers who've wandered in. They're seated at great oaken desks, books piled all around them,and they're all feverishly reading and jotting notes in their leather-bound journals as they go. Later they'll mill around the open dictionaries and compare their thoughts on the afternoon's literary intake....That's what happens at the Sunday Salon, except it's all virtual. Every Sunday the bloggers participating in that week's Salon get together--at their separate desks, in their own particular time zones--and read. And blog about their reading. And comment on one another's blogs. Think of it as an informal, weekly, mini read-a-thon, an excuse to put aside one's earthly responsibilities and fall into a good book. Click here to join the Salon.

The Sunday Post is a meme hosted by Kimba at Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It's a chance to share news and recap the past week.


Mailbox Monday was created by Marcia at The Printed Page. We share books that we found in our mailboxes last week. 
 It is now being hosted here.

Stacking the Shelves is a meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews in which you can share the books you've acquired.

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is where we share what we read this past week, what we hope to read this week…. and anything in between!  This is a great way to plan out your reading week and see what others are currently reading as well… you never know where that next “must read” book will come from! I love being a part of this and I hope you do too! As part of this weekly meme Book Journey loves to encourage you all to go and visit the others participating in this meme. 


17 comments:

  1. Actually, spring is what slows down my reading. Dance competition season starts for my daughter, which eats up many entire weekends. One of my son plays tennis and that season starts as well. The third kid is doing a performance choir and when do their competitions start? Why the spring, of course. Somehow it always surprises me that my reading suffers through all of this. It's like I haven't been paying attention for all these years. ;-)

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  2. I can't blame you. Winter wears me out. All I want to do is sleep and I'm not even working. My reading has been only kept up by the amount of time I spend on subways. If I don't go anywhere I don't read!

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  3. I always know I will be adding to my TBR list when I visit your blog. You have such GREAT book suggestions (Doodling in French and Scratch and Sniff to becoming a Wine Expert have really caught my eye this week).

    I know how stressful this time of year can be for educators... but take heart, Spring is just around the corner :)

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  4. Winter does slow down my reading too. Like Marie, all I want to do is sleep, naps, or binge-watch TV.

    At least, you have a good pile of books waiting for you now. :)

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  5. I don't know what's going on, but I've been in a reading funk for most of 2015. There's so many books on my shelves that I know I would enjoy, but I just can't rouse up the energy to read them. Have you read The Olympians series by George O'Connor? I think you'll enjoy them.

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  6. I've been in a bit of a reading slump. This weather, which would normally have me curling up with a good book, is making me feel like I'm in the movie The Shining! I have been reading The Girl on The Train in spurts and have really enjoyed it thus far. Enjoy all those great books!

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  7. Oh. I have the opposite problem. Soon I will be going back to work at my seasonal job. It's part time but I find that what I get done in a week now is so much less than what I was able to squeeze in when I was in a working/parenting/attendingactivities/takingcourses/ . part of my life. I have so much time now -- and sometimes it feels like so much less. That busyness makes you efficient in way I fear I never again will be.

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  8. I seem to read very little during the week and then take it all one ht weekend in one giant gulp. I finished up two novels I had on the go yesterday and read five comics. Done! I'm set til next weekend. lol

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  9. An Amazon spree sounds like fun! I actually read more in the winter because while I still stay up pretty late I hate cold so I tend to stay inside which makes me more likely to read. During the spring and summer we're outside and I'm working on my garden and that kind of thing so I start reading less. Have a great week!

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  10. Summer for me is what slows down my reading, the weather is unbearable for me! I love fall and winter for sure for reading time. It's always the best! And wow, so much fun to go on an Amazon shopping spree! So many books!
    If you haven't already I would definitely recommend The Nightingale. It is the best.

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  11. I have re-read The Mask of Sorcerer by Darrell Schweitzer for the third time and it was a delight. Now I am thinking of reading The Help by Kathryn Stockett; my Mom loved it and I am sure I will, too. After that I will move to The Book Thief if I find enough courage in myself.

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  12. We're enjoying a lovely summer in Sydney which means I find it hard to find reading time. It's too hot to sit on the verandah and our evenings often get taken up with BBQ's and other outings...making the most of the beautiful evenings.

    I read much more in winter as I go to bed earlier to be cosy & warm...winter bedtime reading is one of my favourite things to do :-)

    I see Because of Winn-Dixie on your shelfari - I just read it too - isn't it delightful?

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  13. Summer has been so hot and humid here unless you're in the pool or aircon it's rather hideous. I usually read more in winter when I can snuggle with a good book and a mug of hot chocolate. Your Amazon shopping spree sounds like lots of fun, love how you're enjoying just looking at them ... such restraint, I'd have broken them open for sure lol

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  14. I don't think my reading's particularly impacted by the weather - I mostly read in the bath in the early evening!

    Enjoy your new book haul!!!

    Deb

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  15. This is the season when I need to do more reading. I just checked by review stack and saw 13 releases for April and a similar amount for May. I am pretty tired on weeknights but try to catch up with weekend reading. You can see my week here. Happy reading!

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  16. Winter slows my reading, not because I am too busy but because I'm too set in my habits. I read bed, on the deck, and at breakfast in my local coffee shop. In the warmer months this is great, but especially in a bad winter like this I don't even get out for breakfast. Haven't left my house in 16 days! Reading on the couch just doesn't cut it and going back to bed to read puts me to sleep. Sounds like "mo money, mo problems" to me!

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  17. Yeah January usually starts off great and then by mid-February a reading slump sets in. I need to pick it back up for March. That Amazon credit seems a dream. Enjoy!

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